26 April 2022 by Susan Ibach
The votes are in! After listening to amazing music remixes from students across Canada, the judges have selected the Grand Prize Winners of the 2021 CanadaYour Voice is Power competition. Congratulations to students Mary Penta Reddy and Saumya Tiku and to our winning teacher, Mr. Turner Ruetz.
Amazon Future Engineer teamed up with YELLOW, the education equity nonprofit founded by visionary recording artist Pharrell Williams, TakingITGlobal, and the Georgia Institute of Technology to offer its project-based computer science program, Your Voice is Power, to middle and high school students in Canada. The program challenges students to remix beats while learning the fundamentals of computer science. Through Your Voice is Power, students voice their opinions on social justice and equity through music while using Georgia Tech’s learn-to-code-through-music platform, EarSketch.
The top winners of Your Voice is Power discovered they won the $5,000 grand prize through a surprise visit from Susan Ibach, head of Amazon in the Community, Canada. “It was wonderful to have the chance to meet the students in person. Saumya and Mary truly captured the spirit of the competition with their songs. I am so inspired by them and all of the students who participate in Your Voice is Power,” said Ibach. “Meeting them at school also gave me a chance to thank their teachers. So many teachers work tirelessly behind the scenes to seek out new opportunities like this to get their students excited about coding.”
Meet our winners
Check out Saumka’s song below
Check out Mary’s song below
We are also pleased to acknowledge our four Runners Up, who each won a $250 Amazon.ca gift card:
And our ten Honourable Mentions, who each won a $25 Amazon.ca gift card:
- Adam A. (Brampton, ON)
- Benjamin P. (Chatham, ON)
- Ella V. (Kincardine, ON)
- Gigi A. (Milton, ON)
- Jaden W. (Perth, ON)
- Lily M. (Kincardine, ON)
- Olaoluwaosepin O. (Richmond Hill, ON)
- Ria P. (Nepean, ON)
- Vanessa W. (Toronto, ON)
- Zachary V. (Regina, SK)
Student remixes were judged by a panel of Amazon engineers, Amazon Music team members, computer scientists, academics, and music industry professionals. Winners were chosen based on the quality of music, complexity and organization of their code, and their inclusion of thoughtful messaging and calls to action about the importance of racial justice.
As our Your Voice is Power remix competition featuring artist Pharrell Williams comes to a close, we invite teachers and students to participate in our latest Your Voice is Power Canada offering, featuring songs by Indigenous artists. Learn more by visiting Your Voice is Power.
The competition will return in the 2022/2023 school year, as students continue to Make Beats. Learn Code. Promote Equity.
Posted in NewsTagged 2021, Amazon Future Engineer, Amazon Music, Canada, Earsketch, Georgia Tech, Mary Penta Reddy, Pharrell Williams, Python, Saumya Tiku, TakingITGlobal, Winners, Your Voice is Power, YVIP