Music
DJing, Music Production, and Audio Engineering
Students write, produce, mix, and perform their own music on the same tools the industry uses.
Creative education for K-12 students
Creativity is a pathway
to the future
Discover. Create. Launch.
Music to the Ears connects students to hands-on creative learning, career exploration, wellness, entrepreneurship, technology, and real-world experiences.
Approved K-12 education provider for LAUSD.
Approved “Qualified Arts Vendor” for Creative Education Programs.
Explore our
Creative
Pathways
Help students discover the creative disciplines, industries, skills, and careers that match how they want to create.
Media
Writing, Journalism, Social Media, and Communications
Students learn to report, write, and publish stories that hold an audience across every modern format.
Design
Graphic Design, Visual Communication, and Branding
Students build identity systems, learn design thinking, and present work the way studios do.
Video
Video Production, Editing, and Digital Storytelling
Students shoot, direct, and edit real films, and learn the crew roles behind every frame.
Podcast
Podcast Audio Production, Broadcasting, and Public Speaking
Students launch a real show: booking guests, running the board, and editing to broadcast quality.
Photography
Visual Storytelling, Digital Editing, and Media Literacy
Students learn to see, then to shoot, edit, sequence, and exhibit work that says something.
Performance
Acting, Dance, Theater, Spoken Word, Cultural Expression
Students build the presence to hold a room, on a stage, in an interview, and in a classroom.
Events
Event Production, Management, Marketing, and Promotion
Students plan and run real events, discovering the careers that live behind the curtain.
Creative Entrepreneurship
Business, Branding, and Monetization
Students develop ideas, build brands, and launch creative projects using real-world business principles.
Creative Technology
AI, Productivity Tools, Software Programs
Students use AI-powered platforms, productivity tools, and industry software to create, organize, and enhance creative work.
Why we exist
A student who can produce a record, run a camera, design a brand, or hold a room has more than a hobby. They have a route into an industry, and the confidence to walk it.
Built for schools
Programming that fits the master calendar, the funding cycle, and the goals already written into your plan - in-school, afterschool, intersession, or intensive.
Taught by practitioners
Sessions are led by people who work in these industries, using the equipment and software those industries actually run.
Measured by what students make
Every pathway ends in finished, credited work: a released track, a screened film, a published show, an exhibited series, a produced event.
Our education framework
The BEAT Framework
Business. Entertainment. Arts. Technology.
Modern creative careers rarely sit inside one discipline. A producer runs a business. A designer ships software. A stage manager is a logistics professional. The BEAT Framework is how Music to the Ears makes those intersections visible, so a student who loves one thing can see the four that surround it.
The part nobody teaches the creative student.
Rates, ownership, splits, contracts, pricing, and the difference between a hobby and an income. Students learn how creative work is actually paid for.
- Entrepreneurship
- Rights & ownership
- Pricing & margin
- Pitching
BEAT Labs
A Playground for Creativity.A Launchpad for a Success.
BEAT Labs are high-tech, hands-on creative studios designed for schools, libraries, campuses, and community spaces. Each lab is customized around the Creative Pathways a site wants to offer, equipped with industry-relevant tools and technology, and supported with training that helps educators and partners build lasting creative learning experiences.
DJing
Controllers, mixers, and monitoring built for live blending and performance.
Music Production
DAW workstations, MIDI controllers, and monitoring for beat making and arrangement.
Podcasting
Treated recording positions, condenser mics, interfaces, and headphone mixes.
Photography
Camera bodies, lenses, lighting, and a backdrop position for portrait work.
Video
Camera packages, tripods, LED lighting, and editing stations.
Design
Design workstations, tablets, and output for print and merchandise.
Creative Technology
Adaptive controllers, creative AI tools, and accessible interfaces.
Content Creation
A capture-ready setup for social, short-form, and streaming.
Experiences
Learning beyond the classroom.
Creative learning comes to life when students connect with the people, places, technology, and industries shaping the real world. Our experiences turn exploration into exposure and exposure into opportunity.
Bring the industry to your campus.Creative Career DaysCreative professionals, live demonstrations, and hands-on stations come to your school for a day built around what students could actually become.Plan a Creative Career Day
Learning where the work actually happens.Field TripsStudents visit studios, venues, campuses, companies, and cultural institutions, and meet the people running them.Plan a Field Trip
Real World Learning OpportunitiesIndustry ExperiencesExtended engagements connecting students to entertainment, automotive, design, media, technology, live events, wellness, and hospitality partners.Explore Industry ExperiencesSignature programs
Identity. Expression. Purpose. Impact.
Our signature programs use creativity to help students explore identity, find their voice, build confidence, strengthen well-being, and create meaningful impact in their schools and communities.
WellnessBeats to Bliss
Music for Mind and Body.Grades K-12
Voice & IdentityActing Out Loud
Social Emotional Learning Through Theatre and Creative Expression.Grades 6-12
ProductionSee Sound
See The Sound. Feel the Beat.Grades 3-12
Voice & IdentityMic Check
Find Your Voice. Tell Your Story. Move The Crowd.Grades K-12
Design & EntrepreneurshipRemix The Kicks
A Healing Arts Sneaker Customization Workshop.Grades K-12
Visual StorytellingThrough the Lens
Understanding Perception vs. Perspective, Through the Lens of Photography.Grades 5-12
Voice & IdentityType Beat
Type Your Story. Create Your Future.Grades K-12
Voice & IdentityArt Rhymes With Life
Write it down. Say it out loud.Grades 4-12
ProductionBehind The Curtain
Writing, Lighting, and Sound in Theater Production.Grades 7-12
Real-World LearningCapstone Projects
Real-World Learning Through Creation and Leadership.Grades 9-12
LeadershipYOU Be The Change
Youth Arts, Advocacy, and Leadership.Grades K-12Whole student. Whole schedule.
