Beats, Rhymes and Life, or BRL, is an Oakland-based community organization that aims to promote mental health and wellness among youth through rap, hip hop, and other forms of pop culture. Host Shannon Eliot chats with founder Tomas Alvarez III and alum Damontae Wilson about BRL’s origin, purpose, and goals for the future. They also discuss how rap therapy is used around the world.

Taped March 2012.

See: Beats, Rhymes and Life Website

Note: Alameda County Behavioral Healthcare and Comcast do not necessarily endorse the content of this program.

Notes on music and art:
The composer of the music used in the show lived with serious mental health problems.
Promenade from Pictures at an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky