#HipHopEd Chat is a weekly cyber cypher (chat) where stakeholders within Hip-Hop and Education come together to discuss issues that impact the youth and adults within our local, national and global communities. #HipHopEd Chat is a virtual form of professional development for Educators, workshop for Parents and other Adults and a brainstorming session of Hip-Hop practitioners. Our #HipHopEd chats are every Tuesday from 9-10 EST. on Twitter.
Welcome 2 #HipHopEd tonight we are looking at Hip-Hop Pedagogy and Practice as tools for promoting Mental Health in our communities #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth
Mental Health is something that Hip-Hop has been bringing to the forefront in communities that often dismissed the notion of mental health being something to care for as a part of one's total health #HipHopEd
Hoy Unase! #hiphoped Esta noche / 22 de mayo 📢: HipHopedchile
Educadores, estudiantes y padres por igual... Únete a nosotros mientras discutimos la pedagogía y la práctica del hip-Hop, como... https://t.co/4pc2PBg6uB
Hip hop lyric writing, recording, and performing have functioned as community defined cathartic outlets amidst a lack of adequate mental health services #HipHopEd
Hip hop can be such a powerful tool for our kids to open up about the trauma they’ve been through. If I have a student who is “hard to connect with,” (which is a loaded term in and of itself), I nearly always have success connecting with them through discussing music. #HipHopEd
Tuning in from the panhandle area of Texas for such an important conversation! Been doing some hiking & enjoying nature, taking care of my own mental health. #HipHopEd
I honestly would love to connect with you more about this, @Ianplevy . I have looked at the work you do in your school and absolutely love it. It is so powerful for students to be able to process trauma through recorded words; this is something I would love to do! #HipHopEd
When mixtapes are rooted in student's emotional experiences, the distribution and performance process resembles the transfering of emotional gains in therapy to the outside world #HipHopEd#TheCultureIsTheModel
Good to hear! As teachers, we often forget about self care, which is of critical importance too! We cannot serve our students at 100% if we don’t care for ourselves! #HipHopEd
@chrisemdin has said that hip-hop is radical truth telling. If we are to understand ourselves and move toward mental health, that is exactly what we need. #hiphoped
If we listen to Hip-Hop through a mental health lens our opinions of the music, the artists and the fans should change! #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth#HipHopEd
There's also something so individualized about mixtapes-- they speak to a particular moment in a life-- that can align with crafting narratives around emotional experiences. I've done some work with trauma-informed writing, I need to use mixtapes as a mentor text. #HipHopEd
Again, I’m so glad you do the work you do. Nearly all of my students have a therapist, and nearly all of them refuse therapy regularly, because traditional therapy regimens do not connect with hip hop youth (sound familiar in any way, @chrisemdin?) #HipHopEd
#HipHopEd artist @joeyBADASS has talk about his and @CapitalSTEEZ_ (RIP) mental health in an interview and @CapitalSTEEZ_ has multiple songs on his mental health a very popular one is "Free The Robots"
Mixtapes are everything! Got some new heat under-review right now on this. The ability to use pre-established beats a platform to flex is an integral part of the process as well #HipHopEd
Absolutely! It's a short road trip but it's been an opportunity for my husband and me to get away and spend time together. Important to also tend to your health as a couple #HipHopEd
#HipHopEd artist @joeyBADASS has talk about his and @CapitalSTEEZ_ (RIP) mental health in an interview and @CapitalSTEEZ_ has multiple songs on his mental health a very popular one is "Free The Robots"
Appreciate you fam. The issues we find with traditional pedagogy making youth feel invisible are the same in therapy. These systems were not built to support youth of color. #HipHopEd
I love using Hip Hop to make students feel like they have autonomy and expertise over literature. Using Hip Hop as a mentor text for writing about trauma can give students an even greater sense of autonomy over experiences in which they felt like they had no control. #HipHopEd
Hip-Hop and #hiphoped have been so instrumental in my own personal mental health journey. I'd like to think I've occasionally paid that healing forward to my students.
