Live Nation has expanded its partnership with SoLa Impact‘s affiliated foundation, the SoLa Foundation, with an investment to fund their second state-of-the-art youth center, which will provide fully subsidized educational and workforce training opportunities in the entertainment and technology sectors.
“We are incredibly inspired and encouraged by Live Nation’s continued partnership and their commitment to diversity and inclusion in the live music industry and beyond,” said Sherri Francois, SoLa Impact’s Chief Impact Officer and Executive Director of the SoLa Foundation. “This is another amazing example of the power of mission-aligned corporate and nonprofit partners working together with focus and determination to solve seemingly intractable challenges. Thanks to Live Nation, the Crenshaw-LAX Corridor will become a hub of tech and career training. And we’re just getting started.”
The center will host the Live Nation Next Gen Program, a one-of-a-kind 18-week paid apprenticeship where historically excluded youth (ages 16-21) from South LA explore entertainment and production careers and learn directly from Live Nation staff and executives about various aspects of live entertainment and how shows come to life – from booking to marketing, operations, and more. The program will work in partnership with Live Nation’s School of Live. The program culminates with the group promoting, ticketing and producing their own community concert.
The new SoLa Tech and Entertainment Center Powered by Live Nation will provide technology and entertainment career education access to more than 1,000 students annually, with a long-term goal to close the access gap and inspire future generations to pursue careers in entertainment, science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM) fields. Within the music sector, students will also be trained in the business and technology of the live entertainment industry, audio engineering and recording, coding, 3D modeling and animation, graphic design, digital content creation, entrepreneurship, and practical life and career skills. The center will also be a space for cultural, economic and civic events for the wider community.
“We created our School of Live because live music isn’t a standard part of most schools and colleges, even though it continues to be a growing industry,” said Michael Rapino, President and CEO, Live Nation Entertainment. “By partnering together with SoLa, kids learn the business of music and we help them get first-hand experience, which unlocks a whole new world of careers, which has been incredible to be part of.”