Tag: Dance

Global Connections — Telephone Inspires Artists to Interpret Creative Works Across Different Media

Nathan Langston, founder and director of Telephone. Photo taken from Telephone’s website.

In 2010, Nathan Langston craved connection after moving to New York City.

The poet-composer wanted to meet other artists and developed an art project called Telephone, which is inspired by the children’s game of the same name.

“The game seemed like a sneaky way to meet other artists,” said Langston, founder and director of Telephone. “It took a long time, but it worked! At first, I was physically taking work from artist to artist around the city on the subway, but that took too long.”

Instead, Langston and other artists started sharing their creative works online for Telephone.

“We began passing works via the internet, which vastly increased the pool size of possible players,” said Langton, who’s now based in Seattle.

“The other thing we did was to assign each finished work to two or three artists, rather than one. That meant that the game branched outward like a family tree, and if any one artist dropped out, the game could continue expanding.”

To participate, artists sign up through the Telephone website, receive an anonymous piece of artwork from another creative to interpret, and then have two weeks to create their artistic response in a different medium. Continue reading “Global Connections — Telephone Inspires Artists to Interpret Creative Works Across Different Media” →

Living the Dream — Jennifer Hudson-Prenkert Builds Community Through Kalamazoo’s Sounds of the Zoo Music Festival

Jennifer Hudson-Prenkert, founder, curator, and director of Sounds of the Zoo. Courtesy photo.

When it comes to curating a music festival, Jennifer Hudson-Prenkert looks to Willie Nelson.

She remembers watching Nelson and other artists perform during Farm Aid when it aired on TV while she was growing up.

“I never went to it, but somehow, through the TV, it made me feel like there were legitimate people running it,” said Hudson-Prenkert, who’s based in Kalamazoo and is the founder, curator, and director of the Sounds of the Zoo music festival.

“There was something different about Farm Aid from a regular trying-to-make-money music festival. Obviously, we know it’s for farming, but it’s about quality. You get good artists to come in, and the artists want to be there.”

She took that inspiration and ran with it for planning, organizing, and spearheading the inaugural Sounds of the Zoo festival in 2022. The festival was the perfect antidote for reinvigorating local live music coming out of the pandemic.

“I feel like the Farm Aid mentality, to me, was given a mission and had the right people in play. It was the curated invite and not the mentality of saying, ‘You’re not worthy,’” Hudson-Prenkert said.

What resulted is a free-admission festival filled with 50-plus acts performing at eight locations over a week. It also includes music industry workshops and documentary screenings.

“I have different genres of music, and this is a community,” Hudson-Prenkert said. “It’s a mission-driven music festival, so it means all things.”

Hudson-Prenkert is gearing up for the fourth Sounds of the Zoo festival, which runs September 22-28, and features performances from Hannah Laine, Super Dre, Jordan Hamilton, Luke Winslow-King, Louie Lee, Jennifer Westwood and The Handsome Devils, Yolonda Lavender, The Go Rounds, and others.

There’s also a “Push the City Cypher” competition, the premiere of the Kalamazoo Gals documentary, busking stations, and workshops by Maggie Heeren and Chris Simpson.

To learn more, I recently spoke with Hudson-Prenkert about her background and the festival.

Continue reading “Living the Dream — Jennifer Hudson-Prenkert Builds Community Through Kalamazoo’s Sounds of the Zoo Music Festival” →

Out Loud — London Beck Tells Their Truth on “Vengeance Be Mine”

London Beck explores identity, growth, and heartbreak on Vengeance Be Mine. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared on the Ann Arbor District Library’s Pulp blog.

London Beck doesn’t hesitate to share what’s on their mind.

The singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer sings about reclaiming their power and undergoing a personal transformation on Vengeance Be Mine.

“When I started to put together this album, this was a way for me to say … I’ve gotten to a place where if [something] is really bothering me, I’m not going to keep that secret because I’m protecting somebody else,” said Beck about their latest album, which features infectious elements of R&B, soul, house, dance, and hip-hop.

“Someone very close to me said, ‘You’re going to worry yourself to death and then you’re going to pass away. And the things that are happening that are grieving you will continue to happen whether you’re here or not. So why are we going to hold that in and keep that in?’”

Beck followed that advice after recently experiencing an illness, a vocal cord injury, and the death of their grandmother. They channeled those struggles into 17 bold tracks about identity, growth, and heartbreak on Vengeance Be Mine. 

“It was me putting things out on the table. I am a fiery spirit, but if I want to get a message across, I will put it in my music. The people, if they have heard the music, whoever those songs are for, they now know I am no longer keeping secrets,” said Beck, who hails from Ann Arbor and is a past fellow with the Amplify Project, a partnership between Grove Studios and Leon Speakers to support African-American creativity in Washtenaw County.

“I am no longer putting up with anything. I have been through a lot, and I have worked hard to get to where I am—not just as an artist, but as an individual. I don’t intend on going back because I have a good sense of who I am, and I have a good sense of my purpose.”

I recently spoke with Beck about the album and the inspiration behind it.

Continue reading “Out Loud — London Beck Tells Their Truth on “Vengeance Be Mine”” →

The Soundcheck – Adam Liles, Bourgeoisie Paper Jam, Lilly MacPhee, Jeff Socia, Nicholas Arthur Powers

This month’s edition of “The Soundcheck” deciphers a range of relationships, whether they’re fleeting or everlasting. Some pull the “Ripcord” to break a scary free fall while others cherish “Every Heartbeat” and say a belated “Thank You for Breaking My Heart.” It also reveals the wisdom that comes with age and experience—I Know a Thing and Ronronner—and the potential for future growth.

Adam Liles, “Ripcord”

The Indigo Curve guitarist shares an instant headrush of emotion and energy on his debut solo single “Ripcord.” Produced by Anton Pastoria, the track’s swirling, indie-rock array of pounding drums, glistening electric guitar and humming bass propel Detroit’s Adam Liles into a brief infatuation until the “ripcord” of reality takes over. In raspy, reverb-filled vocals, he sings, “And I’m feeling it all / As far as feeling it goes / She came in like a star / Oh, but she left like a ghost.”

Liles also released a new video for “Ripcord,” which features him strumming a cream Fender Stratocaster on a pedestrian bridge at sunset over an interstate. He teamed up with Love Streams Films’ director Andrew Brumfield and Craigen Z Oster to film the introspective take on his single. Liles and Brumfield also collaborated on The Indigo Curve’s kaleidoscopic video for “But I Wanna Write Love Songs” last summer.

Continue reading “The Soundcheck – Adam Liles, Bourgeoisie Paper Jam, Lilly MacPhee, Jeff Socia, Nicholas Arthur Powers” →