On November 8 the Recording Academy and the CBS network combined to honor the 50th birthday of Hip-Hop with a star-studded event at the YouTube Theater in Inglewood, CA. Performances included the reunited Will Smith and DJ Jazzy Jeff, LL Cool J, Queen Latifah and many more. The event will air on December 10 on the CBS network. Photographer Alan Silfen was on hand backstage and gave us these to publish. A special thank you goes out to Alan for the pictures that include Will Smith, Ll Cool J, Flavor Flav, Questlove, JJ Fad, Common and more. Enjoy!

Photo credit: Alan Silfen