All too often, I’ve seen black male educators forced into the role of disciplinarian in schools. This has to stop, as it’s not healthy for educators, nor our students. #HipHopEd
Important to note that hip hop as a personal cathartic outlet alone is not enough. But, enabling hip hop culture to enter and innovate therapeutic spaces is. #HipHopEd
How Hip-Hop restores your mental health is not something that you should have to seek approval to practice. You're the proof that Hip-Hop is building the best "You" #HipHopEd
Maybe flash-nonfiction "literary mixtapes" would be a move. 500-1000 word pieces that kids curate into a collection. They can analyze their writing for themes in their lives. #HipHopEd
No, you’re dead right on that. I constantly find myself being as much a therapist as a teacher in my school because my students need to talk with someone, and want nothing to do with traditional therapists. We need to change the regime for therapy in our schools. #HipHopEd
Fire! Then we consider mixtape liner notes as a way of developing multiple languages to describe and explain difficult thoughts and feelings. #HipHopEd
To those ends, I am soooo thrilled with the work you do, and why I absolutely plan to reach out. Hip hop therapy has the potential to fill a critical gap of mental health care that exists in many urban youth communities. #HipHopEd
My students’ class playlists are constantly playing in the background. It’s a seemingly small thing that makes a huge difference in their day. It makes them feel connected to each other, me (the teacher), and the room. #HipHopEd
Haven't really flexed my academic writing muscles since I submitted my masters thesis in 1996. Might have to dust off that APA style guide... #HipHopEd
In reply to
@TheRealHipHopEd, @KingAdjapong, @Ianplevy
“HipHop saved my life” - we’ve heard this numerous times - we don’t need this quantified 2 know reality pedagogy’s core components is the solution @chrisemdin#hiphoped#hiphopdev
#HipHopEd(ucators) are aware of the power that hip-hop has to heal and help teachers & students engage more authentically to build a healthy classroom culture!
Has anyone used songs that directly address mental illness/depression/suicidal ideation in the classroom? I've daydreamed about Thugz Mansion in the classroom and have held off. I loved using Changes. #hiphoped
This is amazing...I'm just gonna wait for the publication highlighting trauma-informed writing with individualized mixtapes so we know how to incorporate this in PGH. This is why I love #HipHopEd.
Would love some more info on how you do this! We’ll have 5 minute dance parties once in a while, but I didn’t think to play student curated playlists! #HipHopEd
Trauma-informed everything needs to be in schools yesterday. How many youth would stay in school if they weren’t constantly beaten down by a system that doesn’t understand what they survive outside of school? I hate zero-tolerance policies with every fiber of my being! #HipHopEd
Important to note that hip hop as a personal cathartic outlet alone is not enough. But, enabling hip hop culture to enter and innovate therapeutic spaces is. #HipHopEd
HipHop encourages us to share our authentic narratives no matter how they may be perceived by society. Sharing of our narratives allows others to connect with us and can be liberating and therapeutic. #hiphoped
Expression is essential to survival so if we spent the same time evaluating the environments that birthed the expressions as we do the expressions, we would all be better #HipHopEd
Can you think of examples of artists exploring mental health through the lens of wellness? That is, artists who talk about maintaining mental wellness (as opposed to exploring the topic through the lens of trauma/illness?) #HipHopEd
In reply to
@tdj6899, @KidCudi, @chancetherapper, @Eminem, @Royceda59, @JColeNC, @iamcardib
What are your thoughts about our students being able to find themselves and articulate their realities through hip hop...a stronger sense of self and identity is good for mental health. #HipHopEd
Yes! I think the big thing is autonomy. There's a loss of control that threads traumatic experiences that this directly addresses-- and that we all need to explicitly address when working through a trauma-informed lens. #HipHopEd
