The following is an extended version of the story that appears in our latest print edition. 

Bronx Week 2025 concluded on Sunday, May 18, on Mosholu Parkway in Bedford Park with the annual parade, street activities, and concert finale. Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson hosted the lively musical celebration, which featured performances by TKA, Eddie Montalvo, Los Hermanos Morenos, and La Insuperable.

 

With around 1,000 attendees, it seemed like people truly enjoyed the atmosphere, some relaxing on blankets, while others brought along beach chairs to soak up the music and festivities. Other local elected officials were present for the parade, as were a host of local groups and organizations, including among many others, Bronx Buccaneers, Bronx Community Board 7, and Future of Mosholu Parkland.

It was heartwarming to hear how excited one little girl called Marie was to play with other children while her mom enjoyed the music. The event drew people together, creating lasting memories, and strengthening community bonds. The return of the parade to Mosholu Parkway as the traditional venue added another layer of sentimentality to the occasion. It was great to see The Bronx thriving with such a vibrant celebration!

 

The previous day, this year’s Bronx “Walk of Fame” inductees were formally inducted onto the Bronx Walk of Fame as part of a street sign unveiling ceremony. As previously reported, this year, the People’s Choice Award went to journalist, DJ, and longtime BronxNet TV host, Gary Axelbank, who was accompanied at the event by his wife, Suzanne, daughter, Shawn, son, Evan (also a journalist), along with other family members. (Read our previous story on this here.)

Gibson said this year Bronxites were asked to vote for their favorite person in media and the arts. “I’m so proud the person that got the total number of votes, the highest votes ever, is our very own producer, television media extraordinaire, the host of Bronx Talk on BronxNet Television, Gary Axelbank,” she said. “And I said to him, ‘Don’t thank me, thank the people of The Bronx! They voted for you!’” she continued. “I had no role in it. I was not a judge. I just had to make sure it was completely fair but Gary won hands down and we say, ‘Congratulations!’”

 

Introducing Axelbank, the event’s emcee, ABC 7’s Pedro Rivera, a Bronx native, said that after getting his education in Bronx public schools and colleges for the most part, in 1994, the TV host started Bronx Talk. “He has sat down and interviewed pretty much anyone who has come from the borough,” Rivera said. “He’s the guy if you want to know anything about what the Bronx is, who is an elected official, I mean, literally anything, he’s an encyclopedia sitting right there. There’s no one better to represent the borough on air than that man.”

Addressing the crowd, Axelbank thanked his family, saying he had nothing without them. “I grew up and am still living in Van Cortlandt Village in the north Bronx,” he said, before talking about being in college in the ‘70s. “I did not know that The Bronx was burning, and that tells you something about the nature of what it was in the ‘70s, and of course why the Bronx was burning etc,” he added.

 

The TV host went on to say he later got into radio and music. “I was a radio DJ. I was hired by Howard Stern,” he said, who was then a program director in Westchester. Axelbank, himself, said he also became a program director at 25 of a “progressive rock station.” He continued, “Think about where you were when you were 25 years old,” he said. “I still can’t even imagine.”

He said he went on to work at stations in Delaware, Maryland, and New Jersey, at one point making $5.45 an hour for a three to four-hour shift until he begged for a raise and was later given $5.55/hour. He said he also taught at a media school because he needed a job. Axelbank said it was there that a guy approached him saying he was looking for interns for a new cable station in The Bronx.

 

“The lights went off, the stars went off and it was a great moment for me, but more importantly, it was a great moment for the borough of the Bronx because this was before News 12,” Axelbank said. Launching on July 1, 1993, he said thereafter, everybody in The Bronx knew everything that was going on in the borough. “You could never have a terrible incident like the Bronx was burning, and the people in the northern Bronx didn’t know anything about it,” he said.

 

The TV host continued in part, saying, “BronxNet Television is what brought this borough together! Now we all know everything going on.” In conclusion, Axelbank said when playing baseball as a kid, he was never able to hit the baseball as far as the roof across the street, explaining that that was how you got a home run. “I never hit it onto the roof but I’ll tell you one thing, my frickin’ name is going to be on the Grand Concourse!”

