MC Hammer was a music pioneer, and one of the first hip-hop stars to successfully fuse breathtaking dance moves with rap. Now he’s being honored by UCLA for his vast social media influence.
Stanley Kirk Burrell, 48, will receive the first Gravity Summit Social Media Marketer of the Year Award at the University of California-Los Angeles on Feb. 22.
Many people still don’t realize that Hammer has accrued quite an impressive social media following, boasting a Twitter following of over 2 million people.
“The Gravity Summit Excellence in Social Media Marketing awards are designed to highlight innovators in this important new communications platform,” says Beverly Macy, CEO of Gravity Summit. “We are delighted Hammer has agreed to appear at the event and accept the Social Media Marketer of the Year Award. We’re equally delighted that Jeremy Blacklow, a leader in this new field in his own right, will be on hand to add his remarks to the event and present MC Hammer with the award.
Evidence of Hammer’s social media prowess was revealed when Jay-Z used Hammer as a national punch line on Kanye West’s “So Appalled” joint earlier this year. Hammer came back with “Better Run, Run.” Hammer was able to let his fans know without the help of traditional media that he bucked back at Hov’s disrespect.
Hammer credits his success to his Bay Area upbringing, having been born and bred in Oakland, Calif., which is in proximity to Silicon Valley and the technology explosion. Silicon Valley is considered the epicenter of the world’s most influential social media platforms, and he says it inspired him over the years by giving him an early jump on the Internet, social media platforms and techniques like using streaming video to spread his messages all over the world. –terry shropshire
