Brotherly Love: Teen Music Lounge
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — A popular music non-profit is offering something new for young people that doesn't require a long commitment, just a few hours on a Friday.
On a recent Friday, we found teenagers playing a classic improv game. Instructor Shakina Small explained, one of the students has to pretend to sneak into a classroom.
"The person who sneaks in don't know why they're late," Shakina said. "The classroom has to act it out, kind of do, like, charades."
Shakina is also using some simple writing exercises to teach them how to work together on a performance. Two students performed their simple poem:
"I'm Nick."
"I'm Joseph."
"I have long hair."
"I have short hair..."
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It's part of a new free program at Rock to the Future in Kensington. Rock to the Future's after-school program has been giving free music instructions to students since 2010. It's run by Jessica and Josh Craft, who are musicians themselves.
"We're able to see kids coming in with no experience, and they form a band with no experience, and they make new friends while they're here," Jessica said.
"My favorite part is when I learn to play my instrument, which is the bass," said student Joseph Brower.
This year, Jessica and Josh wanted to create something that teenagers ages 13 to 17 could enjoy without having to make a lengthy commitment: The Teen Music Lounge.
"It's free," Josh said. "It's a drop-in program. You can come in one session, you can come in all sessions. This program, each month they'll learn a different topic."
It's open every Friday from 4 p.m. until 6 p.m. and will teach everything from spoken word to rap to music production. Coming up are lessons on world music.
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"I think it's really exciting that we're giving teens to find themselves," Jessica said.
You can find out more about the Teen Music Lounge, including upcoming workshop topics, at http://rocktothefuture.org/programs/teen-music-lounge/.
