Sharpton helps spark heated hip-hop debate

Sharpton helps spark heated hip-hop debate By DAVID HINCKLEY

Sharp words flew Saturday when the Rev. Al Sharpton called a "town hall meeting" to let the music biz, the radio biz and the community discuss violence and hip hop. "There was some heat," reported James Mtume of WRKS ( 98.7 FM). "But that was good. You need heat to generate solutions - to do something, instead of just talking about it."

Sharpton said a critical goal of the session, held at the Manhattan Sheraton, was to hear from regular folks who often feel the music industry pays little attention to their concerns. Many of the several hundred in attendance said that's exactly how they feel, and demanded artists, radio and the industry clean up their acts. The gathering also sparked a war of words on the radio yesterday morning between hip-hop radio rivals WQHT (97.1 FM) and WWPR (105.1 FM). Sharpton, a frequent guest on each station, invited both to this gathering: assistant program director E-Bro and afternoon host Angie Martinez from WQHT and morning host Star from WWPR.

Sharpton recently called for a 90-day radio and TV ban on artists who promote violence, and since Hot-97 has been the focus of recent discussion on that subject, many at Hot took Sharpton's comments as more aimed at them. But it was E-Bro and Martinez who showed up Saturday, while Star did not. Star said on the air yesterday he was detained by police in Pennsylvania.

Morning host Miss Jones of WQHT suggested otherwise, though she didn't mention him by name. "Some people talk a lot, jump on the soap box, then don't show up," she said. "Scared." Both Miss Jones and E-Bro also expressed annoyance with Sharpton. "We've supported every cockamamie scheme of his over the years," she said on the air yesterday. "Now he's putting all this on Hot-97. It's not one station's fault for everything. We don't tell artists if they're going to [shoot someone], do it in front of Hot-97."

E-Bro called Saturday's meeting "a publicity stunt," though he added, "The Rev. Al is the Rev. Al." E-Bro also noted Star's absence, not using his name, but saying, "He didn't show up because he didn't want to see me." In Star's absence, Sharpton invited fellow morning show member "Crossover Negro Reese" Hopkins onto the panel. Hopkins said yesterday that things got heated and noted that at one point Sharpton said he would escort people out if they felt it was necessary for their safety.

Hopkins praised Sharpton, however, for holding the meeting and said the audience "kept everyone focused." Star said he heard "someone from the sloppy station," an apparent reference to Martinez, "said she had no solution, she was just there to listen. If you got no solutions, why go? If you got no solution, you're part of the problem. Stay home." Sharpton plans another town hall meeting in three weeks.