Cloud Scroll Tea, Created by Adisa the Bishop (For weight loss and immunity help)

Cloud Scroll Tea (for weight loss and cleansing) By:Adisa Banjoko: 

 Cloud Scroll Tea is a tea recipe I developed. I was looking for a legitimate way to use tea to lose the most weight possible, but not sacrifice flavor. The original Cloud Scroll itself, is a book of jiu-jitsu techniques that came as a companion of related movements to the Iron Hook Scroll. Both books are jiu-jitsu an illustration of positions that came to me after a series of powerful experiences practicing transcendental meditation at John O’Connell High School many years ago. None of the positions were a product of my own tactical thinking or creativity. This is one of the reasons I believe meditation is such an important habit of creating.

The moves work gi or nogi and are respected by black belts around the world for their effectiveness and clarity of purpose. Techniques from the Iron Hook Scroll make you lockdown and be heavy to your opponent. The Cloud Scroll techniques are meant to lighten the opponent from being oppressive with their weight when you have them in a position called the closed guard. The Cloud Scroll is meant to lighten your mood in the moment and your physical frame over time. I am telling you this to help you understand the intention it was created with. 

In any case, what a lot of people don’t know is that I have been a diligent student of teas and the healing properties in them for no less than 25 years (I am 50). I have found tea to be one of the fastest and most cost effective ways to help our body heal itself. 

This tea came into fruition about year ago. I had seen a study that wanted to know did green tea or oolong tea (known as Tea Kuan Yin) help you lose faster. The result of the test showed that both helped, but that combining the teas was best. So, I immediately went to work on making a tea using those as the base. I scoured Chinatown in San Francisco (folks know that is my favorite part of SF) and I also found some other healing herbs to help you out. I have a booklet of teas I have made over the years. I don’t even keep them in my Google Drive because I keep them secret. None of them though do I trust in like Cloud Scroll Tea. I have lost a lot of weight using this tea (more than 15 lbs!). 

I do not care what brand of anything you use to make this tea. Get it wherever it is cheapest. I know there are vast differences in tea quality, flavor, processing etc. For me however, it is just important that you begin drinking it as soon as you can. 

Cloud Scroll Tea 

By: Adisa Banjoko aka The Bishop

Teaspoon oolong (tea kuan yin)

Benefits: It contains a variety of minerals such as carotene, calcium, copper, selenium, and vitamins A, B, C, E and K. Additionally, oolong tea contains detoxifying alkaloids such as folic acid and niacinamide

Teaspoon jasmine green tea

Benefits: A study was done and it showed people who drank 1–3 cups (237–710 ml) of green tea per day had a 19% lower risk of heart attacks and a 36% reduced risk of strokes, compared to people that drank less than 1 cup (237 ml) daily

Teaspoon Siberian rose petals

Benefits: Roses are known to be high in vitamin C, one of the most important vitamins in our body. Vitamin C is an essential part of our immune system as it stimulates the production of white blood cells and functions as an antioxidant, effectively lowering oxidative stress. 

Teaspoon red clover blossom

Benefits: Red clover blossom promotes optimal health of the respiratory system, the lymphatic system, the immune system, the blood, and the skin. I personally believe it is one of the most underutilized herbs in the world for healthy living.

1/2 Teaspoon oatmeal

Benefits: Before you send me a throw up emoji, understand this. Oatmeal has been heavily studied in relation to the immune system’s response to disease and infection. Essentially, because of oatmeal’s unique fiber called beta-glucan, it helps neutrophils travel to the site of an infection more quickly and enhances their ability to eliminate the bacteria they find there.

DIRECTIONS: Place in a pot of 8 cups boiling water. Let it simmer low for about 7-10 min. Add lemon/lime  and honey to taste. For better weight loss do NOT use any sweetener.

