DJ Khaled and his We The Best Foundation celebrated the installation of a new DJ lab at the High School for Public Service in Brooklyn, NY, Wednesday (May 15). With the help of Save The Music’s Technology Grant (officially launched in 2017), Khaled et al. gifted the school’s music department with equipment for music recording and production, including deejaying, beat making, songwriting and audio engineering.

“By extending Save The Music’s programs to electronic music production, we’re both engaging young people who may not have been in band or choir and also creating career pathways for talented students,” Henry Donahue, executive director of Save The Music, told BET over email. “DJ Khaled is a powerful advocate for music education and has been with us since he announced the Music Technology Grant in 2017.”

Students had already been using the donated hardware for a full academic year by the time DJ Khaled surprised them as a guest lecturer. As part of Mr. Eric Dalio's Wednesday lesson plan, Khaled engaged in an intimate Q&A session, where attendees got to inquire about the super producer and his career in hip-hop — just in time for the release of his new album, Father of Asahd.

The Music Technology Grant is meant to reflect how artists make music in contemporary times. Through this collaboration, more and more students will be afforded the unique opportunity to “build upon their instrumental knowledge, learn from the best by participating in master classes, and understand the technical, vocational and creative skills needed to pursue a career and future in the industry.”

A longtime proponent of music education and fervent disciple of creative ingenuity (see marketing campaigns for recent albums, including the highly anticipated Father of Asahd), one can hope Khaled plans to launch these very same labs in other schools, including ones in his native Miami.

To learn more about Save The Music and its various grants, visit here. DJ Khaled’s Father of Asahd descends Friday (May 17).