In the summer of 2011, Alexander “Cost One” Acosta began mentoring at the Whitefoord Intel Computer Clubhouse in the Edgewood neighborhood in East Atlanta. The teens at the clubhouse had been externally labeled “at-risk” because of the number of factors surrounding and influencing their potential outcomes. As a professional photojournalist, Acosta originally signed on to mentor and teach the teens photography but quickly found a better way to connect.
At the heart of the clubhouse, there was a recording studio where the teens would work on music projects. However, Acosta saw the real magic happening outside of the studio when they would form organic freestyle cyphers after their recording sessions. As an avid practitioner of Hip-Hop culture since his teenage years, he understood and often times jumped in to participate. In these cyphers the teens would open up in ways they would not normally be comfortable, especially with adults. Acosta heard tales of violence and abandonment. However, he also heard hope, aspiration, and the desire for a new set of outcomes. He then realized the power of these ephemeral sessions – Teens were unlocking the healing power of their words and manifesting new destinies.
Simultaneously, Acosta was making his rounds in Atlanta’s hip hop community and also cyphering with some of his close friends at this time. These friends Wahid Khosravani, Mark Montgomery, and Majorica Murphy were gifted young professionals with skills inside and outside of Hip-Hop. With a desire to connect generations and provide consistency of these cypher sessions, Acosta formed a team and began writing a proposal to a local arts center named Wonderroot. The arts center agreed to host the bi-monthly rap cypher in their basement.
On February 26, 2012, Soul Food Cypher held its first freestyle cypher in the basement of Wonderroot. Soul Food Cypher as an event was born.
After hosting several cyphers, the core team of Soul Food Cypher received an email from a mysterious individual named Zano Bathroom. In the message, he spelled out his intent on starting his own freestyle cypher on the same date(s) but wanted to reach out because bad blood was not his intention. The team responded by inviting Mr. Bathroom to their next cypher.
At this next cypher, they were blown away by Mr. Bathroom’s lyrical delivery, wit, and ability. They all agreed, he was the piece they had been missing. After a short time, they invited him to join the team. Upon Zano’s joining, Soul Food Cypher as an organization was born.
Since it’s founding in 2012, Soul Food Cypher has:
Successfully executed 200+ cypher events, performances, and activations impacting more than 10,000 individuals.
Awarded $50,000 Creative Placemaking grant from ArtPlace America to extend work and address gentrification in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood in Atlanta, Ga.
Featured in Sprite’s Winter Cranberry Spice commercial in the winter of 2019 and helped relaunch the ‘Obey your thirst’ campaign in 2015
Became the first Hip Hop group to partner with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra during the ‘Mother/Leap’ a cultural symphony in two parts.
Created WordShop, an afterschool program at the Kindezi Schools that place on their campuses throughout Metro Atlanta.