Paul “Paulskeee” Ruma is the founder of Mighty4 Arts Foundation, an organization dedicated to preserving history, advancing artistry, and empowering youth through Hip Hop cultural arts. Since 1998, Mr. Ruma has had international impact in over 40 cities worldwide by providing education about Hip Hop culture through community-based events, classes, workshops, and documentary productions. Paulskeee is an accomplished “B-Boy” dancer led his group as president of Rock Force Crew to the Battle of the Year world championship of Breaking in 1998 representing the USA taking first place. Rock Force Crew presently continues to receive numerous international awards. Paulskeee continues to serve as an academic educator to communities and inspires young people to get involved in social action, civic service, cultural creativity, and self-education.


 

Raised in Union City, California (San Francisco Bay Area), Paul “Paulskeee” Ruma began his life in Hip Hop culture at the young age of 5 when he was inspired to dance by his older cousins Breaking (aka Breakdancing) & Strutting (aka Popping) at family gatherings. The resurgence of the Bay Area underground Hip Hop scene of the early 1990s gave Paulskeee a platform to begin Breaking full time himself in 1992. Paulskee has spent the previous 20+ years constantly traveling the world promoting all aspects of Hip Hop culture education.

In 1994 Paulskeee became president of Rock Force Crew (est. 1983 in Union City, California) leading the veteran Bay Area crew to its first world title in 1998 at Battle of the Year Breaking dance World Championship in Germany (www.battleoftheyear.de), and returning in 1999 as finalists.  Rock Force Crew was the last USA crew to win the world title and went on to win nearly every major competition worldwide since including: Freestyle Session World Championship (Los Angeles), International B-boy Masters Pro Am (Miami), Rock Steady Crew Anniversary (New York City), B-boy Summit (Los Angeles), World BBoy Championship (United Kingdom), Total Session (France), Circle Sensation (Denmark), Red Bull King of the Ring (Canada), Warsaw Challenge (Poland) and the Out For Fame USA Breaking Crew Championship.

1995 Paulskeee organized the Tri City East Bay Universal Zulu Nation chapter and worked tirelessly teaching free Hip Hop cultural arts workshops to youth in community centers and schools across the Bay Area mentoring and creating a network of young artists and organizers who have gone on to become world renowned Bay Area Hip Hop artists and world champions.

1998 was a milestone year as he organized his first DJ showcase event, TableTurns San Francisco (originally from NYC) featuring high profile DJs including X-ecutioners, Invisibl Skratch Piklz, Beat Junkies, 5th Platoon, IF2, DJ Mike Boo and Supernatural Turntable Artists.  Following Tableturns SF he created the “Mighty4”, (coined by DJ Shortkut of Invisibl Skratch Piklz) the San Francisco Bay Area’s only annual Hip Hop cultural festival whose goal is to preserve and unify the four cornerstones of Hip Hop culture, Emceeing, Style Writing (aerosol art), DJing, and Breaking.  Over the next two decades Mighty4 has expanded its event touring operations to well over 40 cities & countries around the world (New York City, Seattle, Abu Dhabi, Morocco, United Kingdom, Honolulu, France to name a few).

2000 Paulskeee co-founded the United States’s first ever USA Breaking Crew Championship “Out For Fame”.  This network of B-boys & B-girls began in 16 cities across the country and ignited a Breaking competition circuit that exposed new talent nationwide including Havikoro, Skill Methodz, Ground Zero Crew, Massive Monkees, Super Crew, Jabbawockeez and many more.  

2003 Paulskeee introduced the world’s first Invitational B-girl competition with B-Girl Beta of Florida as the winner and world’s first Air/Spinmove competition with B-boy Ruen of Los Angeles as the winner.

2004 Paulskeee created the first Top Rock competition and implemented it within the Total Session event in Grenoble, France with BBoy Machine of Rock Force Crew as the winner. 2006 was the first official use of the Top Rock competition at the Mighty4 with BBoy Ynot of Rock Steady Crew taking first place over Crazylegs Rock Steady Crew. Since then, the Top Rock competition was used in dance events world wide to this day.

2007 Paulskeee created Mighty4TV focusing on documenting his global travels with Mighty4 with the intention of educating the masses about Hip Hop culture via youtube social media. (www.youtube.com/mighty4tv)

2008 marked the 10th Year Anniversary of Mighty4 and was celebrated at the legendary Cow Palace venue in San Francisco. This weekend long event paid homage to elder practitioners, innovators of street cultural arts and supported Mighty4’s decade long mission of spreading cultural awareness through art worldwide.

2011 Paulskeee spent time in Hawai’i giving Breaking and Hip Hop cultural workshops for the A.R.T. Center Kaua’i and the Kaua’i Police Athletic League, setting up positive outlets for the island’s youth to express themselves.

2012 Paulskeee was honored with a “Mighty4 Day” Proclamation day by Union City Mayor Mark Green which is celebrated annually as a free family park jam event bridging the community together through multi ethnic & Hip Hop cultural art forms and highlighting the annual theme of Hip Hop, Health & Hope. Following Mighty4 day, Paulskeee was inducted into the Union City Historical Museum for his local and global contributions to youth leadership and art.

Paulskeee also received the Massive Monkees Seattle Appreciation Award 2012 along side long time business partner Cros1 of Freestyle Session.

2013 another monumental milestone for the Mighty4 celebrating it’s 15th year anniversary at the Temple SF venue (San Francisco). The weekend fully supported by the Hip Hop cultural scene of the Bay Area featured international artists and proved once again that Hip Hop is universal with a diverse crowd of attendees from youth to adults.

2014 Paulskeee received the Cultural Trailblazer Award by the Filipino Advocates for Justice organization.

2015 Paulskeee was recognized with a commendation by District 2 Supervisor Richard Valle with the Alameda County Arts Leadership Award for his work with Mighty4 Arts Foundation and his Breaking dance group Rock Force Crew for continuing to receive national and international titles representing Union City, Alameda County and the USA.

2018 Mighty4 Arts Foundation celebrated their 20th year anniversary at the annual Mighty4 Day. The Rock Force Crew was also recognized by the city of Union City, California for their contributions in Hip Hop culture locally and international since 1983 as world class champions.

2019 Mighty4 Arts Foundation was recognized by the state of Hawai’i for their continued efforts to utilize Hip Hop arts as a means of education and empowerment. Rock Force Crew was honored at the Style Elements Crew 25th Year Anniversary.

Presently, Paulskeee continues to mentor Hip Hop artists, judge at Hip Hop events world wide, gives back to his local community through free Hip Hop workshops to the youth, serving as the Alameda County district 2 Arts Commissioner, and is the co-owner of the “always a student” brand. Inspired to share his perspective on Hip Hop culture through academia, he is currently an adjunct instructor with the International & Multicultural Education Department at the University of San Francisco, Eden Area Regional Occupation Program Business Academy instructor at San Leandro High School & lectures on his research and practice in Hip Hop culture at colleges worldwide. His current interests involves research and documentation pertaining to Hip Hop pedagogies in the subject areas of mental health awareness, ethnic studies, and STEM coming from a true Hip Hop practitioner perspective.