u can vote 4 local hip-hop video on MTV.com

YOUNGSTOWN — A video shot in Youngstown is one of five finalists in a nationwide contest sponsored by cable music network MTV2.

Local hip-hop artist Suge B is the host of the video, which is actually a 12-minute film. Christopher Moss, Albert Fisher and Sterling Smith of Youngstown and Charles Ellis of Columbus shot and produced it.

The Your Block contest began Oct. 9 and ran through November.

The finalists, which were selected by a committee at MTV News and MTV2, will be posted in the near future on MTV2.com/overdrive.

The public will vote on the finalists to determine the winner.

The contest is an offshoot of the “My Block” hip-hop show on MTV2, which visits cities to catch the local sights, sounds and style.

A crew from MTV News will come to the city of the contest winner to do a segment that will air on MTV2 just before the next episode of “My Block” early next year.

The video profiles Youngstown’s hip-hop slang, car culture and hot hangouts, as the contest requires.

Several locations are visited, including Lanterman’s Mill, Plush Nightclub, Buffalo Wild Wings, McGuffey Mall, Geo’s Record Shop, Stambaugh Stadium and the Rayen School.

Mayor Jay Williams appears in the video.

Shot with a hand-held camera, the video does not ignore the bleakness of some of Youngstown’s neighborhoods and industrial areas. Gray skies and bare trees give some shots a desolate look, which contrasts with the lively party scenes and interviews.

Moss and Suge B, whose real name is Dejuan Ellis, are launching an effort to get area residents to vote for their video. They were to hold a press conference today on the steps of city hall to publicize their effort.

“We hope to put the focus on Youngstown,” said Moss about the video. He called the contest an opportunity to give the city some positive national exposure.

“Suge has gotten us here. Now we need people to get behind him,” he said.

Moss, 26, is a 1997 graduate of East High and a 2002 graduate of The Ohio State University.

Ellis, 25, is a 2000 graduate of Rayen, where he was class president. He attended Mount Union College and Columbus State Community College.

Ellis is also the host of “Self-Made TV,” which airs on Warner Cable community access channel 9 in Youngstown.

The weekly, one-hour show, which airs at 11:30 p.m. Wednesdays, includes interviews with hip-hop artists, videos and news coverage of hip-hop events.

Moss is the producer of the show, which has been on the air for three years.

For more information about the Your Block video contest, go to Myspace.com/rappersugeb.