Baba has performed at in-person and virtual events produced by Google, IBM, TEDx, Accenture, Alteryx, Tricentis, DLD, BSR, AGU, and The World Parks Congress. His sets combine science-themed rap songs with improvised freestyles incorporating word suggestions from the crowd, as well as custom-written “Rap Up” summaries that provide an uplifting conclusion to any event. See below for the full set of custom-content offerings available.
Bookings
Events
Rap Up
A “Rap Up” is a custom-written song that summarizes an event, composed during the proceedings and performed as the grande finale, an exercise in rapid-fire creativity and a unique comedy experience.
A cross between a lyrical sketch artist and a stand-up comic, Baba celebrates and satirizes in his signature tongue-in-cheek punchline style, name-checking each of the speakers and weaving the event’s central messages into an original rap anthem, tailored and performed exclusively for your attendees.
More Rap Up Videos
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AirMiners Conference Rap Up - Baba Brinkman (May 13th, 2020)
May 13th, 2020
Rap Up performed LIVE by the incredible Baba Brinkman: https://bababrinkman.com/
At the AirMiners Conference: Foundations for a Carbon Negative Future http://airminers.org/
Our Zoom audience of 300+ attendees LOVED it
"Baba is a master"
"that rhyme with carbonic anhydrase is a mic drop"
"Baba! Blow my mind! Genius!"
"Baba killing it!"
"Baba soaked up knowledge like a sponge, how does he do it?"
"Skillz on the mic, yo!"
Featuring inspiration from:
Kim Stanley Robinson : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Stanley_Robinson
Dr. Klaus Lackner : https://www.linkedin.com/in/klaus-lackner/
Dr. Lisa Dyson : https://www.linkedin.com/in/dysonlisa/
The Seastars : http://theseastars.com/
Alexsandra Guerrera : https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexsandraguerra/
Eri Gentry : https://www.linkedin.com/in/erigentry/
Nicholas Eisenberger : https://www.linkedin.com/in/neisenberger/
Diego Saez-Gil (Pachama): https://www.linkedin.com/in/dsaezgil/
Heidi Lim (Opus 12): https://www.linkedin.com/in/heidiheidilim/
Dr. Peter Eisenberger (Global Thermostat): https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-eisenberger-17322766/
Christian Shearer (Regen Networks): https://www.linkedin.com/in/christian-shearer-b8877312/
Daniel Egger (Climeworks): https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-egger-b16ba5174/
Jason Grillo : https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasongrillo/
Tito Jankowski : https://www.linkedin.com/in/titojankowski/
Beat by Mr. Simmonds http://mrsimmonds.com/ -
10,000 Teachers Rap Up
Baba Brinkman performs a "Rap Up" summary of the 10,000 Teachers Conference at New York Climate Week 2020, hosted by PocketLab, Science Is Cool, and Shhh, It's Real.
Learn more about Baba Brinkman's custom "Event Rap" sets:
https://www.eventrap.com/
Learn more about free Teacher conferences from Science Is Cool:
https://www.scic-conference.com/
Watch the full conference video:
https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=339167723827184
Original event home page:
https://www.climateweeknyc.org/event/10000-teachers
Hosted by comedian and Star Talk Radio co-Host Chuck Nice, and featuring the Daily Show's Roy Wood Jr., Yale Professor Nicholas Christakis, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, NJ First Lady Tammy Murphy, Musician and Vegan Activist DJ Cavem, Neuroscientist Dr. Heather Berlin, Founder and Director of WE ACT for Environmental Justice Peggy Shepard, Author and Clean Technologist Dr. Varun Sivaram, Chemistry Professor Dr. Peter Mahaffy, Climate Scientist Katharine Hayhoe, Green Ninja Founder Dr. Eugene Cordero, Environmental Studies Professor Max Boycoff, and PocketLab Founder and CEO Dave Bakker. -
Leases on Leashes | Rap Up by Baba Brinkman
Baba Brinkman’s freestyle rap, “Leases on Leashes”, is the world’s first Lease Lifecycle Automation rap, performed at LeaseAccelerator’s Customer Connect event on 9/17/20. He'll be back again LIVE at Customer Connect on 10/15/20. We invite all LeaseAccelerator customers (and future customers) to learn more and sign up to attend here: https://explore.leaseaccelerator.com/customer-connect/ -
Day 2 Rap Up by Baba Brinkman (Quantum Summer Symposium 2020)
Vancouver-born, New York-based rap artist and science communicator Baba Brinkman (https://bababrinkman.com) performs a Rap Up of Day 2 of Google's Quantum Summer Symposium (July 23, 2020). This rap was spontaneously composed from content presented during the conference. Check out the playlist for more videos from QSS 2020.
