Mazi Mutafa

Mazi Mutafa, an alumnus of the University of Maryland, is the founder and executive director of Words Beats & Life, Inc. (WBL), a hip-hop non-profit committed to transforming individual lives and whole communities through the elements of hip-hop culture. As an undergraduate, Mr. Mutafa was the co-founder of four student organizations and served as the president of the Black Student Union. During his tenure as president of the Black Student Union, Mr. Mutafa created the Words Beats & Life Hip-Hop Conference, a six-day hip-hop conference that endeavored to expand the potential impact of hip-hop as a culture and community. Mr. Mutafa is also a brother of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.

Mr. Mutafa’s entire professional career has been dedicated to serving youth and community development. Post-graduation, he worked for the Maya Angelou Public Charter School as a resident male counselor. Following this, he began working at the Institute for Cultural Affairs as the Mid-Atlantic Coordinator for “Youth as Facilitative Leaders” and conducted intergenerational facilitation trainings. Mr. Mutafa’s final position before becoming the full-time Executive Director of Words Beats & Life was as the Street Outreach Coordinator for Motivational Educational Entertainment’s (MEE) “Be on the Safe Side,” a campaign to prevent teen pregnancy.