Class of 3000

The half-hour series from Cartoon Network and André Benjamin (André 3000 of OutKast. Get it? Class of 3000?) and Tom Lynch (Romeo!). Originally Benjamin and Cartoon Network slated this cartoon for the Adult Swim block of programming, but then the series became more kid-oriented and was placed in primetime on Friday night for a younger crowd.

Spirits are low at the Westley School for the Performing Arts in Atlanta, Georgia when music prodigies Li’l D, Tamika, Madison, Philly Phil, Eddie and Kim and Kam realize they no longer have a music teacher. But they get surprise when music superstar Sunny Bridges steps up to the plate. Their lives and knowledge of music change dramatically when Sunny, who attended the school as a kid and has gone on to international superstardom, returns looking for something he lost on his way to fame.

Sunny Bridges is the star of Class of 3000. A worldwide music star, Sunny walks away from it all at the height of his fame. Looking for what truly makes him happy, Sunny finds himself back at his old school in his hometown of Atlanta. Though he’s never created a lesson plan in his life, Sunny is brought in as the school’s new music teacher. André "3000" Benjamin brings vocal life to the character of Sunny Bridges. Benjamin has starred in the feature films Four Brothers, Be Cool and Idlewild.

Though he’s the smallest one in his crew at Westley School, Li’l D is definitely the leader. In fact, he’s the one who talked Sunny into staying to teach. Li’l D’s boundless energy is expressed in every aspect of his life, from his mile-a-minute patter, to his (sometimes hare-brained) schemes and his inability ever to sit still. A drummer and budding music producer, he’s constantly in motion, and usually making a groove while he’s at it. Li’l D is voiced by Atlanta native, Small Fire.

Before he came to Westley, Eddie lived a very sheltered existence. The gifted clarinet player comes from one of Atlanta’s wealthiest families. Though he can be skeptical and timid when the class schemes get going, he’s along for the ride, if only to fit in with the crowd and hang out with Tamika, the classmate he has a crush on. Tom Kenny gives voice to Eddie. His many other credits include (most famously) SpongeBob SquarePants, Camp Lazlo, Squirrel Boy, The Fairly OddParents, and Futurama.

She’s tough, brash and full of attitude. But she’s not from the mean streets; she’s a girl from the ‘burbs who has taken on the trappings of the urban lifestyle in creating her persona. She's the skeptic of the group, shooting down Li’l D’s outrageous plans with careful logic. She is a master of anything with strings, from the harp to the banjo and even the sitar. Crystal Scales, the voice of Tamika, has credits that include The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius and The Boondocks.

Philly Phil, a master of the upright bass, is new to Atlanta, having just moved down from Philly. In fact, the opportunity to go to Westley is the main reason his family relocated. Like his instrument, he’s tall and lean. He also happens to be a technological genius. Give him some dental floss and a bike wheel, and Philly Phil can turn it into a satellite hookup from the Space Station. Philly Phil is voiced by Phil LaMarr, former Mad TV cast member.

Like her violin, Madison is really high-strung. She is always the one with the peppy attitude who thinks everything is just perfect. That’s why she and Tamika don’t quite get along. She’ll always be the first one to freak out or blab to Sunny when things don’t go right. The truth is, she doesn’t really know, but she’s happy. Jennifer Hale is the voice behind Madison and a variety of animated characters from series like The Powerpuff Girls and The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy.

For twins, Kim and Kam couldn’t be more different. Kam, the boy, is a piano prodigy. He loves minimalist art, history and, most of all, classical music. Kim is brash, impulsive, reactive and rebellious. She’s a percussionist, which means she excels at banging things together. Like many twins, they share a language no one else understands... in this case, Mandarin. Janice Kawaye does double duty for the series, creating voices for twins Kim and Kam Chin. Her credits include Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi.

Class of 3000 is produced by Cartoon Network in conjunction with the Tom Lynch Co. and André Benjamin’s production company, Moxie Turtle. Benjamin and Lynch serve as executive producers, and Benjamin provides voices and musical direction for the show. The show’s co-executive producer and head writer is Patric M. Verrone, a writer for Futurama, The Critic and Pinky and the Brain and a supervising producer on Futurama. Joe Horne (The Boondocks, Teamo Supremo, The Oblongs) joins the production as supervising producer.

Tom Lynch has been an innovator in the field of kids, tween and teen programming for the past 20 years. His groundbreaking debut series, KIDS Incorporated, was the first variety show for youngsters, and his series The Secret World of Alex Mack was both the first series created for tweens and the first show to feature a tween girl as its central character. Since then, Lynch has continued to blaze new trails with such original programs as the Emmy-nominated Scout’s Safari (filmed in South Africa) and Romeo!, starring the real life musician Romeo and his father, music mogul Master P.