Hip Hop Till Infinity, an immersive exhibit spanning 50 years of the music genre and accompanying culture, is currently running through April 28. The pop-up art installation offers an intimate look at how everything from car culture to internet mixtapes helped establish the niche culture and helped it evolve. This version of the exhibit focuses more specifically on the subculture of the West Coast.

The installation is divided into several topics, the Five Pillars, a photo exhibit by the Morrison Hotel Gallery, The Doggy Den, How the West Was One, Estevan Oriol: “An L.A. O.G.,” and Immersive Hip Hop History.

The Five Pillars introduces the rest of the exhibit. It is a darkened hallway featuring graffiti backdrops that emphasize the five elements of hip-hop culture. They are DJing, MCing, breaking, graffiti and knowledge. Additional pieces highlight the culture, including monuments to sneaker culture, skate aesthetic, and more.

The photo exhibit features portraits of iconic artists and influencers, including everyone from Tupac Shakur, Snoop Dogg, and Queen Latifah to more modern entries such as Nicki Minaj, Drake, and Lil Nas X. The pictures are a time capsule for some artists, a throwback for others, and a modern take on many of them. They came in black and white and in color and were haunting in every instance.

The Doggy Den was a corner room featuring memorabilia specifically pertaining to Snoop Dogg. Most impressively there was a chance to mix your own version of classic Snoop songs such as “Gin and Juice” and “The Next Episode.” With your own set of headphones and several dials to choose from, one could slow it down, add backtracks, and make it one’s own.

How the West Was One was a multi-room gallery featuring artifacts from every aspect of the culture. It included walls of album covers and magazine clippings to original ticket stubs and outfits worn by the artists. Some of the collectibles included were from high-profile names such as Death Row Records, Nipsey Hussle, and DJ Battlecat.

In the next room over, Estevan Oriol was heavily featured as a pioneer in Los Angeles’ car culture and how it influenced hip hop in general. With souvenirs ranging from tattoo art to actual cars in the museum, Oriol’s portion focused specifically on the effects the West Coast had on hip hop as a whole. This chunk also looked at prison culture and was a great curation of photographer, director, and Los Angeles documentarian Oriol’s work.

The final segment of the exhibit was a multi-media, audiovisual experience with a beautifully crafted montage featuring the history of hip hop, the artists who shaped the genre, and homages to other cities around the country and world that bring their own unique twist to hip hop culture. With 360-degree angles provided by DJ Clark Kent, it was a spectacular way to end the installation.

An additional interesting component of the exhibit was the recurring doors plastered with stickers of artists, DJs, venues, and more serving as a monument to the evolution of the culture. The only detriment to the exhibit was its length, in that it could have been a smidge longer. One should expect to go through the exhibit in approximately 90 minutes, though it might take a little less than that.

The gift shop had all sorts of offerings, from culture books and board games to clothes and albums.

Located at 6400 Sunset Boulevard, the installation is open Wednesdays and Thursdays from 1:00-8:00 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays from Noon-10:00 p.m., and Sundays from Noon-9:00 p.m. General admission tickets start at $33.50 with VIP tickets going up to $59 depending on the day.

Photo by the author.