Freshtopia, located at 532 W 35th St, Norfolk, VA, is the soul of Park Place and the home to Fresh Radio Studios as of January 2019. Freshtopia is records, retail, and radio–the holy trinity of Fresh. It’s “the place where we dwell,” and it’s also one of many black-owned record stores in the nation. 

(Photo cred: DJ Bee)

DJ Bee, the driving force behind it all, created Fresh Radio when he felt it was (and still is) his duty to preserve hip-hop culture. It was when you weren’t hearing that much Tribe or Wu-Tang on the radio anymore. In October 2010, DJ Bee’s station came to fruition.

If you’ve never tuned in to Fresh Radio, you can expect to hear anything from Stevie Wonder to J Dilla, with deep cuts spanning the genres of hip-hop, funk, soul, and beyond. Be sure to catch DJs from around the country on one of the station’s daily or weekly show specials.

One of DJ Bee’s most exciting creations is Fresh Fridays, which started in 2011 at the Jewish Mother Backstage (which then became FM, now Chicho’s). The event began as a monthly cadence in collaboration with Commonwealth, eventually becoming a weekly ritual many look forward to at the end of a long week.

(Photo Cred: Robert Fields)

With an impressive guest DJ list boasting names like Kool Red Alert, Stretch Armstrong, DJ Scratch, Diamond D, Lord Finesse, DJ Aktive, Natasha Diggs, and Rich Medina, Disko Dave, DJ Delinger, DJ Puff Dragon, DJ Erika B, and DJ Opal, the talent is never in short supply. The place fills up wall-to-wall, with a diverse and welcoming crowd embracing perfectly-curated needle drops from subject matter experts. 

With Freshtopia as a thriving community hub in Park Place, the brand has evolved into much more than DJ Bee originally envisioned. Community events like the Saturday Morning Boom Box Bike Ride on the Elizabeth River Trail inject camaraderie into the neighborhood. Also, being cosigned by Kool Red Alert is worth some bragging rights on its own. When he’s not spinning wax on air, you’ll find DJ Bee traveling all over the US spreading the word of “Fresh.”

Here’s to being #12YearsFresh!

Upcoming Events:

10/8/2022-10/10/2022: #12YearsFresh streaming live on itsfreshradio.com and Twitch (https://twitch.tv/BeesustheDJ):

12hr Raid Train: Saturday – Monday, Noon to Midnight EST with DJs from the station and some surprise guests,=.

To support all things Fresh:

1. Listen to Fresh Radio via the app (Download in App Store and Google Play).

2. Follow Fresh Radio and Freshtopia on social media.

3. Visit Freshtopia at 532 W 35th St, Norfolk, VA.

4. Attend the Live Life Fresh Saturday morning bike ride. Meet at 10 AM in front of Freshtopia.

Stephanie Lask

Lindendwood, NFK

Stephanie Lask, aka Steph Love, is a spoken word artist, teaching artist, event host, web designer, and graphic designer originally from Virginia Beach. She graduated from Norfolk State University in 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in graphic design. She is the slammaster for the Verb Benders Slam Team, a teaching artist with Arts For Learning, a host of a few open mics in the 757, and a web and graphic designer for non-profits and small businesses across the area and the country. Stephanie is a hip-hop junkie, vinyl collector, and cat lady currently residing in Norfolk, where she's a member of her neighborhood’s civic league.

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The post Coming at You Live from Planet Park Place: 12 Years of Fresh appeared first on NFKVA.