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Darcie-Nicole Wicknick has friends. Tons of them.

She isn’t a celebrity nor does she crave the spotlight (if anything, she’s more comfortable behind the curtain). Nor is she a Myspace fanatic who measures her social standing by the number of friends she has (for the record, she has close to 1,900).

Wicknick, an Allston resident, is a 33-year-old woman who loves singing gospel, saving Siberian huskies and building up the local hip-hop scene in Boston. And she does all that by going out and making as many friends as possible. 

“That’s the pulse of who I am,” says Wicknick. “I constantly want to make friends and bring people together.”

Those friendships are like contacts. Need help in the studio? Wicknick knows a guy. Need some publicity help for your new album? Give this guy a call.

Most people don’t really associate the term “community building” with hip-hop, a genre that left two great rappers dead (Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac) in the 1990s. Today, there are only verbal beefs, but it’s still a far cry from being a community.

But that’s the hope of Wicknick, at least on a local scale, and part of the reason why she co-founded the Boston Hip-Hop Alliance.

“Before, the hip-hop scene in Boston was like a series of campsites that weren’t communicating with each other,” says Wicknick. “We’re helping people get together. This is coming from a deep love for the community.”

Wicknick started the BHHA in 2004 with three other friends. There’s James Auburn, who Wicknick calls her “life partner” (he’s a musician and hip-hop historian), Clifton Bennet (he keeps afloat of changing trends in the industry), and Vanna Carey (her main job is to recruit artists or groups to the BHHA).

The BHHA is also involved in education (both Wicknick and Auburn teach at the School of Groove in Cambridge) and artist development, especially through Wicknick’s side business at Ask Darcie Music Consulting (AskDarcie.tripod.com).

“It just started as a forum where she just asked if anyone had any questions about the music industry,” says Auburn about Ask Darcie. “And she would respond immediately with detailed answers.”

Wicknick’s advice comes from experience and it has helped hundreds of people. People praise her on her Myspace page. “Your advice is priceless,” says one. “Thank you for your time, oh wise Jedi Master!” writes another.

Her efforts were recognized at the MIC Hip-Hop Awards Show last weekend when Wicknick was given the Music Industry Services Special Award of the Year.

“What a beautiful feeling that was,” wrote Wicknick in an email. “It’s a real honor to be recognized that way by one’s own community.”

So how much does this award-winning advice cost? It’s free.

“I’m a music industry professional who is using all my available resources to help other people,” says Wicknick. “It’s more of an emotional success. I don’t charge anyone.”

There are currently 475 members in the Alliance, including some celebrities such as Chuck D, lead rapper for Public Enemy.

The BHHA is also free and any hip-hop artist or group can join, provided that they make a pledge to produce hip-hop music that doesn’t promote violence.

“We’re trying to elevate people’s mindset,” says Wicknick. “We want to promote unity and peace and push for the songs that don’t promote violence. When you hear a song from back in the day, there was a reason for it. It was about telling a story about what actually happened. It’s important to expose violence and oppression.”

“If you’re gonna say something rough, you gotta take responsibility for it,” says Wicknick.

Songs like De La Soul’s “Ghetto Thang” (which talks about the ills of poverty) and Slick Rick’s “Children’s Story” (youth violence in the streets) are great examples of the kind of hip-hop the BHHA supports.

Both De La and “The Ruler” (as Slick Rick is called) were at the recent Peace Festival in Boston at City Hall Plaza, where local and national hip-hop artists gathered for a day of music and pledged to stop the violence in the streets.

This was a Mayor's Office of Arts and Tourism event and Wicknick usually attends these festivals and this one was no different.

And while she knows many of the people involved at the festival, from the acts on stage to the people working security, Wicknick still prefers to be on the edge of the event, always present but never in the middle.

There’s no booth for her to sit at and no banner declaring that BHHA is in the house. Instead, Wicknick weaves around the crowd, supporting the musicians on stage.

During one of the performances, a local producer “The Sultan” makes his way toward Wicknick, passing out his CD to people in the crowd.

Wicknick takes one, sees his name and immediately introduces herself.

A look of recognition comes over Sultan’s face and he smiles. Although they’ve never met, he clearly knows the name.

They talk business for a little bit before he has to leave. And with that, Wicknick is another friend closer to a better hip-hop world.

The Boston Hip-Hop Alliance isn’t the only organization in town pushing for a better hip-hop world. Those interested in volunteering or helping out the local music scene should check these out (there are plenty more, too):

Those interested in learning more about hip-hop music or the industry should get in touch with Darcie-Nicole Wicknick. She’ll be teaching at the School of Groove summer camp, Aug. 13-18, where students learn the basics of playing an instrument, performing with a band and recording an album.

Wicknick is also available via her Web site AskDarcie.tripod.com for music industry questions.