We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Carol O’connor a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Carol, thanks for joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

In 2003 I first became very interested in hip hop culture and immediately saw its applicability to education, especially in reaching and meaningfully engaging with underserved youth – both in the US and internationally. In 2007 Ghanaian rap artist Ambassadar and I established Rhyme-N-Reason Foundation as a nonprofit in Cape Coast, Ghana; in 2010 it was registered as a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit in Jackson, Mississippi. Since that time, RNR has hosted music performances, visual arts, conferences, workshops, and other events in Mississippi, Arizona, Texas, Ghana, Ethiopia and Uganda.
Since 2012, we also have published Telling Our Own Stories, a book of writing and art from young people in about 15 different countries and cultures. The eighth issue was published July 2024 and is currently available.
These projects have brought people together and created opportunities for participants to obtain jobs, network with their peers, garner positive attention from their local media, and in some cases, have helped writers and artists overcome personal issues and raise their self-esteem.
All of this matters because I live by Mohammed Ali’s dictum: Service to others is the rent we pay form our room here on Earth.

Carol, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

As Steve Jobs once said, we don’t choose our passions, our passions choose us. Interacting with people from widely divergent cultures has always been my passion. As a university student in California, I first had the opportunity to befriend international students and have continued this view of myself as a member of the global community. Then, after decades of living in Hawaii and Guam – with several years spent in Abu Dhabi and Vienna – I moved to Arizona to teach English as a Second Language to immigrants, refugees and prisoners, before accepting a five-year teaching position on the San Carlos Apache reservation.
During my time with my high school students, I began compiling their poetry and drawings into self-published booklets called Images, that we distributed in San Carlos and surrounding communities. This, I believe, was the seed from which current activities have grown. I was deeply moved by how much my Apache students meant to me, was in awe of their ability to reveal their souls through their creative works, and after more than 20 years am still in contact with many of them.
Fast forward to 2003 when my passion for hip hop emerged. At that time I was principal of an elementary school and made sure that my young students received regular media coverage for their writing and art skills. Many nights found me at hip hop events in Phoenix, where I was fortunate enough to meet with rappers like Too Short and David Banner. In fact, it was Banner’s music that first drew me to Mississippi, where in 2009 I earned a PhD in Urban Higher Education from Jackson State University; Banner was one of the people I interviewed for my dissertation, which was published as a book and is still available on Amazon.
My love for education and hip hop continued to grow and found expression in the formation of Rhyme-N-Reason Foundation as a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit. As already mentioned, we have hosted a variety of events in Mississippi, Arizona, Texas, and in several African countries. Events that drew the largest crowds were in Hawassa, Ethiopia, where I worked at a college, and more recently in 2023 at the Nakivale Refugee Settlement in western Uganda. Other notable events include conferences in Ghana featuring American professors, and “Behind 16 Bars,” a panel discussion on the US prison industry; all panelists were formerly incarcerated rappers, and one participant phoned in from prison to offer his insights.
It was in Ethiopia that the idea of publishing the writing and art of young people resurfaced and the first issue of Telling Our Own Stories was published. Rap artist C-Murder wrote the introduction, a tradition that has continued with each issue featuring an intro by a well-known rapper or industry professional.
Rhyme-N-Reason is unique in that it seems to be the only organization that both focuses on education and is international. I am proud of the opportunities we have created to showcase the talents of the young people whom we serve, and the joy we bring to others.
Upcoming events include an Off the Wall graffiti and street art festival scheduled for October 26 in Jackson, and work continues on the 2025 issue of Telling Our Own Stories.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The sheer joy. Being true to oneself is the highest form of authenticity. The idiom, life is short, becomes more meaningful the older one gets and there is an urgency to achieving one’s purpose.
Sharing knowledge and insights with others, and helping them create opportunities of their own design, is truly a gift. Our slogan – Education * Collaboration * Celebration – summarizes the process of Rhyme-N-Reason, and helps achieve the goal of assisting young people in expanding their horizons.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Social media – primarily Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and TikTok – have been instrumental in locating participants for our international projects. A case in point is the series of hip hop events held at the Nakivale Refugee Settlement in Uganda in 2023. I first met the South Sudanese refugee rap artist Staid Pizzy and Ugandan graffiti artist Alexx Page on Facebook, where we corresponded over the course of several years. Some of their work was included in issues of Telling Our Own Stories. I then connected up with hip hop dancer Lunah256 who was posting dance tutorials on TikTok.
After discussing a February 2023 hip hop show with artists in Nakivale, visual artist Sibo and musician Patsabag agreed to organize the event. When I arrived in Kampala, Alexx, Lunah and Staid Pizzy came to my hotel to plan for our trip to the settlement and we all met in person for the first time. They had not heard of each other previously but immediately bonded and are still in contact with one another, and with some of the artists they met in Nakivale.
During the two-day trip to Nakivale each person continued posting to their social media accounts, thereby ensuring that their fans and followers were aware of this venture. Sibo and Patsabag promoted the show on Facebook and WhatsApp, which resulted in more than 1000 people attending the free performance. Other community outreach programs such as visits to art centers, schools, and of course to local restaurants, on the following days were live streamed. Videos and still photos were widely shared.
These events are included in the 2024 issue of Telling Our Own Stories, and through social media I continue to seek out young creatives in countries as diverse as Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan for the 2025 issue.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.rnrfoundation.org
• Instagram: carol_oconnor1
• Facebook: Carol O’Connor and Rhyme-N-Reason Foundation
• Other: TikTok – @carol_oconnor444

  Email – [email protected]