You can hear me talk about Cloud Scroll Tea on Bishop Chronicles Podcast on Mixcloud at 43 min in. You can also subscribe there or at iTunes, Spotify, Mixcloud or Libsyn. You can also listen at www.bishopchronicles.com 

The FDA has not verified anything I have written here. I AM NOT A DR. DRINK AT YOUR OWN RISK...

How Martial Arts Can Teach Nonviolence

It is a story I told before, but I had not fully considered the implications of the moment I
learned about Bruce Lee. I was 9 years old when my dad brought home spanking
new technology. A VHS machine and tape deck. The first two movies he had were
Alien and an unknown film called Return of the Dragon. After watching the alien break out of a
guys stomach I was happily avoiding watching that film in its entirety. My 9 year old mind just
wanted to know “Who was this dragon?Where did he go? What is he returning to do?”
Boy were all my questions answered. 

After finishing the film and making some nunchucks out of sawed off  yellow
broomsticks and some chains my older cousin Steve let me borrow (he went
onto become a karate master himself). I bonked myself on the head and hands
over and over until I had some half decent skill. I also went
crazy buying any magazines that were connected to martial arts of any kind.
I also took up Judo and, while not being very good at it, I did love it. 

Being a natural born reader, the magazines helped me understand so much of
the mystery behind the men and the motives of their movements. One of the first
magazines I ever bought burned an image in my head possibly forever. The story
was about a Buddhist Monk in Thailand. The monk is in his robes, head shaven
and eyes gently closed in meditation. To his left as a young aspiring Thai
boxing champion cut deep into the heavy bag with his shin bone. The young
students lean cut body was dripping sweat in his display of full force and focused
on the heavy bag before him. The story went onto note that the Monk had created
a space for young poor kids to train and learn about
Buddhism in hope of them valuing peace.

It may appear hard to conceive, but people who train in martial arts are some of
the most peace loving people I have ever met. I think this is because most people
think they want to hurt someone. But people who really know how to harm someone
don't take pleasure in it. This is part of what keeps them calm when things get socially
tense. The truth is that knowing how to choke someone out almost demands that the
person with that skill understand the value of life.

That is how I always understood the picture in the old magazine. Even that that age, I got it,
but I could not have said it out loud. But I understood it. I saw Bruce always try to figure a way
to think things through and help solve problems. He never wanted to fight. I loved his family and his
Because of that unique entry into martial arts, I always had an understanding that the way of the
warrior and the pursuit of nonviolence were eternally connected. I consider these kinds of events
the some of the seeds of what became the
HHCF philosophy on nonviolence. 

I recommend anyone trying to take their wisdom about inner peace and greater global
peace train in jiu-jitsu, judo, kung-fu, boxing, thai boxing- whatever. Read books like
The Art of Peace, The Art of War, The Prince, anything by Marcus Aurelius Clausewitz and others. Play chess casually to add to your understanding of the art of war. If you train and you do that, you will see things others cannot see socially
and do things other cannot do personally. 

For more on Thailand and Thai Boxing catch Fightworld on Netflix.

Learn more about the connections between Hip-Hop, chess and nonviolence by subscribing to the Bishop Chronicles Podcast on Spotify, iTunes, Mixcloud or Libsyn. You can also buy the book  Bobby Bruce & the Bronx: The Secrets of Hip-Hop Chess by Adisa the Bishop on Amazon. 

Pop Smoke: Gangs, Guns and Dying Young

Recently rapper  Pop Smoke (born Bashar Barkah Jackson) was murdered in LA.

It took a lot of folks by surprise and it has been very sad. He rapped a lot about
guns and death and violence. I am not that familiar with his life. I cannot say for
sure that he was deep in the mix. Sometimes it’s just an act. Either way, it does
not matter. I mean Juice WRLD just died of his OD,  I’m still not over the killing
of The Jacka or Nipsey Hussle and it feels like  these younger rappers seem
to be dying faster and faster. Very painful stuff. 

