LIVE EVENT CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY AND CULTURE TO TOUR THE MIDLANDS AS PART OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH

Midlands-based black arts and music organisation 2Funky Arts is working with a selection of 12 local artists from Black, African, & Caribbean ethnicities, as part of their And Still I Rise project. Each artist has been commissioned to create ground-breaking performance pieces across music and poetry, which reflect and celebrate the vibrancy of black history and culture.

Performance pieces will feature instinctive responses to themes surrounding Maya Angelou’s original poem (“Still I Rise”), black history (e.g. prejudice, liberation), cultural identities and/ or relevant personal experiences.

Artists will create new material with guidance from Carol Leeming MBE FRSA and Marcus Joseph, who will provide support as practitioners develop their pieces. Artists include Data, Jaya HadADream, Kupid the King, Davina SongBird, D’Vybrant, LVT, Mr Supreme, J Littles, Megs, SunSun, SPEN and Lickle Jay.

The showcase event featuring these up-and-coming Midland creatives will tour Leicester, Nottingham, Derby, and Birmingham, as part of Black History Month 2023. Tickets: £5 via www.skiddle.com

Tour Dates:

Baby People, Derby – 6th October
Centrala, Birmingham – 13th October
Can’t Stop Won’t Stop, Nottingham – 20th October
2Funky Music Cafe, Leicester – 27th October
2Funky Art’s Director Vijay Mistry commented: “And Still I Rise is an important project, helping to celebrate the rich history of Black culture by providing a platform for hidden stories. This showcase represents an opportunity for emerging artists to express their voices through powerful art forms such as music and poetry”.