By Barnett Wright | The Birmingham Times
It’s been a year of anniversaries for Ahkeem Lee, founder and director of the Birmingham Youth and Young Adult Fellowship Choir (BYYAFC) which won the “America’s Got Talent” (AGT) Golden Buzzer in July. That came during the shows 20th season and allows the choir to skip the rest of the judged rounds and go straight to the fan-voted quarterfinals. The choir will return for the next round of NBC’s televised talent show in September.
That achievement also came during the 10th year commemoration of the choir which was founded by Lee and two friends.
“Ten years ago, we never thought we would see the day where we would be here,” Lee said during a concert at the 16th Street Baptist Church, where he is a member. “It’s been a tough 10 years, but it has also been a great decade of praise, of dedication, of love, of faithfulness.”
And now Lee is getting ready to travel back to California for an encore performance on AGT.
On August 24 at the Heights Event & Entertainment Center, the choir, which has 41 members ranging in age from 9 to 29, will hold a Raise the Praise event that will feature guest artists, vendors, and a special performance from the choir, as it continues to raise funds to support the journey back to California for “AGT: Season 20” live shows next month with the finale airing on September 23 and 24.
Perfect Pitch
Lee, 28, who grew up in Center Point, Alabama, with a sister and a brother, has always loved gospel music, especially choirs like the famed Mississippi Mass Choir.
“And when I say that’s my favorite, that’s my favorite choir to this very day,” he said. “I probably have all their albums, all their VHS tapes and memorabilia. They are so special because they are a large choir, … [but] they remind you of the average Sunday morning choir at your own church. … When you look at them, you see yourself in them. You see familiarity in the Mississippi Mass Choir.”
While growing up and listening to those choirs, Lee never knew he had perfect pitch — the ability to name a note or sing it accurately without hearing another note first.
“When I got older, I found out [I had perfect pitch] from some musicians who had to tell me I had that gift because I didn’t recognize it. I think I was in college when I found out, … but as a child I could always pick up on music. I can hear very well,” he said, adding that he has always loved music and collected gospel songs.
He also paid “close attention to choir directors and what they were doing,” he said.
Lee started attending BCS’s Smith Middle School as a seventh grader. From there, he went Ramsay as a ninth grader, which is when he told himself that he wanted to have a choir one day.
“I was in a choir at Ramsay, and my choir director really made a huge difference in my life and in my music and helped me recognize my talent,” said Lee, who didn’t take his dream to be a choir director seriously until after he graduated from high school and enrolled at the now-closed Birmingham Southern College (BSC).
“When I graduated [from Ramsay], two friends and I decided that we wanted to do a concert to give back to the community,” Lee recalled. “At that time, I had a singing group, and I didn’t really like the idea of three of us doing a full concert because I didn’t think people would come and support it. … I thought that if we put together a choir presentation to bring together friends, family, and other young people in the city then we would get more traction and we could make a better impact.”
“Youth ‘N’ Praise”
On July 24, 2015, the choir held its first “Youth ‘N’ Praise” Back to School Concert, where more than 200 school supply bags were given to students in and around Birmingham. Initially, the choir was organized for the one-time event, but after overwhelming acclaim the Birmingham Youth Fellowship Choir was born.
“During our first year, in 2016, we were invited to perform at the Gospel Music Workshop of America [GMWA] when it came to Birmingham,” Lee said, speaking about the renowned international music convention founded in 1967 by gospel great Rev. James Cleveland.
“We also had the opportunity to travel to Pensacola, Florida, to open up for Bishop Marvin Winans that year. That was when I started to really notice that there was something special about the choir,” he added, noting that he had also started directing choirs at area churches at the time.
“I started to really develop my skill set outside of simply just my choir,” he said. “I worked at two Birmingham churches for some time, and then in 2018 I was permitted to become director of the [BSC] gospel choir director when the previous director left. They allowed me to be the interim student director, and I retained that role even after I graduated from the school. … I held that position for about three years,” said Lee, who earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from BSC and a Master of Education degree from the University of West Alabama.
Home Church
One church that has been significant for the choir director is the 16th Street Baptist Church in downtown Birmingham, where he’s been a lifelong member. The historic church also serves as the BYYAFC’s rehearsal home and main concert location.
Lee said on AGT, “A lot of people may know that church because in 1963 a tragic bombing happened there, and that was when four little girls were killed. While that bombing was such a tragic situation, it played such an instrumental role in bringing international attention to the Civil Rights struggle in America. … Sixty-something years later, the choir exists, so we wanted the opportunity to show that Birmingham, Alabama, has some talented young people, and we wanted to do something great for the community.”
The church is important for another reason. It’s where his mother, Valerie, was a church secretary. While she was pregnant with Ahkeem, she bumped her stomach on a pew in the sanctuary and went into labor with her son.
“I was born two months early because of my church,” Lee said.
Teaching Life Skills
Directing BYYAFC is a lot like what Lee does during his day job, where he also works with young people.
Lee is the assistant director of student engagement and enrichment at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). He’s been at the university since 2021, when he began working in the Office of Off-Campus Student and Family Engagement.
Whether instructing students in the choir or on campus, it all goes hand-in-hand for the 29-year-old.
“My life’s passion is supporting young people and helping them to develop,” said Lee. “In my role at UAB, I advise the Blazer Mentorship Collective, a large peer-mentoring program for underrepresented students. I help students navigate through their college journeys and help to prepare them for the real world.”
To learn more about the choir and donate, visit here.
Updated at 9:30 a.m. on 8/14/2025 to correct Lee’s age.
