HHCF Year in Review, PLUS A New Book from Adisa, The Bishop

2015 was a great year for HHCF. We had a lot of ups and downs, and some rocky seas here and there. But in the end, we have grown in many ways. This year HHCF Chess and Life Strategies methodologies were taught to more than 1000 kids. 50% were Latino, 30% were African American, 10% Asian American and 10% Caucasian. We have some amazing raw data from surveys we gave out over the Summer that is still being input into the computer. We hope to share the results with you soon. The momentum is growing.

April of this year HHCF saw the closing of the record breaking Living Like Kings exhibit. I’m not sure, but I think Hip-Hop Chess Federation is one of the first (maybe the only) Hip-Hop non-profit or education organization to be honored at a Hall of Fame of any kind. Everybody in the organization loved St. Louis and our hearts are with the people always. It was great training their staff on how Hip-Hop and chess are connected. Dr. Jeanne and Rex Sinquefield really are a force of nature in the world of chess. Their vision, compassion and and follow through in chess is simply unmatched. Our work in that city has only begun.

Not long after that, HHCF got a new HQ. Three times bigger than our old facility it has the room to grow that we need. Our cheerleading team was set up to go immediately and train at the facility. Once the center was ready, pioneering Hip-Hop education thought leader Dr. Bettina Love, Arash Daneshzadeh and Itoco Garcia gave a magnificent panel. We have had many education talks since then (including an amazing Q&A with Ryron Gracie) and we plan many more in 2016. Visit our site for more.

We also had amazing summer camps in San Jose (thanks to the Safe Summer Initiative Grant) and in East Palo Alto (at Boys and Girls Club in the Peninsula). I was also able to share weekly motivational talks with about 200 kids every week  in EPA. I had a lot of fun and I learned so much about how to be a better teacher at BGCP. Super shout out to Jeff Feinman and /james Harris for helping us make it happen. I also wanna shout out some of our guest speakers like UFC fighter Eugene Jackson, pro hockey player Hans Benson and tech entrepreneur Pablo Fuentes for sharing their time with the kids.

HHCF Summer Program at Seven Trees Community Center in San Jose.

HHCF cheer and dance team went to Honolulu Hawaii and took third at the Aloha Championships. We had a lot of fun and we look forward to going back in March. Our team is currently fundraising to make the trip. This Christmas we wrapped gifts to help bring in some money to help us all get there. We have some cool new member to the team and we look forward to returning to Hawaii.

2015 was a big speaking year for me personally. I was invited to give keynotes at University Wisconsin Whitewater, Oberlin College , Rock The School Bells and U Conn Hip-Hop Conference. I really found my voice taking these trips. I also met amazing educators and students who were pushing the limits of how Hip-Hop can be used as a tool for teaching STEAM and STEM concepts.

In the Fall, we expanded our HHCF Chess and Life Strategies program as well as our film and cheer programs to Unity High School and Unity Jr. High in Oakland, Buby Bridges, John Haight and Maya Lin in Alameda, and Cherryland Elementary in Hayward. It has been such an amazing experience to share our methodologies with these kids.  In the beginning of 2016 our jiu-jitsu after school program begins at Unity High. Thanks to a donation from the amazing jiiu-jitsu philanthropic organization DeuS Fight, our kids have custom HHCF jiu-jitsu gi’s for training. We also open a new program at John O’Connell and a few others in SF. More on those soon.

HHCF Class at Unity High in Oakland

One of the biggest things that happened in 2015 is that RZA gave a donation to HHCF so we can train the juvenile hall staff in St. Louis. Several of their staff took the 5 week HHCF Level One Certification and are now using it with their teens. If you know a community based organizations and schools that you believe could benefit from HHCF’s methodology please have them email contact@hiphopchessfederation.org so they can sign up. Several new schools have already joined on. More on that soon.  

In the beginning of 2016 we will see new HHCF after school programs opening in Raleigh NC, St. Louis MO and we’re working on some schools in the LA Area. It is an exciting time.

