00:00:01 Speaker 1 

Welcome to Independent Perspective, a public affairs presentation of Western New York Independent Living (WNYIL). Our guest today is the Reverend Chris Wylie, otherwise known as the performer, DJ Pastor Rock, and has several other titles that we'll explore, and we're pleased to have him with us today.  I'm your host Ernie Churchwell. 

00:00:25 Speaker 1 

Reverend Chris, you played an important role in a function that our agency had just last week, the Disability Pride Festival, celebrating the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. But what are some of your other connections? 

00:00:46 Speaker 1 

Your treasurer and have another position in RAMPD. Could you tell us what that means? 

00:00:53 Speaker 2 

Alrighty. Yeah, it's great to be here and RAMPD is the Recording Artists and Music Professionals with Disabilities, which is an international organization actually that is centered around amplifying disability culture and connecting music industry professionals with disabilities, with the rest of the industry.  So that's my role there and I'm the treasurer and the partnerships committee co-chair as well. 

00:01:29 Speaker 1 

Well, it's although I gather RAMPD is only been around really for two or three years, it's still exciting to know that there is an international organization that focuses on performers with disabilities and although you go all over the country, you're actually based in Lewiston, correct? 

00:01:52 Speaker 2 

I am. Yeah, I don't get all over the country quite so much, but the organization is all over the country and we do things all around the country. In New York, Los Angeles, internationally as well. So, lots of good things happen. But yep, I'm right here in Western New York. 

00:02:07 Speaker 2 

And another wonderful RAMPD professional musician who played at the Disability Pride Festival is Chelsea O'Donnell, who's also again a RAMPD professional member, along with along with her band Stress Dolls played at Disability Pride so it's a really great organization with a lot of really great and talented musicians and it's great to be part of here, part of the community here in Western New York and then also spreading word of our presence out around the country and around the world. 

00:02:48 Speaker 1 

Would you say that thanks to RAMPD that doors have opened for performers with disabilities all over the place, or is there still a long way to go before full acceptance? 

00:03:00 Speaker 2 

I think it's both. You know, there's always work to be done, but certainly RAMPD has done incredible things in such a short time and raise the profile. Our founder Lachi, our founders Lachi and Gaelynn Lea and along with many of the founding members. And then I was in the second group of people who came in the RAMPD but have done great things. There's a lot of people in the RAMPD that a lot of RAMPD professional members who are on Grammy Board of Governors around the country, like in their own cities and States and things including Lachi and Gaelynn and others. 

00:03:44 Speaker 2 

So, we're going gangbusters and we're doing really great things and we're raising the profile and connecting and worked with again a lot of organizations, including the Grammys and. 

00:03:57 Speaker 2 

And but of course there's, you know, it's a work in progress. 

00:04:02 Speaker 1 

Ah, Reverend Chris, we're totally out of time, but I'm sure people will have questions. What's the best way to contact you? 

00:04:02 Speaker 2

Sure, you can contact me. My email is very simple. It's just djpastor rock@gmail.com. That's my email address. And if anybody has any questions about RAMPD or disabled people in music or anything like that, or just wants to see what I'm up to, feel free to reach out. 

00:04:35 Speaker 1 

Thanks so much for being with us, Chris. 

00:04:38 Speaker 2 

Thanks again. Great to be here. 

00:04:41 Speaker 1 

You've been listening to Independent Perspective of public affairs, presentation of WNYIL. Our guest today was Reverend Chris Wylie, otherwise known as DJ Pastor Rock and treasurer of the international organization RAMPD. And I've been your host, Ernie Churchwell.