Violinist Kayla Green is a graduate student at MSU. Her entrepreneurial efforts combined with music and a passion for helping people has led to a flourishing organization called GrandStand Music Festival which is doing its part to end human trafficking.
Growing up as an aspiring violinist who began playing at the age of six, Kayla Green was, like most people, blissfully unaware that human trafficking could happen anywhere, and in fact was happening right in her hometown. But in her first semester as a graduate student in the Michigan State University College of Music, she was inspired to do something about it.
Green began GrandStand Music Festival two years ago. She registered it as a student organization on MSU’s campus and recruited enthusiastic help from fellow students. Now, GrandStand is a registered non-profit that hosts concerts in conjunction with partner organizations to raise awareness of human trafficking and its root causes.
The idea actually started in a music entrepreneurship class at MSU through the Running Start program Green said. “I had heard about human trafficking happening in Grand Rapids, and as I was researching the issue I found out that it was also happening even in my home city of Muskegon, which is kind of mind-blowing to me because it’s such a small town. You just don’t hear about it unless you seek out that information.”
According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, human trafficking involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act. It happens to millions of children, women, and men across the world, in any community, with victims of any age, race, gender, or nationality.
At the first GrandStand event in 2019, 15 organizations brought information and representatives to answer questions. The All of the Above Hip-Hop Academy (above) wrote and performed a song about human trafficking for the event.
Using violence, manipulation, or false promises, traffickers lure in victims. Issues such as language barriers, fear of the traffickers, and fear of law enforcement keep many victims from seeking help, which makes human trafficking an often hidden crime.
“I have noticed that there are a staggering number of really small organizations that are doing incredible work around this issue and serving survivors, but it is difficult for them to attract people to follow them on social media,” Green explained. “People like to digest things that are easy to take in and entertaining, and I think that’s something GrandStand can bring. If we can present music performances that draw people in, then we can reach more people with important information. That’s the goal.”
In May 2019, at the Marriott in Grand Rapids, GrandStand held its first event. Over 130 concertgoers purchased tickets, enjoying music and food.
“About 15 organizations brought information and representatives to answer questions. We had the Grand Rapids Symphony there talking about their Mosaic Scholars program, as well as Michigan Children’s Protective Services, the Salvation Army, Solutions to End Exploitation, Families Against Narcotics, and more,” Green said. “As for music, we had rap and hip-hop, classical improv, a classical duo and contemporary classical, and a rock band. In fact, the All of the Above Hip-Hop Academy was there, and they actually wrote a song for the event that was about human trafficking, which they performed. It was really awesome.”
MSU College of Music alumna Jordyn Davis performed her original music for GrandStand’s first online concert at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sandro Sidamonidze, a cellist studying at MSU and GrandStand’s advisory Board vice president, performed with MSU student Elene Kobulashvili as Georgian Duo to raise funding for a local aftercare home for women and girls recovering from human trafficking.
At each GrandStand event, one partner organization is the primary beneficiary of funds raised while the other organizations help share truthful information about the issue. The primary partner in the first event was the Michigan Abolitionist Project. The pandemic prevented the planned in-person event in Lansing, Michigan in 2020, but GrandStand, like many arts organizations, was able to pivot quickly and create online content.
GrandStand performers scheduled for 2020 recorded their music to share online for the benefit of Lansing-based House of Promise. Artists continue to provide original, online content that is available on the GrandStand Facebook page, and live, outdoor performances are taking place this summer. At the same time, the organization is working on growing internally, including expanding its team and advisory board and rebuilding its website.
Part of that growth included Green entering GrandStand Music Festival into the Burgess New Venture Challenge, an annual competition at the Burgess Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation within the MSU Eli Broad College of Business.
Orquesta Ritmo got the audience dancing at GrandStand’s outdoor soundstage in summer 2021.
Green’s participation as one of fifteen semifinalists in the 2021 competition caught the eye of MSU Federal Credit Union President and CEO April Clobes. As one of the judges of the Burgess challenge, Clobes understands the importance of creativity and innovation, and she immediately recognized the potential in Green’s project.
“MSUFCU is pleased to support the Burgess New Venture Challenge. Our economy is built on the creativity of entrepreneurs, and through this program we are able to help MSU students achieve their dreams of business ownership,” Clobes explained. “This year, we provided an additional scholarship to a student who created a non-profit organization. We were inspired by the uplifting vision of Kayla Green and her non-profit, GrandStand Musical Festival, as way to connect musicians while supporting the community during the difficult year of the pandemic.”
Green is excited to have the support of the MSU Federal Credit Union. As she has learned in a short time, it takes a lot of people and organizations banding together to make progress on such a challenging issue. With support from the credit union and other partners, she is confident GrandStand can make a difference.
“At some events, when a survivor tells their story, it can be so overwhelming for people that they kind of shut down, and it can end up actually causing more inaction than action,” she explained. “What GrandStand does is present this information in a way that gives people the space to wrap their brains around it, and then they can learn more and seek out further information after the event.”
Kayla Green’s concept with GrandStand is that music events can draw people in and provide them with important information in an entertaining environment. It worked, as attendees of the first event in Grand Rapids definitely enjoyed themselves.
As Green has learned, the more connections she can make, and the more people she finds to learn from, the bigger the possibilities for GrandStand. Her mentors include people she has met through the Burgess Institute and master classes through Running Start, her primary violin teacher Dmitri Berlinsky who has been supportive and leads by example with his own endeavors, representatives from partner organizations, and the College of Music’s Director of Career Services and Music Entrepreneurship Christine Bastian.
When Green thought of the GrandStand idea during a class in Fall 2018, it was her first semester on MSU’s campus after earning her bachelor’s degree in violin performance at Central Michigan University. Shortly after, Green was a prize winner in the 2019 Running Start Competition and then worked further on the project in her Graduate Career Capstone class with Beamer in Spring 2020. She is also one of the first recipients of the Graduate Certificate in Music Career Development in the College of Music.
“Kayla started with a compelling vision that resonated inside and outside the music community,” said Beamer, “but what is remarkable about her as an entrepreneur is the way she has developed the idea over the past two years. I remember meeting with her in our course as she transformed GrandStand into a virtual festival, and she inspired me with her enthusiasm for meeting challenges and pivoting to address them. Her commitment to the daily work to build a terrific idea into a sustainable enterprise is what has helped GrandStand evolve and flourish.”
Among GrandStand’s plans for the future is growing a network of musicians and business partners that broaden the circle of people advocating for human trafficking victims. Green is learning the business methods needed to sustain and expand GrandStand, but this is a personal mission that combines two of her passions.
“We want to give musicians opportunities to be advocates for the cause, and to become ongoing partners in our network,” Green said. “GrandStand Music Festival is here to unify them through music – along with community members and organizations – against the scourge of human trafficking.”
To report suspected human trafficking to Federal law enforcement, call 1-866-347-2423. To get help from the National Human Trafficking Hotline, call 1-888-373-7888 or text HELP or INFO to BeFree (233733).
