Prior to joining the IBM Design Studios in Austin, Texas, I have never heard of the concept of Design Thinking. For the most part, I previously thought that anything design related involved some sort of visual or functional aspect. Never thought that research or testing was a part of the process, as separate disciplines or practices.

As a former hip hop artist, I felt solely responsible for all of the work that I presented to an audience. What that meant was, the entire thought-process and execution was on my back, including:

  • curating instrumentals
  • collaborating with producers
  • writing lyrics
  • recording vocals
  • mixing vocals
  • mastering tracks
  • promotion
  • graphic illustration
  • press kits
  • sponsorships
  • distribution … and the list goes on

This time, however, I am deciding to take a different approach. I feel it’s important crowd source a team from the very beginning. This team, in my mind, will be a small group of dynamically involved researchers, design thinkers, and fans of hip hop culture. Additionally, I’ve decided to totally abandon any connection to my former hip hop self, and try to create something purely from scratch because I believe that this is the only way to have a fresh, uncontaminated experiment.

I hope all goes well! However, whether this entire endeavour is a success or if it fails, I still think it’ll be something worth sharing at the end.

Fingers crossed!