We could look at an element of some of the "bragging" in Hip-Hop as a form of wellness or songs that proclaim overcoming. It would be a cool list to generate #HipHopEd
Can you think of examples of artists exploring mental health through the lens of wellness? That is, artists who talk about maintaining mental wellness (as opposed to exploring the topic through the lens of trauma/illness?) #HipHopEd
In reply to
@tdj6899, @KidCudi, @chancetherapper, @Eminem, @Royceda59, @JColeNC, @iamcardib
I think a big part of trauma-informed ed-- and a big part of using Hip Hop in the classroom-- is surrendering our authority as experts. Kids are the experts on the future of Hip Hop, kids should be the experts on their identities as learners and their mental health. #hiphoped
Thugz Mansion, wow, how powerful! That song came on my classroom playlist today and I actually had a great conversation with a few students about the beauty of that song. Pac also brings a lot of power in “Changes” as well! #HipHopEd
Yes to all of this. I've done my work in immigration and homelessness, the number of students with those two particular experiences are far higher than generally given credit for. Trauma-informed ed shouldn't be a niche. Mental Health practices should be a standard. #hiphoped
Hiphop is a culture that was created by people who have been pushed to the margins of society in the south Bronx. HipHop music is an embodiment of HipHop culture, which allows people to express their emotions and share their narratives #Hiphoped
In reply to
@ladyakery, @chrisemdin, @tdj6899, @TheRealHipHopEd
#HipHopEd Ok I thought of another artist @hopsin has a song called "ill Mind Of Hopsin 5" and I'm this song he raps to teenagers on how living a "fast life" can lead to a great downfall in life
Hip-Hop is culture rooted in (4) creative expression pillars (DJ/MC/Dance/Graffiti) watered with knowledge of self/community, that has sprouted into a mindset and world wide phenomenon #HipHopEd
Half felt it and embraced it. Half wouldn’t entertain @LennyKravitz cuz he was wearing eye shadow in the picture 😑 #believe will forever be my song regardless of their jokes 😆
#HipHopEd is the intersection of Hip-Hop, Education and Youth Development where teachable moments are explored and created for the betterment of all three entities
One of my male students wrote a song and recorded it after going through a pretty difficult breakup. I played it for my classes and then his peers were singing the hook and telling him how they relate to his experience. He felt so affirmed! #HipHopEd#HipHopTherapy
Oooo I like the idea of dance parties! Yes, 1st week of school I give every student in class an index card. They write down their favorite artists/songs, etc. I compile those into playlists unique to each class. #HipHopEd
Half felt it and embraced it. Half wouldn’t entertain @LennyKravitz cuz he was wearing eye shadow in the picture 😑 #believe will forever be my song regardless of their jokes 😆 #HipHopEd
Truth on that. I witnessed a cypher months ago when one of my students lost an uncle to gun violence. Girls she never spoke with on the regular, circled up to support her, and everyone started sharing powerful narratives. This is the power of hip hop healing. #HipHopEd
Our students already express themselves through hip hop; it is more a question of whether our institutions celebrate this expression of hip hop identity, or attempt to repress it. #HipHopEd
Welcome 2 #HipHopEd tonight we are looking at Hip-Hop Pedagogy and Practice as tools for promoting Mental Health in our communities #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth
I absolutely love learning from #HipHopEd the topics tonight on connecting mental health, trauma, and #hiphoped has my heart full. Can’t wait to take even longer to dig into this conversation. ❤️
Thugz Mansion, wow, how powerful! That song came on my classroom playlist today and I actually had a great conversation with a few students about the beauty of that song. Pac also brings a lot of power in “Changes” as well! #HipHopEd
This was a dope short clip. I constantly lead my students in meditation. Even 5 minutes of stillness can change the energy in a room and set my students at ease. Thanks for sharing. #hiphoped