Google's Quantum Summer Symposium 2020 playlist → https://goo.gle/2Z149sN
Subscribe to TensorFlow → https://goo.gle/TensorFlow -
IUCN World Parks Congress 2014 - Baba Brinkman's Final Rap Up
Rap artist Baba Brinkman summarises the IUCN World Parks Congress 2014 in his own musical style! -
Baba Brinkman | Conservation Conference Rap Up
Custom Rap
Baba frequently produces commissioned rap songs and music videos that synthesize complex ideas into a fun and accessible format tailor-made for social media. Baba’s informative rap videos are also popular with teachers as a classroom engagement-tool (see RapGuide.com).
Commissioned Music Videos
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Ballad of a Zombie – Baba Brinkman Music Video
A zombie anthem exploring the evolutionary science of parasitism, from pathogens to social media.
Download or Stream the Track
Bandcamp: https://music.bababrinkman.com/track/ballad-of-a-zombie
Apple: http://itunes.apple.com/album/id/1536246364
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/0wSt1kxSR6pTuw5dleJVzY
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Ballad-Zombie-Baba-Brinkman/dp/B08LD8WL77
Further Reading:
• https://www.popsci.com/zombies-mind-control-and-body-snatchers-natures-horrifying-parasites/
• https://www.businessinsider.com/zombies-in-nature-science-2019-5
• https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/mattsimonauthor/zombies-are-real-and-nature-is-terrifying
Lyrics by Baba Brinkman
Music Written, Produced, Mixed, and Mastered by Mr. Simmonds
Additional Vocals by Aaron Ross
Animation by Anna C. Gilmore
Zombie Illustrations by Neil Smith
Parasite Illustrations by Noel Planet
Video Edited by Roberto De Jesus
Scientific Consultation by Athena Aktipis and Dr. Joe Alcock
Made with Support from the Zombie Apocalypse Medicine Alliance
http://www.zombiemed.org/ -
Bright Future – Baba Brinkman Music Video
Nuclear power is an essential resource in combatting climate change. Where does your electricity come from? Clean energy means everything.
Download and Stream:
https://music.bababrinkman.com/track/bright-future
https://music.apple.com/us/album/bright-future/1512383035?i=1512383042
https://open.spotify.com/album/7lRyuiXfx5KduqPhiw5GBJ?si=FqmteDL4T2uLG5oeSjgnjw
https://www.amazon.com/Bright-Future-Baba-Brinkman/dp/B088BVZZSN
Further reading:
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/06/opinion/sunday/climate-change-nuclear-power.html
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesconca/2019/11/25/nuclear-power-does-slow-climate-change/#65e315d47202
Lyrics by Baba Brinkman
Music by Mr. Simmonds
Chorus Vocals by Eric Meyer
Video Edited by Buck Bowen
Made with support from Generation Atomic
https://www.generationatomic.org/why-nuclear -
Revenge of the Somatic – Baba Brinkman Music Video
A cancer cell rebels against the tyranny of the body, revealing the hidden evolutionary logic behind carcinogenesis.
Download and Stream:
https://music.bababrinkman.com/track/revenge-of-the-somatic-2
https://music.apple.com/us/album/revenge-of-the-somatic/979284324?i=979284825
https://open.spotify.com/track/7yIptNDl9az4joEsfP6zNi?si=B27hVlrKRrmM0dDpuBLmgA
https://www.amazon.com/Revenge-of-the-Somatic/dp/B00V3YA41W
Further reading:
https://slate.com/technology/2017/04/cancer-has-been-with-us-since-the-origins-of-multicellularity.html
https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691163840/the-cheating-cell
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/28/science/cellular-cheaters-give-rise-to-cancer.html
Lyrics by Baba Brinkman
Music by Mr. Simmonds
Animation by Dave Anderson
Scientific Consultation by Athena Aktipis
Made with support from the Arizona Cancer Evolution Center
https://cancer-insights.asu.edu/ -
Data Science – Baba Brinkman Music Video
Rap battle between a data scientist and a classical statistician, arguing for predictive algorithmic models versus inferential data models respectively.
