Rhythm & Truth brings people together through creativity to cultivate connection, resilience, healing, and joy. Founded in 2008 by board-certified music therapist Summer Lall, our multidisciplinary team of creative arts therapists and teaching artists offers music, visual art, dance/movement, drama, and adaptive arts experiences throughout Los Angeles County and virtually throughout the U.S.
Our work centers children, teens, and communities facing barriers to arts access and mental health support, including young people impacted by foster care and justice systems, neurodivergent youth, and individuals with disabilities. We partner with schools, community organizations, and treatment programs to create welcoming spaces where participants can explore identity, express themselves, build relationships, and experience a sense of belonging.
Our approach is trauma-informed, healing-centered, culturally humble, and strengths-based. We honor participants’ lived experiences, cultural backgrounds, interests, and choices, adapting activities to support different communication styles, sensory preferences, and abilities. Youth voice and creative agency guide the process; no prior artistic experience is needed.
Through youth programming, adult self- and community-care experiences, and professional development, Rhythm & Truth supports the wellbeing of young people and the adults who care for them. Our work is grounded in connection, integrity, empathy, collaboration, and growth.
Rhythm & Truth provides creative arts therapy, adaptive arts education, community wellness experiences, and professional development. Our multidisciplinary team includes music therapists, art therapists, dance/movement therapists, and drama therapists, alongside teaching artists and performers.
Our creative arts therapists have specialized clinical training in using the arts to address non-artistic goals, including emotional regulation, communication, social connection, coping skills, and developmental needs. Services draw on trauma-informed, culturally humble, and neurodiversity-affirming practices, with activities adapted to participants’ strengths, interests, abilities, and goals.
Early Childhood and Caregivers
Our early childhood specialty supports prenatal and postpartum wellness, infants, toddlers, and their caregivers through music, movement, and creative expression. Experiences focus on caregiver-child bonding, connection, and caregiver wellbeing. Shared singing, movement, baby sign language, and musical play provide opportunities for physical, cognitive, social and emotional development.
Families
Family-centered experiences use shared music-making, art, movement, and drama to support communication, emotional expression, and connection. Activities offer opportunities for family members to create together for deeper understanding and strengthening relationships. Services include support for neurodivergent individuals and people with disabilities and their families.
Children and Youth
Individual and group creative arts therapy supports young people in schools, community organizations, foster care, and behavioral-health and treatment settings. Songwriting and lyric exploration can support emotional expression and identity; group drumming and improvisation can support regulation and collaboration; and art, drama, and movement offer additional ways to communicate and work towards emotional, cognitive, physical and social goals. These goals are individualized, with particular experience serving youth with mental health needs and those impacted by child welfare and justice systems.
Professional Development and Staff Wellness
We offer experiential and online training for educators, clinicians, caregivers, and youth-serving professionals. Offerings include HeartMath breathing and self-regulation techniques with heart-rate variability biofeedback; the Rhythm2Recovery two-day training in rhythm-based group facilitation for social and emotional wellbeing; and Resistance to Resilience: a four-course online series exploring music and meditation, instrumental music-making, songwriting, and lyric-based work to support youth mental health and resilience. Music and art based staff wellness experiences also support reflection, connection, and care for the adults who serve young people.
Arts Education and Performance
Our teaching artists provide arts instruction and participatory creative experiences, including adaptive lessons and culminating performances or projects such as recording original songs, albums or music videos.
Our collaborative community offerings help bring people together through drum circles, collaborative music-making, improvisation, and sound baths, creating opportunities for connection, self-expression, relaxation, and shared joy. We also provide live music and participatory arts experiences for community gatherings and special events. These experiences welcome people of different ages, abilities, and musical backgrounds, with no prior artistic experience needed to participate.