The lure? A lineup of hip hop celebrities of local and national acclaim, from Hot 97.7’s D.J. Chubby Chubb to rapper of the moment Lloyd Banks to old school hero Reverend Run of Run-DMC.

Admission was free as long as attendees registered to vote at the door.

Simmons, the co-founder of Def Jam Recordings, has organized hip hop summits across the country since founding the action network in 2001.

He says that rappers can have a positive impact on impressionable youth, rather than a negative one.

Artists at Monday’s summit agreed.

“I think the popularity artists have can influence politics,” said rapper Wyclef Jean, formerly of the Fugees. “People listen to us and watch us on t.v., so you would be surprised to see what we can do when we come out with a message.”

Encouraging young people to vote can be a challenge. Traditionally, voter turnout among young people is lower than among older adults. Inner city youth also struggle with issues that make them feel that the powers that be are unresponsive to their needs.

“They are concerned about so many people they know in jail, on welfare or struggling to get financial aid or to get a job,” said National Black College Alliance program coordinator James DeClesiaste, who has been organizing teenagers to register people to vote this summer. “A lot of politicians don’t talk about those issues because they know young people don’t have the numbers to elect them. The reason young people are not so excited to vote is they feel a lot of politicians are not responsive to the issues they care about. So the issue is how to attract young minds to feel more personally connected to who is making the laws.”

Community groups in Boston and elsewhere in Massachusetts aim to register 10,000 new voters, mainly young people, by August 25. The groups, including Dunk the Vote, the Recovery Community, the NAACP, Project RIGHT, Greater Love Tabernacle and others have registered at least 5,000 in the past three weeks, according to Dunk the Vote Executive Director Ron Bell.

“We canvass in MBTA stations, clubs, hair salons, barber shops and basketball courts,” said Bell.

While the eyes of the public are focussed on the upcoming presidential election, the young people registered during Simmons’ Hip Hop Summit and through the efforts of advocacy and community groups will be able to impact state and local elections as well.