“I’m excited for this moment,” Rev. Lennox Yearwood Jr., president and CEO of the Hip Hop Caucus, an advocacy group that works for racial, economic and climate justice, told us right off the bat. “It’s a tough moment, but I’m excited for it,” he said, citing the group’s 20-year history of harnessing culture and storytelling to “shape our political experience.”

In this episode of the Two Steps Forward podcast, Yearwood reflected on his organization’s journey leveraging culture to address major social and environmental challenges, particularly those impacting frontline communities.

Plus, we talk about how the music industry is stepping up to embrace sustainability.

Founded just before Hurricane Katrina, the nonprofit Hip Hop Caucus was built on the premise that the hip hop generation is uniquely positioned to drive change by combining cultural expression with political engagement. For example, the group’s “Think 100%” campaign aims to raise awareness of how pollution disproportionately impacts Black, Brown, Indigenous and underserved communities, particularly in so-called “Cancer Alley,” the 85-mile stretch of communities along the banks of the Mississippi River between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, where communities exist side by side with some 200 fossil fuel and petrochemical operations. 

Music to inform and inspire

Yearwood emphasized that the caucus was initially focused on promoting democracy and voter turnout among young people, but its mission quickly expanded to encompass a wide range of issues, including climate justice, economic justice and civil rights. The organization uses music, art and storytelling as powerful tools to inform, inspire and mobilize communities.

Yearwood described how music has informed social change, from gospel to bluegrass to rock ‘n’ roll. Critically, he explained the distinction between political and cultural conversations, noting that while politics can create divisions, culture has the power to build bridges.

“Our rallies would have like eight people,” he told my co-host Solitaire Townsend and me. “But then when we had these artists show up like LL Cool J,” and suddenly the venues would be packed. “So