Many groups have stepped up to pitch in on tornado recovery efforts, from the Red Cross to nonprofits and houses of worship. Members of Nashville’s hip-hop scene have taken action, too.
On Monday morning, A.B. Eastwood, Case Arnold and Tim Gent posted on Instagram that they were gathering supplies to take to Clarksville. That’s where Gent and Arnold grew up and formed their first hip-hop collective, before moving to Nashville. Both still have friends and family in Clarksville who felt the effects of the tornado in one way or another.
When they put out the call for donations, Gent says he felt the support of the scene he’s become part of in Nashville.
“Honestly, I didn’t expect people to send in as much money that was sent in,” he reflects. “We were just like, ‘Whatever they send in, we’ll add some money to it and we’ll hit Costco.’ It was just really cool for people to reach out and want to help my hometown. You know, their relationship with me prompted them to want to help me help my hometown.”
After the shopping trip, their first stop in Clarksville was the church Gent attended in his youth. From there, they learned of other neighborhoods that needed toiletries, jackets and canned food delivered.
Gent says other members of their Nashville and Clarksville crews helped too, one supplying a truck to haul debris.
“Everybody was out,” he recalls. “But we all spread out. It was really tough yesterday, because there were a lot of things blocked off. So we want to just continue the effort.”
It’s an effort to bridge the hip-hop community he’s helped build here and the hard-hit one that he’s still very connected to up the road.