Meet Ahmen
Impactful. Intriguing. Innovative. Few musicians inspire such a variety of positive adjectives. As a nonprofit leader by day and hip-hop MC by night, Ahmen is known as the “Batman of Social Impact.” Ahmen is the rare leader who is both a social and cultural entrepreneur. He unifies changemaking initiatives with artistic efforts that galvanize the masses. It’s a unique formula that can – and has – lead to true change for our greatest social issues.
Ahmen’s #Troublemaker music and message to disrupt the system is inspiring audiences around the world, while serving as the CEO of Our Turn – the nation’s leading movement of young changemakers for educational equity – and headlining events by Net Impact, the World Economic Forum, Generation Citizen, and more. As a result, Ahmen has been identified as a “Rising Star” by New York Nonprofit Media, who named Ahmen one of their 2015 “40 Under 40” and a “Next Generation Leader” by the Human Services Council.
Click to read more...In the greatest spirit of hip-hop and leadership, Ahmen is an avid opponent of the status quo. He breaks boundaries as a performer, activist, and speaker for the sole purpose of stirring things up while catalyzing voices and positive action among everyday people. Most important, Ahmen has achieved unprecedented levels of success in his endeavors, from releasing his groundbreaking music on ESPN and HipHopDX to partnering with some of the world’s top companies. Ahmen is truly a highly effective modern rebel with a cause.
The ultra octane activist’s inspiring portfolio includes:
- Serving as the CEO of Our Turn, winning issue and electoral campaigns for educational justice through the power of BIPOC student leadership
- Led the launch of a program that reduced gun violence by 90% in one of NYC’s most disenfranchised neighborhoods
- Recruited over 10,000 people over three years to teach in the country’s under-resourced towns and cities
- Expanded some of NYC’s most highly regarded mental health, summer jobs, afterschool, and justice reform programs for marginalized youth
- Built partnerships with some of the world’s leading companies and brands, including Morgan Stanley, PwC, Macquarie, Blackstone, and more
- Featured in Fast Company, the Huffington Post, and more as a thought leader in social innovation
- Led the veteran’s service movement in eight cities across the east, serving over 4,000 veterans
Hear what others have to say about Ahmen:
“We believe Ahmen is at the forefront of a global awakening to the collective responsibility we have as citizens, businesses, and institutions to use our voices and resources to address the urgent issues and injustices threatening our world. Our future will in large part be determined by our ability to cross lines of difference with compassion, stand up for others with courage and work collaboratively with allies – familiar and unexpected – to imagine and implement solutions for all. Ahmen has proven to be an exemplary model for the type of world-changer we need right now.” –Bobby Jones and Afdhel Aziz, co-authors of Good is the New Cool
“With the flow of a socially conscious Eminem, and the speaking ability of Common, Ahmen makes this album is a must listen. At the end of the album, if you are not asking yourself “Whose fire are you going to light?”, you need to go back and not only LISTEN to the album, but HEAR the album.” -Jamie Robinson, Mr. TBT
“Ahmen is that champion music so sorely needs right now…a confident voice, powerful inspiration and serious light of hope in what threatens to be an ever-darkening planet. Our world needs heroes like this, more now than it ever has before…I’m definitely stoked to hear Ahmen embracing the power of his words and passing the energy right on to the people – he’s created an insightfully brilliant, highly-relevant and important record with Timeout that advocates strongly for change and demonstrates the unity and strengths that exist between us all at every possible moment.” -Jason Vare, Sleeping Bag Studios
“Ahmen is so much more than a talented speaker. He is a passionate communicator who connects to his audience with a unique blend of confidence, humility, playfulness and wisdom. Given his unique positioning in the non-profit sector and the hip hop world, he relates easily and naturally with a vast range of people on a wide scope of topics.” –Laurie Mulvey, Executive Director, World in Conversation Project