WSU’s Student Entertainment Board will honor Black History Month today by hosting a Hip-Hop Arts Festival. The festival will showcase the talent of both WSU students and visiting performers.

Ali Ruther, director of SEB’s Up All Night Committee, is one of the people in charge of organizing the event. She said this is SEB’s second Hip-Hop Arts Festival, and that last year’s festival was such a hit that she knew they had to bring it back.

“The inspiration came from our adviser,” Ruther said. “She had been wanting to do this event for a while.”

She explained that some of the art pieces were donated by a company called National Event Pros. Ruther said that as her adviser scrolled through the company’s website, she found inspiration for a DJ battle, which will occur at this year’s festival.

Ruther said the festival will feature a performance from WSU’s Black Student Union, three spoken word artists and two breakdancing groups.

One of those dance groups, named Crimson Couture, consists of WSU students. The other is a visiting breakdance crew named Fraggle Rock, a competitive group based in Seattle.

“They do competitions and they battle often,” Ruther said of Fraggle Rock. “They also are interested in teaching people how to scratch, which is a type of dance.”

The Hip-Hop Arts Festival will take place from 8 – 11 p.m. Friday in the CUB Senior Ballroom. Admission is free.