This Revolution Will Have a Soundtrack!

RIOT RI is a nonprofit based in Providence, RI that uses music creation and critical thinking as a tool to foster empowerment, collaborative relationships, and the development of healthy identities in girls, women, trans, and non-binary individuals. 

We envision a world in which gender and identity are assets, not limitations, and where girls, women, trans, and non-binary folks actively claim their own strengths and expertise to pursue goals of their own design.

We are in the midst of a pandemic. We are in the midst of a revolution. In this heavy world, it's easy to feel like we are just surviving. And when we are in those dark moments, many of us turn to music. Music does not demand a chipper attitude. Music does not ask you to "get over it". Music allows you to explore your sadness, your anger, and also your revolutionary joy like a flower coming up through the concrete. 

Music is what you play to hype yourself up before you walk out the door to the protest. Music is what you play to feel understood when you can't put your feelings into words but you can't stop crying. Music is what you turn up as loud as it goes when you're having a virtual dance party with your far-away loved ones. And music records an aural history of this unprecedented moment we find ourselves living in. In short, whether we realize it or not, this revolution will have a soundtrack. We have a calling to empower our most marginalized youth to record this historic time period.

In the words of one 2019 camper, "Whenever you get to band practice, it’s time to make something that’s so wholly your own. I think that’s something really important...to make something for yourself with your friends that you love.” We are proud to help campers realize that they can still create, even in these uncertain times. 

Activism isn't only about tearing down the systems that aren't working. It's also about envisioning a world to build in its place. When we imagine a world post-pandemic, we imagine RIOT RI as part of it. We imagine giving young people who are so often placated and silenced the stage and encouraging them to amplify their voices. RIOT RI will continue to provide community, a place to feel safe and seen. And perhaps most importantly, we will recognize that injustice is not a quick fix. and we simply will not stop making noise until the systems have been overhauled.

We see music as a force of change, mobilizing, unifying, and invigorating people to make an impact on the community. We wield collaboration and self-expression as weapons to challenge systems of oppression and deconstruct harmful norms surrounding gender and identity.

We are an ever-growing community of educators, activists, musicians, social workers, artists, learners, & people who want to envision a world free of gender-based oppression.

In a standard year, RIOT RI runs youth & adult programs year-round. Most recognizable is our flagship program, Youth Rock Camp, where girls, trans, and non-binary youth ages 11-18 learn to play an instrument, write an original song, join a band, and perform live in a week. We also run an Adult Rock Camp in the Spring, Group Lessons in the Fall and Spring for both youth and adults, a Band Booster program for youth bands to learn how to collaborate and play out in the community year-round, and a spring workshop series, among numerous other programs throughout the year.