Delaware Art Museum Presents Commissioned Work by Richard Raw

The content of this post comes from a Delaware Art Museum press release...

The Delaware Art Museum presents a new performance by Richard Raw and the Word Warrior Band on Thursday, March 10, at 5:00pm at The Queen in downtown Wilmington (500 N. Market Street). The work premieres as part of Shades of Excellence: The Blackout Experience, Freire Charter School’s annual event celebrating Black History Month that honors the cultural contributions, past and present, of people of the African diaspora. Students will blend Afro-Caribbean, Afro-Indigenous, and Black American culture to honor African Heritage, and the event will be headlined by Richard Raw’s new work.

Raw’s performance will tell the story of a boy returning to Africa after 400 years of separation, greeting his ancestors and indigenous heritage. The performance will feature poetry, storytelling and African dancing with appearances by Ile Igoke Temple and stage design by The Stylistics. Raw will premiere songs from his forthcoming album Orisa Soul Music.

“We welcome the Wilmington community to join us at The Queen for this much-anticipated new performance,” says Saralyn Rosenfield, Director of Learning and Engagement at the Delaware Art Museum. “Richard Raw’s commission aligns with the Museum’s work to connect people with art and to highlight the strength and legacy of artists working in our city.” Shades of Excellence continues DelArt’s series of commissions supporting the creation of new art and performance by national and local artists of color over the past 5 years.

Richard Raw combines soul with hip-hop and invigorating, thought-provoking lyrics. He works as a community activist, using his lyrics and performances as tools to inspire and educate the next generation. Raw was awarded a 2021 Established Artist grant by the Delaware Division of the Arts for his music. Once Iz Balleto, Community Engagement Specialist at the Delaware Art Museum, heard about the student-centered Blackout Experience, he identified the opportunity to bring in Richard Raw and the Word Warrior Band to amplify Black excellence. This format supports the Museum’s mission, creates a new partnership between Freire and DelArt, and aligns with Richard Raw’s artistic practice.

"Freire Schools is thrilled to be extending the reach of our annual event honoring Black History Month by partnering with the Delaware Art Museum," said Freire Charter Wilmington Co-Head of School Nate Durant, "Every day we are preparing our students for college and beyond, and that happens both inside and outside of the classroom. When students are afforded opportunities like this Blackout Experience to elevate their voice, celebrate their history, and join with their community to advocate for what they believe in, it is transformative, not just for our school but for our whole community. We look forward to welcoming Richard Raw and the Word Warrior Band and celebrating the many "Shades of Excellence" that shine daily at Freire Wilmington and in our city.”

Tickets for this show are $15 and can be purchased at www.delart.org.

Apply to the Boysie Lowery Living Jazz Residency

Post content from a press release from Light Up the Queen Foundation...

A friendly reminder that Light Up the Queen will be accepting applications for the Boysie Lowery Living Jazz Residency through Sunday, April 7, 2019 until 11:59pm (EST). 

If someone you know is a jazz composer/performer between the ages of 17-25, this is for them. The Boysie Lowery Living Jazz Residency is designed to give participants an intense learning experience that will help them find their sound, mature as a musician, and make lasting connections with like-minded peers.

The residency program will include numerous performance opportunities, with a final concert to be formed on June 23 — the last day of the program — at 3:00pm at The Queen Theater in downtown Wilmington.

This year's residency will be from June 9-23, 2019 and is fully subsidized, meaning housing and meals are included. Want to learn more about the program and apply?

Visit https://lightupthequeen.org/boysie-lowery-living-jazz-residency/.

Ladybug Festival Expands Its Wings for 7th Year in Wilmo

Delaware-based R&B singer Nadjah Nicole performs at Ladybug in 2017.
Photo courtesy of Gable Music Ventures. 

This post content comes from a press release from Gable Music Ventures...
The annual Ladybug Festival, presented by Chase, has announced dates for its 7th consecutive year. Noted as the largest of its kind in the U.S., the two-day block party-style music festival will take place July 20-21, 2018 and feature over 75 acts, including emerging and established women artists.

“A number of studies show that female-fronted acts account for a little more than ten percent of festival lineups across the country. We are proud to present a lineup that celebrates and welcomes dynamic women-identified musicians,” said Gayle Dillman, founder of Gable Music Ventures and co-creator of The Ladybug Festival. “As a woman-owned business, our vision is to not only play a prominent role in the development of independent artists, but also to continue our work as a disrupter of the status quo and create a more inclusive culture.”

The Ladybug Festival was co-created by Gayle Dillman and Jeremy Hebbel of Gable Music Ventures as a response to the lack of representation for women-identified artists on festival stages in the region and across the country. Since its inception seven years ago, Ladybug has staged over 300 solo artists and bands for the annual celebration of women in music. The stage has previously seen notable acts such as Caroline Rose, Larkin Poe and Grammy-nominated Mary Lambert.

An addition this year, the event will be utilizing the historic Queen Theater, a Live Nation venue in the heart of downtown Wilmington. “As a woman working within a heavily male-dominated music industry, I really gravitated toward the concept of Ladybug and the goals that Gable Music Ventures set out to accomplish many years ago,” said Christianna Labuz of Live Nation. “I love that their mission rings true not only on stage but at front of house as well; Gayle and Jeremy hire the best female sound engineers and production staff to make sure the musicians sound their very best. Ladybug is always one of my favorite summertime events in Wilmington, and I couldn’t be more excited for The Queen to be involved this year and for many years to come.”

The first Ladybug Festival was attended by an audience of approximately 300. Since that time, the festival has witnessed tremendous growth, greeting approximately 10,000 attendees last year in downtown Wilmington. The 2018 Ladybug Festival will mark Chase’s second year as the presenting sponsor. The bank’s downtown Wilmington campus, where over 3,000 employees work, is just steps from the site of the event.