RZA’s support of the organization was especially kind this year as he also shared some of the money he got from the sale of the legendary Wu-Tang Clan  album Once Upon A Time in Shaolin. That donation helped launch the HHCF Chess and Jiu-Jitsu Initiative. We will be scholarshipping 25 boys and girls in our 12 week program where they will learn in chess and jiu-jitsu classes back to back.

Chess is jiu-jitsu for the mind. Jiu-Jitsu is chess for the body.

Another great thing that happened is that DJ Johnny Juice Rosado sent us a blazing track for the new HHCF Street Games Vol. 2: #TrapKing Mixtape. It is an amazing tribute to the philosophy of Bruce Lee. The full mixtape drops in Feb. You can hear a few more songs from the upcoming release at www.soundcloud.com/hiphopchess .

Finally, I’m happy to announce that my new book Bobby, Bruce & Bam: The Secrets of Hip-Hop Chess will drop in February 2016. Bobby, Bruce, & Bam: The Secrets of Hip-Hop Chess is a book on the how the work of Bobby Fischer, Bruce Lee, and Afrika Bambaataa in the early 1970s unintentionally overlapped. They echo today  into 2016 to redefine urban education, fitness, and nonviolence.  This fusion teaches young people and adults alike how to reframe their approach to both personal choices in life as well as business decisions. You will also get to hear stories of triumph and tragedy as Adisa works to spread his ideas to teens in San Francisco and St. Louis.

Bobby, Bruce, & Bam: The Secrets of Hip-Hop Chess contains a textbook which allows the reader to learn what I call “chess notations and life equations.” Are you tired of life kicking you in the sack and leaving you on the ground wondering how it happened? Would you like to learn how to take control of your life and create a better future for yourself? If you want a book that will authentically inform and inspire you, without the pseudo-cultish under vibes, this is the book for you.

The site for the book will launch soon. I can’t thank you enough for supporting HHCF is always in need of donations. Our program is growing and we need support more than ever to help us expand our program, facilitate our HHCF Level One Certification and grow our Chess and Jiu-Jitsu Initiative. Please donate today and help kids learn the power of Hip-Hop, chess and martial arts. https://www.crowdrise.com/hiphopchessfederation

Shout outs to Alan Gumby Marques, Paul Moran, Travis Newaza, Vince Bayaan, D’Juan Owens, Rakaa Iriscience, Brother Ali, DJ Kevvy Kev,Cilvaringz, T-KASH, Left from Frontline, Susan Barrett, Ralek and Ryron Gracie, Dr. Peter Goldman, Leonard and Veronica Jones, Denny Prokopos, Cornell Hip-Hop Archive,  Jamel Shabazz, Joe Conzo, Tools of War Hip-Hop Newsletter,  Gbenga Akinnagbe and Liberated People, Scotty and everybody at OTM, Wants Vs. Needs Clothing, RM Klothing, CTRL Industries, Sean McClure, Ed Solis, DJ Robflow, San Jose Zulu Nation and All Tribes Zulu Nation Chapters. There are so many more to thank, but know that I’m grateful and if you need me I’m there.

It Takes More Than Rap Music to Fix A Broken People

October 9th 2014 I found myself riding in a limousine with RZA from the Wu-Tang Clan on our way to speak to about 500 kids about chess and nonviolence in Saint Louis. After that we were scheduled to visit a juvenile detention center to do it again. Without having rehearsed a second of what we each planned to say, we were ready.The night before, lighting and thunder trampled the city from above. In the chaos of the night, Vonderitt Myers was killed by an off duty cop. His death stung like rubbing salt into the infected wounds of a city still recovering from the death of Mike Brown. I had been working in the city promoting the idea that music, chess and martial arts could help young people transcend traditional racial and social barriers. Tensions in Saint Louis were really testing my theories. Nevertheless, the kids embraced our ideas and responded well to our ideas.

