JIHAD’S BIOGRAPHY
Jihad was a smart child growing up in a single-family home in Indianapolis, IN and Atlanta, GA. But, by the age of 16, he was selling drugs and embarking on a criminal career that seven years later would lead him to prison, but not before his lifestyle would cause him to be stabbed, shot, and left paralyzed from a car accident. Although over time he miraculously regained the use of his legs he still served over seven years in six different federal prisons up and down the east coast. While serving time, Jihad looked up to a group of socio-political self-taught prisoners who raised his awareness about himself and his past. He discovered books, mostly by black authors and historians, which was something that never spurred his interest while in school. Jihad started researching and writing about subjects that he was sure many misunderstood, like History, religion, hood-psyche, and society in general. His focus and discipline prepared him to write his first book, an autobiographical account of his life, the award-winning novel STREETLIFE which is taught in schools, such as Fordham University, University of Texas, and others. STREETLIFE is the first and currently only Urban book taught overseas in Germany's Humboldt University. Jihad has gone on to write 7 award-winning, national bestsellers such as the tirlogy PREACHERMAN BLUES, WILD CHERRY, and PREACHERMAN BLUES II, BABYGIRL, RIDING RYTHM, MVP and soon to be released MVP RELOADED. His most cherished and most acclaimed work to date is a self-help book of fictional essays entitled THE SURVIVAL BIBLE: 16 LIFE LESSONS FOR YOUNG BLACK MEN.
He calls his genre of literature conscious hip-hop fiction. His goal is to be the voice of the thousands of self-taught positive prison inmates that will never be heard. As Kanye West, Common Sense, Jada Kiss, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, NAS, and other conscious hip-hop artists are setting the music industry on fire with their lyrics of hope and change, Jihad is doing through his writing.
Jihad is a single father who lives in a suburb outside of Atlanta. He is a bestselling author, motivational speaker and real estate investor. He is CEO of Envisions Publishing, LLC and Custom Care Landscaping & Home Renovations. He is also the founder and CEO of a non-profit organization, The Wake-Up Everybody Foundation, which is dedicated to positively and pro-actively re-awakening the African-American psyche through self-realization and re-edu
