Hazelwood’s Center of Life states in its mission that it will provide families and youth with the life skills, education, training and resources necessary to be strong and to make their communities strong.
The 30 students in its KRUNK Movement creative arts program have embraced doing just that, from creating a song rooted in themes of sustainability, justice and hope last fall with Ugandan students to facilitating and participating in Community Hub feedback sessions this spring as the nonprofit moves toward the construction of a new building in Hazelwood Green.
The song’s title, “Suubi,” means hope in Luganda, the Bantu language preferred in central Uganda. The collaboration with Kichwamba High School came about through connections made in earlier KRUNK student projects. Its chorus, primarily in the Ugandan students’ language, “captures the urgency of environmental preservation and the collective responsibility to protect the planet,” according to a Center of Life news release.
Leaders and teachers believe Center of Life’s proposed Community Hub, unveiled last November, reflects that theme. It is “a space designed to meet the evolving needs of Hazelwood residents while empowering the next generation to imagine and create a more just, vibrant and green future,” according to the release.
The $60 million to $70 million project includes three partners: the University of Pittsburgh, Primary Care Health Services Inc. and Council of Three Rivers American Indian Center. The latter two have had Hazelwood locations for many years, providing residents with child care and health care, respectively. The 130,000-square-foot, three-story multi-use facility will feature resources for STEAM education, performance and practice areas for arts programming, flexible workspaces, and holistic wellness programs.
The Almono Limited Partnership, its project director U3 Advisors and developer Tishman Speyer offered the coalition space at the Hazelwood Green site for the building.
“Suubi” builds on the KRUNK Movement’s 2023 initiative with the Green Building Alliance, which integrated music into environmental education, according to the news release. Inspired by the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals, students used hip-hop, jazz and spoken word to tackle pressing environmental issues such as climate change, deforestation and social sustainability.
Thomas RaShad Easley, a nationally recognized author, hip-hop artist and environmental advocate who owns his own consultancy business, worked with the students on KRUNK’s 2024 album, “Su(Stained) Reality,” which debuted on Earth Day and was performed live at the National Museum of African American Music in Nashville.
He led Center of Life to Jennifer Verdolin, a U.S.-based conservation biologist working with Kichwamba High in Uganda. She connected KRUNK with the students, teachers and staff there, and after introductions, virtual sessions led to “Suubi’s” creation.
KRUNK student artists who wrote the song’s verses — Raujenay La’mar Rixey, Shombay Sefu Akoben, Amina Nasreddine and Dahnayl Champine, who is known as DJLoveasy — conducted research to get started, a requirement for all involved in the production made by KRUNK program coordinator and vocal coach Naomi Allen. She wanted them to understand environmental issues in Uganda and some Lugandan words. They also rapped their verses for their part of the recording.
“I had a lot of learning to do,” said Akoben, who wrote the song’s first verse. “I didn’t know the things [Ugandans] were going through.”
Nasreddine said she believes issues facing the U.S. and Uganda are very similar. “This was a chance to explore that,” she said.
Akoben said one of the words in his verse, umoja, means unity in Swahili, another language spoken in Uganda. People need to put their differences aside, he explained. “We want our Earth healthy so we can stay healthy.”
Rixey, who said she focused on the hope aspect with her verse, added that working and looking at the bigger picture to see that steps can be taken together will help people reach their goals. “Choosing priorities to focus on when making your plan to help the environment [is important],” she said. “… We all have issues, but as long as we keep that like the faith, it’s gonna change, and we can build it up.”
The hope expressed in the song needs to be accompanied by people realizing the solutions are within their control, said Nasreddine, whose verse covered air and water pollution and poverty, as well as society’s lack of conservation effort. Some people think it’s all or nothing, she continued, “like you have to do something crazy huge to improve the environment. But it’s just the little stuff, like cleaning up around your community … and you can offer that.”
In Uganda, Akampurina Josh, Nakibule Maria Aumpta, Kansiime Bendetti, Abaho Edon, Eddy Muhindo Asinja, Busingye Catherine, Siiga Sandra, Mumbere Jason and Ainembabazi Evas performed the background vocals.
Allen said the teachers and students pushed past time zone and technology difficulties and differences to create “Suubi.” And they worked fast. After two virtual meetings plus email exchanges, the KRUNK students fine-tuned their verses, and the Ugandan students and teachers worked on the hook. Center of Life equipment specialist and production coach Keith Parr produced five beats for the song, and the Ugandan students picked the one they liked best. Allen finished some additional research, wrote the hook and led the students as they recorded their parts.
Young people’s voices are still developing, so Allen added her own voice to theirs in the hook, KRUNK MC coach and in-house engineer Jory Strothers said. “It needed a stronger female presence that the students who are still developing their voices still didn’t have yet,” he said. “The song is a hopeful song. I wanted the song to give a good energy with that. I was just thinking light … and having fun.”
The Ugandan students, with preproduction engineer Bwambale Padoney, added a drummer, Kigamo Adonai, behind their vocals. Center of Life provided the funding for their studio session, then Strothers received their finished file in a format he had used previously. He worked about four days on it “to get the touch of everything.” Then it was all mixed and mastered.
