Rolling with the Flowmies at Orlando Flows’ Latest Meetup
March 6, 2026
Left to right, Carianna Doyle, Emily Lao, Nick Zuccarello, Kate Miller, Ayo, Ryan Young
Grammy Winning Producer Joins UCF Students in ArtCube Experiment
Grammy Award winning producer and eight time nominee Ayo is stepping in to help shape the sound of an art installation designed to amplify the voice of Parramore through the ArtCube. The project, led by UCF students, aims to bring forward a story that has often been silenced by years of construction and change.
The project is part of a spring semester collaboration between Interstruct Design + Build and UCF’s Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy, using ArtCube 02 as a platform for experimentation. Designed as a public facing micro gallery, the cube invites students to create a multimedia installation that blends sound, visuals and story in a way that can be experienced from the street.
Ayo, whose real name is Austin Owens, won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album for his production work on Cardi B’s Invasion of Privacy. His work has reached a global audience, contributing to 14 Billboard #1 records and more than 25 million records sold, while collaborating with artists including Doja Cat, Skrillex, J Balvin, and BTS.
While his work has taken him far beyond Orlando, Ayo has chosen to stay rooted in his hometown. In doing so, he brings a level of credibility to the region, continuing to invest in its growth through both his work and presence.
The students met at Ayo’s studio, Polymath Studios, in the SoDo District this past week, presenting their vision for the ArtCube project. As they walked through their ideas, they asked how he preferred to work with them. Ayo leaned into their process rather than trying to direct it, sharing that his role is to enhance what’s being built through their creativity.
Ayo greets FIEA student, Emily Lao, at his Polymath Studios in the SoDo District
“I don’t like to tell creatives what to do,” Ayo said. “I let you do what you do, and then I come in and add the sprinkles.”
Zuccarello sees all of this as a rare opportunity for the students.
“It’s really exciting,” Zuccarello said. “We’ve got a student that has written sound for games before; what an opportunity to work with a Grammy Award winning producer.”
For Ayo, the importance of this installation itself is something bigger.
“I think the ArtCube project is essential,” Ayo said. “One of the most important and overlooked things is storytelling… the ability to highlight what’s happening now, but more importantly what happened before us.”
He spoke about the responsibility of preserving what has come before and noted that stories are easily lost without that awareness. Seeing students step into a narrative they didn’t grow up in with care and intention is what stood out most to him.
The UCF project, which will be installed in ArtCube 02, is being facilitated by Ryan Young, CEO of Interstruct Design + Build, who views development as a responsibility to reflect the history and identity of the community it lives in. For Young, bringing Ayo into the process adds another layer to how the story can be experienced.
“Having Ayo involved in the ArtCube 02 project is already bringing a strong creative energy to the process,” Young said. “As we begin collaborating with the FIEA students, his expertise in audio production and openness to experimentation are setting the tone for a really dynamic and engaging experience. We’re excited to have him as part of the team and appreciate his willingness to collaborate and contribute to the students’ creative journey.”
To build this story, students have been digging into Parramore’s history through documentaries, local research and conversations that help them understand what has shaped the community over time. Projects like “Jewel of Parramore: The Wells’Built Hotel” have helped ground their work in real experiences, while guidance from Interstruct adds context around the impact of development and change.
FIEA students walk Ayo through a presentation of how they're going to use the ArtCube
As the students worked through moments like the South Street Casino, Martin Luther King Jr.’s presence in Parramore, Tinker Field, and the construction of I-4, FIEA student Emily Lao emphasized the importance of getting the story right.
“There’s been a very big section of this project, just making sure we have the story we’re telling down accurate and right,” Lao said. The installation provides an opportunity to keep Parramore’s story present in a city that continues to evolve around it.
As the students continue shaping the experience alongside their instructor, Nick Zuccarello, their focus remains on creating something that connects visually and emotionally, bringing attention back to a story that has faded over time.
This project points to something larger than a single installation. It reflects a growing effort to tell the real story of Orlando through what remains visible, but also what's been lost to demolition, construction and change. By inviting the FIEA students into this process, their research and creative expression becomes an act of participation, and in doing so, a door opens to see themselves as part of what comes next.
For Ayo, that sense of responsibility to the story hits close to home.
“The construction’s getting louder and louder right now,” Ayo said. “And I’m pushing to make noise.”
ArtCube 02 is currently at UCF FIEA downtown Orlando
FIEA students ask Ayo how he would prefer to work with them on sound for the ArtCube
Before the meeting started, Ayo gave a guided tour through the Polymath Studio
