First-grade and kindergarten students of Uncommon Kings Elementary School’s After School All-Stars Program packed into their auditorium seats on Tuesday, expecting an assembly on a new children’s book.
What they did not know was that the book’s author, Grammy award-winning singer and flutist Lizzo, would be reading it to them.
Lizzo entered the auditorium and was greeted by a mass of screams from hundreds of young fans. She began by asking kids to introduce themselves and shout out their names.
“We didn’t know she was coming until today,” first grade teacher Antoinette Waite told BK Reader.
According to Ashley Russell, director of operations at Uncommon, their community heavily values representation. Waite noted that the kids know Lizzo as a woman of color, a successful singer and now an author.
The theme of the event and children’s book, said Uncommon's Elementary Principal Jamie Marrier, is that there’s something different in every one of the kids.
The auditorium rang with cheers, as Lizzo greeted the room.
“Can I scream too?” Lizzo asked.
The pop star asked the kids what kind of music they liked and what kinds of instruments they play. She read “Lil Lizzo Meets Sasha B. Flootin,’” on stage with the words and illustrations projected behind her.
The book, published Sept. 8, follows young "Lil Lizzo" on an adventure of self-discovery, where after feeling isolated as a young child, she discovers her flute she calls "Sasha Flute." Lizzo arrived on the stage with her flute in hand, and encouraged students to clap while she played.
Uncommon Schools NYC operates 23 tuition-free charter schools across Brooklyn, and its After-School All-Stars program provides free after-school and summer programs to underserved students nationwide.
For Marrier, events like Tuesday’s are about more than academics. They are opportunities to build community and inspire students to develop a lifelong love of literature.
“We get to start that love,” Marrier said.
Toward the end of the visit, select students went onstage to present Lizzo with a gift on behalf of Uncommon Schools.
As she prepared to leave, Lizzo asked the students for a group hug. The request sent a wave of excitement through the front of the auditorium, where students rushed forward and nearly trampled one another in the scramble to get closer to the star.
