Canadian Rap Artist, Scholar Kicks Off UA’s ALLELE Series

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Baba Brinkman, a Canadian rap artist and scholar, will visit The University of Alabama to lecture on “The Rap Guide to Evolution” as the first lecture in the 2013-2014 Alabama’s Lecture on Life’s Evolution Series, or ALLELE.

Brinkman’s lecture will take place Oct. 10 at 7:30 p.m. in the Biology Building auditorium on the UA campus.

This year marks the 8^th year for the ALLELE series, which is an interdisciplinary lecture series organized by UA’s Evolution Working Group. All lectures are free and open to the public.

Brinkman is a scholar with a master’s degree in medieval and Renaissance English literature. His thesis drew parallels between the worlds of hip-hop music and literary poetry. Brinkman is also a recent recipient of the National Center for Science Education’s “Friend of Darwin Award” for his efforts to improve the public understanding of evolutionary biology.

As a rap artist, Brinkman has written or co-written five hip-hop theatre shows including “The Canterbury Tales Remixed,” “The Rap Guide to Evolution,” and “The Rebel Cell,” with MC Dizraeli. He is also the founder of Lit Fuse Records, which represents Aaron Nazrul and the Boom Booms, Smoky Tiger and Mud Sun, as well as his own music. In addition to executive producing and developing new talent through his label, Brinkman has recorded and released 10 rap albums since 2004.

“The Rap Guide to Evolution” won the prestigious Scotsman Fringe First Award, and has toured the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom. The rap show was also featured at three regional TED conferences and on “The Rachel Maddow Show.” “The Rap Guide to Evolution” and “The Canterbury Tales Remixed” both recently played extended off-Broadway runs at the Soho Playhouse.

The 2013-2014 ALLELE series is supported by UA’s College of Arts and Sciences and the departments of anthropology, biological sciences, communicative disorders, geological sciences, philosophy and religious studies.

The ALLELE lecture series is part of UA’s College of Arts and Sciences, the University’s largest division and the largest liberal arts college in the state. Students from the College have won numerous national awards including Rhodes Scholarships, Goldwater Scholarships and memberships on the USA Today Academic All American Team.