I

Image: copyright of Complex Magazine

Since the 90’s alot of rappers have made a good name for themselves by being
gang affiliated. Some of them really were in the streets. Some were not but had
family and friends who were and it helped their image. When this kind of strategy
becomes desperate you end up with Tekashi 69 kind of situations. When you
really look at Tekashi and some of his early video interviews before a really
blew, you could see he was not a killer. This was a kid looking to get famous by
any means necessary. That is a popular phrase originally coined by Malcolm X
(using it to describe the dedication of the Black socio political agenda of the time)
used in Hip-Hop because of rappers like Public Enemy, KRS One, Paris and
other rappers of the late 80’s and 90’s. 

Later some of the street rappers used similar slogans to amplify their dedication
to the street life. Tekashi wanted to be down so bad, he betrayed his own
non-gangster nature to get money. He got famous by any means. Unfortunately
it was at the cost of that which is priceless- his freedom. He lost his lady, access
to his kids, the ability to make music and he still has a long way to go because of
what he did. The gang pushed aside their normal vetting process to get money
from a dude who was not built for that life. They all got ruined.

The other reality is that the way he and others liked to be on social media flashing
of money, gold cars, etc. on social media is like throwing blood in the water at real
sharks. Real street people are starving out here. They shoot people for a lot less
than you show on the screen. These guys are desperate. If they want something
better and if you get online telling them you got it and you down to kill for it- you
might come across someone more hungry than you. 

Apparently Pop Smoke posted his address on IG or any social media a few hours
before the home invasion.  When you tell people you gotta lotta money and or run
with killers it can be very dangerous business. That is just solid advice. Especially
while traveling. 

I myself rarely post where I am in real time. You see me in The Bay- I might be in
London. You see me in London, I’m back in The Bay. One of the things that social
media does is it gives you the illusion that everybody who watches you like you.
They don’t. I mean, I don’t even like me that much sometimes. How unrealistic is
it that a certain amount of folks out there might have bad vibes for you- let alone
willing  to put bad intentions into action? I did a short video on the reality of
having enemies in your life and how to deal with this reality. 

Check in with the Homies

In Hip-Hop back in the late 80’s and early 90’s most rappers would go to local
mom and pop stores to promote shows and album releases. Because Hip-Hop
is close to the streets a lot of these artists created solid connections with other
people in the know. Not only was it smart (ie keep you from being a victim of
attack and robbery (in the Bay Area Nas, 2Chainz and once even DJ Quik
had rowdy experience). I don’t say this to embarrass anybody. Look, the streets
are dangerous. Anybody can get it. 

My point was in the day certain artists, like DJ Premier and Guru of Gangstarr
were very well connected to people from Fillmore District in SF (very reputable
are for art, music and street violence). They never had problems. San Francisco
was always like a second home to Gangstarr. Chuck D of Public Enemy, X-Clan,
KRS One, and others were well connected to the people and artists in the
community. So they never had problems. 

National artists used to check in with local artists not because they were scared
but they wanted to be connected to the local fans. As rap went more and more
mainstream label folks intervened for control as they tried to do more lucrative
deals with radio stations. Little by little artists were cut off from the local fans and artists. 

Another group good for being connected to local areas regardless of label stuff was. 
Brand Nubian for The Source way back (Mary J. Blidge was on the cover) and a
big part of my story was how well Lord Jamar and Sadat X were connected to
the Grape St. Watts Crips. Brand Nubian never had a problem in LA. This was not
long after the LA Riots and the unity vibe was big between the coasts. 

The Jacka was good about that too. He had a solid national network because he
preferred to look into connecting with anyone who was dope and respected The
Bay. Immortal Technique, Andre Nickatina, Dilated Peoples, and Master P are
also great examples. 

