Harry Allen, All Up In Your Area.

I’m doing a couple of public events tonight and tomorrow, here in New York, and would love to see you in the place.

• First, tonight, Wednesday, January 28, at 7:30 pm, I’m at the Brecht Forum in discussion with cultural anthropology doctoral student / blogger Michael Partis (Ambitionz as a Writer) and writer / poet Anika Lani Haynes, for a talk titled “Biggie, Brooklyn and the World: Conversations on the NOTORIOUS.” It’s in part a response to the eponymous new biopic on the Notorious B.I.G., the powerful hip-hop vocalist who, after releasing two astounding albums, was murdered in Los Angeles in 1997, at the age of 24. (That’s actor / rapper Jamal “Gravy” Woolard, above, as he portrays the artist in the film.)

Say the promo materials:

With the release of Notorious, once again the famed rapper NOTORIOUS B.I.G. has taken center stage in the consciousness of the hip hop generation. Tonight our panel of experts will examine the film as well as the living contradictions of Notorious B.I.G. How do we understand Biggie’s relationship with Lil’ Kim and Faith Evans inform conversations about overall relationship between Black men and women? How does Biggie’s life play out hip hop in the age and crack? And finally in what ways does Biggie’s career mark the end of hip hop era and the presence of Black death? “Biggie, Brooklyn and the World” will bring all of these elements together in a conversation on hip-hop, past, present and future.

There’s a suggested donation of $6-$15, but no one will turned away.

The Brecht Forum is at 451 West Street bet. Bank and Bethune, (212) 242-4201; click here for directions.

• Then, tomorrow night, Thursday, January 29, Tekserve, New York’s preeminent Apple retail and repair shop, will be hosting the third in its ongoing “The Future of Music” series of panels, examining the way technology is rapidly evolving the entire realm of audio entertainment. Guests will include Sadat X (vocalist, Brand Nubian), Claudia Gonson (pianist/drummer/backing vocalist, The Magnetic Fields), Adam Farrell (head of marketing, Beggars Group), and Peter Rojas (founder of the tech blogs Gizmodo, Engadget, and Joystiq).

I’ll be moderating, and if past panels—featuring such luminaries as Chic founder Nile Rodgers, recording engineer Bob Power, and Bomb Squad producer Hank Shocklee—have been any indication, the conversation will be animated, fast-paced, and provocative. Get there, if you can.