Editorial Team

Hank Tian, Founding Editor

Hank is a senior majoring in symbolic systems. As a kid, his first exposure to hiphop came in the form of an Enter the Wu-Tang CD his cousin shared with him. He's particularly interested in the ways people form and establish identity through hiphop, especially Asian and Asian-American hiphop artists. Outside of hiphop, Hank also does theater and plays steelpan. 

Atlanta Rydzik, Founding Editor

Atlanta is a senior majoring in sociology. Before transferring to Stanford, they attended Foothill Community College. Atlanta has been listening to hiphop ever since they were young, and has vivid memories of hearing Nas, Talib Kweli, and Bone Thugs 'n Harmony while being driven to school by their dad. Aside from hiphop, Atlanta is passionate about criminal justice reform, reading, and chocolate ice cream.

TK Moloko, Founding Business Manager

TK is a senior majoring in Economics. His connection to hiphop stems not only from his love for the genre but also from his initial introduction to music being soul, R&B, gospel, and jazz, featuring many artists that are continually sampled and remixed into modern day hiphop music. Outside of hiphop, TK has been playing music since age 10.

Joshua Clarendon, Founding Editorial Board Member

Joshua is a freshman who intends to major in Mechanical Engineering. He has always been enthralled with the culture of hiphop. His first got hooked by Tha Carter III by Lil Wayne, and has been a devoted rap disciple ever since. As a fan of Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole, Joshua's favorite parts of rap have always been the lyricism of it, and the variety of ways the artists can express themselves.

Savanna Stewart, Founding Editorial Board Member

Savanna is a sophomore planning to double major in Political Science and Communication with a minor in Spanish. Music has been a part of her life for as long as she can remember, but, having grown up in a rural farming town, her exposure to hiphop was largely limited to the context of sports practice and competition while she was in high school. Consequently, she is most interested in the relationship between the worlds of hiphop and sports, specifically basketball, and how the two have influenced each other and the relationship has developed over time. 

Tessa Brown, Ph.D., Founding Advisor

Tessa is a Lecturer in the Program in Writing and Rhetoric where she teaches PWR 1: Hashtag Activism, PWR 2: Hiphop, Orality, and Language Diversity, and co-teaches PWR 194: Introduction to Cultural Rhetorics. She studies hiphop literacies, translingualism, critical whiteness studies, intersectional feminism, and histories of higher education. The Word is her dream come true.