Yasser Payne is an associate professor of sociology and Black American studies at the University of Delaware whose research focuses on criminal justice.

Mustafa Santiago Ali is vice president of environmental justice, climate and community revitalization at the National Wildlife Federation.

Adolphus Belk Jr. is a professor of political science and African American studies at Winthrop University in South Carolina.

Travis L. Gosa is an assistant professor of Africana studies at Cornell University and a faculty associate at Cornell’s Center for the Study of Inequality.

Bakari Kitwana is a cultural critic, journalist and activist specializing in hip-hop, youth culture and Black political engagement.

Jason King is chair of the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, and an associate professor.

Oliver Wang is a music writer and cultural critic whose work has been published in almost every major hip-hop magazine: The Source, XXL, Vibe, Scratch and others.

Danielle Lee is an assistant professor of biology at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, and a self-described hip-hop maven and outreach scientist who writes about urban ecology and biology.

Marc Lamont Hill is the Steve Charles Professor of Media, Cities and Solutions at Temple University.

Felicia Pride writes for film and TV, and is a director and producer.