Download the audio:
https://soundcloud.com/bababrinkman/data-science
Learn more:
https://soundcloud.com/altereverything/43-data-science-through-the-eyes-of-statisticians
https://towardsdatascience.com/thoughts-on-the-two-cultures-of-statistical-modeling-72d75a9e06c2
https://www.nature.com/articles/nmeth.4642
Music Produced, Mixed, and Mastered by Mr. Simmonds
Video by Haley Monson
Made with support from Alteryx -
Feelings for Reasons – Baba Brinkman Music Video
New album "See From Space" available now:
Bandcamp: https://music.bababrinkman.com/album/see-from-space
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/see-from-space/1472326163
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/See-Space-Baba-Brinkman/dp/B07V3DF34W
The evolutionary origins of emotions and mental illness, contemplated in a time of grief and depression.
Inspired by the book "Good Reasons for Bad Feelings" by Randy Nesse. http://goodreasons.info -
Redemption (feat Jessie Davis) – Baba Brinkman Music Video
New album "See From Space" available now:
Bandcamp: https://music.bababrinkman.com/album/see-from-space
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/see-from-space/1472326163
Become a Patreon supporter:
https://www.patreon.com/bababrinkman
Scientific Consultation by Dr. Gary Yohe and Dr. Michael E. Mann
Lyrics and Sources:
http://goo.gl/hFAwm5
Track Credits:
Lyrics by Baba Brinkman
Chorus by Jessie Davis
Video Directed by Baba Brinkman
Video Edited by Buck Bowen
Camera by Buck Bowen, Farbeon & Mimi Hayes
Music by Tom Caruana
Piano by Simon Kendall
Custom Rap Live
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Baba Brinkman's Skeptic Rap (world premiere)
Sumptuous brain food.
Rap with an intellectual bent.
Baba Brinkman is a Canadian rap artist based in New York. He is best known for his "Rap Guide" series of science-based hip-hop albums and theatre shows, including Rap Guides to Evolution, Climate Change, and Religion. Check him out at:
http://bababrinkman.com
http://music.bababrinkman.com
https://twitter.com/bababrinkman
https://www.facebook.com/bababrinkman
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The world premiere of this rap was performed at a live variety science show hosted by Dr. Michael Shermer, in partnership with YouTube Space NY in late September 2017, celebrating 25 years of Skeptic magazine and the Skeptics Society combating ‘fake news.’ The event explored the question: ‘How Can We Know What’s True?’.
The Skeptics Society is one of America’s leading non-profit science education organizations. For the past quarter century, our mission has been to ensure that the information surrounding the world’s biggest controversies is properly communicated. For so many issues: from evolution and the Holocaust, to climate and vaccinations, to alternative medicine and alternative archaeology, to religion and politics, to policy-making and economics, the ultimate question is: is it really true?
Check us out at:
https://www.skeptic.com
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You play a vital part in our commitment to promote science and reason. Your ongoing patronage will help ensure that sound scientific viewpoints are heard around the world.
Become a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/skeptic -
#AGU20: Researchers, I See You from Baba Brinkman
#AGU20 is pleased to welcome back Baba Brinkman, a rap artist and comedian, who synthesizes complex science into accessible and entertaining performances.
Here is Baba's intro video for #AGU20!
Baba is also attend #AGU20 to perform his climate raps, produce “Rap Up” summaries of the meeting, create freestyle raps based on attendee’s comments and participate in discussions and panels.
https://www.agu.org/Fall-Meeting/ -
Baba Brinkman: 'Fahrenheit 45' World Premiere
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Intelligence Squared U.S. 100th Debate Rap
Baba Brinkman performs at the 100th Intelligence Squared U.S. Debate. -
Leonard Schein Birthday Retirement Party Rap
Vancouver entrepreneur, philanthropist and film festival founder Leonard Schein turns 65 and retires as president of Festival Cinemas. Baba Brinkman researches his life story and asks his friends about his character, and performs a rap tribute/roast at the gala celebration in his honour. -
Brisbane Writer's Festival: Baba Brinkman Thanking Sponsors
The Brisbane Writer's Festival organized a special speech to thank the sponsors who funded the festival. They compiled a list of all 80 contributors and commissioned Vancouver rap artist Baba Brinkman to write them all into a rap poem.
