WILMINGTON, N.C. — A unique festival returned to the Port City last week for its second year in a row.
The 3 Chambers Fest celebrates hip hop, martial arts and anime, a combination that aims to promote diversity and a deeper understanding of Black culture.
Christopher Everett, the festival’s founder, said the name comes from the three levels of artistic expression — art, music, and film — with “chambers” referencing the stages of a monk’s journey to becoming a kung fu master in the film "The 36th Chamber of Shaolin." It’s also a reference to The Wu-Tang Clan’s iconic debut record, "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)."
“Wu-Tang Clan was a huge influence on me of really wanting to do this thing,” Everett said. “Because they were the first that I saw in the hip hop world to fuse martial arts within hip hop.”
Wu-Tang Clan is from Staten Island’s Park Hill, an area that’s known for its violence and drug problems.
Night one of the festival allowed attendees to see an advance screening of a new docueries called "Killa Hill." Director Gerald Barclay, who has been documenting the neighborhood since he was a kid, says the series shines a spotlight on the effect of drugs and violence in communities, which is referenced in Wu-Tang’s music.
“You see the connection between some lyrics, but then also you get a little bit of back story from the Wu-Tang,” Barclay explained. “And their struggle was strong coming in there, they were on these streets dodging cops and bullets as well.”
9th Prince, the younger brother of Wu-Tang member RZA, also grew up in Park Hill. He said being around violence is hard, but it helped him and his brother to find an outlet.
“That can touch you emotionally I would say, you know some people work out when they’re stirred up a certain way, some people punch the bag, some people resort to drugs,” 9th Prince said. “We decided to grab a pen and pad and a beat machine and express our anger.”
It’s that outlet that ultimately changed their lives.
“To see the first time he bought like a couple of houses for the families, you know what I’m saying, to see the smile on my mother’s face,” 9th Prince said. “That smile on my mother’s face, it’s a beautiful thing you know?”
Although Wilmington is a significantly safer area, with the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation reporting only 113 violent crimes in New Hanover County in 2023, the overall message of the festival is still important for the Port City.
Everett also directed a documentary called Wilmington on Fire, which investigates the cause of the 1898 Wilmington Massacre, and introduces viewers to individuals who are working to make Wilmington a thriving, diverse community. He said making that film and understanding Wilmington’s own roots in violence played a major role in creating 3 Chambers Fest.
“I know more than most of the effects of what the 1898 massacre has done in this community, so I said you know what, one of the ways that can help strengthen some of that is to bring a very diverse cultural experience to Wilmington, to help with that, and to maybe help grow, you know more diversity, and more togetherness in the community,” Everett said.
The festival ran from Wednesday through Saturday and 25% of ticket sales went toward benefiting artists in western North Carolina who were impacted by Hurricane Helene.