Berklee City Music Celebrates 30 Years with Amplify Berklee Gala
MC Lyte
Berklee will host its annual gala, Amplify Berklee, with a star-studded, music-filled night on Saturday, October 21, at the Westin Copley Place at 6:00 p.m. This one-of-a-kind community celebration, formerly known as the Encore Gala, will feature music from students, faculty, alumni, staff, and special guests in a variety of dedicated music rooms as well as a celebrity DJ dance party to close out the night. The event will feature actor, poet, musician, producer, and director Malcolm Jamal-Warner as emcee, and legendary rap artist and actress MC Lyte as DJ.
All proceeds from Amplify Berklee will benefit Berklee City Music students. Berklee City Music is a global network that enables youth from underserved communities to develop musically, academically, socially, and emotionally, primarily through the study of contemporary music and the performing arts. Since 1993, Berklee City Music has awarded 275 full-tuition college scholarships, totaling over $33 million. More than two thousand students from the Berklee City Music Network have attended Berklee's Aspire: Five-Week Music Performance Intensive on City Music Summer Scholarships. The Berklee City Music Network is currently made up of 46 sites across the United States, Latin America, and Canada, serving 54,000 students in the past year alone. Berklee City Music has served over 500,000 students across the network through preparatory and high school academies, and through summer and full-tuition scholarships, since the program’s inception.
“Amplify Berklee is going to be a joyous occasion, where we will welcome members of the Berklee community and beyond into a space to celebrate music and togetherness,” said Krystal Prime Banfield, Berklee's vice president for education outreach and social entrepreneurship.
“As members of our City Music community, we are thrilled to open the doors of our Amplify Berklee gala celebration to this special community with a new, affordable tier of tickets exclusively reserved for those affiliated with City Music programming from around the globe,” said Misael Martinez, Berklee's assistant vice president for social entrepreneurship and creative youth development. “In celebration of Berklee City Music’s 30th anniversary, the evening will feature performances from City Music alumni and students alike, with all proceeds going towards funding for City Music programming and scholarships for future students.”
Amplify Berklee will host a variety of performers, including trumpeter, vocalist, composer, and City Music Ambassador Keyon Harrold, who will be playing with the Berklee City Music Ensemble, which features advanced high school students; the Berklee Hip-Hop Ensemble, under the direction of DJ and MC Brian “Raydar” Ellis B.M. ’06; student and multi-instrumentalist Liam Purcell and his award-winning bluegrass and roots music ensemble, Cane Mill Road; the Berklee Middle Eastern Fusion Ensemble, led by Christiane Karam B.M. ’03; Eguie Castrillo and his acclaimed Salsa Orchestra, featuring Boston Conservatory at Berklee dance students; and Upper Structure, a co-ed a cappella group coming off a championship win at this year’s Los Angeles A Cappella Festival.
