Flea Calls Cutting School Music Programs "Child Abuse"

Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea says music education in public schools is essential, particularly to disadvantaged children.

Of districts cutting such programs, "It's child abuse," Flea said. "It's just wrong."

Flea made the comments in a recent Rolling Stone interview in which he discussed his upcoming benefit concert for his Silverlake Conservatory of Music, a nonprofit music community center he founded and built with his own money in 2001.

Silverlake Conservatory of Music offers private lessons for orchestral and band instruments, along with ensemble classes. It also gives free lessons and instruments to qualifying students. Since building the school with his own money, Flea has started hosting annual fundraisers to help continue to fund and expand it.

"I encourage everybody to reach out into the communities they live in and do what they can to help out," Flea said while discussing his concerns about arts funding cuts on the federal level. "...[We] can personally reach out in our communities to do stuff that is profoundly helpful."

The bassist says making music education more accessible became his passion after he visited his old high school in 2000 to find its art programs had been almost entirely gutted.

"They had maybe one or two acoustic guitars, a boombox, a volunteer teacher, and they were sitting around talking about music," he tells Rolling Stone. "I was so disheartened."

He founded the Silverlake Conservatory the following year.

The benefit for the Silverlake Conservatory of Music will take place on September 9. It will also be accompanied by an art auction.

The bill for the benefit includes Red Hot Chili Peppers, Randy Newman and rapper Anderson .Paak.

In previous years, artists like Pearl JamMetallica and Patti Smith have played the benefit. 


Photo: Getty Images


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