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Hip-Hop veteran Kangol Kid of UTFO (real  Shaun Shiller Fequiere) has been very active in bringing awareness to health care needs in the Black community. In addition to his “Mama Luke Foundation”  to help fight breast cancer, he has been orchestrating efforts to secure health care for his performing peers.

For over a year Kangol Kid had been meeting with the New York City Health and Hospital Corporation (HHC), planning and organizing a health care plan for Hip-Hop artists and all artists alike.  He came up with a program called “ArtXChange” where artists would earn credits towards health care in exchange for their unique services.

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The ArtXchange Program was set to launch on Wednesday, August 8, at Metropolitan Hospital Center (MET) in Harlem but ran into red tape indicative of health care plans in the U.S.  Even though the program was a barter, the artists would be taxed on the health care they received.

“My attempt to give you the gift of better life could result in the IRS giving you a heart attack,” Kangol said in a statement.“Needless to say, the ArtXchange Program is hereby officially postponed until we design a system that will satisfy all parties…We WILL find a solution in memory of Heavy D, Ms. Melodie, MCA, Nate Dogg, Guru, KMG, J Dilla, Big Pun, Professor X… and many others.”

READ THE  FULL STATEMENT HERE

In recent years the issue of healthcare for artists, particularly in the hip-hop community, has been given more attention after news of Kool Herc’s battle with Cancer and the sudden deaths of artists like Guru, Heavy D and Ms Melodie.

Watch TheUrbanDaily.com’s interview with Kangol Kid about his fight against Breast Cancer:

[ooyala code=”93MGd3MjrfKUllOUUwHwyw6DZMFWT6f9″]

Get more related entertainment and health related news on TheUrbanDaily:

BREAKING: Rapper Ms. Melodie Of Boogie Down Productions Dead

WATCH: LL Cool J, Others Honor Whitney Houston In Grammy Documentary [VIDEO]

Nuttin But Love: Tony Dofat And Pete Rock Remember Heavy D [EXCLUSIVE]

Groundbreaking Hip-Hop Health Care Plan Put On Hold  was originally published on theurbandaily.com