I was that kid. The one you have cold sweats about at 2am in the morning. The one who spends their time acting the clown for class approval and just doesn’t care how much they get sent to see The Head.
"The one you know has potential – if only you knew how to harness it."
“A huge thank you for coming down and performing as part of our Discover Poplar event on Sunday… I really hope to welcome you back to Poplar Union again in the future. Please do stay in touch with any new work you are looking to show!”
I grew up in 1980s Brooklyn. Raised by a single mother working all the shifts she could. Surrounded by drug and gun crime every which way I looked.
So how did I swerve the arm of the US law and end up talking to you today?
I attribute a lot of that to my mother. She threw me into every extra-curricular activity under the New York City sun. How could I get into trouble if I had no time to get into trouble?
Through those clubs, I developed a passion for sports. And music. And reading
I read. And read. And read. I started writing lyrics at age 11. And would spit bars to entertain my friends. (Often getting myself into trouble that way instead!)
As an only child, she said I needed to spend more time around people and learn them. People and my ability to read them, understand them, and engage them would be my ticket out of the ‘hood.
I remember her words to me:
‘Once you know how people are, it’s up to you to work with them.’
That was an eye-opener.
And it was exactly what my most memorable teachers did. They knew how to tap into my hungry and creative mind and get the best out of me. They didn’t patronise me. They didn’t treat me as a kid.
They were honest. They talked to me as an adult – what I call real talk.
Practical talk.
No BS.
Those after-school clubs got me a scholarship to a good school. Which got me a scholarship to a good university.
And it blew my mind.
credit photos to: James Berry, Hayley Madden & Kyle Mannock
At university, I studied International Politics and History followed by a MA in Community Organising. I then became a teacher in a NYC public high school and coached two school basketball teams through to city playoffs – an achievement you can probably tell I’m particularly proud of!
At the same time, I wrote and recorded my own music. In 2000, I left the USA and spent five years touring Europe and the UK, supporting acts such as Rodney P, Del la Soul and Burning Spear.
On moving to London in 2005, I knew I wanted to help other young people attain the same opportunities I’d had. The only way to do that was to talk to them how they needed to be talked to.
Tell them what they need to hear in the way they need to hear it.
“Kenny has worked for Essex Music Service with a particular focus on working with schools with high levels of vulnerable students and engaging through rap and songwriting interventions.
The work he delivered was always well received by teaching colleagues and Kenny’s approach was always very flexible and collaborative, establishing a strong working relationship with the teaching and support staff at the school, and understanding the individual needs of the young people he was due to work with.
Through his work, schools reported transformational changes in young people with increased and improved attendance to school, better emotional control and an improved attitude towards their education. Many of these successes were borne out of Kenny’s approach being very young person lead, and the authenticity he brought to each session.”
“Kenny has worked for Essex Music Service with a particular focus on working with schools with high levels of vulnerable students and engaging through rap and songwriting interventions.
The work he delivered was always well received by teaching colleagues and Kenny’s approach was always very flexible and collaborative, establishing a strong working relationship with the teaching and support staff at the school, and understanding the individual needs of the young people he was due to work with.
Through his work, schools reported transformational changes in young people with increased and improved attendance to school, better emotional control and an improved attitude towards their education. Many of these successes were borne out of Kenny’s approach being very young person lead, and the authenticity he brought to each session.”
Peter Lovell, Music Service Lead Officer, Essex Music Service
“I worked with Kenny to engage schools with high levels of vulnerable students through rap and songwriting interventions. Kenny was very flexible and collaborated effectively to establish the best format to suit the school and student needs. Kenny established a strong working relationship with the teaching and support staff at the school. Kenny often worked with NEET individuals, or young people from challenging circumstances who often are reluctant to engage and successfully overcame the initial reluctance of those who were willing to engage in the process and built a strong rapport with them. The students were able to use songwriting and rap to express their emotions and staff saw improvements in their emotional self-regulation and attitude towards teachers. Kenny enabled them to develop a confidence in a new skill which carried through to other areas of their work.”
“Kenny brought a completely new energy to our songwriting programme which both the young people and teachers loved! We found both the student workshops and teacher CPD engaging and insightful. We look forward to working with him again in the future!”
“The way Kenny interacts with pupils and teachers is an art! His dynamic nature allows him to adjust his approach to facilitate the best possible outcomes with everyone he works with. I witnessed first hand how he enabled pupils to feel comfortable enough to express their opinions and views, allowing meaningful discussions to take place, creating a strong sense of community and respect. His knowledge and experience of a diverse range of genres, showcases not only his passion for music, but his ability to tailor sessions based on the interests of the young people he is working with. This consequently inspired the teachers involved to better understand how to represent their pupil’s interests in music. I look forward to working with Kenny again very soon…”
“Kenny has worked closely with the Music Studio Band to develop their confidence and personal and professional skills. He has kept them engaged and motivated over 2 years and helped them to believe in themselves, write their own music and perform at events. He has been an inspiration to them to create their own music and become artists in their own right. As one of them commented, “In the future, I would like to work amongst more professional artists and songwriters similar to Kenny”. Other workers at YMA have commented how brilliant it is to see the journey and progress the Music Studio Band has made whilst working with Kenny.”
“Kenny Baraka was phenomenal! From entering the building to leaving he made a positive impact on both staff and students. Many who found me to share their experiences. In the workshops his relaxed nature had the kids hanging on every word allowing them a true creative space for them to be relaxed and themselves. I can not thank you enough for placing us with Kenny who really blew our minds with his passion, charisma and outright phenomenal performances. Kenny is amazing and we would love to have Kenny back if you do this again!”
“Kenny was fantastic. Kenny is a star! He did a great assembly to 400 year 9 and 10s, really engaged the crowd and we had great feedback from the 3 workshops. Both staff and students loved him! He really made everyone feel confident and encouraged them to produce a poem! We are very grateful and eagerly awaiting his return!””
“Thank you so much for coming in today. The children, myself and all the adults had a brilliant time and thoroughly enjoyed learning how to rap! …We look forward to using your ideas to create a School rap for our Christmas Carol concert… So on behalf of all the excited children you left behind… thank you once again.”
“Kenny has the rare ability to deliver what it is the teachers and/or staff need to achieve - objectives, goals, ticking the boxes, etc.- while also giving the young people what they want... and in a way that each/both can understand. Not to mention a captivating performer and electric speaker.”
“I have worked with Kenny for over 10 years, starting with actually delivering projects together in youth centres, and then in a more strategic way in my leadership roles at Essex and Lewisham Music Education Hubs. We have designed and delivered impactful projects together, and he has also acted as a consultant for Lewisham Music, helping us recruit, train and mentor new rap tutors.
In my opinion, the work Kenny does is absolutely unique in the UK. He understands community and youth settings; mainstream schools and Pupil Referral Units. He is able to relate to youth workers, teachers and music tutors as well as the young people themself. He bridges the gap between so-called formal and non-formal education.
His knowledge and experience of rap and all its subgenres is outstanding. He was raised in and is still very immersed in the culture- Kenny is as genuine as they come. Beyond that, the way he treats lyricism as an artform in it’s own right is single-handily helping raise the profile of rap in education in this country. He’s also a firm believer in the power that lyrical expression can have on disadvantaged and hard-to-reach young people, and I’ve seen the impact of his work on these groups many times.
Whether he’s delivering a project; writing a scheme of work; delivering an inspirational keynote; or training teachers on creative literacy; Kenny really can deliver it all. He’s an inspiration and an absolute joy to work with and there’s few professionals I hold in such high regard.”