 

The other inductees were NBA legend Kemba Walker, WWE superstar Damian Priest, who was seen at one point taking selfies with the security team at Bronx Borough Hall, freestyle icon Judy Torres, and illustrator and artist Devin Rodriguez. Walker said it was an unbelievable honor. “I’m so proud,” he said, adding that he was going to continue to represent the borough proudly for the rest of his life.

 

Priest also said it was an honor for which he was grateful and appreciative and talked about the realization of having a platform to represent his culture and inspire the next generation. “Today is this exhibit from all of you, having this place that I love giving back and honoring me, I am so grateful.”

 

Introducing Torres, Rivera talked about her role as a leader in her field and how freestyle was still going strong and as successful as ever, almost five decades later. For her part, Torres thanked everyone for the honor and said when she was asked where she was from, and would say from the Boogie Down Bronx, they would be surprised.

 

“I am from the Boogie Down Bronx and I am proud to be a Latina, born and raised in The Bronx, because to be from the Bronx means to not be silent, to be from The Bronx means to be resilient, to use your voice, and to have a responsibility to be a reflection of what good things come out of The Bronx,” she said.

 

Of having her name on a street sign, she said it brought on tears because it was permanent. “Sometimes, you do what you do and you wonder if anybody sees,” she said in part. “Does anybody even care? So, to know that you got a sign with your name on it from where you come from is way better than any Grammy Award.”

 

Introducing Rodriguez, Rivera described him as a content creator and storyteller who redefined the intersection of art and human connection. He said, “You probably recognize his early work when he would sit on the subway near an unsuspecting passenger, draw them across the aisle, and then catch [their] surprise on camera. It blew up on social media, but now his work has grown far beyond the MTA [..] from Rome to Bangkok, next week in Paris. He’s going everywhere.”

 

Rodriguez said having a permanent street sign in The Bronx was a dream come true. “I grew up on 141 and Willis in like this little room,” he said. “My dad wasn’t there for me. I had, like, a crazy mom but my grandma saved my life. Shout out to my grandma over there. I was, like, a teenager, 14. I was always in and out of ACS, always like, you know, praying that I could meet my dad one day because he was an artist, and left me when I was three.”

 

He continued, “You know, just welfare, school snacks, and always having this dream of, like, I want to be an artist, and I don’t care that I’m from The Bronx.” He talked about going to an art and design high school in Midtown, and how other students would say, “Oh, you from The Bronx? Like, I’m kind of scared of you!”

 

He continued, “I’m like, wait, what? Why? Anyway, so I always had these big dreams. I wanted to be an artist, and then in 2020, I started going viral on Tik Tok and then my life changed so fast.” He said he met the president, got to travel the world, making art in Japan, Rome, and Paris. “My dream as a kid was to have art in my life everywhere and now I sell these prints and people send me pictures and are like, ‘Look at this painting that I have in my house in Japan,’ and it’s just a dream come true.”

 

The festivities continued into Saturday night, May 17, at the Bronx Ball, held at the Hutchinson Metro Center in the East Bronx, where the inductees were once again, honored. Axelbank’s speech at that event can be watched here, courtesy of jogeparin via YouTube. A video compiled by BronxNet of Axelbank’s work shown prior to his speech at the Bronx Ball can also be viewed here, also courtesy of jogeparin via YouTube.

 

Gibson later said, “No one does it like how we do it in the Boogie Down! We were proud to host our Annual Bronx Week induction ceremony to celebrate five Bronx luminaries whose names will forever be etched in our borough’s history. Congratulations!”

She concluded, “With love, pride, and deep gratitude, we thank our honorees, partners, and community for making this another unforgettable year. Your legacy inspires generations and keeps the Bronx spirit shining bright.”

 

To view some short videos of the street co-naming unveilings, click here, here, here, here,  here, here, and here.

This year`s Bronx Week sponsors included Chick-fil-A, Chase, Capital One, Con Edison, BronxCare Health System, Simone Development Companies, AT&T, Metroplus Health, Cricket Wireless, Bally’s Golf Links, Optimum, Verizon, and The New York Yankees. Media sponsors were WPIX 11, BronxNet, News 12 The Bronx, WABC 7, 1010 Wins, and The Bronx Times.