Hip Hop Harry

***Hip Hop Harry*** is an American children's television series created by Claude Brooks and Gelila Ashes. It aired on Discovery Kids and TLC as a part of the Ready Set Learn block from 2006 to 2008 as an E/I compliant program. It uses age-appropriate hip hop music and dance to teach social, educational, physical and creative skills.

## Synopsis

The show takes place in a learning/play center house known as "Hip Hop Central", where Hip Hop Harry and his kids learn, play and dance. In between, the kids learn about the main topic of the episode. After they have learned the topic, they sing and rap the song "I Love to Learn". Then, the kids and Hip Hop discuss what they learned via questions/answers and watching recaps from the day's episode via push-button monitor. Each episode ends with the "Hip Hop Harry Dance Circle", where the kids circle up while one of them dances in the center as they shout, "Go! Go! Go! Go! Go!". Even Harry dances in the circle (thus, the kids shout, "Go, Harry!"). But before the dance, they do a warm-up dance called "The Harry". After the kids come together in the middle, the credits roll.

## Physical appearance

Hip Hop Harry is an anthropomorphic rapping yellow furry bear with a red shirt, blue hat, baggy blue jeans, a gold chain with an H in the middle and white sneaker shoes with an H on each side. He also wears a blue and red wristwatch. The character's appearance is in the general style of hip-hop fashion. His birthday is January 22, as noted in episode 5.

## Cast

* Emily Tajod - voice of Hip Hop Harry (baby - episode 1)
	+ David Joyner - Hip Hop Harry (In-suit performer - 48 years old), Lily Green - Hip Hop Harry (toddler - 4 years old)
	+ Penelope Yammer - Hip Hop Harry (kid - 6 years old)
* Ryan Andres - Told jokes in the episode "Finding Your Talent".
* Kelli Berglund - Helped plan a surprise party for Pinky in "Do Your Part".
* Kendra Bracy - Introduced her grandmother from Trinidad in one episode.
* Colton Burton - One of William's best friends in real life and refused to count the pilots, he did not appear in an episode without him.
* Kiana Contreres - Played a supporting role in the episode "Get Involved", cheering her sister's Double Dutch team to victory.
* Jake Deanda - One of the main kids to meet Katie in "Making New Friends".
* Savannah DeJesus - Appeared in "Fancy Footwork" and "Rain Makes Rainbows" with her sister Sophina.
* Sophina DeJesus - An aspiring gymnast who enjoys working with her sister, Savannah.
* Kelly Dolan - played Pinky.
* Jeremy Washington - played Riddles.
* Hayden Harrah - Hayden appeared less frequently than other members of the cast, but was a big help during "A B See".
* Jay Jay Harris - Is shown in "Pajama Party" and "Just Give It a Try" to be resistant to new things. He and Riddles got along very well. After a good bongo performance, Hip Hop Harry commented that Jay Jay may one day be on a salsa record.
* William May - He appears in several episodes. In "Hip Hop Big Top", he was concerned about being unable to dance with a brace on his leg. With encouragement from Hip Hop Harry and his friends, he realized he could still be a part of the circus.
* Veronicaa Miller - Was shown to discover a talent for singing in "Finding Your Talent".
* Katie Petite - The new girl in "Making New Friends". She takes a hip hop dance class near the end of the series.
* Davide Schiavone - Dancer
* Elizabeth Small - Her zipper served in the finishing touch in "A B See".
* Scott Thomas - Scott appears in several episodes. He was featured in "Never Give Up", when he wanted to quit basketball because of a bad day at practice. Hip Hop Harry gave him encouragement and Scott realized that he should never give up.
* Megan Woo - Megan loves animals and wishes to be a veterinarian when she grows up.
* Tyler White - A young breakdancer with a talent for windmills and the strongman in Hip Hop Harry's circus.
* Mail Carrier Carla - played by Valeria Sheppard, who appears in the episode "Dream It! Achieve It!"

## Legacy

In 2020, *Hip Hop Harry* had a resurgence in popularity on social media after people began to protest following the murder of George Floyd. Clips of the "Hip Hop Harry Dance Circle" portion of the show resurfaced on Twitter when director and author Matthew A. Cherry posted a short video of this sequence in response to reports that all four of the officers involved in the murder had been arrested. The video went viral and many across social media continued to post various dancing clips from the show in celebration of victories in the fight for police reform and racial equality.

## Awards and nominations

The series was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Preschool Children's Series in 2007.