Sounds of Freedom
Sounds of Freedom: Beats on Concrete was written by the students of Manual Arts Senior High School and published in April 2019
Foreword by John Legend
I grew up in Springfield, Ohio. It’s a blue-collar Midwestern town. Education was always a priority for my family growing up. My parents home-schooled my siblings and me for several years during grade school, and they taught us more than academics. They taught us about character, and about what it meant to live a good life. Growing up in the Stephens’ home also meant that we all appreciated art, music, and creative endeavors from an early age. We had several instruments at home, and I fell in love with music.
When I was 10 years old, the world I knew started to fall apart. My maternal grandmother passed away, devastating my family. My mother disappeared into over a decade of drugs and despair. I was confused and disoriented. I focused on my academics and other activities. I’m fortunate to have had the success in my career and life.
I’m not sure, though, that this would have been possible without the love of my family, without the values instilled in me at a young age, and, notably, without the invaluable teachers who were part of my journey. They saw potential in me when I didn’t, and encouraged me to pursue my passions—those same passions that were cultivated at home and developed in my youth.
Because I write songs for a living, I think a lot about the influence I have as a musician to encourage society to consider how we treat one another and what we value. I’m grateful for the role creative writing has had in my life, and moved to see its impact on the young writers of Manual Arts High School. Their collection of beautiful stories is centered on freedom—a principle upheld in our nation as something accessible to everyone, but one that we know all too well evades many. I am inspired by their stories. Each of them bravely recounts their realities of growing up in South Los Angeles, and share what freedom means to them. These students represent our hope for the future, and I commend them for using their voice and their tools to shine a light on where injustices still exist. My hope is that they find the freedom they deserve.
Students of Manual Arts High School, I thank each of you for sharing these with the world. And thank you to the 826LA staff and volunteers who champion their work.