Saturday Plugged In Show to Benefit ZUMIX

When Plugged In performers take the stage at the Village Club Saturday, they will be playing for a lot more than respect from their peers.

Saturday's event, "In Unison," will feature Plugged In musicians performing with teen bands from ZUMIX, the latter being the non-profit organization that will benefit from the event.

"ZUMIX was selected by students at the Plugged In Community Engage evening held on July 18," said Sandra Rizkallah, executive director of Plugged In, who explained that three benefit shows are held each year and Plugged In students decide who the beneficiary should be for each.

Located in East Boston, ZUMIX was formed in 1991 in response to a record 152 homicides that the city witnessed the year before. By bringing kids together through music, co-founders Bob Grove and Madeleine Steczynski hoped to quell the violence plaguing their neighborhood.

In its 19-year history, ZUMIX has won such awards as The Boston Foundation & Greater Boston After-School for All's "Best Practice Award for Teen Centered Environment" and was selected as a "Social Innovator" by MIT. Plugged In's belief is that ZUMIX perfectly mimics the type of message that they themselves are looking to spread.

"One of the most important aspects of Plugged In is the emphasis placed on showing students how they can use music to better the world," said Rizkallah.

The Community Engage evening last month featured a talk by Corey DePina, a program coordinator at ZUMIX. Students listened to the work that he and his group are doing before opening up about what charities are dear to their hearts.

"Corey is an accomplished rapper, a skilled workshop and program facilitator, and a long-time participant in ZUMIX programs," Rizkallah said. "Corey came to ZUMIX at age 13 as a participant in their audio program and went on to participate in almost every ZUMIX program."

DePina has also served on a Youth Advisory Board and recently completed the ten-week BEST Initiative youth worker training and the Advanced Youth Workers Certificate program.

Saturday's show will feature "mostly rock," according to Rizkallah and tickets are available at the door. Students are $5, seniors $10 and adults $20.