Olajide Williams couldn’t believe his luck.
A neurologist and public health professional, he’d spent years tackling health inequities that plagued his African American community.
Now, searching for a way to add authenticity to a Hip Hop Stroke programme, he heard the sound of a beatboxer – in his waiting room.
After the doc fired a couple of compliments his way the young artist countered…
“So you know your hip hop huh… Well, do you know Captain Roc And Richie Rich?”
“Sure I know Richie Rich…” the doc responded confidently.
“I AM Richie Rich!” came the reply.
But Olajide had not come this far to let one minor embarrassment set him back. Like he did with countless others, he connected with this young man, who went on to introduce him to legendary rapper Doug E Fresh.
The two of them founded Hip Hop Public Health together.
And today this unique organisation continues to improve health literacy in marginalised communities – all through the power of music.
Recently I caught up with the hip hop doc. Sat in front of a wall adorned by various awards, he told me how he found himself in a position to improve African American healthcare outcomes. Here’s HHPH with a short animation geared at educating the African American community about the Covid-19 vaccines:
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Prof. Olajide Williams was sent to boarding school in England, aged nine.
He describes his time at the prestigious Haileybury College as both interesting and formative. Although he adds that it was also an isolating experience. As one of only three black people at the school at the time, it was “emotionally challenging and spiritually difficult”.
But he says he finished strong, going on to become the vice-head of school – something likely to have broken a few barriers at the time.
For a boy who spent his summers camping in the Swiss Alps, his return to Lagos, to study medicine, made for a “dislocating experience”. Yet he tells me it was also a time when he found real purpose.
And upon completion of his degree, he felt very clear about who he was and what he wanted from life.
Short-term was New York City.
Like many people that fall in love with the Big Apple, he was intoxicated by its energy and its sense of unlimited possibilities.
But he also mentions another factor.
In 1997, the type of racism that a person of colour might experience, on this side of the Atlantic, was markedly different.
England was still very much “an old boy’s network” – all glass ceilings and shut doors. And whilst America certainly presented more overt racism, for those with “exceptional talent” – there was opportunity.
Olajide saw this and ran with it.
He got his first job at Harlem Hospital. And he describes his excitement of both living and working in this “Mecca of African American culture”.
But racism soon reared its ugly head – in an unfamiliar form.
Running the hospital’s stroke service, Olajide bore witness to the vivid disparities in health that plagued this historic black community – disparities that had their root cause in “systemic racism, in poverty, in marginalisation and in lack of opportunity”.
He says he felt powerless trying to reverse this cycle of pain, trauma and disease within the four walls of the hospital. And so seeking to enact change, he looked for the “low hanging fruit” – that is, the area where his skills could have the greatest impact.
Focusing on stroke (the no.5 killer of Americans and a condition disproportionately affecting minorities) he began developing ideas around community and public health programming.
And after gaining a Masters in Public Health from Columbia University, he launched the Harlem Stroke Initiative.
Initially, Dr Williams worked with church leaders – providing vital information to local congregations.
And then he had a lucky break.
He made a cold call to the National Stroke Association and connected with the CEO. This led to funding for a conference that would address stroke disparities in black communities.
Other projects with the NSA followed, as did more community work with his mentors from Columbia. By this time they were targeting schools, as the “feeling was we needed to begin younger” – in order to create generational change.
So Olajide was ecstatic to learn that the NSA were keen to develop a Hip Hop Stroke programme.
The only problem?
It lacked hip hop.
Olajide was brought in to make it authentic. And whilst he admits being a big LL Cool J fan, he laughs recalling… “Who did I know in the rap world right?”
He then describes the next chapter of the story as serendipitous.
A chance meeting with beatboxer Richie Rich resulted in him connecting with Hip Hop legend Doug E Fresh – who would provide the missing link for the programme. After six months of phoning Doug’s manager (“sorry there’s still no budget” etc) he was granted a meeting with the Human Beat Box.
And Olajide says the two of them simply hit it off: “We built Hip Hop Public Health together and the rest is history.”
***
Hip Hop Public Health has pioneered content that disseminates crucial public health messages to marginalised communities.
And it continues to do so today.
The success of their work on stroke – especially through videos such as “Stroke Ain’t No Joke” has led them to tackle other pressing issues.
Olajide beams with pride when he describes the work they did with Michelle Obama. Working with The Partnership for a Healthy America, an organisation founded by the former First Lady, Hip Hop Public Health brought together artists from multiple genres to produce an album on childhood obesity. Songs like Everybody featuring Jordin Sparks, Doug E Fresh, Ryan Beatty and Dr. Oz aimed to get people off the sofa. The video even features a special appearance from the doc himself!
It is through these “strategic partnerships” that Hip Hop Public Health has been able to scale so rapidly. By working with organisations like Shape America, they are now targeting an ever-increasing number of school systems – delivering vital information to young people most at risk from conditions such as stroke.
This information is not only provided through song and video. Olajide tells me that they also produce curriculums – or “wrap-a-round content”. Such programmes see nutrition integrated with common-core math, resulting in a unique learning experience.
But what continues to set Hip Hop Public Health apart – and Olajide is keen to stress this – is their use of music.
And their unwavering commitment to producing creative content now sees Cheryl “Salt” James star in a video called ‘Let’s Talk about Salt’. Riffing on Salt-n-Pepa’s popular hit (that discussed safe sex) this version teaches young people about healthy eating, in an attempt to prevent hypertension – the top risk factor for stroke. It’s punchy, catchy and unashamedly, I caught myself listening to it several times after our interview.
I end our conversation with two questions. The first is what Olajide’s long-term ambitions are for the organisation.
“I would like to see the work that we do translated into multiple languages,” he tells me. They already have programmes running in the Czech Republic and New Zealand. But Olajide is keen for them to appear in countries like France and England too – places where structural inequities are also proven to be affecting people of colour.
And finally, I ask what New York means to him.
“New York is my home” he replies. And then, almost sensing that I want to tease more out of the question, he goes on to say that he considers England, Nigeria and America all to be his home.
“I suppose it’s part of this new culture called the third culture child. We’re kind of citizens of the world. You know, we kind of move through life feeling part of everything and yet nothing at the same time. So they are all my home.”
And with that, he bids me farewell. Still in his hospital scrubs, he heads back to the coalface once more.