Book Tunes
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Bright Future – Baba Brinkman Music Video
Nuclear power is an essential resource in combatting climate change. Where does your electricity come from? Clean energy means everything.
Download and Stream:
https://music.bababrinkman.com/track/bright-future
https://music.apple.com/us/album/bright-future/1512383035?i=1512383042
https://open.spotify.com/album/7lRyuiXfx5KduqPhiw5GBJ?si=FqmteDL4T2uLG5oeSjgnjw
https://www.amazon.com/Bright-Future-Baba-Brinkman/dp/B088BVZZSN
Further reading:
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/06/opinion/sunday/climate-change-nuclear-power.html
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesconca/2019/11/25/nuclear-power-does-slow-climate-change/#65e315d47202
Lyrics by Baba Brinkman
Music by Mr. Simmonds
Chorus Vocals by Eric Meyer
Video Edited by Buck Bowen
Made with support from Generation Atomic
https://www.generationatomic.org/why-nuclear -
Revenge of the Somatic – Baba Brinkman Music Video
A cancer cell rebels against the tyranny of the body, revealing the hidden evolutionary logic behind carcinogenesis.
Download and Stream:
https://music.bababrinkman.com/track/revenge-of-the-somatic-2
https://music.apple.com/us/album/revenge-of-the-somatic/979284324?i=979284825
https://open.spotify.com/track/7yIptNDl9az4joEsfP6zNi?si=B27hVlrKRrmM0dDpuBLmgA
https://www.amazon.com/Revenge-of-the-Somatic/dp/B00V3YA41W
Further reading:
https://slate.com/technology/2017/04/cancer-has-been-with-us-since-the-origins-of-multicellularity.html
https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691163840/the-cheating-cell
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/28/science/cellular-cheaters-give-rise-to-cancer.html
Lyrics by Baba Brinkman
Music by Mr. Simmonds
Animation by Dave Anderson
Scientific Consultation by Athena Aktipis
Made with support from the Arizona Cancer Evolution Center
https://cancer-insights.asu.edu/ -
Feelings for Reasons – Baba Brinkman Music Video
New album "See From Space" available now:
Bandcamp: https://music.bababrinkman.com/album/see-from-space
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/see-from-space/1472326163
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/See-Space-Baba-Brinkman/dp/B07V3DF34W
The evolutionary origins of emotions and mental illness, contemplated in a time of grief and depression.
Inspired by the book "Good Reasons for Bad Feelings" by Randy Nesse. http://goodreasons.info -
Fahrenheit 45 – Baba Brinkman Music Video
From the album "See From Space", download here:
https://music.bababrinkman.com/album/see-from-space
Inspired by Ray Bradbury's classic dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451. Book-burning, social media, censorship, technology, propaganda & citizenship in the era of the 45th President.
Original song "Fahrenheit 45" commissioned by Future of Storytelling www.fost.org -
See From Space – Baba Brinkman Music Video
New album "See From Space" available now:
Bandcamp: https://music.bababrinkman.com/album/see-from-space
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/see-from-space/1472326163
An alien rap song inspired by the book "The Ape that Understood the Universe" by Steve Stewart-Williams, now available from Cambridge University Press.
Learn more:
https://www.cambridge.org/apethatunderstood
Support my videos on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/bababrinkman
Lyrics by Baba Brinkman
Music by Tom Caruana
Chorus Vocals by Aaron Nazrul
Piano, Synth, and Additional Vocals by Simon Kendall
Video Directed by Baba Brinkman
Video Edited by Buck Bowen -
T.V.O.L. (This View of Life) – Baba Brinkman Music Video
From the new album "See From Space", available now:
https://music.bababrinkman.com/album/see-from-space
Support my videos on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/bababrinkman
Commissioned by TVOL Magazine
http://thisviewoflife.com
An anthem for the evolutionary view of life, which sees Darwinian processes working at multiple levels from genes to individuals to cultural artifacts and symbols, producing the amazing variety of complex behaviours and structures on display in the human and natural world, with no recourse to the supernatural at any level.
