RESUME & C.V.

EDUCATION & CERTIFICATION

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Grinnell College 1996 - 2000

Grinnell, IA

▪ B.A. in Political Science, c/o 2000

▪ Co-Captain, men’s varsity soccer team

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NYS/NYCDOE Certified Teacher in Secondary Education, Social Studies, 2000 - 2006

Brooklyn, NY

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Hip Hop Education Fellow at H2ED Center at NYU Steinhardt School, 2011 -

▪ Member of first cohort of H2ED Fellows, awarded for outstanding work in

   the field of Hip Hop Education

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RELEVANT SKILLS

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▪ Hip Hop Performance: MC, DJ, Human Beatboxer

▪ Technical Proficiencies: Pro Tools, Logic, Garageband, turntables, vocal looping,

   Roland SP 404 & Akai MPC 2000xl, basic music theory and piano

▪ Languages: English & French (Fluent); Spanish, Portuguese, German, Czech (Partial)

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TEACHING, PROGRAMMING & YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

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Grinnell College, Visiting Professor, Spring 2018

▪ Teaching short course intensive "The Cypher Paradigm: Hip Hop Education, Praxis & Action"

▪ Made possible as part of programming funded by the Wilson Center at Grinnell 

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Eugene Lang College at The New School, Part-Time Lecturer, 2015 –

▪ Teaching 4-credit course "Hip Hop Skills, Style and Science" (Fall semesters)

▪ Teaching 4-credit seminar "Hip Hop Pedagogy & Practice" (Spring semesters)

▪ Co-taught 3-credit summer short course intensive with DJ Rob Swift entitled

   Mixin’ the City: Hip Hop in Practice & Play (June 2016)

▪ Faculty Advisor to the “New School Hip Hop Collective” student group

Visiting Artist, Universal American School, Dubai, UAE, 2017

▪ Participated in a weeklong residency at UAS facilitating workshops with

   grades 3 thru 12 focused on community, collaboration and the role of the

   Citizen Artist

▪ Conducted school-wide performances across grade levels

Cuyahoga Arts & Culture, Project Support Grant Panelist, 2016

▪ Reviewed 40 grant applications for the U.S.’s largest local public arts funder

Bronx Academy Of Letters, Writer-in-Residence, 2015 – 2016

▪ Teaching creative writing elective to high school students in the South Bronx

▪ Co-facilitating “Writer’s Forum” series, booking performance poets quarerly

▪ Previous Writers-in-Residence have included Willie Perdomo, Jon Sands,

   Caits Meissner and program founder Elana Bell

Next Level Cultural Ambassador, U.S. State Dept. & UNC Chapel Hill, 2015

▪ Citizen Diplomat/Hip Hop Artistic Ambassador for Next Level mission to

   Kampala, Uganda

▪ Planned and facilitated 3-week DJ workshop at a Hip Hop Academy in

   collaboration with local partners and artistic team from the U.S.

▪ Mission pillars included conflict resolution, social justice and entrepreneurship

Rap Research Lab/Staple Crops, Curriculum Writer & Consultant, 2015 – 2016

▪ Designing and developing curriculum using the Hip Hop Word Count

   database as a tool for remixed and original student song creation

▪ Facilitating teacher trainings, creation sprints and feedback sessions with

   educators who will be using the curricular tools, across the country

▪ Rap Research Lab working in partnership with the NYC Parks Department

   to implement programming in 12 tech sites around the city

Hip Hop Re:Education Project, Co-Founder & Director of Curriculum, 2007 –

NYC-based Arts Education organization. We: facilitate International Youth

Exchanges, provide capacity-building professional development training

and direct service to schools & educational institutions, and provide youth with

pre-professional Arts & Arts Education training through Hip Hop Pedagogy.

▪ Lead facilitator for teaching residencies at Brooklyn High School for

   Community and Leadership and One World Middle School (Bronx, NY)

▪ Co-author of the “6 Pillars of Membership” of the HHREP

▪ Presenter at the 2013 National Conference for Multi-Cultural Education

   (Oakland), 2012 NYU x Urban Word Pre-Emptive Ed Conference (NYC),

   2011 Hip Hop Ed Week (Newark), 2010 Hip Hop Summer Institute (Madison)

▪ International telepresence workshop facilitator, in cooperation with

   CultureHub technology center (NYC) & Seoul Arts Institute (South Korea)

▪ Lead facilitator, translator and guide for Cousins Tour Group (France) 2013

▪ Lead facilitator for youth writing and performance workshops at 2010

   Do The Write Thing anti-violence symposium, (Washington, DC)

▪ The HHREP is a resident company of the La Mama Theater (NYC)

Project Rhythm Inc, Curriculum Writer & Teaching Artist, 2013 - 2015

▪ Curriculum consultant and teaching artist for 501(c)3 non-profit committed to

   using digital music to enrich and empower young lives.

