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Rick Chyme breaks freestyle record @ ArtPrize

Photo by John Boros

Here in Grand Rapids, MI, we have a thing called ArtPrize, which is, as described on the events official website,

For 19 days, three square miles of downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan, become an open playing field where anyone can find a voice in the conversation about what is art and why it matters. Art from around the world pops up in every inch of downtown, and it’s all free and open to the public.

One of this years participants is southwest Michigan rapper Rick Chyme, whose exhibition, “The Art of Freestyle”, broke the previous longest freestyle record by performing for 17 hours straight yesterday!

Rapping from 8 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. from various locations around the city, reporter John Serba described one of the scenes as such:

A member of his traveling entourage carried a boombox playing beats to accompany his raps. This was roughly seven hours into his endurance test. He carried a mug of water in one hand, and a cup of coffee in the other. He interacted with children and onlookers, commenting on their clothes or appearances. He rapped about anything that came to mind, including how he was starting to feel a bit weary. But he soldiered on. According to the rules, Chyme can only pause for three seconds at a time. He was followed by several handlers, including photographers and videographers, documenting his record attempt. What happens if he has to go to the bathroom? “I go in there with him,” laughed one of his videographers. “That’s the first question everybody asks me.”

Witness for yourself the chaos of the final two minutes of exhibit, which took place at the Pyramid Scheme:

To promote his entry, Chyme has also released an album titled 5iveit ArtPrize Music Package for free download.



Congrats, Rick!

Yours Truly,

Garret Schuelke