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LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION commemorating the 30th Anniversary of Video Music
Box and honoring its founder Ralph McDaniels

WHEREAS,  It  is  the  sense  of  this Legislative Body to recognize and
commend those musical organizations that have brought entertainment  and
cultural enrichment to the citizens of the great State of New York; and
  WHEREAS,  Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its long-
standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly  proud  to  commem-
orate  the  30th Anniversary of Video Music Box and to honor its founder
Ralph McDaniels; and
  WHEREAS, Before MTV paid any attention to hip-hop or BET even existed,
there was Video Music Box, one of television's first  programs  to  ever
feature hip-hop videos primarily; and
  WHEREAS,  Founded in 1983, Video Music Box premiered videos from vari-
ous hip-hop acts that would not get airplay elsewhere and was  responsi-
ble  for  breaking  many new artists during its run; Uncle Ralph will be
honored by dozens of performers, including Homeboy Sandman, Children  of
the Night, and Eric Sosa; and
  WHEREAS,  Broadcast  on public television in New York, Video Music Box
was the brainchild of visionary Ralph McDaniels; and
  WHEREAS, Ralph McDaniels, a native of Brooklyn, New York, is a hip-hop
culture pioneer, entrepreneur, and visionary  who  created  Video  Music
Box,  the first music video show focused exclusively to an urban market-
broadcast on public television; and
  WHEREAS, Growing up in  both  Brooklyn  and  Queens,  Ralph  McDaniels
aspired  to  be a DJ; he attended New York Institute of Technology where
he studied Communications-TV-Film and graduated in 1982; and
  WHEREAS, It was at this time that Ralph McDaniels started noticing  an
alarming  array  of talented hip-hop artists continuously being rejected
and suppressed by mainstream media, and he wanted to  give  those  over-
looked  artists  a  platform  where  they  could  be acknowledged by the
consumers who craved them; and
  WHEREAS, Widely recognized by  the  music  industry  as  the  original
tastemaker of the streets, Ralph McDaniels became more commonly known as
Uncle  Ralph  in 1995 when Kool DJ Red Alert started calling him that on
his radio show; and
  WHEREAS, Ralph McDaniels is president of Uncle Ralph  Productions,  an
on-air  radio personality at New York's WQHT and is one of the executive
producers of The Bridge, which he also hosts; he is also a  co-owner  of
Onfumes.com; and
  WHEREAS,  Ralph McDaniels' influence in hip-hop culture stems from the
astounding success of his 20-year hip-hop music show and spans  over  25
years  through  the  millions  of  viewers, fans, and consumers who have
supported him throughout his endeavors in  radio,  television,  and  the
fashion industry; and
  WHEREAS,  Recognizing  a need to keep up with today's technology and a
sense of responsibility to his audience, Ralph McDaniels  developed  the
Video Music Box archives and offered MTV and VH1 access to feature music
programming from his vast library of over 20,000 hours of video; and
  WHEREAS,  In  2006,  Ralph  McDaniels  was approached with the idea to
create an online version of his groundbreaking show; two years later, he
along with a business partner officially launched Onfumes.com, an inter-
active video hosting/on-demand Web site  where  registered  users  could
have  unlimited  access to McDaniel's archived collection of hip-hop and
R&B videos, never-seen-before interviews, behind-the-scenes footage, and
access to up-and-coming urban artists and filmmakers; and

  WHEREAS, The arts, in whatever form depicted,  are  central  to  human
expression;  they  are truly a universal language and their contribution
to the development of friendship and  understanding  among  all  peoples
cannot be underestimated; now, therefore, be it
  RESOLVED,  That  this  Legislative  Body pause in its deliberations to
commemorate the 30th Anniversary of Video Music Box  and  to  honor  its
founder Ralph McDaniels; and be it further
  RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to Ralph McDaniels.