Louisville Music Nonprofit in the Running for $500,000 Award
“LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A local music program is one of eight finalists in the running for a major award next month. For founder Dave W. Christopher, Sr., this opportunity doesn’t get more personal.
“For as smart as I may have been in school, that’s not what people saw,” Christopher, Sr., said. “What they saw was where I lived.”
He grew up in a low-income household and had to work twice as hard to get to where he is now. He founded the Academy of Music Production Education and Development (AMPED) to help children just like him.
“I don’t want this for anybody else,” he said.
AMPED started out as a free music program but has grown into more of a community center. Children involved in the program learn everything from playing instruments to songwriting to video directing.
