Four Gen iY and Z students, college and high school, come together to produce a hiphop music project in the Huntsville area. Coming together by way of the Word-Xpress Hiphop Poetry Workshop and Maitland Conservatory’s Music Production I and II courses, these students are not only applying and refining production and lyrical skills, but getting hands-on experience in the studio while connecting with like-minded creatives.
The Word-Xpress Hiphop Music Team
Lovechild (Jalen Roberts)
Loam (Joseph Tafari)
Don Gray (Donovan Patterson)
Scryble (Riley Tannler)
Are You “Doing OK?”
There is a rise of loneliness and anxiety amongst our young adults and teens. Some blame technology as the distractor, disconnecting youth from intimate connections that foster social skills and social awareness. Others blame the difference in Generation X parental rearing, giving their children space to be independent and to explore. While others describe the generation as overly sensitive.
No matter the reason, the Word-Xpress Hiphop Music Team, chose to put a spotlight on this popular topic of their generation. Produced by Columbia High School student, Samarie Clarkson (co-produced by Riley Tanner, Huntsville High), “Doing OK” gives these artists the voice to share how they manage their perspectives in a turbulent climate of unpredictability, pressure and expectations, and losses.
Columbia High student, Samarie Clarkson, momentarily sits in with the Word-Xpress Hiphop Music Team to generate production ideas for the collab track, “Doing OK.”
doing ok -download now!
Enjoy this FREE download now! Artists: Don Gray, Lovechild, Loam and Scryble. Produced by: Samarie Clarkson. Co-produced by Scryble.
Team member, Lovechild, brainstorms ideas for the collab track “Doing OK” with Hiphop Advisor, Daisho.
Opaque
Don Gray – “Opaque”
Don Gray had the opportunity to team up with his former music production instructor, CEO, Mario Maitland in the studio to produce his track, “Opaque.” We asked Donovan to talk about his experience with the producer and musician Maitland and what the creative process was like. (stay tuned for more)
Opaque – Download Now
Enjoy this download of “Opaque.” Artist: Don Gray Producted by: Mario Maitland, Jr.
Using a Model of Hiphop and Music Production Talents to Cultivate Emerging Leaders
The Word-Xpress (WX) Hiphop Music Project brings participants from the community WX Hiphop Poetry Workshops and students of the Maitland Conservatory Music Production I and II courses in collaboration in what we call the “studio beta zone.” Here we take the lessons learned from the classroom to real life application to prepare students to be workforce ready whether it be the music industry, the general workforce, or entrepreneurship.
Working with a combination of two generations, Generation iY and Z, we focus on the interests as well as the areas that need strengthening to build successful leaders. Some areas of interest include a passion for content creativity (usually through technology) and a desire to bring justice, equality and fairness into today’s society and culture. The WX Hiphop Music Project responds to this need by creating a platform for students to be creative with sounds and sound composition, technology, self-expression and in relating to one another authentically. Using music production software to generate electronic music sounds from creative imagination, along with the authentic expression of ideas and feelings, students fulfill their desire to produce rather than constantly consuming, and discover the value and influence of what they have to offer to today’s society and culture.
“…On my feet standing up high, show the world what I got inside. I was afraid but I never hide. I let the music be my tour guide. I let the music be my tour guide.”
Don Gray, “Opaque”, Produced by Mario Maitland
Some areas for strengthening include time management, empathy and relationship awareness, honest self-awareness and emotional management, and setting and meeting goals individually and as a team. The WX Hiphop Music Project is founded on team work and collaboration. While both generations thrive on their independence, working as a team can be a challenge, and can be a setback to success in the workplace later down the road. Building emotional intelligence skills such as self-awareness, authentic communication, emotional management and relating to one another’s positive qualities and valuing one’s own, will become of value in workplace relations, personal confidence and success.
Lovechild and Don Gray run a studio recording for each other on the first WX track, “Doing Okay.” (Maitland Conservatory student lab)
