90 minutes · up to 200
Youth night set
A twenty-minute performance from the crew, a live beat built in front of the room, and a ten-minute word from Rashad. Ends with an open cypher.
Workshops on the road
We'll bring the speakers.
And the laptops, the headphones and two mentors. Youth nights, school assemblies, writing workshops and long-term programs in juvenile facilities, anywhere inside I-285 and a good way outside it.
- Every mentor is background-checked and trained in safeguarding
- We bring our own PA, laptops and headphones
- Churches pay what they can; schools and facilities are free
- Lyrics stay clean in every room we're invited into
Rather talk it through? (555) 017-3384
What we bring
Four ways we show up
45 minutes · whole grades
School assembly
Writing as a way to say hard things. Built around the school's own literacy standards and cleared with the principal in advance. No scripture unless you ask.
2 hours · up to 20
Writing workshop
Kiana's Writing Room on the road: one passage, one prompt, everyone reads something out by the end.
Weekly · 10 to 12 weeks
Ongoing program
Beat-making and writing inside juvenile facilities, with the chaplaincy. Each program ends in a recorded track the young people keep.
Week 9
Cover art goes on the CD case. Everybody designs their own.
On the inside
Ten Tuesdays at the youth center
Since 2019 we've run a ten-week beat and writing program with the chaplain at a youth detention center south of the city. We bring four laptops, four pairs of headphones and a portable booth made from moving blankets.
Each group finishes a track. They can't take a phone back to their unit, so we burn it to a CD and mail one to whoever they name.
- Eleven programs since 2019
- Ninety-four young people, ninety-four finished tracks
- Run with the facility chaplain, never around them
Who's had us
Rooms we've been invited into
A few of the churches, schools and organizations that book us every year.
- CascadeHeightsYouthCollectiveYouth nights since 2016
Hosts our spring youth night, two hundred teens from eleven churches.
- Lee Street LibraryBranch partner
Lends us the community room for summer writing workshops.
- Southside Youth ChaplaincySince 2019
Our partner for every program inside a facility.
- Shiloh Hill FellowshipDecatur
Bought the Lab's second vocal booth in 2022.
Booking
Practical questions
What does it cost?
Schools and facilities pay nothing. Churches give what they can; most give between $150 and $400 for a youth night, which pays for the van and the mentors' supper.
How far will you travel?
Anywhere in metro Atlanta, and up to two hours away for a weekend. Further than that, call us.
What do you need from us?
Two standard outlets near the stage, a table, and an adult from your side in the room the whole time.
How far ahead should we book?
Six weeks is comfortable. Spring youth-night season fills up by January.