The Founders

We are all first advocates of young people. All of us have spent significant portions of our careers working with and on behalf of children of all ages. Through this work it has been reaffirmed to us the incredible power and potential of our youth when they are positively directed. It has also been reaffirmed to us the profound impact that the media and its messages have on them. For this reason, we decided that to truly impact the lives of young people, you have to impact the vehicles that have the greatest impact on them. It is in this spirit that we hope that these efforts can help to bring more light to more balanced media, images and messages.

Isaac Ewell – Isaac L. Ewell has a gift for building invaluable relationships. A native of Trenton, NJ, Isaac has established himself as an innovator it the field of “Edutainment” and thrives on identifying ways to convince key decision-makers in the education and entertainment industries to develop strategies to drastically improve the quality education for urban youth so that they can be globally-competitive. Isaac is a graduate of Morehouse College and Harvard University School of Education. Tag Causes: Education, Economic Empowerment and Community Revitalization.

Justin Grayson – Justin Grayson is the creative arm of the SoulGenesis Voltron. A graphic designer, music producer, award-winning radio journalist and former network television news producer, Justin brings pin-point perspective to SoulGenesis’ brand design and media relations. He has also dedicated much of his time and energy to affecting positive change in the self esteem and motivation levels of urban youth. Justin is a graduate of Florida A&M University and the Philly Suburbs School of Hard Knocks. Tag Causes: Youth Development, Hip-Hop Education, Democratic Media.

Jason Green – Jason Green is a social entrepreneur. A native and current resident of the Philadelphia area, Jason has been co-founder of several socially-oriented ventures. He has spent the majority of his professional career building and managing tutoring programs in under-resourced communities across the country. Jason believes that the actions and decisions of our generation will have unprecedented consequences on the future of humanity. Jason received his B.S. from Morehouse College and his MBA from the Wharton School of Business. Tag Causes: Global Warming, Economic Empowerment and Urban Education.

Our Story

The professional version: The organization was formed in January of 2006 by a group of concerned young professionals and educators who had grown increasingly frustrated with the prevailing images and offerings of mainstream media, particularly as it related to rap music and its impact on youth. We began meeting in the winter and spring 2006 and came up with an idea to begin this movement through an online web community.

What really happened: Little Brother dropped The Minstrel Show in 2005 around the same time that De La Soul dropped The Grind Date. Throughout almost all of 2005, “Laffy Taffy” was (I think) the top song on every chart around the world. The three of us (all separately big fans of both Little Brother and De La Soul) were speaking to our friends and very few of them even knew that these albums had dropped. Did we mention what the top selling song was at that same time? How could this world be missing out on such great albums? What was happening? Well, we reached a point of immense, almost uncontainable frustration with the music industry and the fact that two albums that both should have been contenders for HipHop album of the year were getting NO play! This was criminal, unacceptable, unforgivable, a travesty. All through this, in our work in education and youth development, we were watching how much popular media was influencing our young people. For a few weeks…we complained to each other of this situation and finally said, “This has gone too far…we have to do something!”

From this, SoulGenesis was born around promoting more balanced images especially through HipHop. As the organization gained traction, we began to hear from people that they had concerns around much more than music. Our members were discussing such issues as the educational achievement gap, prison reform, crime and even global warming. Even more, they began to discuss this feeling that they wanted to do more, but did not have the community or support to do so. It was then that SoulGenLife really began to take form. The community is now very diverse. Some folks may only have one hour to give, other folks have built careers around social service. For some people, their number one issue is education for others it is fair trade. Some people come just for the music. Some people run their own youth programs. Whatever you are coming for, we all have one thing in common…we care and want to do a little more. We define SoulGenLife as doing what you can where you are. We define this community as a place where you can find great music, meet great people and learn a little about healthy and socially responsible living.
Now, SoulGenesis continues to centrally focus on music and media; however, it uses media to draw attention to a new way of thinking and living based upon social responsibility and engagement.

Our Vision

Our short term vision is simple - balanced and democratic media with images that are more positive and life affirming. Our long term vision is also simple - a better world; a more just and equitable world where more individuals are given the opportunity to live healthy lives and are provided greater access to realize their potential. Currently, we live in a world of imbalance; some enjoy obscene and wasteful excess while others barely survive in squalor and destitution. At a certain point, we must begin to realize our interconnectedness. Where we currently exist in the scope of humanity, this realization is now more important than ever. It is no longer enough for us to be only about self - one affects all (see Al Gore Movie, An Inconvenient Truth).