Thursday (Roots of Music)

The Roots of Music (http://www.therootsofmusic.com/ ) was also very much at the top of my favorites on this trip. It is a totally free program that was started by Derrick Tabb after hurricane Katrina to keep music alive in the city. Before hurricane Katrina marching bands in middle schools were just as popular, if not more popular, than sports. After the hurricane it has been difficult enough for schools to provide a proper education and most music programs have been cut out of the curriculum. Not only did Derrick want to keep music alive but he also wanted to have a continued outlet for children. He wanted to give the kids musical instruments before guns landed in their hands. The children of the Roots of Music also have academic tutoring, as the children's grades are of utmost importance. Currently 100 kids are in the program with 400 on the waiting list! It was such an honor to be involved in their group, even if it was only for a day.

A few of us were able to leave FABC early on Thursday and head over to the United States Mint building where the Roots were holding their practice that day. Our project set up with Derrick was to photograph each student with their instrument. A group had gone Wednesday at well so Thursday we were just finishing up the job. When we arrived Shannon and I were informed that we were going to be the lead photographers at one station. We were both excited to be able to do some of the shoots with these kids! The girls were allowed to smile while the boys were told to be completely serious in their photographs. The school is set up military style, it's not as rigorous of course but the kids always use sir and ma'am, always use please and thank you and are genuinely good kids. Here are some of the pics:

The Roots of Music phenom is a boy by the name of Lawrence or Tota. Lawrence's parents are decease and he has been taken in by his uncle and aunt who help run the program. I was told that since he could crawl/walk he's been sneaking off into the corner to play a drum. He is amazing on the drums. He's such a cute kid and you can tell he's going to only continue to get better. Shannon and I had the privilege of taking his shots. He was so adorable! It was hard to get him to stop playing long enough to actually take a picture. I would pose him for a pic and he would hold it for a couple seconds and then he would start playing. As soon as he stopped Shannon or I would run over and pose him again. We'd have another couple seconds to get another shot in before he kept right on playing. I learned later that he was playing an actual song. The only reason why he stopped is because normally, during practice, the trumpets would come in! He was playing a whole song in his head the entire time we did his shoot. He really was amazing. Here are some of his shots:


These kids are so talented and Derrick truly is a modern day hero. This program is free so Derrick is not doing this for a profit, he is trying to save the future of his city. I think he is doing an absoltely incredible job. He has been nominated for The 2010 Energizer Keep Going® Hall of Fame and is now one of the finalists. Here is what they've said about Derrick:

"Derrick Tabb is the founder of Roots of Music, a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the New Orleans music culture while keeping kids engaged in arts and academics and off the streets. Five days a week, Roots of Music provides tuition-free music education and academic tutoring to 125 New Orleans youths between the ages of 9-14. More than 85 percent of Roots of Music students have raised their academic scores by at least one letter grade in language arts and mathematics. Tabb refuses to give up in the face of difficulty, and he is truly making a difference in the lives of New Orleans' young people"

PLEASE vote for him!

http://www.energizerkeepgoinghalloffame.com/2010Finalists.aspx?finalists=DerrickTabb&t=%2FDeskTopModules%2Fsf2010Finalists%2Fimages%2Ffinalists%2Fsm_derrickTabb.jpg&fn=Derrick&ln=Tabb&r=634140171883468784

you can vote once a day until 8/20!