The Sequence

The Sequence

Through this exhibition we are honored to celebrate The Sequence, the first all-female act to release a hip hop project on vinyl. As this exhibition details, The Sequence emerged at a pivotal moment—when hip hop was moving from local spaces into recorded sound, commercial distribution, and permanent cultural memory. In that transition, the question was not only what hip hop would sound like, but who would be documented as its creators. In 1979, Angie B. (Angela Brown, later known as Angie Stone), Blondy (Gwendolyn Chisolm), and Cheryl the Pearl (Cheryl Cook) released “Funk You Up,” one of the first commercially successful hip hop recordings in history. Portions of the text featured in this exhibition are drawn from Chisolm’s unreleased memoir and final interviews. Through the voices of its members, the museum is proud to preserve and share the legacy of The Sequence.