RZA and I were there to go to the opening of Living Like Kings exhibit at theWorld Chess Hall of Fame. I was an education consultant to the Hall of Fame. It was my job to teach their curating team the connected history betweenchess, rap and martial arts. It was an honor to have the opportunity to do so. When my organization The Hip-Hop Chess Federation threw its first event at the MLK Library in San Jose, CA in 2006- we got kicked out for being a little too big and too noisy. I didn’t mind. Our first few years a lot of people in the chess community laughed at the idea of rap, chess and martial arts having any meaningful connection or practical application. We proved them all wrong. I connected to RZA through Sway and Tech from The Wake Up Show. He and I met at a Q&A at SF Commonwealth Club. We clicked quickly and his support for the organization has meant more than words can convey.

As the limo pushed muddy melted snow along the curb RZA broke out a prototype Boombotix speaker and started to play Ruckus in B Minor. No one had heard anything from th A Better Tomorrow album yet. Something in the song reflected the turmoil that had enveloped city. I kept asking him to replay it. He obliged.

“We got a lot of work done in 8 years” I said with a smile. The Abbott of Wu-Tang was looking at the storm clouds above and nodded. “ True indeed” he said softly. He turned toward me smiling and said “We have a lot more work to do in the next 8- right?”. Something about what he said rattled me under the surface. I think it was the fact that he was right.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LLA_IMqnL8

In March later the same year I gave a lecture on Hip-Hop, chess and nonviolence at University Wisconsin-Whitewater. At a dinner before the talk I was speaking with a student from Africa. She asked me what I thought the role of the government should be in fixing the situations America was facing. I told her the mistake was to believe that the government properly assessed or could actually do anything about what was happening. Reflecting now, I know the government can do more, but it’s appears bogged down by a deadly mix of apathy and bureaucracy. “If we waited got the government to do something like Hip-Hop Chess, it would take a lot of years to roll out.” I explained. “ It would probably suck too. All the bureaucracy and everybody wanting to take credit for it would hurt the end result.”

The first quote remember from Abraham Lincoln as a child was “This country, with its institutions, belongs to the people who inhabit it. Whenever they shall grow weary of the existing government, they can exercise their constitutional right of amending it, or their revolutionary right to dismember it or overthrow it.” As a young hard left militant in the 1990’s, I used the quote as a platform for my hard left position on being a revolutionary against the system at that time. I don’t believe America needs a revolution anymore. The entire system does not need to be removed. Uncle Sam needs rehab though, maybe some heart surgery as well. I believe people upset with the status of our schools (public or charter) should set up some desks in a garage or at park benches and teach algebra, english or whatever else is needed. Everybody in the hood knows someone who is really good at these subjects. That is how I believe we help the schools. We also know if these kids (especially hood kids) can convert pounds to kilograms to move drugs, we can redirect that knowledge to serveauthentic entrepreneurship in the community. We don’t need the government’s permission, but we need persistent follow through.

A Buddhist monk named Takuan Soho stated “A book on cooking will not cure our hunger. To feel satisfied we must have actual food. So long as we do not go beyond mere talking we are not true knowers.” Police chiefs talk about more community engagement, accountability and transparency. Nevertheless our sons and daughters and fathers and mothers die with little concern or action from the courts. Left over Civil Rights activists and hot blooded new era revolutionaries rightfully express their anger and frustration at the situation. However, none of their speeches and inspiring raps can serve as scaffolding for full bodied agendas in education and business.

International chessmaster Emory Tate and RZA after a game at John O’Connell High in SF.

The HHCF was designed to give young minds the ability to see chess notations as life equations. Our approach to using the chessboard as a metaphor for life, has helped thousands of kids gain clarity of purpose and higher emotional mastery. Chess is a proven tool for raising math and reading skills. HHCF helps them identify people and things that truly enrich them as well as those things that distract them from their goals.

