Columbus native combines his passions to teach hip hop at Ohio State

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — Dr. Jason Rawls is an Assistant Professor of Hip Hop at The Ohio State University. It’s a title he never thought could exist. He found hip-hop growing up on the south side of Columbus. It was more than just the sound that spoke to him. In hip-hop, young Jason found his passion and his future. “I fell in love with this culture,” said Dr. Jason Rawls. “To this day, I’m still in love with this culture.” Now that culture is his curriculum, for “The Art and Politics of Hip Hop.” “It really comes from this combination of my two passions, and that is hip-hop culture and then of course education and teaching,” said Rawls. Before Dr. Rawls became an educator of hip hop, he was an educator in Columbus City Schools. All the while, he also evolved his skills as a practitioner of hip hop, as a rapper and DJ, releasing and producing dozens of albums. Ultimately, he realized hip hop could be a powerful way to connect with students. “I realized that I could use that to build strong relationships with them,” said Rawls. “Once I realized that, I knew from there that I could...