I grew up hearing the sentiment, "people can TELL you anything". Programs that I create an facilitate are based on the principle that actions speak louder than words. I recently was able to demonstrate to the youth from Crosstown High, Central High, and Grizzlies Prep Middle School, the entire process of writing, recording and producing, mixing and mastering, registering and distributing, and marketing and promoting. Throughout this process, they were able to asked pointed questions and learn valuable lessons at every turn. They were also able to test how strong their collective impact is as influencers. At the time of this publishing, the YouTube views are at over 5,500 (and counting).
On top of learning the technical aspects, students are able to see what it's like to live beyond limits. The song, for all intents and purposes, is a "Country Trap" song. It merges the genres of Country and Hip Hop, which has been recently popularized by artist, Lil Nas X. This lesson teaches students to be brave in their creativeness, and to stand on their beliefs. Leaders create other leaders, and part of leadership is being willing to try new approaches and see them to completion. Music changes things!