He said the Ugandan students worked as a choir, and listeners can hear that in the song’s hook.
KRUNK Movement’s assistant coordinator for visual arts and communications, Garret Moore, worked on “Suubi’s” artwork after discussing ideas with visual arts students. The final product — a silhouette of two people dancing that incorporates the added drumbeats and the colors they saw in the song, notably red. That is a Ugandan color. Words behind those dancers incorporated many languages, too.
Leaders will push for more “Suubi” downloads here, possibly create a music video to accompany it, and perform the song live. It did get radio airplay at a Ugandan station in addition to downloads there, according to Center of Life’s marketing and communications manager, Sadik Roberts.
Future projects with the Ugandan students are possible. “We built up a great rapport with them,” Allen said.
Back to the Community Hub, students in the nonprofit’s Aspiring Leaders Teen Academy and Jazz programs and all the KRUNK students took part in the second feedback session that Center of Life held since the announcement of the new building.
The release said in April the students shared with residents not only how the new structure will feel welcoming, but also how soundproofing will support music production and lighting and design choices will foster creativity while reducing environmental impact. Green roofs and community kitchens were suggested at the sessions. Feedback collected has directly influenced decisions around flexible performance spaces, safe studio setups, air quality systems and energy-efficient infrastructure, according to the release.
Allen is looking forward to the new building enabling Center of Life to locate KRUNK with the other teen music programs and expand offerings. She said through the feedback sessions she learned as well about the many needs in the Hazelwood community to consider in the final plan for it. For example, suggestions from the students and community members included a laundromat, a garden to grow fresh produce and more.
Allen said staff attended the sessions as advisers and information recorders. She added that people of all ages came and gave feedback, and the students provided them with some poignant, insightful answers. “They considered so many avenues, helping the community but also furthering our programs,” she explained.
Rixey and Akoben, both seniors, won’t be around as students to realize the building’s completion. They are both excited, however, for the future.
Akoben, who is home schooled and will attend Community College of Allegheny County before moving on to a four-year school, has been part of KRUNK for a year. He dreams of pursuing his love of music and appreciates the new and different opportunities Community Hub presents. “I think it’s an amazing addition to Hazelwood,” he said.
Rixey will soon graduate from Pittsburgh CAPA and will major in marketing in college while pursuing her main goal of becoming a voice actor. Although she is “100% jealous” of new participants after being part of KRUNK since October 2022, she feels the same way. “It sounds great,” she said. “I hope the future kids treat it well and appreciate how amazing it is that they will have that building going on with the all the Center of Life programs, not just KRUNK. I think the building is amazing.”
People at the community feedback sessions told her they would like to see mental health classes and therapy and yoga classes, among other suggestions.
Nasreddine is just finishing her freshman year at the Gifted and Talented Education program within PA Cyber Charter School, and she joined KRUNK last fall. She is moving on to Pittsburgh Public Schools’ environmental charter school, although working on the song had nothing to do with that decision.
She plays flute in the jazz program, too, and believes the new building will unite all the music programs. Calling the solar panels in the building plans “really cool,” she said, “I think it will give us a chance to be more productive and comfortable in our space.”
People at the table Nasreddine sat with discussed needs for health care and financial aid programs for Hazelwood residents. “I think that will be important for everyone who was there. Everyone can use help like that,” she said.
Moore believes the new building brings new life into the program, a new attitude. “It will be more exciting,” he said. “You will get a whole new vibe than what is going on now. It will make you eager to work and just ready to continue doing community work.”
Allen and Strothers also noted that with 30 KRUNK students, the space available to them now becomes really crowded.
“I am excited about the new buildings and the new possibilities,” he said. “Students have done so much together with these rooms all along. Once we have this extra boost up with the program, it will bring more opportunities for these students. I am just excited for the students. We have a lot of producers. Having another space where students can fully do their work without distractions, it will just help this program.”
Allen knows the students want to perform “Suubi” at one of the nonprofit’s upcoming summer concerts. The staff and leaders are eager as well, Sadik said, to bring information on the new building and collect more feedback from residents and patrons.
The next Community Hub feedback session will be held on Sept. 17 from 6-8 p.m. at the Spartan Community Center of Hazelwood.
“Suubi” can be downloaded on Spotify, YouTube and iHeart.
Dates and locations for the 20th Annual Center of Life Summer Concerts, which will all begin at 5:30 p.m., include:
- July 3 — Hazelwood Brew House, 5007 Lytle St., Pittsburgh 15207
- July 10 — Glen Hazel, 945 Roselle Court, No. 514, Pittsburgh 15207
- July 17 — Hazelwood Green, 4501 Lytle St., Pittsburgh 15207
- July 24 — Lytle Land, 5113 Lytle St., Pittsburgh 15207
- July 31 — Haven, 401 Atwood St., Pittsburgh 15213
Helen is a copy editor at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but she's currently on strike. Contact her at hfallon@unionprogress.com.