One Spirit Team
Charlie Parker - Project Manager and Lead Mentor/Educator/Coach
Charlie has been leading One Spirit since 2009 and has extensive experience working with, particularly racially minoritised young men at risk in PRUs and SEMHs, in a range of custody settings and in One Spirit’s Community venue in Lambeth. As Project Manager his role includes building key partnerships with education, resettlement, mental health pathways in custody, on release; YOT referrals, Probation, social care/children and families and wide range of 3rd sector organisations and community partners.
A youth mentor, youth justice professional and ‘gang & drill music ‘expert, Charlie advocates for black and ethnic minority young people in the court system, particularly those against whom prejudice in the court system can be attached on account of their association with rap music and (black) youth culture.
He has worked in partnership with Art Not Evidence and acted as expert witness at court through Manchester University’s “Prosecuting Rap” network. He is also a former British Council consultant acting as music and gang expert in the project Sonar vivir la Paz in Cali, Colombia.
Charlie studied drama at Hull University and worked in rep theatre whilst developing a career as a musician (guitar and saxophone) before embarking on a music career
that has led to success in industry, education and community. Cutting his producer teeth working with the likes of Brixton's Coxsone Sound System, and going on to co-found the UKs most wanted hip hop group – Brixton's '57 Dynasty' – Charlie produced award winning albums and consequently developed a presence as a producer working in the US, Jamaica and Europe.
A youth mentor, youth justice professional and ‘gang & drill music ‘expert, Charlie advocates for black and ethnic minority young people in the court system, particularly those against whom prejudice in the court system can be attached on account of their association with rap music and (black) youth culture.
David Smart – Mentor/Educator/Coach
“The impressive and inspiring work of the project delivery team ... should not be underestimated or undervalued. This work is only possible because of the unique combination of personal, professional and technical skills and experiences that are possessed by all the members.”
David "Duce" Smart is a producer, songwriter, DJ, educator and therapeutic music practitioner with more than 30 years of experience across the music industry, education and the criminal justice sector. Holding degrees in Multimedia Studies and Music Technology, together with a Master's Degree in Record Production from Kingston University, David has dedicated his career to using music as a powerful tool for creativity, rehabilitation and personal transformation.
After serving as Head of Music at HMPYOI Feltham, David joined HMDT Music's One Spirit team in 2015, where he continues to support participants in developing musical skills, building confidence and creating positive pathways both within custody and beyond the prison gates. David’s delivery of One Spirit through one-to-one therapeutic music sessions at HMP Aylesbury is part of the North London NHS Foundation Trust Pathways provision, using music to support emotional wellbeing, self-expression and recovery.
David is also the founder of Music Tech Training Centre (MTTC), one of the UK's leading online music production education platforms. Through his YouTube channel, educational resources and mentoring, he has supported thousands of producers and musicians around the world, building a community of more than 80,000 subscribers.
In 2026 David launched the Sound Mindset app, a coaching platform designed to help music creators develop confidence, consistency and resilience alongside their technical skills. The platform combines practical music education with mindset coaching to help creatives overcome self-doubt, creative blocks and the pressures of modern music making.
David regularly collaborates with leading organisations within the music technology industry, includingStudio.com, Technics and Waves Audio, helping bridge the gap between professional music production, education and creative wellbeing.
Whether working inside prisons, mentoring emerging producers or developing innovative educational resources, David remains passionate about empowering people to discover their potential through music and creativity.
Todd Speakman is a musician, educator and mentor with more than 12 years’ experience supporting young people through music. His work spans the youth justice system, alternative provision, mainstream and special education, youth and community organisations, and refugee and detention settings.
His work on One Spirit with in particular, global majority young men in custody and in the community, uses songwriting, recording, production and performance to develop creative skills, confidence and self-expression. His work combines high-quality music education with consistent mentoring and practical insight into the professional music industry.
Todd Speakman – Mentor/Educator/Coach
Todd’s commitment to this work also has a strong personal foundation. His father spent significant periods of his adolescence and early adulthood in custody, including at HMYOI Feltham, (where Todd now leads the work with One Spirit). With the encouragement of a member of Feltham’s medical team, he established a music class and began teaching guitar to other young people in custody. He describes being trusted with that responsibility as a turning point—one that changed the direction of his life and helped shape the devoted father he later became. This story has deeply influenced Todd’s own decision to work in music education within custodial settings.
Alongside One Spirit, Todd has served as project lead for Britten Pears Arts music projects at HMP Warren Hill and as a project facilitator for a youth music initiative with Wigmore Hall. He has worked closely with educators, youth justice professionals, artists and support teams across custodial, educational and community settings.
Todd brings extensive professional experience to his educational work. Born in Glastonbury, Somerset, he received a scholarship to study drums at the Academy of Contemporary Music at 16 and spent several years working as a peripatetic drum tutor, delivering individual and group tuition in schools, youth centres and specialist educational facilities. He subsequently established an international career as a drummer, composer, producer and musical director, performing at venues and festivals including the Royal Albert Hall, Paradiso and Glastonbury Festival.
His recent work includes serving as musical director for Minimax’s production of The Planets in Hong Kong, touring the United States and performing at major UK and European festivals as drummer for Franc Moody, and composing music for the UNDP feature-length documentary Generation Change. Todd has also created music and sound design for the BBC, BFI and Secret Cinema, alongside global campaigns for brands including Nike, Puma and Schwarzkopf. Through his artist project, Speakman, his music has attracted millions of streams and has been performed at KOKO and on the BBC Introducing stage at Glastonbury.
Across his educational and professional practice, Todd is committed to making ambitious music accessible and using creative work to help young people develop skills, confidence and new possibilities.
Vondo Nkomo – Assistant Mentor/Educator/Coach
FUNDERS:
Vondo Nkomo is a producer, artist and creative director who works as a mentor on the One Spirit programme, delivering one-to-one and small group sessions in alternative provision, youth offender institutions and in the community.
Since beginning his work with HMDT Music and One Spirit in 2023, Vondo has developed a practice of starting where the young person already is at; be it a beat they've made, a reference they love, an idea they can't yet finish and using music as a conduit to trust and a way into wider conversations about self-belief and personal responsibility. Drawing on lived experience that mirrors many participants', he builds study materials around each young person's own academic and musical aims, supporting Functional Skills qualifications and applications to further and higher education.
Vondo holds a First Class BMus and an MMus by scholarship from the London College of Creative Media, and also works professionally as a creative director and social media manager, leading campaign and tour content for major signed acts across UK, European and US touring.
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HMDT Music, twice winner of the prestigious Royal Philharmonic Society Award for Education and winner of the Excellence in Music Theatre Award is a leader in creating inspiring projects for young people, particularly those facing challenging experiences, through which it aims to enrich learning, broaden awareness of and help fight inequity and transform lives.