
01 / TEDxUTAustin / Talk
What Growing Up With Hip Hop Taught Me
Bavu's Editor's Pick TEDx talk.
Watch on YouTube (opens in a new tab)
Side AThe speaker reel / Full video
Watch the full reel.
Selected talks, interviews, and stories, from the classroom to the stage.

01 / TEDxUTAustin / Talk
Bavu's Editor's Pick TEDx talk.
Watch on YouTube (opens in a new tab)
02 / KUTX / Radio interview
Woodgrain Collection Vol. 2 with Bavu Blakes.
Listen on KUTX (opens in a new tab)
03 / PBS / Blackademics TV
Blakes / Cooper / Foster.
Watch on PBS (opens in a new tab)
04 / Austin PBS / KLRU profile
A portrait of Bavu as a musician and teacher.
Watch on YouTube (opens in a new tab)
05 / PBS / Blackademics TV
Blakes / Adair / Staples.
Watch on PBS (opens in a new tab)
06 / MLK / Speech
Bavu's speech on the courage to love.
Watch on YouTube (opens in a new tab)
07 / College prep workshop
Bavu’s college prep workshop.
Watch on YouTube (opens in a new tab)08 / Texas State University
Watch the selected 51-second excerpt, from 0:37 to 1:28.
09 / Keynote
English captions and transcript available.
Transcript of the one-minute clip. Bavu Blakes speaks unless another speaker is noted. Indistinct words are marked rather than guessed.
[Host speaks indistinctly] [Music]
The build. Finish the job. We got the foundation.
We see old, we see new, we see build up.
Vision and design. We're talking about your future, your legacy.
Part of enduring, huge part of enduring, is the appreciation with [unclear] you said, “Yes, I am very strong.”
Beyond that, we got to see beyond whatever it is that we're struggling with. We got to see to the other side of the field. Big part of the build.
Build up. Build up.
[Music]
[Host speaks indistinctly] Thank you.
A talk staged like a performance: theatrical, musical, lyrical, visual.
Watch the talk (opens in a new tab)Bavu’s appearance in the Blakes / Cooper / Foster episode.
Watch on PBS (opens in a new tab)Bavu on teaching, music, and the young people who shaped his work.
Watch the profile (opens in a new tab)Bavu’s appearance in the Blakes / Adair / Staples episode.
Watch on PBS (opens in a new tab)A 51-second excerpt, from 0:37 to 1:28.
Watch the excerpt“Build Up” keynote at the Mastering Manhood Conference.
Watch the clipThe first Austin emcee added to daytime commercial rotation.
A body of recorded work spanning collaborations with Adrian Quesada and Gary Clark Jr.
Programming and conversation on the culture's maturity and responsibility.
Explore Hip Hop Grew Up (opens in a new tab)Universities, districts, youth conferences, cultural events, and nonprofits.
Explore speakingBavu at work with learners and the Street Genius team. These photographs were supplied for this site, with use of the images and promotional consent for the children confirmed.





Photos supplied for this site · Street Genius. Visit the original Street Genius archive ↗. Descriptions reflect what is visible in the supplied images; photographer names were not provided.
Use these in programs, promotional materials, and introductions.
Bavu Blakes, the Scholar Emcee, is an award-winning middle school Humanities instructor (M.Ed.), Editor's Pick TEDx speaker, founder of Hip Hop Grew Up, and co-author of El's Mirror. He walks at the intersection of Hip Hop, education, and spirituality.
"Please welcome educator, author, and the Scholar Emcee — Bavu Blakes."
Bavu’s bio, mission, speaking topics, and contact details in one downloadable PDF. One page · 1 MB.
Download one-sheeterColor portrait · transparent-background PNG · 2,087 × 3,000 pixels. If the download doesn’t start, open the portrait in a new tab and save the image.