Gabriel Benn (born December 29, 1974), better known as Asheru, is an American

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

, and youth activist. He performed the opening and closing themes for the popular TV series, ''

The Boondocks Boondocks are remote, usually brushy areas. Boondocks may also refer to: * The Boondocks (band), an Estonian rock band * ''The Boondocks'' (comic strip), a comic strip by Aaron McGruder ** ''The Boondocks'' (2005 TV series), the television ser ...

''.

Early life and music

As a youth, Asheru's musical influences were a wide range of hip hop artists as well as

Soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

, R&B, and Pop from the 1970s and 1980s that his mother used to play. He graduated from high school at 16 and attended the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

, where he graduated in 1996 with a B.A. in

Anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...

. His classmate Wesley Jackson founded an independent Hip Hop label, Seven Heads Entertainment, which in 1996 signed the group

Unspoken Heard The Unspoken Heard is the hip-hop collaborative of rapper Asheru and producer Blue Black. It is often referred to as Asheru & Blue Black of the Unspoken Heard. They began getting significant recognition in underground hip-hop around the turn of ...

, made up of Asheru and Jackson's older brother, Robert Jackson, known as Blue Black. Asheru and Blue Black released a series of 12" singles and EPs, and in 2001 released their first album, ''Soon Come''. In 2003, the group released their second album ''48 Months'', followed by the ''No Edge Ups in South Africa'' album, a compilation album of other Seven Heads artists featuring the single "Mood Swing", with

Talib Kweli Talib Kweli Greene (; born October 3, 1975) is an American rapper. He earned recognition early on through his collaboration with fellow Brooklyn rapper Mos Def in 1997, when they formed the group Black Star. Kweli's musical career continued with ...

. Asheru has performed throughout Europe, Canada, the US and Japan, both solo and with Unspoken Heard, as well as collaborating on projects with artists such as

Pete Rock Peter O. Phillips (born June 21, 1970), better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapping, rapper. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, and is often mentioned alongs ...

and

DJ Jazzy Jeff Jeffrey Allen Townes (born January 22, 1965), known professionally as DJ Jazzy Jeff (or simply Jazz), is an American disc jockey (DJ) and music producer. He was a member of DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince with Will Smith. He is credited, alon ...

. He currently travels with a live band, The ELs.

''The Boondocks''

Asheru collaborated with

Aaron McGruder Aaron Vincent McGruder (born May 29, 1974) is an American writer, cartoonist, and producer best known for creating ''The Boondocks'', a Universal Press Syndicate comic strip and its animated TV series adaptation. Early life and education Aaron ...

to write and perform several songs for the TV series, ''

'', including the show's theme song. Asheru's contribution to the controversial episode "

Return of the King Return may refer to: In business, economics, and finance * Return on investment (ROI), the financial gain after an expense. * Rate of return, the financial term for the profit or loss derived from an investment * Tax return, a blank document or t ...

" won the

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...

for Journalism in 2006, the first rapper to win such an award.

Education

Asheru has also taught in the

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school system since 1997, in curriculum development and arts-based instruction. In 2004, he completed a master's degree in education from

National-Louis University National Louis University (NLU) is a private university with its main campus in Chicago, Illinois. NLU enrolls undergraduate and graduate students in more than 60 programs across its four colleges. It has locations throughout the Chicago metropo ...

. He founded a community arts organization and independent music label, Guerilla Arts Ink, and currently serves as Director of Arts Integration at

Ballou Senior High School Frank W. Ballou Senior High School is a public school located in Washington, D.C., United States. Ballou is a part of the District of Columbia Public Schools. The principal is Willie Jackson (a 1987 alumnus). History Ballou High School was found ...

in Washington, D.C. He also works with schools and juvenile detention centers to promote literacy as an intervention against youth violence, crime, unemployment, and incarceration. In 2005, Asheru co-founded Educational Lyrics, a publishing company that produces cross-curricular teaching materials, such as the Hip-Hop Educational Literacy Program (HELP), a series of supplemental reading workbooks that use hip-hop lyrics to teach critical analysis and multicultural relevance to students of all reading levels.

Discography

*''Cosmology'' EP...Unspoken Heard (1997) *Better/Smiley 12"... Unspoken Heard (1998) *''Jamboree'' EP ... Asheru (1999) *''Soon Come'' LP ... Unspoken Heard (2001) *''48 Months'' LP... Unspoken Heard (2003) *Mood Swing 12"... Asheru feat. Talib Kweli & Raheem DeVaughn (2003) *No Edge Ups in South Africa ...Seven Heads Entertainment (2003) *Black Moses 12".... Asheru (2005) *''Insomnia Vol.1'' LP... Asheru (2006) *''Insomnia Vol.1: Sleepless in Japan…''(IMPORT ONLY) (2006) *'' Hip-Hop Docktrine: The Official Boondocks Mixtape''... Asheru, various artists (2006) *''3 Stars, 2 Bars'' EP... Asheru (2007) *'' Hip-Hop Docktrine 2 (The Saga Continues)''... Asheru, various artists (2007) *"Insight" on

Fort Knox Five Fort Knox Five is a Washington, D.C.-based musical group consisting of Steve Raskin, Jon Horvath, Rob Myers and Sid Barcelona. The musical collective releases music through their self-run label, Fort Knox Recordings. Their music style mixes el ...

Album ''Radio Free DC'' (2008) *"I am Hip Hop" on Clin d'oeil Album ''with Jazz Liberatorz'' (2008) *'' Hip-Hop Docktrine 3 (The Final Chapter)''... Asheru, various artists (2010) *''Sleepless in Soweto'' LP.... Asheru (2013)

References

External links

*Burton, Orisanmi. "Asheru: Education, MCing & The Bonototiousondocks...". Allhiphop.com. August 14, 2008. May 26, 2010. *http://www.edlyrics.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Asheru 1974 births Living people American hip hop musicians University of Virginia alumni African-American male rappers East Coast hip hop musicians