Flea’s Mission: Keeping Music Education Alive in California

The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea is Helping Children Groove: A Q&A About The Benefit Show for His School, Acting, and More

The Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist champions equity and expression through the Silverlake Conservatory of Music

Flea’s Mission

In a state as culturally rich as California, it’s alarming that “only one in five public schools… have a full-time arts and music program and nearly 88 percent are failing to provide the art and music education required by law.” While arts education continues to erode across public school systems, one Los Angeles institution is keeping the rhythm alive — the Silverlake Conservatory of Music, co-founded by Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist, Michael “Flea” Balzary.

For more than two decades, the Conservatory has opened its doors to students from every walk of life, giving them access to a musical education they might not otherwise receive. As Flea said, “A little over 20 years ago, I, with a couple of friends, started this music school, the Silverlake Conservatory of Music, for the purpose of educating the youth of the community and keeping our traditional music education alive and creating a community hub for people to come together around something beautiful.”

Flea And Friends! (Silverlake Conservatory) (December 10, 2023)

This mission echoes throughout the school’s halls, where young musicians like Ethan Gonzalez find more than just notes and scales. “People here are very important to the conservatory and how it functions. I feel like that’s why it matters. It’s for the people. It’s for people to connect. I’m here to meet anyone and everyone, and they love music,” Gonzalez shared. “I feel like finding like-minded people like yourself is probably the most important reason for coming to a conservatory like this.”

Beyond training young musicians, the Silverlake Conservatory is helping level the playing field. Roughly one-third of students receive financial aid through its scholarship program. But Flea’s ambitions don’t stop there. “The amount of money that someone has should never dictate education of any kind,” he said. “I just want the scholarship program to be bigger… I wish it was all scholarship. I wish it was all free. … Even though we’re about music, the benefits of music are way beyond.”

In an era where arts funding is frequently the first to be cut, the Silverlake Conservatory of Music is not just a school — it’s a sanctuary. Flea’s commitment to nurturing creativity and community through music is a powerful example of how artists can directly shape society for the better. Music is more than just entertainment; it is a lifeline, a language, a legacy. California — and America at large — needs more institutions like this and more visionaries like Flea.

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