Understand that I love Hip-Hop, because it opened the door to teach me about ancient Egypt, Greece, vegetarian lifestyle perspectives, philosophy and politics. I obviously do not condone or defend artists promoting blatant sexism, drug dealing or violence. Nevertheless, while rappers have been amazing at effectively sharing the legitimate rage in the hearts of the youth, have pretty much proven themselves to be lackluster leaders at best. I can accept that. But then we have to ask why these same rappers are not openly supporting with monetary investment and time the numerous Hip-Hop education organizations. This is something that transcends my organization of course. Hip-Hop Scholars like Dr. James Peterson, Dr. Jeffrey Ogbar, Dr. Imani Perry, Dr. Bettina Love and others should be aligned with artists who see them as allies. Many of the top academics in Hip-Hop are not backed by the artists in spirit or in financial support. There are a lot of fantastic educators and organizations doing the work many rappers seem to be lacking a deeper engagement in.

It takes more than rap music to fix a broken people. I hope the rappers of today can receive my words in the positive spirit they were written in. HHCF has proven that by fusing music, chess and martial arts children can plant the seeds and grow the fruit of peace within their minds. They can be the “true knowers” that Takuan Soho spoke of. This will not only ensure their mind is strong. It will give them something to trust beyond quick money schemes and street violence.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEnEyGAWRvc

Understand I come from what I proudly call “The School of 88.” From 1988 to 1995 I believe was the best era for rap music that ever existed. It contained the widest spectrum of original beats and lyrics from following generations. It was also arguably the most politically and socially aggressive music the world may have ever seen. The artists of those times were able to force conversations that mainstream media was reluctant to address

Luckily I was one of the first people to interview Eazy E and write about NWA.Tupac Shakur was a friend of mine. His music still inspires me. I still listen to the old Public Enemy and X-Clan and other politically relevant records of the past.The current lyrics of Talib Kweli, Brother Ali, Dilated Peoples and Killer Mike inspire me now. Yet, Black comprehensive collective vision, infrastructure and action is simply not there. This is not the fault of rappers alone, but more than rap will need to happen for the change to be real and sustained.

HHCF Founder, Adisa Banjoko (L) and St. Louis youth play on the 64 squares after a lecture on chess and life.

HHCF was in St. Louis doing nonviolence work prior to Mike Brown’s death. So when I see the some of the protests in St. Louis be swarmed upon by artists and activists all so ready to “show em how to do right”- I get scared for our people. The inglorious work prescribed by Frederick Douglass Booker T. Washington, and Marcus Garvey still remain largely unfinished like unpolished marble statues. Sadly it seems some of our activists entertain false fantasies of being the bloody martyr for freedom in the final hour of “the revolution.” Many have been willing to die for the cause. I understand the idea but I believe the world is in need of those willing to live and open a new door to authentic peace. Few are prepared to do the heavy lifting (planning and funding of entrepreneurship, rebuilding of schools and rebuilding of the family unit). There is no shortcut to true prosperity. The improved math, reading comprehension, and emotional balance is all right there on the 64 squares. The neglect of that kind of work decade after decade has made our responses and outcomes sickeningly predicable.

I support the right for anyone to protest peacefully for a just cause. My concern is that the sustained protests, without a structured plan unfolding alongside it, will eventually lead to impatience. Prolonged exhaustion of patience will give way to new violence. Violence we don’t need.

I am no more a proponent of killer cops, than I am cop killers. Both have no place in our society. Neither are friends to the community at large. Unfortunately, African American’s and cops can hardly hear one another beyond the gunshots at this point. It often feels as if the media prods the opposing sides in the moment- alienating those fighting to hold onto the center. In chess whoever loses control of the center usually loses the game. Right now I don’t feel like anybody is really winning. It appears America is losing its center on all fronts.

Essentially it’s almost been a year since RZA and I visited St. Louis. He asked me to make sure I came back to help the children of that city. HHCF just began training St. Louis juvenile hall staff in our Chess and Life Strategies method for their kids. RZA is still right, and HHCF has thrown down the gauntlet not only by way of chessboards but more importantly by way of elevating the bar of accepting ‘responsibility”. During “The School of 88” a group called Gangstarr had a song titled — “Who’s Gonna Take the Weight”? It was asking about who would be willing to do more than talk to change the America. While we can find some who are unquestionably guilty for creating the circumstances and conditions that have helped to arrest the development of many urban communities and its inhabitants, the ultimate responsibility for correction falls squarely on the shoulders of those most closely connected to the people. HHCF has proven our ability to quickly connect with at-risk youth all all backgrounds. If rappers continue to be non-strategic, in their social or political activities, then all of the elements that help make Hip-Hop a vibrant culture will become like shiny objects to crows; in other words, we will only embrace them because they are shiny not because we fully understand and appreciate their value on a much deeper level. It will certainly take more than rap music to fix a broken people, and more importantly to make our communities and this country better.