Been playing with the ideas catharsis vs. therapy lately. Working with a counselor, teacher, or community worker who understands how to support exploration and reframing of difficult emotions though hip hop culture is essential #HipHopEd
Before the internet, Hiphop was an outlet for adolescence to express their feelings about the symptoms of trauma and ptsd they experienced in our "urban centers" #HipHopEd
Activity Idea: Have students align songs with the emotions on an emotion wheel and then allow them to express the correlations to the class as a whole #hiphoped
Preaching to the choir here! Our whole staff at my school is specifically trained in trauma-informed care and it makes it so much easier to serve our students and build relationships with them. #HipHopEd
Been playing with the ideas catharsis vs. therapy lately. Working with a counselor, teacher, or community worker who understands how to support exploration and reframing of difficult emotions though hip hop culture is essential #HipHopEd
Did a hiphop 4 health cypher keynote WITH 1400 youth & @Logic301 ‘s 1-800 song resonated w youth matching their suicide prevention lyrics w his #hiphoped#hiphopdev
Activity Idea: Have students align songs with the emotions on an emotion wheel and then allow them to express the correlations to the class as a whole #hiphoped
#HipHopEd is the intersection of Hip-Hop, Education and Youth Development where teachable moments are explored and created for the betterment of all three entities
Activity Idea: Have Students create journal entries using song lyrics that they believe give voice to their state of mind in a way that they may not be able to clearly express #HipHopEd
Mental Therapy is freestyling your truth, watching heads around you start to nod, and listening to vocal ad libs from the crowd that say yes I feel your pain because I’ve been there before #HipHopEd
The open of Changes link suicidal ideation to poverty, I rooted a lesson in it:
"Everyday I wake up and I ask myself,
Is life worth living, should I blast myself?
I'm tired of being poor and even worse, I'm black,
My stomach hurts so I'm looking for a purse to snatch" #HipHopEd
Mental Therapy is freestyling your truth, watching heads around you start to nod, and listening to vocal ad libs from the crowd that say yes I feel your pain because I’ve been there before #HipHopEd
Activity Idea: Have Students either create hooks and or write hooks from their favorite songs. Place them on index cards and now you have writing prompts and conversation starters to pull from as needed #HipHopEd
Thoughts on being mindful of our own biases about #MentalHealth, and being able to be reflexive with pedagogy when illness doesn't necessarily reflect the dominant culture definitions and symptoms that we've been "taught."#HipHopEd
This reminds me of a story I heard about (I believe) Killer Mike in a round table with Members of Congress. When asked why he cusses so much in his music, he replied “If there weren’t injustice in my hood, I’d probably have nothing to cuss about.” #HipHopEd
I also really love Quote Walls-- letting kids choose their favorite lines from songs, prose, verse, whatever, honoring them in our space, and never demanding much explanation from students. Their connection to lines doesn't need literary analysis to be valid. #hiphoped
The roots of graffiti in hip hop is therapy. Making yourself heard/seen regardless of if people were ready for it. Educators...commission graffiti artists to co-design emotionally themed murals in counseling offices, hallways, and classrooms #HipHopEd
Such an important point; we also need to provide continued and real, tangible support for these youth who we ask to be vulnerable even if only thru hip hop #HipHopEd
Important to note that hip hop as a personal cathartic outlet alone is not enough. But, enabling hip hop culture to enter and innovate therapeutic spaces is. #HipHopEd
My students give me a hard time when I say that Pac has a song for everything, but truly, the man wrote a song for everything! The lesson you did was so important to our work as teachers! #HipHopEd
And have them film a quick music video on the iPhone. Did that once with my tweens in our coding camp. It was my colleague's idea. Had a blast! #HipHopEd
Activity Idea: Have Students create journal entries using song lyrics that they believe give voice to their state of mind in a way that they may not be able to clearly express #HipHopEd
