The rhythm and the rhyme: the rapper, the physician
ZDoggMD Q: When did your hip hop career begin? A: In the womb, son! When they slapped an ultrasound probe on my mama’s belly, the doc was like what what? That’s a
dope beat! Even my fetal heart had rhythm, yo.
Q: What is your rap topic of choice? A: Poop. Most of my rhymes somehow come back to poop. We did a joint on ulcers and black poop, on Clostridium difficile and infected poop, on hemorrhoids and painful poop, and on consti- pation and not enough poop. Poop, son. Feces.
Q: Who are your fans? A: I’ve got fans? Yes!
Q: Who are your musical inspirations? A: Beethoven, Schoenberg, Kenny Rogers, Dr. Dre — in that order.
Q: How do you plan to develop as an artist? A: I’m going on some awards show and publicly call Dr. Mehmet Oz a “sucker MD,” thus generat- ing an East Coast-West Coast medical rap beef. I’ll then conveniently suffer a “wardrobe mal- function” on live TV, generating yet more delight- ful controversy and millions of YouTube views. Following this up with a very public meltdown and arrest for possession of illegal laxatives, I’ll pretty much have written my ticket onto the cover of People magazine.
Q: What aspect of Texas are you most looking forward to? A: Seeing the instruments. I’ve been hearing about these Texas Instruments since I was a boy. They better be dope.
Zubin Damania, MD Q: When did your medical career begin? A: In the womb. My mom was doing her residency when she was pregnant with me.
Q: What is your specialty? A: Hospital medicine (trained as an internist). I got to routinely see patients who were in the hospital as a result of the lack of access to primary care. Now I’m trying to grow a new model of primary care via our start-up, Turntable Health.
Q: Whom are you trying to reach in your practice? A: Everyone — patients of all ages and socio- economic backgrounds, and doctors and nurses excited to practice medicine the way they always hoped it could be practiced.
Q: What or who inspired you to become a doctor?
A: Medicine is a calling that often chooses you, as opposed to the other way around. But I have to say having two physician parents was a huge influence on me in choosing my career.
Q: How do you picture your career developing? A: My hope is to create a means through which health care professionals can practice at the top of their licenses, free of insurance-related red tape, and instigate grass-roots, bottom-up health care reform led by health professionals.
Q: What aspect of Texas are you most looking forward to?
A: Meeting all the great folks there and experi- encing the legendary hospitality firsthand.
April 2014 TEXAS MEDICINE 53
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