Press
NON-PROFIT PROGRAMS "THE DJ PROJECT" AND "YOUNG WOMEN ARISE" COLLABORATE TO EMPOWER YOUNG WOMEN THROUGH MUSIC
Youth programs host record release party and video screening to celebrate release of "Musiqfied", a compilation CD written and produced entirely by young women.
March 5, 2003 (San Francisco)
San Francisco non-profit programs The DJ Project and Young Women Arise
proudly announce the CD release party for "Musiqfied", a compilation
CD created and produced by at-risk young women from low-income neighborhoods
in San Francisco.
The community celebration will be held at The Women's Building on
April 5 from 4-8 PM and will feature youth performances, the screening
of an original music video, spoken word poetry, free food and special
performances by female professionals from the local music scene.
Eager to see more female representation in hip-hop, The DJ Project
collaborated for 16 weeks with Young Women Arise to give a small group
of young women the opportunity to tell their own stories, write their
own history and set it to a hip-hop soundtrack. Led by artists Kali
Boyce and Miss Leema, six young women ages 14-18 met to write poetry,
make beats and discuss what it means to be a woman in hip-hop.
Young Women Arise is a place where every young woman is encouraged
to develop new skills, new ways of expressing herself, and explore
the power of making decisions in a supportive and safe environment.
This program is funded through the Department of Children, Youth and
their Families.
The DJ Project is an incredibly popular youth program that harnesses
the power of urban music and culture to give young people practical
experience in collaboration, project management, critical thinking,
technology training and youth leadership. It produces two compilation
CDs per year that are later promoted and marketed by its participants,
giving youth job skills in entrepreneurship, sales and marketing.
During the four-month program, the young women spent time analyzing
and critiquing popular music, learning DJ and audio production techniques,
creating music and writing positive rap lyrics, and planning and performing
at community events. Participants then learn how to apply their newly-developed
skills to the real world by developing a retail database, tracking
album sales and managing a small, youth operated mobile DJ business
through which the young entrepreneurs learn how to run a successful
micro-enterprise.
Involvement in the DJ Project has resulted in increased time management,
goal-setting ability and focus for its participants, which has led
in turn to higher grades and a greater level of motivation and self-determination
in many cases. "The DJ Project has changed my life … I am able to
express myself and learn, while still teaching others," says 16 year-old
Jacky Carrillo.
For more information on The DJ Project or Young Women Arise, contact
Jeff Feinman at (415) 487.6714 or visit www.theDJproject.com
<Return to Press Index
|
