|| D o c t a b a r z ||
Keith Cross, M.C. Ph.D
Lyricist. Scientist. Teacher. Brother.
music & Science for healthy Living
Metacognition
This video details an actual scientific investigation of neurological, linguistic and learning adaptation in expert rappers. It is basically my dissertation compressed into 3 minutes.
Written and Performed by Keith Cross, MC PhD (aka Doctabarz)
Produced by Scott Ohtoro (https://zenburecords.bandcamp.com/)
Video by Gerard Elmore (https://vimeo.com/gerardelmore)
About doctabarz
I'm from a long line of tribes, scribes and oracles
Who baptize human minds when the horrors grow
We keep records of what the righteous ought to know
And put our prophecies in songs, so they're portable
--Doctabarz, "Ink N Bone"
In my lifetime, I have witnessed Excellence being diminished by Suffering, much more often than I have witnessed Suffering being diminished by Excellence. Many of my loved ones, each uniquely beautiful and full of potential, have perished prematurely and unnecessarily...
...from bullets, cancer, diabetes---all preventable
but harder in a system that's sinful and reprehensible.
--Doctabarz, "The Elders, Ch. 2"
So, I make music to inspire people towards Excellence in practices that help to diminish Suffering—to maximize our individual, community and environmental wellbeing. Many of the most revered spiritual volumes were the works of inspired poets, and included not only moral lessons, but information on diet and health, psycho-social wellbeing, romance, biological and physical sciences and related methods, economics, technology, and other useful topics. That’s what you’ll find here—a dynamic musical and scientific resource that draws upon my 30+ years as a lyricist and musician, 20+ years as an educator, 20+ years as a religion scholar, 10+ years as a scientist/researcher, and a lifetime of learning to thrive in the face of poverty, violence, and systemic oppression.
Credentials: I have a Ph.D. in Education and a Ph.D. Minor in Linguistics from Stanford University, and a B.A. in Religion from University of Southern California. I am an inaugural Peace Studio Fellow (2022), and the former Assistant Professor of Multilingual and Multicultural Education at University of Hawai'i at Mānoa. As a Lyricist and Learning Scientist, I explore and leverage the ways lyricism (i.e., the composition and performance of song lyrics) is connected to humans' cognitive function and learning. My musical works are informed by a neurocognitive perspective, a teaching and learning perspective, and from the perspective of a performer engaged in the work of Moving Crowds both physically and politically.
recent music
current project
DIABETES VS DISCIPLINE
I've lost a father and two brothers due to Type 1 Diabetes and/or related complications. Each died young, and unnecessarily. While working my own way back from rapid weight-gain and a pre-diabetic diagnosis, I began this project out of a desire to educate and inspire my remaining family members and our future generations on how we can thrive, despite what we have lost, or whatever predispositions to illness we may have inherited. It is meant to be the start of a record of what works and doesn't work for us -- the first volume in a collective research and documentation project that functions as a roadmap to health for those in our bloodline (i.e., our own personal lifestyle and dietary laws). I hope it can also be a resource for other families facing similar challenges.
Diabetes vs Discipline includes music, video commentary, and resources that aim to make scientific research on diabetes more accessible to affected families. This project was made possible in part by a fellowship from The Peace Studio, and support from my Patreon patrons.
CONTENTS
*Redirects to bonfire.com/doctabarz (Merchandise)