Where were you when you found out John Singleton passed away from a stroke? Do you remember what you were doing when the news of Phife Dawg succumbing to diabetes broke? Personally, I know where I was about to go when I heard of De La Soul legend David Jude Jolicoeur’s passing from congestive heart failure—a fast food chain to grab an unhealthy value meal. The irony.
While waiting for my order in the drive-thru I read the news via my Twitter newsfeed and fans were understandably distraught by the passing, not only because of the loss itself, but mostly due to the untimeliness. He was only 54. The aforementioned were also in their early 50s, much too young to go.
The Lox founding member Styles P and his wife Adjua Styles have been keenly aware of how quickly their health can change the trajectory of their lives.
Adjua, who was raised in a Rastafarian household, was introduced to organic foods early on and folded her husband into the lifestyle when they married 28 years ago.
“Everything was organic—there was no meat and no dairy, and so I had a fundamental understanding of a lot at an early age—did I adopt it all the time? No. But I always knew about the difference it made in the way we felt, and how healing food is,” she shared with me. Although she knew the importance of completely clean eating, she still influenced Styles P to pay closer attention to what he ate, particularly as a performer.
“She saw that I was always eating crap while I was on the road and how hard those habits were on my body, especially since touring was grueling by nature,” Styles P told ESSENCE. “So I turned away from all of that.”
The rap legend celebrated ten years of being dedicated to a plant-based diet, and ten years of vegetarianism before that.
The couple both noticed an uptick in energy and mental acuity and wanted to share that with the world. A short time later, Juices For Life was born, their juice bar franchise that’s been servicing over underserved communities in NYC for more than a decade now. The brand has been such a success, they’re inviting us into their medicine cabinet, their new venture Farmacy For Life, billed as “Hip-Hop’s first natural health food store.” It offers supplements that address various health concerns including brain fog, sexual performance, energy, metabolism and digestion.
“This is what we’ve been taking for years and we’re inviting people to tap into some of our secrets to health success,” Adjua said. She is the mastermind behind the brand’s expansion and attributes its already massive popularity to people’s desire to living better.
“For too long, people have thought that plant-based lifestyles were only for the rich, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.” Styles P added, “Technically peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are plant-based,” mentioning his Styles PB&J collaboration with NYC culinary brand Eleven Madison Home. The flavors, which are available for shipping, include the PB&J with Maca Protein, Irish Sea Moss & Grape Jelly Jar, Styles PB&J Maca Protein, Irish Sea Moss, Strawberry & Rhubarb Jam Jar and Styles PB&J with Maca Protein, and Chocolate & Sesame Jar.
He says that taking sea moss, other beneficial supplements, staying committed to clean eating, and exercising regularly are a demonstration of the life he wants to lead.
“I want to be around for a while–this is the way to do that.”