Over the past few weeks, students from the Media & Arts Program completed World Savvy’s fourth album “Triple Threat,” which will be available for download from major media outlets on May 9th. It is a diverse collection of spoken word, Hip Hop and R&B, representing the urgency our youth feel about the issues facing our communities and planet. In the news, in their classrooms and in their very streets, they are confronted by the triple threat of economic, social and environmental concerns. From poverty and hunger, to war and violence, to pollution and climate related weather, these young people are more aware than ever that the challenges to our wellbeing are as immediate and real as our need to take sustained action. Their solutions are still being defined, but their commitment to approaching them with empathy and justice as their compass make them truly World Savvy. And their ability to think, care and act makes them the true Triple Threat.
For most of these young artists, the World Savvy Album Project is the first time they have expressed their views on these topics in this way and certainly the most public platform. I spoke with Michael Vargas and Giovanny Aponte, both 9th graders from the Bronx Guild High School and first time contributors to the album, about their experiences. Here is some of what they had to say:
DC: What was the most rewarding part of recording for the album?
GA: The most rewarding part was it showed that people want to give us a chance and hear what we think.
MV: For me it was just having that experience, because at the end it made me feel more mentally strong. it made me feel like if I can get over the fear of rapping, then I am capable of doing anything.
DC: What was the most challenging part?
MV: The most challenging part was actually being in the studio rapping, because I was so nervous to express myself in front of other people.
GA: Yeah. It was very nerve racking being a studio for the first time.
DC: What was it like to make a song about something so real to you?
GA: It was very touching because it gave me a chance to express how I feel about a situation in the world. It made me feel like people actually want to listen to what I have to say.
MV: It felt good to sing something so real, and for people to say that it was positive and good made me feel achieved, because I know that people will actually like to listen to this song and think of the world differently.
DC: Why do you think it's important to talk about these issues this way?
GA: Because it’s easier to express how you feel through art.
MV: Everybody listens and responds to music so I think if you make a positive song you will change a lot of people's perspectives of life. People are used to listening to drugs and how many murders people have, but I want to change the way people think instead of ending peoples lives lets help make them better.
Look for “Triple Threat” on all major media outlets May 9th and never doubt the power of the microphone.
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