The biggest gap I saw in that divide was many years back Drake and Lil Wayne
were doing a show at San Jose State. The same day, there was a Hip-Hop
Conference that dealt with police brutality etc. on the same campus. But there
was not connectivity between Cash Money and the local artists and activists.
Both were well attended but in the old days the rappers would encourage their
fans to go to both. Those days are largely gone now. 

The Wu-Tang Clan has always had folks on the ground city to city. They best
exemplify the idea of staying connected to the beats and the streets. They have
such a good network individually and collectively. This is one of the reasons they
are so successful. 

But again, corporate labels ruined a lot of that. Artists, labels and management n
eed to be doing better work on reconnecting artists to the communities they tour in
. It is good for the community and it is good for the monetary bottom line. 

The End Game

Nipsey Hussle was killed by his own supposed to be folks. I hope this does not play
out the same way. Tupac used to talk about all the cultural conflict rappers go through
between being the neighborhood guy you used to be, then going to the suburbs and
those folks don’t want you as a neighbor. I cannot imagine what the weekly pressures
like that can deliver so many of these young Black men without solid family’s, mentors,
financial friends who are not predatory etc. 

Plus the struggle between the “mean guy” persona on wax and the real day-to-day
person they are is another stress in itself. At the end of the day as a Hip-Hop OG
writer and lover of the subculture, as a father seeing how he died really troubles me.
The main concern I have right now is that if his killers were not a targeted non gang
affiliated scenario that we could  end up looking at West coast rappers getting hit up
while in NYC or whatever as a form of retaliation. 

The other week rappers E-40 and Richie Rich got into it online after the Superbowl.
It looked like it might get intense for a minute. Within a few days though, things were
measurably better. They met, squashed it and worked it out. Go look into it. That is
how OG’s do it. They deserve to be on the frontpage of all kinds of websites and
magazines. But they are not. What I am sure of is that if one of them had tried to
kill the other it’d be all over the news. This is the America we live in  now. This is
the world that builds up a rapper like Pop Smoke, watches him die and then you
see all the media vultures circling the drama. Another Netflix fim in the coming
years I’m sure. I bet nobody makes a film about 40 and Rich though. That is the
deeper crime. But this ain’t healthy. This ain’t good for Hip-Hop, America or the
world at large. 

We must do better before Hip-Hop kills itself off or dies out from addiction. I
never ever thought it’d be like this when I got into the subculture back in 1982.
To all the OG’s in the rap game, no matter what you do you matter. Your wisdom
matters. We can’t let these our kids go out like this.  I pretend to have no answers
at this time. But I’m tired of watching these young brothers die on the dope and
the gunplay. Much love to the family of Pop Smoke. 

Adisa the Bishop is the host of the Bishop Chronicles Podcast. It focuses on west coast Hip-Hop, MMA and health and fitness trends. Listen now on www.bishopchronicles.com  or follow him @bishopchronicles on IG.

BREAKING: Lost Instructional Jiu-Jitsu Book by Adisa, The Bishop is Released! The Cloud Scroll !!!

HHCF is proud to announce The Cloud Scroll: Closed Guard Sweeps, Pins & Submissions. This book is a companion to The Iron Hook Scroll written in 2013 (which included amazing finishing holds like the dreaded "Thug Nation" shoulder lock . It is a book Adisa The Bishop wrote 4 years ago but was lost. In May of this year Adisa almost passed away from a bacterial infection. Among other things, he was sad he was about to die a brown belt. As soon as he got out of the hospital he told his instructor Alan "Gumby" Marques his plans to train harder and get consistent back on the mats. He later called Denny Prokopos and told him about his reluctant idea to release the Cloud Scroll. Denny suggested he do it because life is short. The Bishop agreed.

There are three videos that help the reader understand the positions. New video's will be forthcoming illustrating the other positions in The Cloud Scroll.

HHCF Hosts Teen Beginners Chess Tournament! Winners get TIX to Black Panther Movie!

