March 6, 2021 - Lettrice Lawrence

I knew what to expect when Lettrice Lawrence came in. She had worked with Karen, and I'd seem loads of her R&B songs on Facebook. She was friendly, and we knew the kids were going to learn a lot.

I was wrong. She delivered a lecture on opera, singing some beautiful arias. Nobody realized she was classically trained.

Along the way, she played her newly released single which featured this incredible cello solo. By happenstance, we were told this was Jeness Johnson, our beloved cello mentor.

At the end of the session, Lettrice brought on her two producers to speak about R&B. For our live-write workshop, Karen had the kids come up with a song, sketching out lyrics. Karen always emphasized "throwing paint at the wall". And then Lettrice, Brandon, and Devin, took the concept and turned it into a ballad. The session is linked and remains one of the memorable experiences for our young composers.

Click the video below for the live-write session with Karen, the kids, and Lettrice and her producers.