▪ Created a 10-class sequential curriculum incorporating holistic practices

   (meditation/journaling) into study of basic music theory and principles of

   social change

Tribeca Film Institute, Tribeca Teaches Teaching Artist, 2012 - 2013

▪ Teaching artist implementing “Media Literacy Through Hip Hop Cinema”

   curriculum at New Design High School (Manhattan)

▪ Host & MC for Middle School and High School NYC Citywide Film Festivals, 2012 –

Urban Arts Partnership, Master Teaching Artist & Curriculum Creator, 2005 - 2012

▪ Creator of Fresh Prep: rap album NYS Regents test prep curriculum

▪ Wrote and recorded 4 standards-aligned content-based test prep rap albums

   in Global History, U.S. History, Algebra & English Lit in 12 months (55 songs)

▪ Guest recording artists performing Fresh Prep songs included Talib Kweli,

   Sadat X of Brand Nubian and Dres of Black Sheep.

▪ Trained classroom instructors & teaching artists in the implementation of

   the Fresh Prep curriculum

▪ Variety of yearlong artistic residencies in the Hip Hop arts, poetry & music

   at NYC middle & high schools including Facing History School, New Design

   High School, Heritage High School, Canarsie High School, Thomas Jefferson

   High School, MS 44, MS 271

▪ Curriculum Design and Professional Development Specialist

▪ Co-taught Master Classes with DMC from RUN DMC, Pharaohe Monch,

   Talib Kweli, Fab 5 Freddy

Boys and Girls Republic, Program Director & Curriculum Writer, 2005 - 2007

888 East 6th street, New York, NY (A Program of the Henry Street Settlement) 

▪ Developed programming for a daily after-school program; supervised veteran

   staff; ran employee trainings; recruited student participants

▪ Poet-in-Residence at New Beginnings High School at the BGR; focused on

   conflict resolution, violence prevention, identity and community

New York City Public Schools Teacher, Sept 2000 - 2005

M.S. 88, 544 7th Ave., Brooklyn, NY

▪ Taught 6th, 7th, 8th grade Social Studies, 6th, 8th grade English, Humanities

▪ Region 8/District 15 Social Studies Liaison and Curriculum Consultant 2001 – 2004

New York City Teaching Fellows, Fellows Advisor, Summer 2003

Queens College, Queens, NY

▪ Developed and conducted daily advisory sessions with 31 incoming

   New York City Teaching Fellows for 4-week intensive

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ARTISTIC RESIDENCIES, NOTABLE WORKSHOPS & DISTINGUISHED PERFORMANCES

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▪ 2019 & 2018 Saturday Night Live official afterparty DJ, NYC (SNL Season 44, Ep 15, 17; Season 43, Ep 15, 19, 21) 

▪ 2019 & 2018 Guest lecturer at NYU course "Intro to Hip Hop Theater"

▪ 2019 & 2018 Visiting Artist at Boys Hope Girls Hop NY, Brooklyn, NY

▪ 2019 Panelist at Fordham University's Urban Studies Week: "Hip Hop as Global Language of Resistance" 

▪ 2018 Hip Hop Hacks Workshop Facilitator, Queensbridge Library, NYC

▪ 2018 IUME Hip Hop Youth Summit Workshop Facilitator, Teacher's College at Columbia University, NYC

▪ 2017 Visiting Artist at Inspire! Hip Hop Academy, London, UK

▪ 2017 Visiting Artist at Universal American School, Dubai, UAE

▪ 2017 IUME Hip Hop Youth Summit Workshop Facilitator, Teacher's College at Columbia University, NYC

▪ 2017 Hip Hop Hacks Hackathon Workshop Facilitator, Spotify Headquarters, NYC

▪ 2016 headliner of the Blue Note Jazz Festival, NYC

▪ 2015 U.S. State Department Cultural Ambassador, Next Level Initiative, Kampala, Uganda

▪ 2015 headliner of the Blue Note Jazz Festival, NYC

▪ 2014 headlining solo show at the Blue Note Jazz Club, NYC (September)

▪ 2014 guest lecturer at The New School, NYC

▪ 2014 guest lecturer at LaGuardia Community College, Queens, NY

▪ 2014 guest artist at Scratch Academy, NYC

▪ 2014 performance at SXSW Music Festival

▪ 2014 Juicy Arts Festival headliner with Italian pianist Perla Cozzone (Brooklyn)

