{"id":41694,"date":"2023-11-16T11:33:27","date_gmt":"2023-11-16T17:33:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/meritmusic.org\/?p=41694"},"modified":"2025-11-07T11:50:03","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T17:50:03","slug":"bryce-bruce-thompson-alum-spotlight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/meritmusic.org\/pl\/bryce-bruce-thompson-alum-spotlight\/","title":{"rendered":"Od zas\u0142ugi do Lollapalooza: jak klasyczny trening doprowadzi\u0142 do sukcesu w hip-hopie Bryce\u2019a i Bruce\u2019a Thompsona"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Imagine: two brothers, 10 and 12 years old, padding down the hallway of Merit toting their cello and violin, excited to join that week\u2019s orchestra rehearsal. Their mom is taking their baby sister to an Early Childhood class a few doors down. After a successful day of homeschooling, the brothers are now looking forward to seeing friends and practicing for their upcoming premier performance at a mysterious, fancy event: the Merit Gala<\/strong><\/a>. Fast forward to the summer of 2023 and now the brothers are grown and performing tracks from their newly released hip-hop album to cheering crowds on one of Chicago\u2019s biggest stages: Lollapalooza<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>

This is the story of Bryce and Bruce Thompson, whose early classical training at Merit School of Music prepared them for a pivot into a successful hip-hop career. Now known as King Melik<\/strong><\/a>, Bryce reflects on how the classical training he received at Merit plays a crucial role in his current career:<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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A blast from the past! Bruce and Bryce performing on Windy City Live during their Merit days.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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“Merit\u2019s teachings were so diverse. It wasn\u2019t just private lessons. It wasn\u2019t just orchestra. We had steel drum electives, we had theory electives, and we got to explore so much. I\u2019m using all the skills I learned every day, whether I\u2019m producing or performing. We\u2019re using all those different elements of music in our daily lives.”<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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The classical foundation laid at Merit became the backbone of the Thompson brothers\u2019 musical prowess. Beyond that foundation, the brothers\u2014always eager to explore new horizons\u2014then found inspiration in the rhythmic beats of hip-hop. Their traditionally classical instruments that once resonated with sonatas and concertos now embrace the cadence of more modern beats. Merit\u2019s emphasis on versatility and creativity helped the brothers to seamlessly pivot into the dynamic world of hip-hop, blending their classical training with the pulse of today\u2019s new age rap. Bruce, who also dabbles in piano, guitar, and drums, found Merit’s wide and diverse education freeing. The music theory knowledge and self-discipline that he gained in studying classical music at Merit is fundamental to his own music-making today. Beyond playing bass in his brother’s band, Bruce produces for other artists as well as creating his own music. “I do R&B, I do rap, I do jazz with the jazz quartet I started,” he says. “I feel like you can’t really limit yourself to one genre, and that’s something I learned at Merit that I will always carry with me.”<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The community at Merit helped Bryce and Bruce learn the impact that relatability and representation can have on their fans. As a beginning musician, Bryce recalls, \u201cWhen I looked at music, it seemed like such a far thing to really achieve. It seemed like you had to be famous or you had to be insanely gifted.\u201d Yet, through his time at Merit, his outlook shifted. \u201cBecause I’ve had so many amazing musicians to look up to growing up, I knew that my dreams in music were attainable.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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King Melik, Bruce, and the rest of the band: James Watts, Gabriel Alex, and Zach Vaz.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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In addition to the wonderful faculty who inspired them\u2014both brothers cite their teachers <\/span>M\u00f3nica Lugo<\/strong><\/a> and <\/span>Janet Janz<\/strong><\/a> as particularly formative influences\u2014they also had the opportunity to work with world-renowned guest musicians. One of Bruce\u2019s favorite memories of Merit was playing alongside <\/span>Yo-Yo Ma<\/strong><\/a>. Experiences like this were instrumental in inspiring the brothers to pursue professional careers in music.<\/span><\/p>

Now, with the recent release of King Melik’s album Sanctuary<\/em> <\/b><\/a>where Bryce sings vocals and Bruce plays bass guitar, and after their hugely successful performance at Merit\u2019s Play On<\/b><\/a> benefit concert in November, the Thompsons are gratified that their success is now an example to the next generation of Merit students. It is with joy that they visit Merit summer camps to speak to students about careers as music producers and perform for the Conservatory students on a Saturday afternoon. Bryce particularly remembers how important role models at Merit were to him as a student musician \u2013 and how he dreamed of being one in the future. \u201cOnce you see somebody who kind of looks like you, it [living as a musician] seems a lot more attainable. I want to be that for the youth coming up at Merit.”<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Bryce sharing his expertise and insight as a songwriter as a guest artist for the songwriting class at Camp Merit 2022.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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And what came of young Bryce\u2019s experience at the fancy Gala? He recalls, \u201cEveryone was looking nice and I\u2019m like, \u2018Man, is everyone here to listen to us play? That\u2019s crazy!\u2019<\/em> I remember seeing how proud Mom was [whom he brought as his date] and how beautiful she looked. It was just one of those moments where I was like, \u2018Man, all of this is happening because I\u2019m playing notes on this sheet of paper with my violin.\u2019 <\/em>It was one of those moments when I knew I wanted to do this forever.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Thinking back to their childhood and how their musical lives that are now bigger than they could have imagined, Bryce wants to pull that little violinist aside and tell him, \u201cBuckle up, young King, and get ready!\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\"King
King Melik performs at Play On 2023 at City Winery.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Bryce
Bryce and Bruce with their parents after Play On.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"King
King Melik performs at Play On 2023 at City Winery.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"The
King Melik and The JuJu Exchange after their performance at Play On 2023.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"A
King Melik performs at Play On 2023 at City Winery.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"King
King Melik performs at Play On 2023 at City Winery.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"Bryce
Bryce Thompson with former Merit President & Executive Director Duffie Adelson.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\"King
King Melik performs at Play On 2023 at City Winery.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Start Making Music Today!<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLearn More About Classes & Lessons<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Imagine: two brothers, 10 and 12 years old, padding down the hallway of Merit toting their cello and violin, excited to join that week\u2019s orchestra rehearsal. Their mom is taking […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":41707,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_theme","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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