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Hip Hop May Help Cure Depression, Cambridge Study Says

When Grandmaster Flash wrote "The Message" and The Notorious B.I.G. turned out "Juicy," it was not just a way to share a glimpse of everyday life in New York's toughest neighborhoods, but also escape it.

"It's like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder how I keep from goin" under" Grandmaster Flash raps, urging himself on amidst the urban turmoil of 1980s' South Bronx.
Across town in Brooklyn, Biggie would later boast: "Now I'm in the limelight "cause I rhyme tight."
Expression through music has always been an effective method of self-therapy.
But according to a new Cambridge University study, the act of listening to hip hop in particular could be a bonafide psychological help for people suffering from depression or mental illnesses. In an article just published in the medical journal The Lancet Psychiatry psychiatry researchers Akeem Sule and Becky Inster studied how "hip hop can be implemented as a unique tool for refinement of psychotherapies and psychoeducation ... and to help with public health education and anti-stigma campaigns."
Grandmaster Flash's "The Message", The Notorious B.I.G."s "Juicy" but also J Flexx's "Lady Heroin" are three tracks the researchers particularly recommend.

As major depressive disorders spread throughout the world and mental health support is decreasing, they found that "bridging such techniques with hip hop music can cultivate a new culture of understanding, based on a context-enhanced partnership of mutual respect and trust." But most importantly, it is about making these techniques "culturally accessible to those who most need them."
The two researchers put forward the rich and visual narrative-style that is commonly used in hip hop, which emerged in the South Bronx in the early 1970s. And because the genre generally stems from areas ravaged by socio-economic deprevation, patients suffering from depression may feel concerned by the lyrics, which are often linked to crime, drugs and poverty.
“Hip hop artists use their skills and talents not only to describe the world they see, but also as a means of breaking free. There’s often a message of hope in amongst the lyrics, describing the place where they want to be the cars they want to own, the models they want to date," the researchers explain.

To continue breaking barriers between the hip hop and medical communities, Akeem Sule and Becky Inster co-founded Hip Hop Psych, a venture aiming to further raise awareness on mental health issues through music, with outreach work in prisons, schools, and youth hostels.
In addition to the three tracks recommended by the Cambridge study, we at Worldcrunch suggest this global hip hop playlist — with artists from the U.S. to Russia, China, Italy, France and beyond — to help brighten your day:

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The Weight Of Trump's Indictment Will Test The Strength Of American Democracy

The U.S. legal system cannot simply run its course in a vacuum. Presidential politics, and democracy itself, are at stake in the coming weeks and months.

The Weight Of Trump's Indictment Will Test The Strength Of American Democracy

File photo of former U.S. President Donald Trump in Clyde, Ohio, in 2020.

Emma Shortis*

-Analysis-

Events often seem inevitable in hindsight. The indictment of former U.S. President Donald Trump on criminal charges has been a possibility since the start of his presidency – arguably, since close to the beginning of his career in New York real estate.

But until now, the potential consequences of such a cataclysmic development in American politics have been purely theoretical.

Today, after much build-up in the media, The New York Times reported that a Manhattan grand jury has voted to indict Trump and the Manhattan district attorney will now likely attempt to negotiate Trump’s surrender.

The indictment stems from a criminal investigation by the district attorney’s office into “hush money” payments made to the adult film star Stormy Daniels (through Trump’s attorney Michael Cohen), and whether they contravened electoral laws.

Trump also faces a swathe of other criminal investigations and civil suits, some of which may also result in state or federal charges. As he pursues another run for the presidency, Trump could simultaneously be dealing with multiple criminal cases and all the court appearances and frenzied media attention that will come with that.

These investigations and possible charges won’t prevent Trump from running or even serving as president again (though, as with everything in the U.S. legal system, it’s complicated).

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