Stop the Violence Movement

The Stop the Violence Movement was begun by rapper KRS-One in 1989 in response to violence in the hip hop and African American communities.

In 1988, during a concert by Boogie Down Productions and Public Enemy, a young fan was killed in a fight. The killing occurred shortly after Scott La Rock, a friend of KRS-One, was killed in a shooting. KRS-One responded to these tragedies by forming the Stop the Violence Movement, to advance a vision of hip hop that would restore hip hop’s “original principles” to the music industry. Composed of some of the biggest stars in contemporary East Coast hip hop, the movement released a single, “Self Destruction”, in 1989, with all proceeds going to the National Urban League…