Biography:

Rabbi Darkside is a Buffalo-born Brooklyn-based Hip Hop Artist/Educator. His new album, Prospect Avenue, reached #4 on CMJ Hip Hop Charts, where it remained in the Top 20 for 16 weeks and finished #20 Overall for 2013, and #1 on College Radio Charts Hip Hop. With a discography spanning a decade and fresh completion of his 1st national U.S. tour and 12th international tour, Rabbi D continues to grow his global reputation and fan-base while obscuring the lines between Hip Hop, Jazz, Folk and Poetry. His prowess as a polished MC is matched by his esteem as a wordsmith and musician, bringing him to a variety of stages and audiences. Recent performance highlights include headlining the Blue Note NYC, 2014 SXSW, 2013 CMJ Festival, 2012 WNYC Battle of the Boroughs and headlining the 2012 Atlantic Antic. He is the 18-time Freestyle Mondays Off the Head Gameshow Champion, the 2010 End of the Weak MC Challenge U.S. Co-Champion, and responsible for bringing the Hip Hop Subway Series to Europe. He is also a featured performer on the Drama Desk nominated Off-Broadway Show Experience The Ride. His new album was featured on HipHopDx, 2DopeBoyz, MTVHive, URB Magazine, DJBooth and RapReviews while receiving heavy international radio and video play. Rabbi Darkside has appeared on Showtime’s Nurse Jackie, The Today Show, and starred as a head coach on MTV’s Made. He has also worked for 14 years in the New York City Public Schools, developing the groundbreaking rap-based test prep program Fresh Prep (as seen in the New York Times, CBS Early Show and Huff Post). Darkside is the co-founder of the non-profit Hip Hop Re:Education Project and a Hip Hop Education Fellow at H2ED Hip Hop Ed Center at NYU. On his mission to build global community through Hip Hop culture he has shared stages with Afrika Bambaataa, Antibalas, Blue Man Group, Common, Dres (Black Sheep), Eklips, Fishbone, DJ Rob Swift, J-Live, Kenny Muhammed, Prince Paul, Rahzel, Rosie Perez, Sadat X, Slick Rick, Talib Kweli and The Coup, among many others.