RZA Donates to Hip-Hop Chess Federation to Benefit the Youth of St. Louis

For Immediate Release

Contact: Meek Gaborski

888-588-4418

RZA Donates to Hip-Hop Chess Federation to Benefit the Youth of St. Louis

HHCF Board Member RZA Helps Launch Chess Initiative for Juvenile Hall Students in St. Louis

Nov. 1st 2015, St. Louis, MO- The Hip-Hop Chess Federation (HHCF)  is proud to announce it has begun training St. Louis juvenile hall staff  it’s “Chess and Life Strategies” certification program. The HHCF St. Louis initiative was made possible by a donation from board member RZA of Wu-Tang Clan to help HHCF establish itself in the city of St. Louis. October 9, 2014 Adisa and RZA spoke to more than 400 high school youth from Ferguson and across St. Louis. Later that same day Adisa and RZA  gave a short lecture and played chess with incarcerated youth at the juvenile hall. RZA, who serves on the board for HHCF was moved by what he saw in the hearts and minds St. Louis youth. “That night RZA handed me a check and asked me to put together a program to help the youth of St. Louis.” stated Adisa Banjoko. I promised him I would make it happen.

During the October meeting with the incarcerate group of boys and girls about using chess as a tool to control their energy, Wu-Tang rapper said, “Y’all are in here for not controlling your energy, yo. You are here now] for not being analytical about the results of the actions you have taken. I’m the last one to talk in some sense. I’ve been through the same system...Me and my brother got our first gun, when I was 11 or 12...Riding NY city busses looking for what they call, a ’vic’ [victim].” He went onto explain how he taught himself through reading and playing chess to help him make better choices over time. RZA explained how the trauma of watching many relatives and friends die or become incarcerated, led him away from being trapped in the streets. “It’s a game of chess in one sense, but in another it's a study of life. We in the Hip-Hop Chess Federation are striving to bring awareness to American’s, to Black youth,  but to the whole of American youth... That chess study, along with martial arts, along with music-  is the best way to help develop your mind and body and protect you from pitfalls in life that will surely come at you.” The full audio of RZA’s conversation with the incarcerated youth of St. Louis is up at www.bishopchronicles.com .

TJ Jones a staff member at St. Louis Juvenile Hall Family Court wrote a letter to HHCF a few weeks after thier visit stating, “You gave a memorable and powerful presentation to our youth and showed your dedication and motivation to do the unthinkable, connect chess with Hip-Hop...They were so amazed they began to ask  when you were coming back again to have a chess tournament.” TJ and Adisa talked over the course of the next year looking at the most effective ways to get St. Louis juvenile hall staff trained in HHCF methodologies and philosophies. “Thanks to vision and trust of RZA in our our mission, we are currently training their staff in our innovative approach to teaching teens about life though chess. In five weeks, they will be complete in their HHCF Level 1 Certification. So many kids there already love chess, I cannot wait to see the students when we visit again.”

St. Louis based schools and organizations looking to have their staff trained in HHCF Chess and Life Strategies program can email contact@hiphopchessfederation.org and apply. They can also call Bay Area HHCF HQ 888-588-4418.