For Immediate Release:

PR Contact

Meek G

hhcfteam@hiphopchess.com

HHCF Hosts Beginners Chess Tournament at Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula

Will Give Tix to Black Panther Movie tickets for the Winners!!

Hip-Hop Chess Federation Gives Movie Tix to see Black Panther Movie

East Palo Alto, CA- Feb. 6, 2018- The Hip-Hop Chess Federation (HHCF) is proud to announce that it will be hosting a chess tournament for beginners only in East Palo Alto on February 20, 2018.  The goal is to help teens get comfortable playing the game in a competition setting. The top 4 players will win tickets to see the movie Black Panther! Any participants cannot be rated competitive players. This is for teens new to the game.

It happens Tuesday Feb 20, at 6:30 PM at  Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula  located at  2031 Pulgas Ave, East Palo Alto, CA. “Our program teaches young people how to think under pressure” said Hip-Hop Chess Federation Founder Adisa Banjoko and author of Bobby, Bruce & the Bronx: The Secrets of Hip-Hop Chess. We will give tickets to the top 4 players ”.    Any youth or teen players who want to be eligible for the tickets MUST attend beginners classes Tues the 13th and Thurs 16th  at BGCP. Teen classes are 6-7:30 PM and includes dinner. No previous experience in playing the game is needed. Only a willingness to learn! Sign up at BGCP, all the classes are free.

About HHCF: HHCF Chess and Life Strategies program has been featured in Forbes, NY Times, and KPIX TV. Adisa Banjoko is respected as a leader in education innovation after his lectures at Harvard, Oberlin, and U Conn. His work focuses on the power of fusing STEAM and STEM concepts to help kids and teens learn more effectively. In 2014 the impact of the HHCF was celebrated in the Living Like Kings record breaking exhibit at the World Chess Hall of Fame in St. Louis, MO. Interested parents, teachers and teens should visit Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula to register.

For more on HHCF visit www.hiphopchess.com today and follow them on Instagram @realhiphopchess.

EXCLUSIVE The Rhythm of War: MMA Fight Lab Champion D'Juan Owens

          MMA Champion (and HHCF Representative) D'Juan "Dirty South" Owens defends his title in March!! 

By: Adisa, The Bishop
Photos: Gene Kim

In MMA a lot of people come and go. A lot of people get into MMA for all the wrong reasons. Some do it for money and others for a quick flash of glory. D'Juan "Dirty South" Owens is none of the above. Mr. Owens is fighter with proven resilience. He is a fighter with a purpose greater than himself. Before doing MMA he was a competitive chess player in the military. Mr. Owens is also an avid kickboxing practitioner and a Hip-Hop dancer.

He recently won the Fight Lab Title between multiple visits to Uganda and Senegal teaching women and children dance and self defense. There is truly no one like him in MMA today. His passion for the rhythm between martial arts, chess and music truly makes him stand out inside and outside the cage.

                                           D'Juan finds many correlations between dance and martial arts. 

HHCF: You visited both Senegal and Uganda this year. Tell us what you were doing out there? 

DO: My latest visit to Uganda was on behalf of a non-profit we started in 2016 called "Fighting for Uganda". We teach free community self-defense seminars throughout Uganda. The focal point of our self-defense seminars is gender-based violence prevention(not limited to). During our lecture portion, we discuss situational awareness, domestic violence, and common misconceptions about consent. This is followed by out technique portion.

I traveled Senegal to work with an organization that I'm now a member of called the "Lionheart Initiative". LHI focuses on spreading and developing the sport of MMA in Africa. I came in contact with LHI founder AK Rupert late last year, and we hit it off instantly. We realized that we shared similar values and priorities, and almost immediately we started planning a project where I would teach MMA and self-defense seminars there.

HHCF: I have been consumed by the relationship between dance and martial arts. Bruce Lee was an accomplished Cha Cha dancer. Doing research on Miyamoto Musashi I learned he was a Japanese Noh dancer. Plus his book, The Book of 5 Rings is often about rhythms. Where do you find connections between dance and martial arts?

