2025 Cypher: Live @ the Dome
Hip-hop is alive and well in the 253.
Every year, the ten produces a live cypher, a chance for us to empower, honor, and showcase emcees and producers making their mark in the city.
“It was all a dream.”
We look for people who are investing in the culture, investing in each other, and taking creative risks.
We can’t feature everybody, but for a short period of time, we highlight a handful—those who are consistently obsessed with sharpening their craft.
A cypher works the way life should: at times we have the microphone, and when we do, we should say what we have to say—loudly, with style, with grace (“you know my steeeeeeeez.”) But when we’ve said what we’ve said, we pass the mic to the next person.
“Our attention is undivided. Like hanging pictures on a wall.”
In a cypher, the next emcee will give you verbal cues—“yup,” “yo”—that’s how you know it’s time to get out your last bar.
But how do they know they aren’t cutting you off?
The truth is, they don’t. It’s intuitive. A cypher is about the feel. You just know. That’s kind of how life should work? How relationships and community work.
We take turns listening. We amplify the voices of others.
That’s what makes a cypher so special: you’re truly heard, and you’re listening. It’s a moment that’s uniquely human. To me, the ten should feel like cypher.
This Year
We partnered with the iconic team at the Tacoma Dome to film a once-in-a-lifetime experience: the Class of 2025 Ten Cypher Live @ The Dome. Our friends at eTc Tacoma came through and outfitted the squad—marrying style with skill, and reminding the city why they deserve everything they’ve worked for.
I helped audio engineer and direct alongside my team at Foster’s Creative—who did an exquisite job, by the way—but what I witnessed at the cypher was genuinely inspiring.
Not one single emcee or producer was too cool to engage. Too many daps to count. The environment was truly heroic in its hospitality (shoutout to Anthem Coffee). Young emcees were embraced by seasoned emcees. Heads nodding, necks breaking, words like katanas cutting.
We filmed it raw and uncut—no editing—just what you’d experience in your friend’s basement or backyard.
One thing is certain: this group of emcees and producers have no problem seeing each other win.
They deserve their flowers.
I love hip-hop.
Follow @theten253.
Watch the film.
Feel what we felt.
And stay ready.
