Students, music producers, aspiring hip-hop artists and rap fans gathered in Emerson Hall Saturday to hear speakers from around the country discuss hip-hop culture and the business behind it.

More than 150 people attended "The NextLevel" conference, which featured a keynote address by multi-platinum artist KRS-One and panel discussions on the music industry, the artistry behind rap music and the influence of hip-hop culture on the American public.

KRS-One's speech highlighted an effort by panelists to define hip-hop culture and some of its more subtle elements.

He read from a recently compiled book he helped write that divided hip-hop culture into nine categories--from street fashion to graffiti art to dancing. According to KRS-One, the book was the culmination of several years of research and surveys.

"[Hip-hop] is the study of self-transformation and the pursuit of self-expression," he said, trying to bring a unifying definition to the diverse elements he described in his speech.

KRS-One also said it was important for hip-hop artists to understand the power of their song lyrics and take responsibility for those words.

"We have had an ignorance of our own spoken word. Hip-hop says to...be the things you are thinking about," he said. "If you can't go out and be it, you should stop thinking it."

The conference was organized by Candice L. Hoyes '99 and Erika Fullwood '99 in conjunction with the Black Students Association (BSA) and the Undergraduate Council. Proceeds from the conference went to the Area Four Youth Center in Cambridge.

KRS-One's speech highlighted a weekend of activities that began Friday afternoon with a screening of the movie "Straight from the Streets" and continued with a KRS concert Friday night and panel discussions on Saturday.

A show featuring hip-hop performances took place in the Lowell dining hall Saturday night.

Saturday morning featured what conference organizers described as "Power Sessions."

During these sessions, speakers focused on the business side of hip-hop and on how minorities can assume higher positions in the music industry, according to a pamphlet distributed to conference participants.

Speakers included Chris Washington of Atlantic Records; Wendy Day, whose Rap Coalition aims to combat the exploitation of urban musicians; and ABC News correspondent Farai Chideya '90, author of "Don't Believe the Hype: CulturalMisinformation about African Americans."

"A repetitive lesson I heard was that, in themusic business, you've got to network," saidHerman Banks, a member of a Cambridge-basedhip-hop group. "Not everyone wants to see yousucceed. It's a gamble."

Afternoon panelists focused on the music andcontent of hip-hop.

One topic frequently discussed was the changesthat hip-hop music and artists have undergone asthey have become part of mainstream culture.