Dr. Bettina Love to Speak at Hip-Hop Chess Federation Grand Opening August 15th!!!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PR Contact: (323) 335-4497

memg@hiphopchessfederation.org

Hip-Hop Chess Federation Announces New Education Center Grand Opening

Harvard University’s Nas Fellow to Speak at HHCF on Hip-Hop and Education

San Jose, CA, 8/12/15-  The Hip-Hop Chess Federation (HHCF) is proud to announce that it will host a Grand Opening of its new facility located at 42660 Christy St., Fremont, CA August 15th at 5 PM. The HHCF is the first organization to fuse Hip-Hop, chess and martial arts to promote education and nonviolence. The SF Bay Area based 501c3 has worked tirelessly for nonviolence since 2006. They recently were the foundation of a record breaking exhibit on Hip-Hop and Chess at the World Chess Hall of Fame in St. Louis. RZA of Wu-Tang Clan (the organization's Director of Outreach) and Adisa The Bishop were among the first from the Hip-Hop community on the ground in that city to work for mutual understanding and peace. Their work can be furthered now in their new facility in the SF Bay Area.

Dr. Bettina L. Love currently serves as an Associate Professor at the University of Georgia and was named the 2016 Nasir Jones Fellow at the W. E. B. Du Bois Research Institute at Harvard University. The title of her talk at the HHCF Grand Opening is: We Are The Ones We've Been Waiting For: The Possibilities, Challenges & Limitations of Hip Hop Ed. The entire talk will be live streamed on Periscope through the HHCF Twitter account @hiphopchess.

Dr. Love's talk will explore the possibilities, challenges, and limitations of Hip Hop Ed and its entanglement with the contested space of Black popular culture, while still functioning as a humanizing, critical, creative pedagogical intervention that fosters self-determination, self-knowledge, and acts of resistance with young people concerned about and fighting for justice.     

"HHCF is not only doing the work, but also showing us all how it’s done” said Dr .Love. “The work of the HHCF should be a site of study as folks search for defining models of Hip-Hop Ed. I am beyond excited and humbled to enter the space built by two extraordinary educators. I hope my talk will move Hip-Hop Ed closer to the axiom of Black Lives Matter.” After her lecture there will be a panel discussion on Hip-Hop Ed with Arash Daneshzadeh and special guests. “Dr. Love is arguably the brightest mind in education today, especially where urban and at-risk youth are concerned” said HHCF Founder Adisa The Bishop. “We are beyond honored to have her wisdom mark our Grand Opening. She represents a new wave of Hip-Hop scholars who will refine how we will approach and engage America's youth academically.” In addition to the lecture and panel there will be speed chess gaming, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu demonstration, artwork by Carlos Rodriguez of RM Klothing will be on display and dope beats will bang hard. For more information visit    https://www.facebook.com/events/113042345710060/ or www.hiphopchess.com

Feature on HHCF with shots of new HHCF Community Center!!

The Chess Drum caught up with Adisa Banjoko of the Hip Hop Chess Federation (HHCF) to discuss his new projects, the challenges, the successes and the organization’s sprawling new space for classes. The HHCF is on the move once again and has been progressive in trying to establish an fusion between different artistic expressions to draw from the strengths of each. Chess, Hip-Hop and martial arts all have their dualities and it is clear that this the HHCF has been able to take this concept where no one has gone before. Banjoko provides some important insights in this short interview. 

http://www.thechessdrum.net/blog/2015/07/19/latest-vibe-with-adisa-banjoko-hhcf/

RZA Joins Hip-Hop Chess Federation to Launch Chess and Martial Arts Program in St. Louis

Photo: Adrian O. Walker

RZA Joins Hip-Hop Chess Federation to Launch Chess and Martial Arts Program in St. Louis

Wu-Tang Clan Founding Member and HHCF Unite to Promote Nonviolence   

San Jose, CA 10/14/2014- The Hip-Hop Chess Federation (HHCF) is proud to announce that actor and rapper RZA of Wu-Tang Clan and Adisa Banjoko visited the Demetrius Johnson Foundation and spoke to a crowd of about 400 mostly inner city teenagers from St, Louis on October 9th. 2014. The youth listened for an hour as Susan Barrett, of Barrett Barrera Art and Fashion led the discussion on how Hip-Hop, chess and martial arts can enlighten minds and promote nonviolence. St. Louis photojournalist Adrian O. Walker also spoke to the youth reminding them of their brilliance, potential and power.

