Hip Hop Public Health held its Remixing Public Health Gala at the Harvard Club in New York City on Tuesday (October 25) with special guests Chuck D, Ashanti, Darryl "DMC" McDaniels, Cheryl "Salt" James and host Doug E. Fresh.
The event celebrated the work of HHPH founder Dr. Jide Williams, chief of staff and professor of neurology at Columbia University, as well as Joni Holifield, who was honored with a HHPH award for her work with the nonprofit HeartSmilesMD. Holifield founded the organization following the 2015 Freddie Gray riots in Baltimore.
Throughout the evening, Chuck D, Ashanti, DMC and the rest of the panel discussed mental health and the growing violence in the Hip Hop community.
"There is a lack of consideration and concern for the people in our communities," DMC said at one point. "It’s in our nation’s face and nobody is doing anything about it."
Hip Hop Public Health is working on several initiatives in an effort to improve the well-being of anyone willing to listen, including a Breast Cancer Awareness Month PSA from "Wake Up Show" host and breast cancer survivor Skyy Hook. Find it here and read up on HHPH's mission on its website.
9/x "When death shows up too early, and without peace, there is pain and grief. Chronic illness, gun violence and loneliness are notorious merchants of early death in our #HipHop community."
— Hip Hop Public Health (@HHPHorg) October 26, 2022
-Dr. Jide Williams, Founder, @HHPHorg
#RemixingPublicHealth #InMemoriam #RestinBeats pic.twitter.com/dA1wfteOIC
