James Fauntleroy & Stax Music Academy Present: Beat Garden + Mic Drop Songwriting Showcase
Learn music production with GRAMMY Award-winning songwriter and producer James Fauntleroy, Stax Music Academy, and special guests – plus live performances from the top 10 finalists of SMA’s Mic Drop Songwriting Contest.
SATURDAY, SEPT. 26, 2026 – Free to attend • RSVP here
Beat Garden
2:00–5:00 PM | Stax Music Academy | 910 E. McLemore Ave.
James Fauntleroy, a 4x GRAMMY Award-winning songwriter, artist, and producer known for his work with Rihanna, Drake, and Justin Timberlake, brings his innovative Beat Garden series back to Stax Music Academy.
Beat Garden offers young people an exciting, hands-on opportunity to explore music production and the intersection of music and technology. Participants will learn the basics of music production and create their own beats using Roland instruments and tools, including Roland Cloud, AeroCaster, and AIRA Compact. Fauntleroy created Beat Garden to cultivate computer literacy through music and provide an engaging, welcoming environment where young people can explore technology and creativity.
Beat Garden is designed for 6th grade students and up.
Mic Drop Songwriting Competition
As part of Beat Garden, the Top 10 finalists from SMA’s Mic Drop Songwriting Contest will take the stage to perform their original songs. The Mic Drop competition is open to artists, songwriters, and producers of all ages. The Beat Garden audience will vote to select the Top 3 finalists, who will advance to the final showcase at The Shed later that night.
Want to compete? Click here to learn more and submit your original song for consideration.
The Shed + Mic Drop Showcase
6:00 PM | 126 Beale St. (former Hard Rock Café)
Following Beat Garden, the night continues at The Shed, where the Top 3 Mic Drop finalists will perform before a panel of the industry’s most respected music professionals.Judges will be announced ahead of the event.
- 1st Place: $500 + Performance slot at Soulsville Fest on Saturday, Oct. 17 + T-shirt
- 2nd Place: $100 + Personalized music industry session with a Music Employs professional + T-shirt
- 3rd Place: Personalized music industry session with a Music Employs professional + T-shirt
Following the Mic Drop showcase, The Shed Open Mic will open the stage for young artists to perform, build connections, and grow alongside their peers.
Open Mic performance slots are exclusively open to students in grades 6–12.