Performing Artist at HellaBlack Vol. 8: Genesis

I go by the name $hmoney, I am a freestyle dancer-meaning I practice and study lineages of Black vernacular dance such as Hip Hop, House, and Popping so that I may (re)create spontaneous, free movement. Through my art I create variations from the 5 foundational elements of Hip Hop (DJ, MC, Graffiti, Breaking, and Knowledge).

$hmoney is a 2D character I created on paper hoping to transcend an anti-Black reality, and they come to life through my dance. $hmoney can be described as Grimy Fresh, creatively exploding through the city, born in NYC but landing in Boston–$hmoney is an abundantly careful and loving deviant who thrives in the break and deep pockets. I am an interdisciplinary artist weaving together various forms of art making for my purpose of storytelling.

My visual art, poetry, and dance all inform each other, underwritten with the same essence of Hip Hop and aspiring towards free living first dreamt by my ancestors, carried forward by myself and peers. My art is surrealist, comical, and social–my way of projecting my hopes onto literal space.