THE NATIONAL BLACK WRITERS CONFERENCE PRESENTS
GIL SCOTT-HERON, TALIB KWELI, & GARY BARTZ
Produced By Jill Newman Productions
FRIDAY, MARCH 26, 2010 @ Littlefield, Brooklyn
BROOKLYN, NY, March 9, 2010 – Join Gil Scott-Heron, Talib Kweli and Gary Bartz at a concert in celebration of the 10th National Black Writers Conference (NBWC), presented by Medgar Evers College – CUNY, on Friday, March 26, at 8:30 pm at Littlefield, 622 Degraw Street (between Third & Fourth avenues) in Brooklyn. The concert is produced by Jill Newman Productions.
Poet, musician and activist, Gil Scott-Heron is primarily known for his work in the late 1960s and 1970s as a spoken word performer. In some circles, he is known as a griot who represents both a father of hip hop and a prelude to hip hop. Gil, who combines poetry with rhythm and blues, jazz, and funk and raises political and social issues, has received much critical acclaim for one of his most well-known compositions “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.” Collaborating with the politically and socially conscious hip hop artist Talib Kweli, who brings a sense of spirituality and moral balance to hip hop, is a natural alliance and collaboration for this electrifying team of artists activists. And when you bring in award-winning jazz saxophonist, Gary Bartz, this intergenerational collaboration signifies an historic moment in time.
Gary Bartz sums up the stance of this intergenerational group of musician writers when he states, “After all, music doesn’t belong to any one person. It belongs to the people, to everybody.” The music of Gil Scott-Heron, Talib Kweli and Gary Bartz embodies these words, for these artists create music that belongs to the global village and that speaks to the soul, heart and spirit of people.
It is appropriate that this concert occur in conjunction with the 10th National Black Writers’ Conference (NBWC) at Medgar Evers College. The Conference, a program of the Center for Black Literature, will be held from March 25 – 28, 2010 at the College. Celebrating more than 25 years of history since its inception in 1986 under the visionary leadership of John Oliver Killens, the Conference assembles some of the brightest minds and finest pens in literature. The theme, “And Then We Heard the Thunder: Black Writers Reconstructing Memories and Lighting the Way,” is symbolic of both the work and life of Toni Morrison and of the collaboration between Gil Scott-Heron, Talib Kweli and Gary Bartz. Gil, Talib and Gary draw from the past and symbolize a dynamic group of artists who are charting trends and shaping the future of music and the spoken word.
There will be more than 80 Black writers, literary agents, and editors from throughout America, the Caribbean, Europe and Africa at the conference. Writers and conference participants will examine the historical representation of the literature of Black writers and the representation of new and future directions for contemporary and emerging literary voices.
With Toni Morrison as the Honorary Chair, the National Black Writers’ Conference will also honor Amiri Baraka, Kamau Brathwaite and Dr. Edison O. Jackson. Conference participants from the NBWC have included a stellar list of participants and honorees, including Cornel West, Susan L. Taylor, Randall Robinson, Marita Golden, Sonia Sanchez, and Terry McMillan. This year’s conference attendees can again look forward to panels, readings, and workshops with highly regarded authors Chris Abani, Herb Boyd, L. A. Banks, Carol Boyce Davies, Kamau Brathwaite, Staceyann Chin, Breena Clarke, Edwidge Danticat, Bernice McFadden, Tayari Jones, Willie Perdomo, Dolen Perkins-Valdez, Kevin Powell, Sonia Sanchez, Colson Whitehead, Frank Wilderson III, and Jewel Parker Rhodes, among others.
INFORMATION:
Gil Scott-Heron,Talib Kweli & Gary Bartz in concert
Friday, March 26th, 2010
Littlefield: 622 Degraw Street ( between 3 & 4 Ave), Brooklyn
Doors 8:30pm; 9:30 Concert
21 and Over
Tickets:
$25 Advance; $30 at the Door Advance tix suggested!
http://www.ticketfly.com/purchase/event/6111
(718) 855-3388
Further Info on the concert, contact: Jill Newman Productions
www.jillnewmanproductions.com
(917) 561-6056 any time; (917) 639-4299, Office; e-mail: meszmusic@hotmail.com
For more information about the conference, visit
The 10th National Black Writers’ Conference
Toni Morrison Nobel Prize Winning Author, Honorary Chair
Thursday, March 25, 2010 – Sunday, March 28, 2010
www.nationalblackwritersconference.org or call (718) 270-4811
Tune into Writers on Writing Sundays, 7:00 – 7:30 pm on WNYE/91.5FM
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