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KPBS Midday Edition

Local brewer and rapper explores his creative side through beers and bars

Kemet Ackee poses with a four-pack of "All I Want" Kolsch in this undated photo.
Kemet Ackee
Kemet Ackee poses with a four-pack of "All I Want" Kolsch, the beer he brewed for Black History Month in 2023, in this undated photo.

San Diego is a beer town.

With more than 150 independent craft breweries in the county, beer connoisseurs are hardly thirsty for choice.

What has long been missing from the craft brewing industry, however, is better representation of brewers from ethnically diverse backgrounds.

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San Diego native and rapper Kemet Ackee is trying to change that, one beer at a time.

An army veteran, Ackee now works as a brewer at Second Chance Beer Company. He recently brewed the "All I Want" hoppy Kölsch-style beer in honor of Black History Month.

The unique creation was a collaboration with Ackee's clothing and lifestyle brand "All My Friends Are Rappers," which boosts San Diego's local hip-hop scene.

Ackee joined Midday Edition on Tuesday to talk about being a brewer and some of his own "pairings" of favorite local brews and San Diego hip-hop artists.