Ernest Hooker’s Biography for DIGGIN IN THE CRATES Hip-Hop Podcast

 

 “The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.”- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

 

The Dawn

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Learning is the key to all education. It describes the how, when, who, where and when. As one learns he or she is readily educated to take on the world where he or she pleases. Those places could be in a classroom, the White House, an inner-city community, the military, or Hip-Hop. No matter the place, where education lives, lies the promise of a better future not only for that individual, but for the ones that would soon come after them. Teaching those future students, the ways of life, that was once taught to them.

      Ernest Hooker has not only been a learner and educator but has embodied the promise that education has to offer. Born in Pasadena, California, Ernest Hooker, learned his way of the world that he chose to live in starting on the Brooks’ Airforce Base, the years 1981-1985. Where his father was stationed. Here, Hooker was exposed to the teachings of how important service to his country was. Listening to the journeys of traveling overseas and cementing the laws of discipline into his life. These all stood as contributions to Hooker’s life, molding him into the military man that he would he soon become.

Amongst his military views he sought out new findings such as Hip-Hop. On Brooks’Airforce Base he would meet, Chuck Sanora, a local break dancer who lived on the air force base as well. Chuck would go on to expose Mr.Hooker to the way of life, that is Hip-Hop. They would listen to Run DMC, Nucleus, Planet Rock, and many songs that expressed the music scene at that time. However, music was not the end to the Hip-Hop movement that was breaking out around the world. Dancing came next. Chuck would teach Hooker the fundamentals of breakdancing, turning Hooker into, “Snake”, the breakdance phenom of his hometown. Starring in talent shows at John Mear High School in California (1989-1990), where acts such as Jon B and TROOP attended as well.

 

Finishing High School, Hooker would take the messages and tales of his time on the Brooks’ Air Force Base and the teachings of his father and launch his own conquest into the military. Serving in the U.S. Army from 1994 to 1998. After the military Mr.Hooker would begin working at Hercules Steel for $8.00 per hour. He would soon realize that with his skills he was destined for greatness, and he needed a career to reflect that. Leaving his job at Hercules Steel, Hooker began working at Fayetteville State , while simultaneously attending Fayetteville Technical Community College. There he met a counselor that encouraged him to use his benefits from the military to its fullest capacity. Focusing solely on finishing his courses. During his journey he would discover the importance and rarity of the African-American soldier. Leaning on the history of the Buffalo Soldiers for examples of how great African-Americans were inside and outside of the military.

He was connected to their stories, admiring their perseverance and accomplishments despite the negative societal climate. The Motto of the 10th Calvary, “Ready and Forward” applied to Mr. Hooker’s own personal experience in the military and life. The story of Henry O. Flipper, the first African American to graduate from West Point, was also an inspiring story for Mr. Hooker. Despite the negative reaction Flipper got from other classmates he remained focused on his education and graduated from West Point as number 56 out of 70 in his class. These stories would ignite a spark of interest for Mr. Hooker, driving him to dig deeper into military history.

 

The Journey

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In 2004 Ernest Hooker graduated from Fayetteville Technical Community College. Upon moving to Greensboro, NC, he enrolled at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University to finish his undergraduate degree, in 2005. Utilizing the discipline, he acquired while in the military, he focused on his goal of obtaining his Master’s degree in Secondary History Education with a minor in Museum Studies .

 During his time at NCAT, Mr. Hooker remained on the Dean’s List every semester, and maintained a 3.3 GPA throughout his academic career. He acted as the History Scholar President from  2005 to 2006. Also serving  as a member of Phi Alpha Theta , The National  Honor Society of Historians. Hooker graduated from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in 2009 with his Master’s in Secondary History Education with a Minor in Museum Studies ; upon his matriculation Dr. Cole, the History Department chair at the time, reminds Mr. Hooker to, “never forget what got you here.”