Tension had been high across the city in the shadow of the recent police killing of Vonderrit D. Myers. The shooting death came as many citizens were still actively protesting the murder of  Mike Brown. RZA and Adisa Banjoko spoke about the value of all life, the power of peace and how chess can help you see options you might not have considered. The conclusion of the panel ended with a booming ovation from the crowd.

After youth discussion, RZA, Adisa and Susan visited the St. Louis County Family Courts Juvenile Hall to speak to co-ed incarcerated youth. It was a closed session and no media were allowed inside to protect the identity of the the youth. The panel was similar to the first, but it was filled with reminders that virtually all mistakes can be redeemed with consistent effort in seeking knowledge and wisdom. After their talk, RZA and Adisa played multiple games with the eager teens. Many of them were well schooled in the fundamentals of chess. A lot of fun was had by all participants.

From there RZA and Adisa went to the Living Like Kings VIP opening at the World Chess Hall of Fame. They were joined by St. Louis MC’s KyJuan from St. Lunatics as well and Tef Poe. DJ Needles rocked the turntables spun classic Hip-Hop and a b-boy cipher exploded on the floor.

Living Like Kings: The Unexpected Collision of Chess and Hip Hop Culture is an exhibition that explores the surprising ways in which the ancient game of chess intersects with the powerful, creative expression in hip hop culture, which includes music, fashion, art, dance, and spirituality. The centerpiece of the exhibit is a 27 minute film by Benjamin Kaplan shown on two screens simultaneously. It features RZA, Adisa Banjoko, Grandmaster Maurice Ashley, Rakaa Iriscience and Womens Grandmaster Jennifer Shahade among others. The opening of Living Like Kings broke all previous attendance records for an exhibition opening. People were lined up down the block to learn about Hip-Hop and chess.

Adisa Banjoko stated “It was an honor to serve as an Education Consultant to the WCHOF and teach their organization the history and art of how chess and Hip-Hop are connected. The Living Like Kings exhibition and film are very compelling and I believe this is just the beginning. For RZA and I, healing the impact of violence on St. Louis using music, chess and martial arts is key. Our organization focused on engaging at-risk and incarcerated youth of all backgrounds.

We cannot thank Demetrius Johnson, Rodney Hubbard and Susan Barrett enough for their trust in our intentions and abilities. HHCF will soon announce the schedule for our Life Strategies certification training for teachers, as well as kids introduction to chess and jiu-jitsu classes soon. A donation from RZA has made it all possible. We plan to announce the details of the program in a few weeks. The HHCF is grateful to RZA for donating his time, money, wisdom and compassion. “

RZA who serves as Director of Outreach for HHCF stated " It was a pleasure for me to join the HHCF The WCHOF and Demetrius Johnson in St. Louis to help spread the cultures of hip hop chess and martial arts.  The trip was enlightening, engaging and uplifting.

Enlightening in the sense I learned that St. Louis is a core city for the history of chess. Parts of the first world championship took place in the city. The World Chess Hall of Fame relocated from Miami to St. Louis.

The most engaging part of my trip was talking to the young people from different schools and the Juvenile hall. Hearing how they viewed the world and their city struck me. Hearing the young athletes ambitions and young talent,  seeking education and opportunity in order to better their lives and the lives of their family, community, etc., was a beam of hope.

Finally I was deeply moved seeing and knowing the frustration and disharmony the citizens are feeling due the past and recent brutality of law enforcement officers- it only threw gas on the fire of the city’s race relations. Then to see at the World chess hall of fame enjoy a full house of what Rev Jackson would have called a rainbow coalition of people, all under one roof with a common denominator.

“The Hip-Hop chess and art exhibition was the first of its kind in the midwestern city . The WCHOF experienced a record breaking attendance for a single opening night event. This is a testament to the fact that if we find what we have in common, we can overcome that which don't have in common. Thanks to Adisa Banjoko, Susan Barrett and the art contributors for the bravery and poise to show the city, there is a beam of light penetrating. Thanks for inviting me to be a part of it. "

For more information on HHCF visit www.hiphopchess.com