How It All Started

"It started with me in the 9th grade..."

On March 15-16, 2013, an acquisition team that included hip hop scholars, archivists, technologists, DJs, and photographers met at the home of Michael Webster, a pioneering DJ of Atlanta's burgeoning Hip Hop scene in the early '80s and '90s. 

Led by hip hop scholar and anthropologist Dr. Joycelyn Wilson, the team's goal was to acquire, preserve, and begin restoring Webster's collection of vinyl, original autographs, and hip hop ephemera for educational and pedagogical purposes.

The Michael Webster Collection was placed in the care of the Four Four Beat Labs' HipHop2020 Innovation Archive, which at the time was in the School of Education at Virginia Tech. It is currently located in the School of LMC in the Ivan Allen College at Georgia Tech.