Usher joins Atlanta Boys and Girls Club to launch content studio

Superstar singer Usher visited the John B. Whitehead Boys and Girls Club location for a ribbon cutting ceremony Monday. The organization collaborated with the nonprofit Usher’s New Look to create The Spark Lab, a state-of-the-art content studio.

At the lab, students will receive hands-on training about entertainment jobs from industry professionals. The space includes microphones, soundboards, and computers.

Fatima Gueye is a teen ambassador with the Boys and Girls Club. She said the energy from students was high.

“You know, some people they want to be in the music industry, so, like, coming to this event helped them,” she said. “So it's like a great opportunity and it's very exciting for them.”

Young people aged 14 to 24 are eligible to participate in The Entertainment Industry Club and join in workforce training at The Spark Lab. The visit is the last stop in a nationwide tour by nonprofit Usher’s New Look that visited 11 cities, offering a series of workshops and activities from roller skating to deejaying.

Usher said the goal is to show students a variety of entertainment career paths outside of singing.

“There's so much opportunity that it does not have to just stop at your idea of being an artist or being creative," he said. "You can become inspiration to so many others."

The John B. Whitehead Boys and Girls Club location is just one of many studios planned around the country. David Jernigan is the CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta.

He said the Spark Lab gives young people a chance to create and be inspired.

“It gives them an outlet that is positive under the care of youth development professionals who are mentors, who are going to pour into them and help to ignite their potential,” Jernigan said.

The event included representatives from the Atlanta mayor’s office presenting Usher with the Phoenix Award and Atlanta City Councilmember Jason Winston delivering the singer a proclamation honoring his nonprofit.