▪ 2013 CMJ Festival featured performer in “Taiwan Meets USA” Concert

▪ 2013 WNYC Battle of the Boroughs Brooklyn Representative

▪ 2012 Atlantic Antic featured performer (Brooklyn)

▪ Resident DJ for the 14th st Y Gala 2012 - 

▪ Resident DJ for the 24 Hour Plays On Broadway 2008 - 2012

▪ Resident DJ for the National Book Award Reception & After-Party 2010 -

▪ Artist-in-Residence at the Mama Shelter Hotel (Paris, France) August 2010

▪ Artistic Programmer at M.O.B. Restaurant (Brooklyn, NY) 2011 – 2012

▪ Resident DJ of All Good Saturdays weekly Hip Hop party (NYC) 2005 - 2011

▪ Co-host of a monthly all-elements Hip Hop show at Bowery Poetry Club 2003 – 2006

▪ Workshop facilitator at Contact Theater with Young Identity, Manchester, UK   2012

▪ Workshop facilitator at Re:Definition Poets Collective, Amsterdam, NE 2010

▪ Commissioned performances at internationally renowned venues, theaters & museums including:

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-A38 Boat (Budapest, HU)                        -Mama Shelter Hotels (Paris & Lyon)

-Archa Theater (Prague, Czech Rep.)      -MOCA (Museum of Chinese American NYC)

-Brooklyn Museum                                    -Museum of Jewish Heritage (NYC)

-Contact Theater (Manchester, UK)         -Museum of Japanese American (L.A.)

-Hip Hop Kemp (Czech Rep.)                   -NBC Café at 30 Rock (NYC)

-La Mama Theater (NYC)                          -NJPAC (Newark, NJ)

-Lucerna Muzik Bar (Prague)                     -Seoul Institute of the Arts (South Korea)

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AWARDS, HONORS & ACHIEVEMENTS

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Experience The Ride, Cast Member: Featured Freestyle Rapper, 2013 - 2015

▪ 2013 Drama Desk Award Nominated show: Best Alternative Theater Show

▪ Performance of topical/themed improvised raps in multiple daily shows

Independent Release of Second Solo Album Prospect Avenue, 2013

▪ Prospect Avenue reached #4 on CMJ Hip Hop (#20 overall for 2013 CMJ

   Hip Hop Charts) and #1 on College Radio Hip Hop

▪ Prospect Avenue featured on HipHopDX, MTV Hive, 2DopeBoyz, Okayplayer,

   RapReviews, Village Voice, SoulCulture and many more global publications

▪ Spring 2014 U.S. National Tour & Fall 2014 European Tour in support

▪ Crowd-funded vinyl pressing & merchandise package

▪ Follow-up to 2008 solo debut and 16th release since 2002

Collected & Notable:

▪ 2019 EOW MC Challenge Champion, Season 19, Episode 3

▪ Hip Hop Education work featured in the New York Times, CBS Early Show,

   Huffington Post, NBC’s Cause Celeb, The Daily Forward and more

▪ Music videos premiered on HipHopDX, Okayplayer, 2DopeBoyz, and MTV

▪ Resident DJ at The Lesson at Arlene’s Grocery, NYC, 2014 –

▪ Co-Host of La Mama Theater’s 50th Anniversary Block Party, Fall 2012

▪ Guest lecturer/performer at Scratch Academy (NYC), 2012 –

▪ Featured musician on Occupy This Album compilation, 2011

▪ Guest-starring role on Showtime’s Nurse Jackie, 2010

▪ Featured interview on Europe 1 Radio, France, 2010

▪ Head Coach on MTV’s Made as Beatbox instructor for a 16 year-old, June 2008

▪ 20-time Freestyle Mondays “Off the Head Freestyle Game Show” Champion

▪ 2010 End of the Weak MC Challenge U.S. Co-Champion

▪ 15 independent international tours in Europe & South America, 2008 -

▪ Responsible for introducing the Hip Hop Subway Series to Europe

▪ Ordained wedding officiant, recently performed 10th wedding

▪ Successful realization of a $20,000 Kickstarter campaign to relaunch

   Say Word Entertainment 2017

▪ Featured internationally onstage alongside Aloe Blacc, Antibalas, bell hooks,

   Biz Markie, Black Sheep, Blue Man Group, Camp Lo, Common, DJ Rob Swift,

   Doug E. Fresh, Fishbone, Homeboy Sandman, J-Live, Last Poets, Prince Paul, Robert Glasper,

   The Roots, Rosie Perez, Slick Rick, Soulive, Talib Kweli, The Coup, Tauk... among many more.

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