Rap and Redemption on Death Row: A conversation with Alim Braxton and Mark Katz

What leads someone to take another’s life? What do we owe those whom we incarcerate? What is, or what should be, the purpose of the United States carceral system? How can the impulses that lead to violence be transformed, and what role can art play in that transformation? Are there limits to redemption?

“Rap and Redemption on Death Row: Seeking Justice and Finding Purpose Behind Bars” seeks to explore the answers to these difficult questions through the testimony of Alim Braxton (a.k.a. Rrome Alone)—a writer, rapper, and activist living on North Carolina’s Death Row. Join COMPACT and BEJI as we welcome Alim and author Mark Katz, the John P. Barker Distinguished Professor of Music at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, to Brandeis University for a community book release and discussion.

This event is hosted by The Vic ’63 and Bobbi Samuels ’63 Center for Community Partnerships and Civic Transformation (COMPACT) and the Brandeis Educational Justice Initiative (BEJI) and co-sponsored by the Brandeis University Library, Brandeis University Center for Spiritual Life, Basement Records, C.A.R.E, and the Muslim Student Association. It will take place during DEIS Impact 2025 and Civic Learning Week.

Thanks to generous funding from our sponsors, “Rap and Redemption on Death Row” is  available digitally for free through the Brandeis Library for faculty, staff, and students and two copies are now available through the Waltham Public Library.