It’s no secret that I’m a huge music and hip hop fan. I grew up listening to Kool and the gang and when I heard that they were going to get a street named after them in the Bergen-Lafayette area I dropped everything and had to check it out. Kool and the Gang are pioneers in music, they’ve written countless hits. music nowadays will never be up to par. when I arrived at the corner of Maple Street and Pacific Avenue where the street naming was occurring and I was immediately starstruck. There was a huge crowd of people to support and Mayor Fulop along with other council members, Joyce Watterman, Rolando Lavarro was also in attendance. Kool and The Gang spoke about growing up in Jersey City and what it was like forming the band. They unveiled the newest addition to the group of street signs. And then the music started blaring with some of their hits like “Celebration” and “Get Down On It.” I spent the rest of the event dancing and taking photos.

Mayor Fulop joined with members of the Municipal Council, community members, and members of the American jazz and soul band Kool & the Gang to commemoratively rename a section of Maple Street between Pacific Avenue and Whiton Street “Kool & the Gang Way.” The band was originally formed in Jersey City in 1964 and went on to achieve massive critical and commercial success, with over 70 million albums sold worldwide. The commemorative street-naming will celebrate the band’s success as well as the history and heritage of Jersey City’s strong local arts community.