Caps in School 50th Anniversary Song

As part of the Caps in School program presented by KMPG, Paulie Z worked with Brooke Grove Elementary School (Olney, MD) third through fifth graders to create a song celebrating the Capitals 50th anniversary.

Paulie Z is a musician, educator, actor and artist from the band Z02.

The song was created through the David Z Foundation whose mission is to transform lives through music education. Peter Bondra and Alan May were part of both filming and pep rally.

The elementary students met with Paulie Z four times to brainstorm and create the song after spending time doing research on the history of the Capitals.

"It was an amazingly unique opportunity for our students and school community," Travis Payne, Principal of Brooke Grove Elementary, said. "In school, we don’t have these rich opportunities to connect school instruction with real world applications.”

The music video was filmed at both Brooke Grove and MedStar Capitals Iceplex with cameos featuring Peter Bondra and Alan May.

“The kids enjoyed visiting the Capitals practice facility and recording the videos," Payne said.

"They were able to let loose, be themselves, and enjoy the experience without too many strict restrictions. The opportunity to free style dance and ice skate in the video was a highlight. Most importantly, they felt like their voices and opinions were valued, utilized and showcased.”

The David Z Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization started by singer/guitarist Paulie Z in memory of his brother and bandmate bassist David Z. Inclusive of all and serving a diverse population of underprivileged kids, our aim is to instill a passion for music in kids while providing them with engaging music education opportunities and funding, putting together collaborations between kids and veteran music industry professionals and developing programs within academic school settings as well as music schools, both across the country and internationally. We bring students into the world of music by providing deeper knowledge and experience with instruments, songwriting, recording, music video production, band dynamics and live performances, and offer kids workshops on the music industry itself. In their own schools, the programs we co-design get kids to use the crafts of songwriting, recording and video production to create work which helps explain educational concepts in creative and stylish ways. The foundation’s interest in defining new avenues for music as a helping tool has also led to the application of music in programs for kids with emotional and mental health challenges. The foundation is looking ahead to future programs that will continue a strong focus on music education and well-being through music.