Amplify Berklee

DJ Jazzy Jeff spinning at Amplify Berklee.
Image by Dave Green.
Image by Dave Green

Kieran Rhodes BM ’24 performs at the Amplify Berklee Gala. — Kieran Rhodes BM '24 performs at Amplify Berklee.
Image by Dave Green
Image by Dave Green

Berklee leadership with DJ Jazzy Jeff at the Amplify Berklee gala — Left to right: David Bogen, Berklee's interim president and provost; Dr. Krystal Banfield, vice president, Education Outreach and Social Entrepreneurship; DJ Jazzy Jeff; Jim Lucchese, Berklee's incoming 5th president; Ron Savage, vice president and executive director; Michael Shinn, executive director, Boston Conservatory at Berklee; Betsy Newman, interim executive vice president and senior vice president, Student Enrollment and Engagement.
Image by Dave Green.
Image by Dave Green

We are thrilled to announce that Amplify Berklee raised $1.3 million to support students from Berklee City Music!

Pioneering DJ, rapper, producer, actor, and entrepreneur DJ Jazzy Jeff, renowned for his versatility, innovative turntablism, and pivotal role in shaping the hip-hop genre, was this year’s special guest. The gala also featured four-time Grammy Award–winning pianist and producer and City Music ambassador Brian Kennedy '93; Grammy Award–winning percussionist and Berklee professor Eguie Castrillo and his acclaimed Salsa Orchestra; Tia Fuller, a Grammy-nominated recording artist, saxophonist, professor, and artistic director of Berklee’s Ensemble Department, led the Michael Jackson Ensemble; City Music alumna Lea Grace Swinson BM '21 who was one of the featured artists in the Berklee City Music Ensemble; singer-songwriter Kieran Rhodes, a recent Berklee graduate who gained viral fame with his audition on season 17 of NBC’s America's Got Talent; and the award-winning, coed a cappella group Upper Structure who returned for a second straight year.

Proceeds from Amplify Berklee support scholarships for Berklee City Music students, 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. The full press release is available to read here.

Thank you to our committee chairs Preetha and Mammen Chally, Jessica and Timothy Donohue, Sandhya and Craig Douglas, and Alison and Richard Vieira; elite sponsor Abrams Capital; 30th anniversary sponsor Aramark; premier sponsors Boston Celtics Shamrock Foundation, board member Bill and his wife, Kelly Kaiser ’23P, New Balance Foundation, and board chair Marty Mannion and his wife, Tristin; and all of our other sponsors and supporters who make the event possible.

Supporting Future Musicians

All proceeds benefit scholarships for Berklee City Music students, the college's strategic initiative to engage underserved public school students in a yearlong, tuition-free music education program. Founded 30 years ago, City Music provides year-round instruction, expert faculty, individualized mentoring, and a comprehensive curriculum to help young people flourish as students, musicians, and confident, well-rounded individuals. Today, City Music is a national movement, serving almost 2,000 students regionally and more than 60,000 young people across the country through a variety of partnerships and initiatives.