The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at the University of British Columbia (UBC) announces its 2019/20 series, featuring empowering narratives from marginalized communities, vibrant exaltations of multiculturalism, and breathtaking musicality in the Chan Shun Concert Hall. Over the course of nine concerts, extraordinary talent from around the world will converge in Vancouver, including an icon of Americana, the height of jazz royalty, and a compelling Norwegian songstress. Also just announced is the 2019/20 Beyond Words series, featuring four heartrending interdisciplinary performances that affirm the importance of diversity in storytelling.
Over the past twenty years, when musicians and producers in Southern California have needed fresh R&B, funk, or hip hop beats, they've called on drummer Jake Najor. A former bandmember of Breakestra, Incredible Moses Leroy, and The Styletones, Najor has performed or recorded with scores of noteworthy artists, including TV on the Radio, Raphael Saadiq, Kelis, Joss Stone, Big Daddy Kane, De La Soul, Karl Denson, Rodriguez and Empire of the Sun.
Daniel Breaker (Hamilton), Arielle Jacobs (Aladdin) and Joanna A. Jones (Hamilton) will be the featured vocalists in the March 10th installment of 'Russ Kaplan's Broadway Jazz Session,' the popular series which presents In Transit composer Kaplan's innovative jazz interpretations of current Broadway favorites.
Over the past twenty years, when musicians and producers in Southern California have needed fresh R&B, funk, or hip hop beats, they've called on drummer Jake Najor. A former bandmember of Breakestra, Incredible Moses Leroy, and The Styletones, Najor has performed or recorded with scores of noteworthy artists, including TV on the Radio, Raphael Saadiq, Kelis, Joss Stone, Big Daddy Kane, De La Soul, Karl Denson, Rodriguez and Empire of the Sun.
Craig Finn has announced live dates surrounding his soon-to-be-released solo album, I Need A New War. The shows - which see Finn backed by his touring band, The Uptown Controllers - begin June 6 at SPACE in Evanston, IL, and continue through the month. Fan pre-sales begin Wednesday, February 20 and all remaining tickets will be released to the general public on Friday, February 22. Additional dates will be announced. For complete details, please visit craigfinn.net/tour.
Partisan Records announces the release of Craig Finn's eagerly awaited new album, I Need A New War, arriving Friday, April 26. The third album in a trilogy (following 2015's Faith in the Future and 2017's We All Want The Same Things), I Need A New War once again sees Finn expertly chronicling our complex, often confusing, modern era, drawing deeply felt character studies about regular people trying to respond to extraordinary times, attempting to find connection whilst wondering how to keep pace with a world moving faster than they are. The LP further finds Finn focusing his lens on New York City - his home for the last 18 years.
Multi-GRAMMY Award-winning composer/pianist/educator Arturo O'Farrill and the non-profit The Afro Latin Jazz Alliance (ALJA) are thrilled to announce NYC's premier Afrobeat concert of 2019, ALJO + AFROBEAT = FELA!, featuring O'Farrill and his 18-piece Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra (ALJO) alongside Tony Award-Nominated Sahr Ngaujah (lead actor in the Tony-winning Broadway musical, Fela!). Today's singular forbearers of the Afrobeat genre take to the stage with O'Farrill to debut big band jazz arrangements of Fela Anikulapo Kuti's classic works as well as innovative collaborations with special guest artists Wunmi (vocals), Tosin Aribisala (drums/vocals), Bryan Vargas (guitar), and DJ Ausar. Celebrating the 10th Anniversary of Fela!'s Broadway premiere in 2009, ALJO + AFROBEAT = FELA! will be presented in the Peter Jay Sharp Theatre @ Symphony Space on January 25 & 26, 2019. Artist interviews are available upon request.
This week's brand new episode is with Sound Designer Jessica Paz! Jessica shares with us wild tales from her summers at the Delecorte Theatre with stories and insights from her recent designs for 'Othello' and 'Twelfth Night' as well how the sound department battles wind, rain, helicopters and yes raccoons.
BRIC is pleased to announce a free concert by Brooklyn afrobeat juggernaut Antibalas on October 13,co-presented by the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership (DBP) at The Plaza at 300 Ashland, to kick off the 2018 BRIC JazzFest. The announcement completes the programming for the fourth edition of the celebrated Brooklyn jazz festival, called a "proudly eclectic gathering [that] remains unbounded by convention" (New Yorker), and continues a yearlong celebration to cap off four decades for the pioneering NYC arts-and-media organization and leading presenter of free cultural programming in Brooklyn.