Lyrics by Baba Brinkman
Music Produced, Mixed and Mastered by Mr. Simmonds
Chorus Vocals by Aaron Nazrul
Additional Piano and Hammond Organ by Simon Kendall
Bass by Owen Strain
"Tree of Life" art by Evolution Posters
http://evolutionposters.com -
IPCC – Baba Brinkman Music Video
The scientific findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change summarized in rap form.
Learn more about the IPCC reports:
https://www.ipcc.ch/
Support my videos:
https://www.patreon.com/bababrinkman
From the album "The Rap Guide to Climate Chaos":
https://bababrinkman.com/music#climate-chaos -
Survival of the Fittest - Baba Brinkman - Rap Guide to Evolution Music Videos
The Rap Guide to Evolution Music Videos, sponsored by the Wellcome Trust.
Buy the album: http://music.bababrinkman.com/album/the-rap-guide-to-evolution
Lyrics and Performance by Baba Brinkman
Music by Soulful Spider
Directed by Felix Harrison
Animation by Tommy Nagle
Supported by The Wellcome Trust
Inspired by the Mobb Deep song "Survival of the Fittest"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxDdN-puo3g
Watch Baba's TEDx Talk discussing the theory:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DB_kVIoovJI
The data behind this video are drawn from the book "Homicide" by Daly and Wilson:
https://www.amazon.com/Homicide-Foundations-Behavior-Martin-Daly/dp/020201178X
Further reading can be found online at the following links.
Darwinism and the Origins of Machismo:
http://rapguidetoevolution.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/machismo.pdf
Risk taking, Competition and Homicide:
http://rapguidetoevolution.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Risk-taking.pdf
Income inequality and social ills:
http://www.equalitytrust.org.uk/why/evidence -
Group Selection – Baba Brinkman Music Video
There's a lot more to evolution than cut-throat competition and survival, including cooperation, altruism, and hyper-sociality, so... can't we all just get along?!
Download or Stream the Track
Bandcamp: https://music.bababrinkman.com/track/group-selection-20
Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-rap-guide-to-evolution-revised/451234747
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/5iCztxH67qnCLKlzUTmIyY
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Group-Selection-2-0/dp/B005A524SG
Further Reading:
https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/pdf/10.1086/522809
Amoeba footage by Robert Insall
https://twitter.com/robinsall
Lyrics by Baba Brinkman
Music by Mr. Simmonds
Additional Vocals by Aaron Ross, Sean Ross, Smoky Tiger, Erik Brinkman, and Dizraeli.
Piano by Simon Kendall
Scientific Consultation by David Sloan Wilson
Inspired by DSW's book "Evolution for Everyone"
https://www.amazon.com/Evolution-Everyone-Darwins-Theory-Change/dp/0385340923
Original Backing Video by Wendall K. Harrington
Edited by Buck Bowen -
The Pardoner's Tale (Animated)
Support my videos on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/bababrinkman
The Pardoner's Tale from "The Rap Canterbury Tales" by Baba Brinkman, with illustrations by Erik Brinkman. http://www.bababrinkman.com
Freestyle Set
Baba Brinkman’s interactive virtual “Freestyle Set” gives your audience a live dialogue with an improvising artist in real time, and a chance to witness one of the most entertaining and demanding tasks performed by the human brain. Rapid-fire rhymes respond in seconds to suggestions posted in a comment thread or chat stream – the more scientifically complex, the more entertaining the challenge!
Live at the Google Quantum Symposium, July 2020
Freestyle Track
Partially written and partially improvised, Baba’s signature “Freestyle Tracks” elevate improvisation by putting it into a new and thought-provoking frame, connecting spontaneous creativity with themes from business, science, and technology.
An avid freestyler since 2002, Baba Brinkman has won multiple battles and performed improv rap on stage in front of thousands of people alongside Steven Hawking and Neil deGrasse Tyson.
“Good Bayesian” at the Stanford BrainMind Summit
More Freestyle Tracks
“Can’t Stop” (Neuroscience and Free Will)
“Performance, Feedback, Revision” (Evolution and Design)
“Freedom Ain’t Free” (Climate Change and Regulation)
Catalogue Set
Customized performance of previously-released song(s) that fit the theme of your event, designed in consultation with you.
Event Emcee
Your event, hosted by a charismatic rapper, including introductions, interviews, and performances.