City Gardens: Trenton's Lost Punk Rock Mecca

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The building seemed to sag against the Trenton sky, its walls leaning in a way that looked both tired and dangerous. I was driving, searching for a lunch spot after a morning spent exploring the city's industrial skeletons, when I saw it. A questionable choice, maybe, but curiosity is a powerful guide. I pulled over. Getting inside was one of the sketchiest entrances I’ve ever attempted. But once my feet were on the dusty floor, the danger faded. An enormous space stretched before me. It was sparse, cleaned out. My footsteps echoed where a stage once stood, a fact I’d later confirm in a NNKH YouTube video about the building’s past life as an underground punk club. The video showed a vibrant scene, an electric place. But the ghosts of that life were mostly gone. The long, rounded bar, where thousands of hands must have slapped down crumpled bills, had vanished. The dust-coated wine and shot glasses that once lined its shelves were gone, too. The club’s glittering crown jewel, a l...
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25th Anniversary of Notorious B.I.G.

 







Two weeks ago we remember the passing of Brooklyn's Notorious B.I.G. I took a tour of the murals dedicated to the rap artist synonymous with East Coast hip hop/rap culture. On March 9, 1997, Biggie Smalls was murdered in yet a still-unsolved case at the young age of 24. Six months after his rival in the rap game Tupac Shakur met a similar fate. March 9 marks the 25 anniversary of his untimely death.

The "King of New York" mural was nearly destroyed in 2017 when the landlord of the two-story building wanted to renovate it but local community members and even the Mayor's office banded together to prevent the destruction. The mural was created in 2015 by Naoufal “Rocko” Alaoui and Scott "Zimer" Zimmerman.







In addition, I strolled up to the very steps Christopher Wallace would have walked back and forth from. The building housed the apartment he grew up in. Just down the block is another mural on the side of a barbershop and a new mural on the corner pharmacy.








Also found in Bushwick Brooklyn the Biggie Smalls mural by Danielle Mastrion is outfitted with the iconic colorful sweater and dark shade fit.







Finally, I could not capture the anniversary murals located on the rolled-down gates of Fine Care Pharmacy located on Fulton Street. However, across the street, there is the black and white mural on the Respect For Life Beauty World barbershop.




Sources:



1. Walker, Ameena, "The Notorious B.I.G. mural in Bed-Stuy won't come down after all", May 23, 2017, NY Curbed

2. Alexandrauzik, "Street Art Candy: The Notorious B.I.G. by Danielle Mastrion", November 11, 2013, BushwickDaily

3. Quinn, Anna, "See: New Biggie Smalls Murals Unveiled in Brooklyn", March 10, 2022, Patch

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