HR, the legendary Bad Brains lead singer and co-founder, visited the Watts Conservatory of Music on Thursday, May 14, to talk to an audience of students, music teachers, and parents gathered to hear the punk-reggae legend.
Invited by his friend of 40 years, iconic bassist Norwood Fisher, formerly of Fishbone, HR told stories, played two songs with members of his reggae band, Human Rights, along with teachers from Watts Conservatory of Music, and answered questions for the crowd, which hung on his every word.
HR was in town for a show later that evening at the Whisky A Go Go. Shortly after their 3 p.m. soundcheck, HR and two members of his band drove from Hollywood to Watts to visit the conservatory, which operates free afterschool workshops three days a week from classrooms at Verbum Dei Jesuit High School, aka Verb, on Central Avenue.
The conservatory’s location on Central is significant due to Central Avenue’s legacy of musical history that extends over a century, back to when the street was the epicenter of Los Angeles’ Black music community from the 1920s into the 1960s.
The founders of the Watts Conservatory, David Moss, Fisher, and Michael Balzary, aka Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, know this history intimately. They are invested in inspiring a new generation of Watts’ musicians.
The conservatory’s teachers are also professional musicians. A typical day there usually begins with the teachers jamming together to set the tone. Inviting HR to meet students aligns with their vision to inspire, while also connecting to the musical legacy of Watts and Central Avenue.
While listening to HR inspire everyone with his wisdom, the moment recalled Samuel Browne, the stalwart music teacher at South L.A.’s longstanding Jefferson High School, who mentored generations of musicians from 1936 to 1961.
Browne was known for inviting giants like Nat King Cole, William Grant Still, W.C. Handy, and Lionel Hampton to speak to his students, similar to HR being invited to speak to kids at Watts Conservatory. Browne's students included Horace Tapscott, Dexter Gordon, Art Farmer, Ernie Royal, Roy Ayers, and Chico Hamilton, among other luminaries that had illustrious careers.
Steve Isoardi, Horace Tapscott’s biographer, writes in "Central Avenue Sounds" that when Tapscott met Lionel Hampton in Browne’s class, he told Hamp that one day he would be in his band. A few years later, it happened. (Browne was also the first African American teacher LAUSD employed in 1936 when Jefferson hired him.)
All this is to say that when youth encounter greats like Browne, HR, Fisher or Lionel Hampton, a transformative exchange occurs that elevates all parties involved.
Ninth grade conservatory student Arieon White, has been learning to play bass from Fisher. He says HR had a “positive aura.”
As any fan of Bad Brains knows, HR always talks about PMA aka “positive mental attitude.” This is one of the main ideas HR explained to the students.
Before playing a few songs and answering questions, HR dialogued with Fisher about starting Bad Brains and the group’s philosophy. HR said that though he liked the early hardcore punk bands, he thought something else was needed: “PMA.” So that’s what he put into Bad Brains.
Jean Paul Guadamuz is a graduating Verb senior from Compton that takes guitar lessons at the conservatory.
"When HR first walked in,” Guadamuz says, “the whole room was immersed by his positive and calming presence. I shook his hand and told him how much his music meant to me growing up and he replied with a smile, showing that he knows it was the impact of PMA that got me into punk and reggae. I didn't tell him, but for some reason I just felt like he knew."
For Fisher, bringing HR to the conservatory was personal. Beyond their long friendship, he wanted to inspire his students.
“HR and Bad Brains are one of the most consequential bands in our time,” Fisher tells L.A. TACO. “Although everyone may not know who they are, the vastness of their influence is due to the bands they have touched. If you love Metallica, there’s a little bit of Bad Brains in Metallica. The Beastie Boys were heavily influenced by Bad Brains. No Doubt. There’s a throughline between Bad Brains, Fishbone, No Doubt, Sublime.”
What’s more is that about a decade ago, HR had seven tumors removed from his brain. Fisher notes that we need to celebrate him for both his influence and that he’s still here after all he’s been through. HR’s ongoing health issues are also why Fisher co-organized a benefit concert for him in 2023, headlined by a reformed Sublime and featuring an entirely Bad Brains set by Fishbone.
One of the songs HR performed for students at the conservatory was the Bad Brains classic “Leaving Babylon.” The conservatory’s program director, Bobby Easton, accompanied HR’s group on guitar in this rendition, commenting that it was surreal to play live with HR after hearing it hundreds of times.
The week prior to HR’s visit, Easton was in Texas performing with Long Beach Dub Allstars, along with Sublime, Slightly Stoopid, HR, and many others. Little did he know that a few days later HR would be visiting the conservatory.
HR’s visit was the first time that a touring musician has visited the conservatory. But when you have founders like Fisher, and board members like Stephen Perkins from Jane's Addiction and music educator Fernando Pullum, you can definitely expect more.
The conservatory’s mission is to get musical instruments into the hands of Watts youth while teaching and inspiring them musically.
The program is kindred to the Silverlake Conservatory of Music, which Flea cofounded in 2001. Though the Chili Pepper’s legendary bassist is no longer involved with the Watts Conservatory, his Silverlake Conservatory embodies what the Watts Conservatory aspires to.
The Watts Conservatory's location in Watts is significant to Fisher because he lived on 111th Street in Watts for his first decade. Verb is on Central at 111th, just down the street from where he lived.
One block south is Nickerson Gardens—the birthplace of Top Dawg Entertainment—Kendrick Lamar and Jay Rock’s record label. When you factor in that Kendrick grew up just south of Central and 137th, the geographic and historical connections between the conservatory and the neighborhood grow even greater.
The roots of the Watts Conservatory date back to 2015, but its programming only just began in June of last year, bearing musical fruit when they connected with Verb in 2025. Some day in the next few years, the Conservatory plans to have its own physical space. For now, it’s operating out of classrooms at Verbum Dei High, which makes sense, since many of its students take classes with the conservatory.
“When I first joined Watts Conservatory of Music, I thought it was going to be like any other club or class. I would go in, learn an instrument, and leave. But I was wrong,” says Arechiga. “I met amazing people who saw that I could become something great—something I didn’t see in myself. They pushed me and my friends to become more than we were, and now we’re performing and playing our music for others.”
Arechiga has sung songs like Arctic Monkey’s “505,” the Beatles’ “Come Together,” the Clash’s “Should I Stay or Should I Go?,” and the White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army,” to rousing applause, accompanied by student performers Arieon White, Manuel Gonzalez, and Owen Sandoval.
The conservatory students have completed a handful of performances, including schoolwide assemblies at Verb and two open mic nights co-hosted with poetry students mentored by yours truly. The conservatory is gearing up for a summer of more free music lessons as their program keeps growing.
“My determination has never been stronger,” declares Arechiga, embodying the positive mental attitude that HR speaks about. “And it’s all thanks to the Watts Conservatory of Music. Because of them and this newfound determination, I strive to become a great singer, inspire others, and help people along the way to entertain the world.”
“Hanging out with HR and watching his set in Texas the week before was already such a thrill,” declares Bobby Easton. “But having him visit the school that I run, and getting to share space with him and ask him questions and receive his knowledge was far deeper. And then to get to play a couple songs with this legend was truly priceless.”
Cementing the Watts Conservatory and HR bridge, Norwood Fisher and Bobby Easton will be performing with HR in Hawaii in mid-June. Like HR, the Watts Conservatory strives to uplift others with a positive mental attitude, while it continues to give back to Watts through the power of music.
