Rice panel Jan. 31 to explore legacy of Houston rapper Chad ‘Pimp C’ Butler

Rice University
Office of Public Affairs / News & Media Relations

MEDIA ADVISORY

David Ruth
713-348-6327
david@rice.edu

Amy McCaig
713-348-6777
amym@rice.edu

Rice panel Jan. 31 to explore legacy of Houston rapper Chad ‘Pimp C’ Butler

HOUSTON – (Jan. 25, 2017) – The life and legacy of Houston rapper Chad “Pimp C” Butler will be the focus of a panel discussion at Rice University Jan. 31.

The event marks the creation of the Pimp C Collection at Woodson Research Center in Rice’s Fondren Library. The collection, part of Rice’s Center for Engaged Research and Collaborative Learning’s Hip-Hop Archive at Woodson, includes several documents and promotional items, including handwritten lyrics, contracts and artwork created by fans.

What: Pimp C: A Trill Legacy, a panel discussion hosted by the Center for Engaged Research and Collaborative Learning (CERCL), which is part of Rice University’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research. The event is free and open to the public.

When: 7-10 p.m. Tuesday, Jan 31.

Where: Rice Memorial Center’s Grand Hall, 6100 Main St. Parking is available in the Central Campus Garage.

In 1987, Butler was a founding member of UGK along with Bernard “Bun B” Freeman in Port Arthur, Texas. They released their first album, “Too Hard to Swallow,” in 1991. In 2000, they were nominated for a Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for “Big Pimpin” with Jay Z.

In July 2006, Pimp C released his first solo album, “Pimpalation.” In 2007, he reunited with Bun B and released the UGK album “Underground Kingz.” The album was Pimp C’s final performance before his death Dec. 4, 2007, in Los Angeles. After Pimp C’s death, Bun B released the final UGK album, “UGK 4 Life,” for which most of the recording was finished before Pimp C’s death.

Panelists will include Bun B, who is a CERCL Distinguished Visiting Lecturer at Rice University; David Banner, Grammy Award-winning rapper, record producer, actor and activist; Lil Keke, hip-hop recording artist; Michael 5000 Watts, co-founder of Swishahouse Records, disc jockey and on-air personality at 97.9 The Boxx; Mr. Lee, multiplatinum hip-hop and rap music producer and co-executive producer of the album “Long Live the Pimp”; and Chinara Butler, co-executive producer of “Long Live the Pimp,” CEO of UGQ Enterprises and founder of Pushing Into My Purpose Inc. Event co-sponsors are UGQ Enterprises, CCM Foundation and Kreative Kollective.

Members of the news media who want to attend should RSVP to Amy McCaig, senior media relations specialist at Rice, at amym@rice.edu or 713-348-6777.

For a map of Rice University’s campus with parking information, go to www.rice.edu/maps.

-30-

This news release can be found online at http://news.rice.edu.

Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews.

Related materials:

CERCL website: www.cercl.rice.edu/

Photo link: http://news.rice.edu/files/2017/01/Pimp-C-1b1c8u1.jpg

Photo credit: CERCL

Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of Architecture, Business, Continuing Studies, Engineering, Humanities, Music, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. With 3,910 undergraduates and 2,809 graduate students, Rice’s undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for happiest students and for lots of race/class interaction by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. To read “What they’re saying about Rice,” go to http://tinyurl.com/RiceUniversityoverview.