Scratch DJ Academy founders Rob Principe and the late Jam Master Jay of Run-DMC opened the academy in 2001 to lower the barrier of entry for learning its eponymous art form. Today, its talented faculty know that juggling beats can be harder than juggling irritated porcupines, and their skill at teaching the complex art has drawn media attention from the likes of the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. The academy’s instructors include Grandwizard Theodore, who began DJing at 13, and Rob Swift, who claims a resumé with a performance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and a collaboration with Herbie Hancock.

Scratch offers a slew of courses and educational tours that cover topics ranging from the basics of music production to advanced digital DJing. It reaches more than 100,000 students each year and has taught future DJs from all 50 states and 35 different countries.