DO: There's so many man. Movement, rhythm, creativity, timing, and execution come to mind first. It's all art to me. Depending on the artist or practitioner, they can also be seen as systems.

            

HHCF: Do you see rhythm in both striking and grappling?

DO: I see rhythm in striking much more so than in grappling. Due to the space or lack of constant contact in striking, movement really can't be stopped. An avenue can be blocked, but not all avenues at once. Grappling provides so much more control for the dominant grappler. At this point in my development, I don't see grappling as rhythmic. All art isn't rhythm based though. It's definitely art.

HHCF: What are some of today's rap artists that you like?

DO: I'm really impressed by Quadir Lateef, Blitz the Ambassador, and Jay Electronica. I've got a lot of respect and appreciation for many more; but these are artist who I believe are extremely talented that Hip-Hop fans should get familiar with.

HHCF: Congratulations on winning your Title Fight last weekend! Tell us about the fight, and what this win means to you.

DO: Thank you brother! After a hard-fought battle we won "Fight Lab Promotions' " inaugural lightweight Title! The fight went on all five rounds, and we won by Unanimous decision. We had a tough opponent, who definitely came to win. 

This win was the exclamation point on a perfect year of competition success. We went 2-0 in MMA, 2-0 in pro kickboxing, and went 2-0 in grappling superfights.

HHCF: What are your plans for 2018 in terms of MMA?

DO: In 2018 I'll continue to improve as a martial artist, and as a MMA fighter. I'll also continue to compete and win. I'll defend my Title every time I fight for "Fight Lab", and I'll pursue and win a Title in any other organization that I fight for. I'm operating at the highest level of proficiency and efficiency in every aspect of my life. I'm actualizing potential.

HHCF: Any last words?

DO: Much love and respect to everyone out there striving and grinding toward their goals! 

Adisa, The Bishop is author of the book Bobby Bruce and the Bronx: The Secrets of Hip-Hop Chess and Guest Curator of the upcoming exhibit Respect: Hip-Hop Style and Wisdom opening March 24th 2018 at Oakland Museum of California.

#GetBetterAtChess Dereque Kelley Shows the Four Knights Opening.

This guy has some of the best opening videos. He shows the move and WHY it is done and WHAT most people will try to do to stop them. I don't watch his video's enough, but in a perfect world, I would watch these every single day. Now, sit down and let's #GetBetterAtChess

An Open Letter to Bruce Lee from Hip-Hop Chess Federation

Dear Bruce Lee,

        On the 44th anniversary of your death, I find myself very short on words. I was only 3 when you passed away. It would be 6 more years for me to learn who you were. But my life after that was forever changed. I still remember it very vividly. 

        In the Summer of 1979 (yes I know, I'm quite old) my father came home with some of the newest technology in his hand. It was a VHS tape recorder. For the first time, American's could watch movies in their house as often as they'd like. The first two films my dad brought were Alien and Return of the Dragon. I did not know who Bruce Lee was at the time. I had seen a few Shaw Brothers films before, but I didn't really care about them much at the time. 

        I walked into my parent's bedroom and I saw you destroying people in the alley behind the restaurant in Italy. I asked my dad "What is this?!" and my dad explained to me who you were. It was the middle of the movie so I left and ate so it could finish. Then, I went back in and watched it from the beginning. It is hard to say exactly what I felt. It is hard to explain all the questions I had in my head. How can a man move like that? How can a man fight like that? How can a man be so skinny, but so strong? How can a man be so good at beating people up but be so nice? None of those things had answers that satisfied my mind. 

