From Candidate to Activist: Adia Winfrey hopes to 鈥楾ransform Alabama鈥� by using hip-hop music to encourage voters
As the first Black woman to run as a major party nominee in a general election for Alabama鈥檚 3rd Congressional District, learned a lot about community outreach during the course of two consecutive campaigns 鈥� even though she did not win either one.
Using hip-hop music to energize a younger Black voting base during her latest political campaign showed her that there was a desire among young voters to be involved, to have a voice in the way government worked.
As the tallies rolled in on the night of Nov. 3, 2020, the seeds of , a nonprofit geared toward educating and empowering voters, were sown. Even in defeat, Winfrey and her campaign team saw that they had made an impact.
鈥淢y campaign became more about voter education than about me as a candidate, and I am cool with that,鈥� Winfrey said. 鈥淭his isn鈥檛 about Election Day. It鈥檚 about helping the public to see the importance of the electoral process, how they fit into it and the fact that your vote matters and your voice is very, very important. So we used the campaign for that.鈥�
The newly minted 501(c)(3) nonprofit, dedicated to voter registration, voter education and political engagement, grew out of the nontraditional outreach that Winfrey used in her campaign. This included not only hip-hop music but also music videos and a call to action aimed directly at the young Black voters in her district.
鈥淚n the organizing and voting rights space, you often hear that young people aren鈥檛 engaged in the political process or are apathetic about democracy issues, but I don鈥檛 think that is true,鈥� said Rachel Knowles, outreach paralegal for the 澳彩开奖鈥檚 Voting Rights Practice Group. 鈥淵oung people like myself care deeply about the future of their communities, but sometimes legacy civic engagement organizations just don鈥檛 know how to connect with us. Dr. Dia and Transform Alabama do not have that issue because they are an organization by and for younger Alabamians.鈥�
鈥楴ew ideas, tactics and energy鈥�
Oscar Austin is a perfect example. He wasn鈥檛 actively political, but that changed the day he met Winfrey in 2018 while spinning tunes as a DJ for an event at Tuskegee鈥檚 Chisholm Park.
鈥淭hey were putting out signs,鈥� Austin said. 鈥淪he was running for Congress, the first time. She walked up and said, 鈥榊鈥檃ll are really jamming. Do you mind if I introduce myself?鈥� 鈥�
After Austin gave the mic to Winfrey so she could make her stump pitch, she said something that would prove pivotal for them both.
鈥淵ou know what would be a dope idea?鈥� she asked Austin. 鈥淲hat if I had my own DJ for the campaign?鈥�
He joined Winfrey鈥檚 staff, first providing a soundtrack for her election hopes. Then he became the campaign鈥檚 media director. He also brought skills as a researcher to the team, utilizing his background as a graduate in history from Tuskegee University.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e bringing new ideas, tactics and energy into Alabama鈥檚 voting rights space and are focusing on smaller, more rural counties that often receive less investment than major metros,鈥� Knowles said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been really exciting to watch them grow.鈥�
Combining hip-hop and traditional politics may seem unorthodox, but it isn鈥檛 the first time Winfrey has merged the two like a DJ mixing songs on the turntables.
She branded herself as 鈥渢he mother of hip-hop psychology鈥� after her doctoral dissertation led to a book, Healing Young People thru Empowerment (): A Hip-Hop Therapy Program for Black Adolescent Boys, which integrated hip-hop culture with psychological theories. Transitioning her efforts and messaging from a political campaign to nonprofit outreach was organic.
鈥淥ur aim from the beginning has been getting practical political education info to as many Alabamians as we can,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e decided that operating as a nonprofit is the best way to achieve this.鈥澛�
鈥楤et our time is now鈥�
She did some hip-hop music videos while working with Austin during her political campaign. Using that same medium for Transform Alabama was a no-brainer. The first clip, 鈥淏et,鈥� features Winfrey on location at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma and Kelly Ingram Park in Birmingham.
In the , she raps over a trance beat:
They thought they had us beat/Killing in the streets
Hip-hop is the force/The movement is the source
Pull up to the poll/There鈥檚 power in your vote
Bet our time is now/Register I show you how.
The closing couplet, 鈥淭hey thought they had us beat/Bet we prove them wrong,鈥� repeats over footage of the Bloody Sunday march for voting rights across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, along with recent footage of Transform Alabama supporters crossing the bridge.
Video for 鈥淏et鈥� was shot on location at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, and Historic Kelly Ingram Park in Birmingham, Alabama. (YouTube)
鈥淏y us infusing hip-hop culture in the delivery, the words and all aspects of my campaign 鈥� because that is kind of how all this came about 鈥� we found people were more open,鈥� Winfrey said.
The first rap came out of a discussion between Winfrey and her team about a radio spot.
鈥淚 told them if we were going to do radio, I wanted to do a song, something catchy,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want to just talk.鈥�
She wanted to call out to the 13 counties in Alabama鈥檚 3rd Congressional District. Although the district is the largest from a geographic standpoint, its counties are largely rural, stretching along more than half of the Alabama-Georgia line. The district has yet to support a Democrat for either president or U.S. representative in this century.
What came out of the brainstorming session was a that featured the 鈥�3rd District Roll Call,鈥� a song in which Winfrey rattles off the names of counties in the district along with the election date, a disclaimer and a few dance moves from Winfrey and her four children.
鈥淚 really wanted to call out all of the counties of the 3rd District,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hen I found the statistic that we had the lowest voter turnout as a district, county for county, it was almost like our voice as a district did not move the state of Alabama. If we could do a song and call the counties out by name, maybe we could get them excited and get them out to vote.鈥�
鈥楢 new song鈥�
Taking that momentum and bringing it into next year, when the midterm elections take place, is a primary goal for Winfrey.
鈥淚n 2022, we鈥檙e hoping to do some events and get out into the public more, now that things are opening up a bit,鈥� Winfrey said. 鈥淚n 2021, we were really just getting established, getting our vision, our mission and a good foundation in place.鈥�
Already, Transform Alabama is scheduled as a partner on the in Selma on Jan. 17 (Martin Luther King Jr. Day) and the 2022 Selma Jubilee scheduled for March 5. And, of course, Winfrey is looking for the group鈥檚 next hip-hop track.
鈥淓very movement has an anthem, so I鈥檓 going to start meditating on the next song,鈥� she said with a laugh. 鈥淲e are working on a new song, and we are cooking up something for 2022. We always have music involved and are working on a cool campaign.鈥�
Top photo: Adia Winfrey poses at Hip-Hop Independence Day on Sunday, May 16, 2021, in Atlanta. (Courtesy of Ameerah Winfrey)
