Albany Student Voice

"Life after death" is how he describes his triumphant life struggles making his way out of Mershon Ga. to pursue a higher education and many other luminous accomplishments.
Former chairman of the department of psychology, sociology and social work Dr. Joshua W. Murfree currently serves as the executive assistant to the president (Dr. Everett J. Freeman) and administrative chief of staff and director of athletics at Albany State University (ASU).

Even at first glance Murfree isn't just another successful African American male, but a thriving, unsurpassed mentor to young African American men everywhere. "I always tell people who say they strive to be like Dr. Murfree, 'I want you to be better than Dr. Murfree'.

"If I can go to school and earn a PHD, I would like to lead the way so that you can not only earn a PHD, but you can earn a PHD (Doctor of Philosophy) an EDD (Doctor of Education) and a JD (Juris Doctor), because the struggle should not be the same," Murfree said.

Leaning back in a refined black leather office chair, Murfree reminisces on life before his journey toward earning the right to be called Doctor. "As a child I read a lot and I wanted to learn a lot. I knew I didn't want to finish my life in a place called Mershon Georgia". "It wasn't so much as the name, but what it did not have to offer. What it didn't have to offer for me or my family," Murfree said.

Murfree said he always knew that he wanted to go to college and he knew he was going to make the experience meaningful. He earned his undergraduate degree from Fort Valley State College, his Masters at Valdosta State College and his PHD from Howard University in Washington D.C. "I saw myself going to college and I always talked about becoming a psychologist and people say most African Americans don't want to be psychologists and that sort of just added more fuel to the fire for me".

"If you tell me that I can't accomplish something, I'm going to prove myself, not necessarily to you but to myself," Murfree said. Outside of his academic achievements, Murfree has also done research on teen suicide and violence and how it relates to hip-hop culture, literature and music. He said he wanted to prove that hip-hop music isn't the blame for teen violence.

He said he doesn't believe music can cause a person to "act out" a certain way. "My research was to show that I can listen to something and yet I won't turn out and be like that. In our study we actually found that people just want it (music), they like the beat and they wanted the sound. Sometimes people don't even understand the words", Murfree said.

In 2004, Murfree was at a convention in Miami FL. on a panel that included some hip-hop representatives like rap artist Ludacris and former 106 & Park VJ, AJ Calloway, and it was then when he raised the question of teen violence and suicide and whether hip-hop contributed to it. Murfree used Biggie Smalls's "Life After Death" album to demonstrate the points he was trying to make.

"The album itself laid ground to show people that you learn how to change playmates and also playgrounds. He was just simply saying, because I moved up based upon my work and my work as art, I am an artist. Therefore, I don't need to say where I am. I'm dying from being in the projects, but still understanding how I got through that particular spiritual round in my life."

"Not spirit as in religion, but spirit as in 'I was here and I didn't know what to do. I was starving and we (family) didn't have but I had some type of art in me with my tongue. I was a genius but I had to find that hero down inside of myself and then now I am free and so, since I died from that, now I'm living. That's life after death," Murfree said.

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