We convened shortly after Reggie Bonds picked up his mother from church on a beautiful Sunday afternoon in Milwaukee's Historic Sherman Park area. It's where his home is and where he's in his element; Reggie literally greets every car that drives past with a handwave or hello.
Cars pulled up and emptied out family members, music producers, mentors and friends. It was a celebration. The porch where we began featured two pans of freshly cut watermelon and pineapple. Reggie’s mom yelled down, "If you need napkins and forks, let me know. I can get some for you.”
Yes, Reggie is a North Side hip-hop artist. No, he doesn't drink or smoke. And, if there were a classification or genre to include ultra-vegan, Reggie would be there. He's very vegan. He removed not only animal products but also starches from his diet, as well as doesn't use a microwave or refrigerator, and opts to observe his body and its needs on a moment by moment basis. Reggie also checks his alkaline levels quarterly to make sure his body is in proper balance.
Everyone who had shown up for the photo shoot knows about his lifestyle and honors his choices. As we chatted between takes, someone yelled out, "Tell her how you feel about tofu!” "It's trash," he stated. Reggie refuses to eat any processed foods, including tofu.
At 26 years old, this type of disciplined lifestyle is rarely seen in a generation most often defined by being impulsive and in need of instant gratification. Growing up, Reggie thought basketball was his ticket to a better life. For young men like him in Milwaukee's more crime-ridden areas, basketball is seen as one of the only tangible paths to success. Even in those days where access to healthy foods and thriving grocery stores were nonexistent, Bonds saw the connection between food and life.
During that same time, his older brothers introduced him to hip-hop. "My brothers saw that I could freestyle and decided to start introducing me to Cash Money, No Limit, Jay-Z. Eventually, I would start developing my own style and sound." That sound culminated on his debut release in 2015, "Menace II Society” also known as Black Timbs, a Mad Max-esque video that was part autobiography and part cautionary tale. It garnered him a WAMI nomination for best hip-hop artist, and to date has over 21,000 views on YouTube.
Though this became his new dream, food and its relation to how he performed was still in the foreground. "I started to listen to my body more and it really became trial and error. I'd remove something from my diet and observe how I felt. It became easier to become attuned to my body and what it really needed more than following someone else's advice.” So, he quit pork in 2015 (around the time of his debut release) and transitioned into veganism in 2017.
In the current phase of his life, Reggie is pleased but not complacent. His goal has always been to inspire and lead. His friends and family attest to his influence on their lifestyles and diets. His brother Tristan no longer eats pork, and his best friend only eats chicken and fish. Both are introducing more vegan foods to their diets. For Reggie, that's progress. He's currently helping his mom eat more unprocessed foods as well.
"I grew up on fried chicken and hot flamin’s. I thought if you worked out really hard, you'd be fine. When I learned that it's really about nutrition first, it changed things. Taking care of yourself is love. It's self-confidence and that helps everything else."
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