Superhuman Happiness, a project headed by Stuart Bogie (Arcade Fire, Iron and Wine, Antibalas), is gearing up to release their next full length, Beacon, this coming October in collaboration with Yeggs Records. Keep an ear out for single releases between now and release day, and in the meantime you can read more about the project and Bogie's impressive career down below.
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts announces additional programming and talent for The District of Comedy Festival, a three-day festival which brings together acclaimed stars and rising acts for an all-laughs takeover of the nation's cultural center. The festival, with Presenting Sponsor Capital One, is a part of the Center's Comedy at the Kennedy Center initiative, a signature program focused on elevating comedy as an art form and uniting the local community together through laughter.
Get your groove on under the stars this summer as one of the hottest lineups of hip-hop, soul, funk and R&B artists is showcased at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) for two months of electrifying, free Thursday night concerts.
Joanna A. Jones (Hamilton) and jazz vocalist Ryan Kelly will be the featured vocalists in the June 3rd installment of 'Russ Kaplan's Broadway Jazz Session,' the popular series which presents In Transit composer Kaplan's innovative jazz interpretations of current Broadway favorites.
On Today May 17th, C'mon Everybody will host the second edition of the Sound Mind Collective's Uplift: Brooklyn! benefit concert series. This time around, all proceeds collected from the door and other means (raffle, text-to-donate, etc) will be donated to the Campaign For An Elected Civilian Review Board (ECRB). An impressive lineup of speakers and musicians has been assembled to energize New Yorkers looking to support a positive social movement through music. Artists on the lineup include Bajah & The Dry Eye Crew, M.A.K.U. Soundsystem and the Resistance Revival Chorus (who recently performed alongside Ke$ha at this year's Grammy Awards).
New Jersey Performing Arts Center, the country's most diverse arts presenter, announced a sensational opening lineup for the 2018-2019 season, an adventurous range of more than 150 attractions - Bollywood to ballet, hip-hop to K-pop - for every kind of audience.
On Thursday May 17th, C'mon Everybody will host the second edition of the Sound Mind Collective's Uplift: Brooklyn! benefit concert series. This time around, all proceeds collected from the door and other means (raffle, text-to-donate, etc) will be donated to the Campaign For An Elected Civilian Review Board (ECRB). An impressive lineup of speakers and musicians has been assembled to energize New Yorkers looking to support a positive social movement through music. Artists on the lineup include Bajah & The Dry Eye Crew, M.A.K.U. Soundsystem and the Resistance Revival Chorus (who recently performed alongside Ke$ha at this year's Grammy Awards).
BRIC, the leading presenter of free cultural programming in Brooklyn, is pleased to announce the lineup and sponsors for its 40th season of the BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival. With 31 performances (June 5 – August 11), BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! launches a yearlong celebration to cap off four decades for the pioneering NYC arts-and-media organization and leading presenter of free cultural programming in Brooklyn. The programming, reflective of Brooklyn's eclecticism and diversity, will feature a wide array of free, world-class performances at the beautiful Prospect Park Bandshell.
Mitra Sumara, New York City's only Farsi Funk group, is proud to announce their debut album Tahdig, set for release on June 8, 2018 on Persian Cardinal Recordings. This international party band revives the vibrant Persian pop and funk music silenced by the Iranian Revolution. The popular music of Iran in the 60s and 70s combined disco, funk, and Latin beats with Middle Eastern melodies and poetic lyrics. Mitra Sumara interprets hits by Iran's beloved singers such as Googoosh, Soli, Leila Forouhar, and remakes intoxicating Southern Iranian Bandari beat tunes. The band is comprised of musicians drawn from New York's indie-rock, jazz, and avant-garde communities and was founded by singer Yvette Saatchi Perez.
For the final concert event in their spring season, Cortland Repertory Theatre Downtown presents NYC sensation Amy Lynn and The Honey Men in "A Woman Left Lonely - A Celebration of Janis Joplin". This incredible concert will be seen in Cortland for one night only on Saturday, May 5 at 7:30 PM. Tickets are $35.00 and a beer/wine cash bar will be available.
