A Miami-based PhD has been setting the stage for artistic authenticity in the music industry—and class is in session with his latest jams.
He’s currently the chief operating officer of 1331 Recordz, where he’s signed as a hip-hop artist.
Simon Howard, professionally known as SiHow the Doctor, credited a musical upbringing that harmonized with his academic inclinations.
“At a very young age, I was doing well academically and I always loved music,” he said in a statement.
“The people in my family are big music folks, music was always being played.”
SiHow the Doctor described his childhood symphony as being a combination of “old school, Motown, [and] hip hop.”
“It was always the soundtrack to our lives,” he said.
“There’s a song that you listen to and it takes you back to some point in your life.”
SiHow the Doctor explained what fans can expect of his sound, combining Black history with modern beats—with some hits playing out like a sociology lesson, pointing out struggles he’s seen in his community.
Still FTP, a song that gives a hat tip to NWA, addresses current social debates, even directly calling out Jason Aldean’s Try That In A Small Town—a track that many found controversial.
“My music is an auditory extension of myself, it’s multi-dimensional, multifaceted, and authentic,” he said.
“When people hear my music, they’re basically hearing the auditory expressions of who Simon Howard, SiHow the Doctor is, as a person.”
The rapper described what sets him apart through the rest—and how he balanced being a bookworm with writing bars.
“I’ve always been myself,” he said. “Authenticity shines through.”
SiHow the Doctor emphasized the importance of not creating a false persona just to fit into the mold, bringing in a new age of rappers where “school is cool.”
“Being multi dimensional allows me to be in like multiple spaces, where in some aspects I’m just doing music, some aspects I’m an academic,” he said.
“But across all these dimensions that I am, I’m Simon Howard, my artist name is SiHow the Doctor, but it’s still me. It’s Simon coming through in all of these.”
The academic said that adding “rapper” to his repertoire came naturally.
“While I was in college, I always had dreams of being a rapper,” he said.
However, his rhyming aspirations took a backseat in favor of completing higher education.
“Little did I know how time-consuming graduate school is actually going to be,” he added.
As a first-generation college student, he navigated unfamiliar waters while keeping music on his mind.
“It tested me in ways that mentally I never thought I was going to experience. It’s a very demanding psychologically experience,” he said.
After completing his education and becoming a psychology professor at University of Miami, SiHow the Doctor dove straight into music.
“I was always inclined to doing things rhythmically, poetically with the word,” the rapper said.
While SiHow the Doctor wears his PhD with pride, even referencing it in his moniker, he added that a degree doesn’t define genius.
“I know plenty of people who are far more intelligent than I am and don’t have credentials, but because I do have one, people are going to find me more credible in some ways—and vice versa,” he said.
“That’s why I think, you know, I move the way I move and people can appreciate that. I think that’s the cool aspect of it.”
SiHow the Doctor can be heard on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify.
