His mother’s long fight with sickle cell disease prompted rapper Keenan “Special” Bristol to pursue a project to raise awareness about a condition that claims thousands of lives annually.

Despite having no experience in film-making, the American directed and produced Students Are Heroes: A Sickle Cell Warrior’s Story, a movie released last September. It is currently streaming on his Music Brings Life website.

The film focuses on an urgent need for blood donations among Caribbean and Latino communities in the United States. Claiming Greatness, its theme song, is done by Joanna Wactor and Neisha Walcott. Bristol co-produced the track with Jamaican singer Ed Robinson.

“Claiming Greatness was born from my desire to embrace my own greatness. I wrote the song to reflect my aspirations and later scored it in the film because Jordana (character in ‘Students Are Heroes’) embodies her greatness in the storyline,” Bristol explained. “I collaborated with Ed Robinson to produce the song, and together, we created magic. Ed intuitively hears the music within me and the creative direction I strive for,” he added. “The song is for everyone who dreams of claiming their own greatness.”

Bristol was born in Brooklyn, New York and raised in that West Indian-strong borough by his Guyanese mother. He said she lost her fight to sickle cell because the hospital was unable to provide enough blood to match her genotype.

Data from the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention show that sickle cell traits occur in about one out of every 365 black births and about one out of every 16,300 Hispanic births in the United States. It found that, “About one in 13 Black or African American babies is born with sickle cell trait from one parent”.

All proceeds from Students Are Heroes: A Sickle Cell Warrior’s Story supports the Heroes Donate Blood Program.

“I’m grateful that the film is resonating with so many people. Numerous sickle cell warriors see Jordana as a reflection of themselves. She symbolises their strength and spirit,” said Bristol.