Tem Blessed: An Environmental Hip Hop Activist

Some people may be surprised to hear that a hip hop artist would welcome an opportunity to perform at a large land conservation conference. And some in the audience at that land conservation conference may doubt that such an artist’s work would be relevant to the topic.  But, thanks to a progressive, conservation-minded local artist named Tem Blessed and his recent powerful performance, such presumptions would be wrong.

On the evening of September 18th, at the Welcoming Dinner of this year’s Land Trust Alliance Rally in Providence, RI, an enormous banquet hall of land trust professionals sat sipping their after-dinner coffee when Blessed quietly took the stage… and proceeded to blow everyone’s minds. For everyone in the room, his message was familiar, yet delivered in a way rarely heard in the conservation world: to the mesmerizing rhythmic chant of hip hop. 

Blessed is a unique, local, hip hop artist who lives in New Bedford, Ma. His well-composed lyrical songs have powerful, socially conscious messages ranging from conservation, to climate change, clean energy, the Bottle Bill, buying local and being a responsible consumer, green jobs, and the depletion of the bee population (I am the Bee). 

When not performing in a ballroom to a group of land conservationists, his target audience is mostly youth, and he uses hip hop as a tool to educate, empower and inspire. His song, Now is the Time (Generation), is an expertly composed call to action. Not only does it illuminate important environmental issues, but he breaks down his message into specific, reasonable, action items that anyone can do to truly make a difference.

An extremely talented musician, Blessed believes in creating art that is relevant to the truly important issues faced by the human species and the planet today. Blessed performs across the country and overseas inspiring people—most importantly, youth—to join the green movement through his musical talent. 

If you have a chance to see Blessed perform live, or even to just watch a music video or a live interview on his website or YouTube, we highly recommend it and assure you that you won’t be disappointed. Tem Blessed is an outstanding artist, and he is making a difference in a most talented and engaging way.