Whole Student. Whole Schedule. Lasting Impact.
Creative learning should fit into a student’s day…not compete with it. Music to the Ears helps schools create connected learning experiences that meet students where they are and extend opportunities beyond the classroom.
During the instructional day
In-School
Pathway programming embedded in electives, advisory, or dedicated blocks.
After dismissal
Afterschool
Sustained weekly sessions that build toward a finished body of work.
Breaks and summer
Intersession
Intensive multi-day creative sessions during off-calendar weeks.
Scheduled dates
Field Trips
Off-campus visits to studios, venues, campuses, and companies.
Single-day events
Career Days
Industry professionals and hands-on stations brought to campus.
Ongoing
Career & Job Training
Workforce-aligned skill building, certifications, and industry contact.
Embedded or standalone
Wellness
Creative practice tied to regulation, identity, and student wellbeing.
End of term
Capstones
Public showcases, exhibitions, screenings, and pitch days.
Schools mix and match these blocks. Most start with one and add the next once students, staff, and families have seen what comes out of it.
Case studies & highlights
See creative education in action.
Real students. Real schools. Real partners. Work you can watch, read, and verify.
Case Study
Canva × Music to the Ears: Reimagining Creative Education
How Music to the Ears uses creative technology to expand access to digital arts, design, communication, and creative entrepreneurship.
Canva
Highlight
LA Auto Show × Music to the Ears
Connecting students to the creative careers shaping the future of automotive, mobility, design, media, marketing, technology, gaming, music, and live experiences.
Los Angeles Auto ShowLos Angeles, CA
Highlight
USC Iovine and Young Academy: From Classroom to Industry
Connecting LAUSD students with higher education and the industry leaders shaping the creative economy.
USC Iovine and Young AcademyLos Angeles, CA
Impact Story
LA Public Library (Octavia Lab): Creativity Belongs Everywhere
Bringing creative learning, technology, and career exploration into one of Los Angeles' most accessible community spaces.
Los Angeles Public Library, AcademixLos Angeles, CA
Highlight
Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel: Creativity Meets Hospitality
Where creativity, hospitality, culture, community, and experiential learning come together.
Fairmont Century PlazaCentury City, Los Angeles2025
Impact Story
LA Auto Show Student Field Trip
November 20, 2026 · LA Convention Center · K-12
Creative Pathways into the Automotive Industry: a community partnership between Music to the Ears, Academix, and the LA Auto Show. Opening Day, Friday, November 20, 2026.
Los Angeles Auto Show, AcademixLos Angeles Convention Center2026
Real impact. Real outcomes.
More than
A decade of
Impact.
We connect students with creative learning, industry experiences, and real-world opportunities inside and outside the classroom.
10+10+
Years of impact
Creative education delivered continuously, not a pilot.
20K+20K+
Students reached
Hands-on creative learning, not one-off assemblies.
40+40+
Schools & partners
K-12 schools, libraries, community and industry partners.
250+250+
Program activations
Industry aligned programs, workshops, field trips, paid internships.
Strategic partners
Partnerships expand impact.
Music to the Ears brings together education, industry, technology, philanthropy, and community partners to expand access, strengthen Creative Pathways, and connect learning to the real world.
Strategic partner
Academix
Creative Economy Platform
Academix designs the frameworks, industry partnerships, standards, credentials, and systems that connect education to the Creative Economy. Music to the Ears serves as the community implementation partner, bringing those systems to life through K-12 education, workforce pathways, arts and culture, and strategic partnerships.
District Partner
Los Angeles Unified School District
Music to the Ears is an approved K-12 education provider for LAUSD and an approved “Qualified Arts Vendor” for Creative Education Programs.
Higher Education Partner
Loyola Marymount University
LMU Extension connects students to world class education and credentialed entrepreneurship instruction through the Academix Creative Entrepreneurship certificate program.
Music Technology Partner
Serato
Academix BEAT Lab is a Serato Certified DJ School, providing industry recognized credentials for K-12 students in CTE pathways.
Industry Network
Leaders of the New Schooled
A network of creative professionals, educators, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders who bring mentorship, real-world experience, and career insight directly to students.
Program funding
Built for the way schools fund learning.
Programs may be aligned with eligible education, enrichment, arts, workforce, and expanded-learning funding sources, depending on the school, district, program, and location.
Prop 28
Arts education
California's dedicated arts and music education funding for public schools.
ELO-P
Expanded learning
Expanded Learning Opportunities Program funding for before, after, and intersession programming.
LCFF
General / supplemental
Local Control Funding Formula supplemental and concentration dollars tied to LCAP goals.
Title I
Federal
Supports schools serving high concentrations of students from low-income families.
Title IV
Federal
Student Support and Academic Enrichment grants, including well-rounded education activities.
CTEIG
Career technical education
California Career Technical Education Incentive Grant funding for CTE pathways.
Perkins V
Career technical education
Federal CTE funding supporting career exploration and technical skill building.
Expanded Learning
Expanded learning
Before-school, afterschool, summer, and intersession funding streams.
Arts education funding
Arts education
State, county, and local arts education allocations and arts ed partnerships.
Grants & philanthropy
Philanthropic
Foundation grants, corporate giving, and sponsor-supported programming.
Funding eligibility varies by school, district, program, location, and funding cycle. Music to the Ears can help you identify which sources may apply to your goals, but nothing here is legal, financial, or compliance advice, and no eligibility outcome is guaranteed.
Bring creative learning to your students.
Whether you are exploring a single program, a Creative Career Day, a field trip, or a complete Creative Pathway ecosystem, Music to the Ears can help you design an experience aligned with your students, goals, schedule, and available resources.