         There was not much I could do about it either. The only thing I could do was to try and make some nunchucks. I immediately went downstairs and took a hacksaw to an old yellow broomstick and put my 9-year-old elite craftsman skills to work. A year or so before, I went to visit my older cousin Steve. He was a cool older dude who looked like one of the Jackson 5. While sitting in his living room, I saw an old metal chain (very small) sitting on his coffee table. I asked him for no reason if I could have it. He said yes. I had no idea what it would be used for. Once I saw you, Bruce, I knew it was meant to be the links between my sticks. I still thank my cousin Steve till this day for giving me that chain. Till this day, he does not even remember giving it to me. I hit myself 100 times the first day I made them. But I did not care. I kept going. I'm nowhere as good as you, but I still have enough to beat up some guys in an alley if I need to with nunchucks. 

           A few years later, I had a friend at Pacific Heights Jr. High named Jamal. He wanted to be a stuntman when he grew up. He was the first kid I remember that I knew, who loved you as much as I did. We used to jump and fall down hills and climb walls trying to be like you. In the 1980's there were spots in almost every major city called Kung Fu Shops. I don't know what they were really called. They sold ninja stars, nunchucks, knives, and all kinds of weapons. The one I knew of was around 25th and Mission in San Francisco. I went there more than a few times to get stars. I still have one somewhere at my parent house. I think it is nuts they sold that stuff to us. But I am glad they did.

          I loved your other movies as well, but none as much as Return of the Dragon. Nothing can ever recapture the wonder that exploded in my head and heart the first time I saw you. Years later when I got ready to be married, I came to study you again. I never realized the responsibility of a man to keep the house safe. At the same time, I did not want to own a gun. I was studying the stick fighting art of Escrima, but I was really bad at it. My friend taught me about Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and I learned as much as I could be based on as little as  I had access to. So many jiu-jitsu players are driven by your work ethic. So many people of all styles aspire to match the clarity in your movements. 

        For my birthday, I was given the Tao of Jeet Kune Do by a San Jose graff writer and my life was never, ever the same. I was already a rogue scholar of Eastern philosophy and history. But to see your ideas on paper. To see your sketches. To see your philosophies opened my head and my heart in ways that are still happening. Your work gave me moral courage. Your writings helped me be proud to be Black just as you were proud to be Chinese. Your willingness to train Black students and White students at a time when racial separation was so common pushed me to study other cultures more diligently. Every time I get ready to eat bad food I feel like I can hear you telling me to stay away from it, that it won't make me a better warrior. I read a lot about Chinese medicine and tea because of you till this day.  

       My book Bobby, Bruce & the Bronx: The Secrets of Hip-Hop Chess and my organization The Hip-Hop Chess Federation would not exist were it not for you. I recently spoke in Washington DC about you at the Kennedy Center. The entire community of Hip-Hop loves you. Thank you for making Hip-Hop better. So many rappers, DJ's, Bboys and Graff writers have worked to improve themselves because of your efforts. Your impact can be seen in the work of Public Enemy's S1W's to Wu-Tang Clan, Mixmaster Mike, Andre Nickatina and Dead Prez. So many Black people eat better because of you. So many Black people think better because of you. Thank you is such an insufficient phrase as a response to your contributions. I can only promise to champion the value of your work and to encourage others to embrace your ideas as much as I can. I started out so sad writing this. Right now though, I feel happy. I think I am happy because the ripple effect of your work is yet undone. I look forward to the joy and peace your work continues to inspire in my own life and others around the world. Much love always. Peace Bruce. 

Much Love,

Adisa Banjoko 

        

Adisa Banjoko Interviewed on Culture Chat Podcast by Mimi Chan

                      L to R Evidence, Brother Ali, Adisa Banjoko Rakaa Iriscience backstage at
                                                    Greek Theater UC Berkeley

I recently got interviewed by Mimi Chan for the Culture Chat Podcast. I met her through one of my friends from the martial arts world Gene Ching. This was a great interview. Not because of me, but because of her. I hope you like it. We talked a lot about education and working with the youth. LISTEN HERE: https://www.culturechatpodcast.com/hiphopchess/