Mission
Dr. Edgar Tyson and J.C. Hall presenting on Hip Hop Therapy at Fordham University in 2014
The purpose of this site is to honor the legacy and vision of Dr. Edgar H. Tyson (1963-2018), the originator of Hip Hop Therapy (HHT). Dr. Tyson’s mentee, J.C. Hall, created it to serve as a resource for those interested in learning about the therapeutic framework and implementing it in mental health treatment.
As public awareness builds, Hall is spearheading a movement to further its research and application through his own Bronx-based Studio program. Hip Hop is universal; so too should be Hip Hop therapy.
What Is Hip Hop Therapy?
Tyson’s (1998) original model has evolved into a theoretical framework with significant global resonance, much like the culture itself. Hip Hop therapy refers to the purposeful use of Hip Hop culture in a therapeutic relationship, and it operates in the context of a co-constructed treatment plan with specific goals and measurable outcomes. HHT is a revolutionary approach to mental health treatment that espouses the profound impact of Hip Hop culture and its capacity to promote individual and communal transformation. It embodies a wide array of interventions that mix the inherently cathartic components of Hip Hop culture with various well-established treatment modalities, from music, poetry and other expressive therapies to psychodynamic, cognitive behavioral, dialectical behavioral, solution-focused and narrative therapy (Hall,2016).
As a sample-based therapy, HHT takes on what is relevant to the client within more traditional approaches, reimagines the applicability and procedural processes, and discards the rest. In the same way the sonic arrangements characteristic of Hip Hop music were developed through the revision of popular records and the rejuvenation of dated or abstract ones, Hip Hop therapy is a culturally relevant remix of therapeutic conceptions that revitalizes the many merits of established forms that have traditionally overlooked disenfranchised populations (Hall, 2016).
At a second-chance high school in the South Bronx, the community comes together to process grief and trauma through Hip Hop in the wake of a tragedy.
Press
events
The Global Exchange Conference
2024 Psychotherapy Networker Symposium
Hip Hop Therapy: Full Day Workshop
VIP Audience Panel Discussion
On-Demand Replay
Conference Recording