“When you have nothing, you’re at your most creative”

How were your school music lessons - did they inspire you, or leave you wanting? For many the music curriculum fails to speak to them, for others it’s unaffordable to even take part. As vital as music education is, there’s a great deal of inequality and inaccessibility that needs to be addressed.

Malaki Patterson is the Artistic Director of The Music Works, a Gloucester-based charity that aims to transform young lives through music, working with young people from all backgrounds, many of whom come from challenging circumstances. Inspired by the barriers he faced when he was growing up, Malaki is on a mission to make music more inclusive.

In this episode, you will learn the following:

1. Where there’s a will there’s a way. Creativity isn’t reliant on having vast amounts of money or the most high-tech equipment. 
2. Community is critical to the success of anyone in the creative industries.
3. If you’re struggling to find your way into the career you aspire to, take a wider view of the industry - the pathways to success are more diverse than you realise.

Find out more about Malaki and The Music Works here.

Your host is inkjockey founder Mark Heywood.

Behind The Spine is an inkjockey production, and the audio accompaniment to The Writing Salon. Sign up to the newsletter here.

You can view the full transcript here.

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