"It’s hard to believe that the film WildStyle is 30 years old. Then again, it’s hard to fathom that hip-hop is old enough to have such milestone anniversaries for creative contributions surrounding it. The dynamic thing about a flick like WildStyle is that it took the hip-hop community a while to understand its impact. While graffiti has evolved into an omnipresent element, the early stigma attached to it made it damn near impossible to regard it as a viable art form. Sure, anyone with one working eye can see the beauty surrounding most graffiti pieces. But its placement was always the issue. What WildStyle did was humanize the graff writer. Zoro’s relationship with Rose was one that lived beyond the spray paint, but it was also a tale that came from the lens of one Charlie Ahearn. The film director’s take on highlighting hip-hop is one that should be cherished. Ahearn sees the beauty in things that others often can’t, hence why he created a film like WildStyle so “prematurely” during hip-hop’s genesis. Thirty years later, WildStyle returns theaters for a short run starting on September 27th, offering a newly remastered version of the film. Life+Times spoke with Charlie Ahearn about the legacy of WildStyle, the popularization of graffiti, and how it all fits together."

Check out the entire post here on Jay Z's blog: Life and Times