A staff writer for Vibe magazine, Powell concerns himself with the politics, culture, and metaphysics of hip-hop and lectures on these topics frequently. His revealing profiles of the biggest, baddest, and boldest in the music business have appeared in Rolling Stone, the New York Times, and Essence as well. He is the co-editor of In the Tradition: An Anthology of Young Black Writers and, most memorably, was a featured player in the MTV series The Real World.