@kendricklamar 's To Pimp A Butterfly is full of important concepts regarding mental health, not as explicitly framed for wellness, but super powerful and honest. Especially the poem that runs as a thread throughout the album. #HipHopEd
In reply to
@tdj6899, @KidCudi, @chancetherapper, @Eminem, @Royceda59, @JColeNC, @iamcardib, @kendricklamar
Don't break youth down unless you can build them back up. Promoting emotional expression is everything, but we have to be ready for the flood gates to open #HipHopEd
We are working towards a day where students won’t need Hip-Hop to undo the damage that Education does to them on a daily basis. We believe that Hip-Hop is Education and at its best, Education is Hip-Hop #HipHopEd
When I go to local hip-hop shows I see overcoming & wellness in the music. @AVTHEGREAT & @gashousesmitty are examples who spread those messages in songs like "Be Okay" & recently when they brought the community together to shoot their next video for "All I Know" #HipHopEd
In reply to
@tdj6899, @AVTHEGREAT, @gashousesmitty
I work for a school in Cincinnati that specializes in teaching youth in the foster care system, and youth who have endured a great deal of trauma. I’m absolutely happy to connect and talk more! Let me know! #HipHopEd
#HipHopEd there are also opportunities to bring in graff artists to do workshops in the classroom around tagging or writing styles so much more to the culture and expression than just rapping and music
Live and direct, family! Glad to be here, this is such an important subject. Getting caught up on the discussion now. Thank you for holding space! #HipHopEd#MentalHealthMonth
I wonder what visual elements can be incorporated here... I'm a bit obsessed with this. It goes beyond the simplistic "create a portfolio of your writing" and becomes an opportunity for students to write their truths, analyze their truths, and market themselves... #HipHopEd
Being vulnerable enough to say we are hurting and use the music as therapy is not always in the nature of the emcee, whose main goal is often to wake up and act as if they/we just landed in a pile of fresh and the lyrics came in a vision...#HipHopEd
One of my female students has been writing poetry since I gave her a journal last semester. Funny enough, she’s been diving into grunge, ska, and Fiona Apple! #HipHopEd
PREACH. We do this so often when we want to dig deep...then we leave them even more vulnerable and exposed...especially when they leave our classrooms & offices and go into spaces that aren't as healing in the same school buildings. #HipHopEd
Don't break youth down unless you can build them back up. Promoting emotional expression is everything, but we have to be ready for the flood gates to open #HipHopEd
Activity Idea: Show your students news footage without sound and have them select songs that capture the mood/emotions based on what they see. Then play the news footage with the news audio and compare the two #HipHopEd
#HipHopEd when it comes to rap, my students "GOATS" are not the same as mine. I always try to find the jewels in the lyrics, the moments where I can tell my student, "he's no Black Thought, but that was a clever line" lol. If you listen to what they listen to, you learn a lot.
“Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.” A. Lorde
This is woven into so much hip hop work from Basquiat to @rapsody#hiphoped
That's it right there fam. There are skills and training required to help youth process those thoughts/feelings once they are evoked. Those skills are necessary #HipHopEd
I have a very similar project to this with my 9th and 10th graders at the start of every year. They make a playlist that represents their emotions/life experiences at a given moment; e.g., “I listen to these 3 songs when I’m sad because...” Powerful sharing out! #HipHopEd
I think there's something to be said about the symbiotic relationship between the DJ and the emcee. Both exist to make the other better. If one isn't coming as their best self... The unit suffers. This makes me want to listen to some Gangstarr right now. #HiphopEd.
Good idea! Shawn Moore & Dr. Brandon Jones did a great job at creating writing prompts from Blank Panther soundtrack lyrics. We’ve been using that in class too. But having students use lyrics of their choice is a great idea.
