The Hip Hop Museum Names Dr. Christopher Michael Jones Director of Education

Dr. Christopher Michael Jones, The Hip Hop Museum's New Educational Director

Renowned scholar, producer, and pastor known as Chris Large joins the Museum to lead its educational vision.

NEW YORK , NY, UNITED STATES, September 1, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Hip Hop Museum today announced the appointment of Dr. Christopher Michael Jones, also known throughout the culture as Chris Large, as its new Director of Education. Dr. Jones will begin his tenure on August 31, 2026, leading the design, implementation, and evaluation of the Museum's educational programming, exhibition-related curricula, and public learning initiatives.

Dr. Jones brings more than three decades of experience bridging Hip Hop culture, higher education, faith, and community empowerment. He began his career as a music producer, working alongside artists including Nas, The Notorious B.I.G., M.O.P., Mic Geronimo, Shaquille O'Neal, Monifah, and SWV — an apprenticeship in the culture that continues to inform his approach to education and leadership today. He has gone on to become a leading practitioner of Hip Hop pedagogy, using the tradition's creativity, resilience, entrepreneurship, and storytelling as tools for critical thinking and leadership formation, with teaching and consulting experience spanning middle school through doctoral education.

“Dr. Jones represents exactly the kind of scholarship and lived experience this Museum was built to honor,” said Rocky Bucano, Founder and CEO of The Hip Hop Museum. “His work bridges the culture's history with its power to educate, and that is precisely the vision we want leading our classrooms, our tours, and our public programs.”

In addition to his forthcoming role at the Museum, Dr. Jones serves as Faculty Mentor for the Building and Bridging Doctor of Ministry program at United Theological Seminary and as Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church of Hillside, New Jersey. He is also Founder and CEO of the Can't Stop Won't Stop Foundation, which expands opportunities for young people through scholarships, mentorship, and career development. He has lectured at institutions including the University of Oxford, Teachers College at Columbia University, Duke Divinity School, the University of London, Princeton Theological Seminary, Howard University School of Divinity, and Long Island University–Brooklyn.

“Hip Hop is not merely a cultural expression to be preserved, but a powerful educational and transformative force,” said Dr. Jones. “It helps new generations understand their history, discover their voice, imagine new possibilities, and create the future. I am honored to bring that conviction to The Hip Hop Museum.”

Dr. Jones holds a summa cum laude degree from Rutgers University, a Master of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary, and a Doctor of Ministry from Memphis Theological Seminary, and pursued advanced theological study at the University of Oxford. He is the author of A Sacred Storm: When God Speaks through Radical Disruption, published by The Pilgrim Press, with a second book, Imagine That, forthcoming from the same publisher.
His appointment strengthens The Hip Hop Museum's commitment to translating Hip Hop's traditions of creativity and resilience into meaningful education for students, families, and communities across generations.

ABOUT THE HIP HOP MUSEUM
The Hip Hop Museum is dedicated to preserving and celebrating the history, culture, and global impact of Hip Hop. Located in the Bronx, the birthplace of Hip Hop, the Museum serves as a home for the culture's artifacts, stories, and ongoing evolution, offering exhibitions and programming for visitors, students, and communities worldwide.

Bryna Jean-Marie
The Hip Hop Museum
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