BRADENTON – From the lyrics to the video edits, Visible Men Academy Art Teacher Clifford McDonald helped the boys every step of the way.
“It allowed them to express themselves through the art of music,” McDonald said.
Visible Men Academy CEO and Co-Founder Neil Phillips says this music video is more than just a bunch of boys rapping.
“Our core values are encompassed by the acronym S.H.I.N.E.,” Phillips said.
It stands for selflessness, honesty, integrity, niceness and excellence.
“Our boys come to internalize that as what it means to be a VMA sun,” Phillips said.
Now they’re expressing it through song, thanks to a grant from a company called Musack.
“We old them about our school and they said, ‘Wow, this is just the kind of atmosphere we wanna support,'” Phillips said, “so they provided us with some equipment.”
McDonald and the students turned it into art.
“A lot of kids go through a lot of things, and this is an outlet for them to get out what they’re feeling on the inside,” McDonald said.
Phillips says for boys in low-income families, finding that outlet is crucial.
“We know through the discovery of some new paths, that’s when their world starts to open up,” Phillips said.
It gives the boys a new confidence, and let’s them know school is a safe place.
“We want each and everyone of our boys to love school,” Phillips said. “That’s the element of it that’s so meaningful to me.”
Click here to watch the full video.