 

 

The Rewards

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These words would stick with Mr. Hooker and in 2013 he became an Adjunct Professor teaching military history at A&T. His passion for the military and history rests upon his personal experience and the personal stories he has uncovered of underrepresented military men and women. Hooker has also become an active member in his community by working with disabled veterans and volunteering as a basketball coach for the City of Greensboro Parks and Recreation basketball team. Also, acting as a member of the Greater North Carolina Chapter 9th and 10th Horse Calvary Association, which honors the Buffalo Soldiers .

 Since 2009  he has created exhibits displaying the personal artifacts of local heroes who served in the United Sates Armed Forces from the Civil War to World War II. One exhibit has been featured in the Holgate Library on the Bennet College Campus in Greensboro, NC  as a part of the Veteran’s Day Celebration . Most recently his exhibition titled “ Heroes Flying High” was a part of Layon Gray’s play “Black Angles Over Tuskegee” performed at the National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina during the Spring of 2008 . As a  student of Hip-Hop, Hooker created a scripted series on NCAT’s campus, For The Love of Hip-Hop Golden Age Radio Show, which gave students of NCAT a chance to express  their creativity and love for Hip-Hop. The scripted series came from the play crafted by Rashaone Looka . Hooker now has embarked on a new journey with “DIGGIN IN THE CRATES Hip-Hop Podcast”.

 

Becoming an educator has allowed Mr. Hooker to “get inside [the classroom] where [he] can teach, show [his] experiences, and put the information into context” for his students. Teaching has changed his idea of what it means to be an educator and keeps him grounded and thirsty for knowledge. Mr. Hooker now uses his passion for history, experience as a military professional, and current position as a university professor to tell the stories of military men and women in a humanistic way. 

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Terrance McAdoo Biography for DIGGIN’ IN THE CRATES HIP HOP PODCAST

“So, you never know who you touch. You never know who or when you’ll have an impact, or how important your example can be to someone else.”- Denzel Washington

 

The act of helping others is sometimes called forthcoming, generous, kind, or willing. Receiving praise for what one has done is often called awards. The person who has demonstrated these traits are loosely called Heroes. Champions. The mighty tussle against the wind. No matter the name, he or she has done something that can be whispered through generations to come. Implanting or teaching a better way of life to anyone, is to be embraced. Impacting their minds, hearts, and soul. Showcasing a road that seems curvy with inevitable trials but emphasizing on the last mile that holds the ultimate gift. Speaking the word of promise and hustle to the wells of young people. Terrance McAdoo is the embodiment.

An explosion broke out in the minds of young black males, it would be non-extinguishable. Setting off a chain of explosions thereafter. Hip-Hop was the fire, and black males across the world held the can of gasoline, making the flame stronger. Fanning out so much that it burned 7- year old Terrance McAdoo. Following the teachings of his older brother, he would begin to indulge in the world of Hip-Hop. At the age of 9, writing his first rap, igniting his flame that would spark over the years to come.

Taking an interest in Hip Hop, he developed a liking for a certain sound. As a young man Terrance McAdoo traveled to campuses across the state of North Carolina ,staging cyphers with young men who shared the same spark and igniting flame of Hip Hop. Liking music from artists such as RUN DMC, KRS-One, Public Enemy, E-40, UGK, Nas, and Mos Def. While also seeing the consciousness of Hip Hop in artists of today such as T.I., J. Cole, and Kendrick Lamar.

Dr.McAdoo has sparked his own flame by trying to find the mutual component between conscious Hip-Hop and the impact it has on social injustice awareness of youth living in American society. His ways of advancing on this matter would be to examine areas such as: African Americans and African Diaspora, social injustice pedagogy, conscious Hip Hop music, critical race theory, diversity, ethics and leadership.

Obtaining graduate degrees in Management and a Ph.D. in Leadership Studies, Dr.McAdoo is a leadership consultant with McAdoo Consulting, LLC. Taking his degrees and helping the people around him become effective leaders. Educating at the University of South Carolina as an Assistant Professor, Dr.McAdoo continues to thrive on his passion for helping disadvantaged youth. Assisting society in obtaining solutions toward educational deprivation of the poor, social and economic equality for all humans, and all the things regarding the uplifting of marginalized people. He hopes that his scholarship and work in his local community will bring positive economic and social change for the next generation

 

 

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