Important to note that hip hop as a personal cathartic outlet alone is not enough. But, enabling hip hop culture to enter and innovate therapeutic spaces is. #HipHopEd
I know locally I've been impressed with @amilcook's ability to do this in his classroom across his courses. Especially marketing their talents and gifts across a variety of platforms. #HipHopEd
HH has perhaps always focused on self-care, self-love, and mental health, for it is requires a vulnerable, honest take on one's community, story, and ways to address those short-comings #HipHopEd
#mindfullness practices using hiphop is inspirational. The meditation becomes mentally stimulating reinforcing being present 4 each moment. #hiphoped. #hiphopdev
HH has perhaps always focused on self-care, self-love, and mental health, for it is requires a vulnerable, honest take on one's community, story, and ways to address those short-comings
Yes!! I use this all of the time and I’ve not yet found one student in all my years of teaching who refuses something like this. This is one powerful example of how we can connect on a profound level to our students. #HipHopEd
It'd would be fascinating and incredible and powerful to see kids presenting themselves without feeling pressured to hide any experiences with trauma or mental health. To use Hip Hop to showcase their whole selves. #HipHopEd
In reply to
@chrisemdin, @drlovelace, @Ianplevy, @amilcook
The role of the school counselor in supporting students mental health in schools is crucial. This voice needs to be more present in our community. #HipHopEd
Agreed! The majority of my students are really into trap and their focus is on drugs, money, and sex. I try to find those lines that bring out what’s deeper (i.e. Bodak Yellow being a feminist anthem for women of color). #HipHopEd
I run mobile recording labs in schools and am wondering if anybody in the #HipHopEd world has guidelines for lyrical content. I typically allow students to use any language they need to express their feelings or life situation, as long as it doesn't "punch down." Thoughts?
#mindfullness practices using hiphop is inspirational. The meditation becomes mentally stimulating reinforcing being present 4 each moment. #hiphoped. #hiphopdev
Activity Idea: Have students imagine the best day they could think of in their neighborhood and express it using the 4 Hip-Hop arts. What is the mural on the wall, the dance steps on the block, the lyrics and music blasting in the streets! #HipHopEd
Sometimes, taking a 3-5 minute dance break in a class makes such a difference! Have a student choose a song, pop it on a Bluetooth speaker, and watch students come right back to life! #HipHopEd
(Cont’d) Amiri Baraka used to talk abt how his poetry wasn’t protest poetry until it was compared to white folks’ poetry— his poetry was his reality just like their poetry was reflective of their reality. Same w/the creative expression of young ppl 2day. It’s their life #HipHopEd
Makes me think of Freire's cultural circles and cyphers where all come as equals to teach, heal, and improve 1 another through the use of the community's assets
Also re: hip-hop, u don't wanna be stepping into the circle w/o a lesson to teach or an openness to learn. #HipHopEd
...fascinating and incredible and powerful, but scary. I think all of these practices need to begin with a talk between teachers and students that establishes the fact that no adult is entitled to a student's story. They can bless us by sharing it, we cannot demand it. #HipHopEd
In reply to
@chrisemdin, @drlovelace, @Ianplevy, @amilcook
Important to train Ss to be mindful of the limitation of buying in to quicksand of trolling, selfie-self obsession, and endless comparison politics of this right here, these internets, and ways to use HH to heal and bridge the divides that digitals has created #HipHopEd
I mention this to say that in this conversation, I hope for nuance and love. There can be a stigma that stems from unabashed self expression when it lands on folx with an inability to hear anything but “trauma” - #HipHopEd
We have to show ourselves as educators to be compassionate and strong. Why would a student open up to us if they don’t respect what they see when they look at you? #HipHopEd#SelfCare
Just had a similar conversation with a great man I met tonight, and we bonded over a love of blues. Eventually the topic of Elvis came up. Say what you want about the man’s performance ability, but there was a lot of musical robbery that took place to vault him to fame #HipHopEd
I caution trying to make the culture digestible for folks who aren't ready for it. Counselors have the luxury of closing the door and saying sessions are confidential. Regardless, we leverage our power as educators to create spaces for students to express thru HH #HipHopEd
