As a school social worker, Tomás Alvarez discovered a unique difficulty in reaching young black and Latino men through talk therapy. At some point, he came to the conclusion that in order to get through to them and make a significant difference in their lives, he would have to do something different. And with that, his nonprofit Beats Rhymes and Life was born. “It’s important for young people to create something that they can be proud of. The studio makes that possible.” Alvarez has managed to create something that attracts at-risk youth and makes them stick around to engage in efforts to improve themselves. Alvarez puts it quite elegantly: “A lot of people come for the hip-hop. But they stay for the healing.”