“We see this event as a great opportunity to bring vitality to the downtown Wilmington community which we’re part of and support a local business that celebrates women and their artistry,” said Kathy Witsil, managing director at Chase. “We’re truly proud to be a part of this festival and watch it grow.”

Additional information about the festival can be found online at theladybugfestival.com. Founded in 2011, The Ladybug Festival is the largest female fronted music festival on the country that takes place annually in Wilmington, Delaware. Each year, thousands come from all gender and cultures, cutting across age and socioeconomic boundaries, to join in this celebration of women and their contribution to music.

Get Ready! Hot Breakfast! has a Full-Length Album!

With two Homey Awards for their self-produced, self-titled EP (one for the EP itself and one for lead singer Jill Knapp), the first full-length album from Hot Breakfast!, 39 Summers, is highly anticipated, and has a lot of expectations to meet. The album, which officially drops on Saturday May 18 with a release party concert at World Cafe Live at the Queen (featuring special guests The Honey Badgers and The Joe Trainor Trio), continues their "Acoustic Dork-Rock Power Duo" tradition, with help from producer Ritchie Rubini and engineer Ray Gagliardino. The result is clean, tight, and catchy, with a superfun mix of song types.

If you're tempted to write Hot Breakfast! off as a novelty act (not that there's anything wrong with that), don't. Knapp, who also plays percussion, and Guitarist/vocalist Matt Casarino are skilled musicians and songwriters who excel at playful upbeat songs (think "oh-oh"-laden '60s bubblegum -- the real stuff that gave birth to melodic punk rock) and stripped down acoustic story ballads. The silly songs are there, but there's a layer of cleverness and complexity that raises them above sheer novelty.

39 Summers kicks off with the title track, with a frothy pop sound that contradicts (and enhances) its beaten-down lyrics, and right away you know this isn't simple goofball rock 'n roll. There's the acoustic-folk-meets-hard rock "Defender," the self-deprecating retro-rock "I Am Not Cool," the clever "Hole in Your Pants," which sounds a bit like a Renaissance Faire folk song, but is about, well, a literal  hole in your pants. There's even some electronica in "Maybe You Saw it Too." The dozen songs weave together flawlessly, with a balance of styles and sounds, Knapp's clear, versatile vocals taking center stage throughout.

You can pick up a copy of 39 Summers at the release party (get your tickets online at http://queentickets.worldcafelive.com or call (302) 994-1400). For more information on buying the album, check out hot-breakfast.com.

Pick of the August Art Loop

Two DE Arts Info bloggers, Margaret Darby and Holly Quinn, hit the Loop this month:

Holly says: If you follow local music in Delaware (or if you follow this blog regularly), no doubt you've seen David Norbut's work. This month, Poppcock Tattoo at 115 W 8th Street in Wilmington hosts a selection of his photography, with a focus on his Western series of landscapes, nature and portraiture -- with a couple of his stunning live band photos in the mix, as well as a video incorporating a larger selection of photos. Norbut has a great eye in any location, not least of all the sweeping, sometimes weathered beauty of the American West, leaving me wanting more.

While Poppycock was hopping, people wall-to-wall, The Chris White Gallery at Shipley Lofts was considerably more quiet. The work in Anti-Subliminal, a group show featuring multimedia work by artists including Jesse Jynch, John Durandetta, Herman V. Brandt, Bresnow, and Brandon Cash, brought together illustration, photoshop and graffiti art, with an installation piece by 3EYES highlighting the show. 

Yakime Brown

Margaret Says: Holly’s venture into Poppycock Tattoo to see David Norbut’s photography and wanting more made me conscious of Michelle’s admonition that we should find some new venues….which I tried to do.  I started on Lower Market to see what the LOMA Coffee House was doing – a few works by Catherine Mulrooney were all I could see from the street and earsplitting music coming out of an electric guitar and enhanced by the guitarist’s plananx of bass pedals.  Didn’t dare enter as I didn’t have my earplugs on me, but it was obviously happening.  Went to Dimensions and Co. by Ace to see a few Underground Comixxx by Jabar Brown, who was by himself eating pizza out of a box and chatting on his cell phone….Venture Creative Marketing Group was firmly closed – unlike the framer next door who tried to call to find out if Venture was going to open later.  But it was all happening at 919 Market, so it was worth hiking up the hill – hearing more earsplitting music from the Queen (holding my ears even a full block away where we encountered a hip guy asking us where the music was coming from)….and walking into 919 to find a great party going on!  A big cake, lots of snacks and lively art by Yakime Brown – a friendly guy in a porkpie hat who strode right up to say hello.  It was fun telling him which pieces I liked best and hearing how he felt about those same pieces.  His textures are shiny, acrylic paint for the most part – either done in an explosive circle, seemingly shot from a cannon or made into flowerlike petals with his palette knife.  Yakime Brown also has a considerable variety – with some pieces of staid stripes in a flat mode.  Originally from Brooklyn, Brown has been living in Bear for the past few years and has quite a following.  AND it seems that the new curator of 919 is ready for things to hop.

And, there was new life in the DCCA with the completion of the Movable Feast project by interns  Jung-A Woo and Hoyun Sun.  When I arrived, teenagers from the Latin American Community Center and their teachers were buzzing around outdoor tables cooking on hotplates to show what they had learned about food and culture .  Woo and Sun had a film loop explaining the project and the kids photographs and art were displayed in the DCCA lobby.  But the real fun was watching the poise and pride of the kids as they prepared and served foods they had learned about during the six-week project. 

My conclusion is that you can always find new surprises in the Art Loop.  Can’t wait for the next one because, like Holly, it left me wanting more.