Deep Roots Many Voices Symposium
VIRTUAL SYMPOSIUM: Deep Roots, Many Voices
Join us for a lively discussion with musicians and industry leaders during an online symposium on Thursday, April 21, 2 to 4 p.m., EDT.
This symposium is part of a project by the Blue Ridge Music Center exploring issues in diversity and inclusion in roots-based music, and follows the release of five video discussions with musicians from under-represented groups discussion issues related to their ethnicity, race, gender, or sexual identity and how it has influenced their musical careers. These videos were released throughout March and April this year.
The symposium will focus on strategies to increase diversity on stage, in the audience, and in the organization. The discussion panel will be made up of performers, event producers, and music organizations.
Amy Reitnouer will kick off the event with a keynote address. Reitnouer is President of Folk Alliance International, and is co-founder and Executive Director of The Bluegrass Situation, an online publication that has become an advocate for change, diversity, and representation within the broader music community
PANELISTS:
Atiba Berkley (President of Piedmont Blues Preservation Society)
Michelle Conceison (owner and Artist Manger at Mmgt, Chair of IBMA’s Task Force on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion)
Dom Flemons (Musician singer, songwriter, historian, and advocate of issues related to diversity and inclusion in music)
Charly Lowry (Musician, singer-songwriter, and advocate for issues related to Indigenous Peoples)
Joe Seamons (Co-founder and Director of The Rhapsody Project, an organization that addresses racism and promotes cultural equity through music)
Kamara Thomas (Singer, founding member of the Country Soul Songbook, an organization focused on amplifying historically marginalized voices in country, Americana and roots music)
Brandi Waller-Pace (Founder and Executive Director of Decolonizing the Music Room and organizer of the Fort Worth African American Roots Music Festival)
Conference Schedule (all times are EDT)
2:00Â Â Welcome remarks
2:05Â Â Keynote address (Amy Reitnouer)
2:20Â Â Excerpts from the interview series
2:30Â Â Panel Discussion
3:45Â Â Q&A
4:00Â Â Wrap-up and closing remarks
If you can’t attend at the designated time, go ahead and sign up. We’ll send you a link to a recording of the symposium after it’s posted so you can watch it at your convenience.
To ensure that this symposium is open to everyone, it is being offered free of charge. The registration link will take you to a Zoom registration page where you will receive your link for the webinar.
Deep Roots, Many Voices is partially funded by our sponsors. If you would like to make a donation to support this program, click here, or text MUSIC to (833) 705-1234. All participants are being compensated for their participation in the conference and your donation will help to offset the participant fees.
Speaker Bios
Amy Reitnouer Jacobs is President of Folk Alliance International. She co-founded The Bluegrass Situation (BGS) in 2012 with actor/comedian/producer Ed Helms, and serves as the Executive Director. BGS has become an advocate for change, diversity, and representation within the broader music community.
Atiba Berkley is President of the Piedmont Blues Preservation Society, and audio engineer, and was on the National Folk Festival Programming Advisory Committee for the Greensboro event.
Michelle Conceison is owner and Artist Manager at Market Monkeys, a faculty member Middle Tennessee State, Chair of IBMA’s Task Force on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Co-Chair of the Nashville Chapter of Women In Music, and is Programming Manager for Folk Alliance International, an organization for which she served on the board for 9 years and is a past-President.
Dom Flemons is an American old-time music, Piedmont blues, and neotraditional country multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and historian. He is a proficient player of the banjo, fife, guitar, harmonica, percussion, quills, and rhythm bones.
Charly Lowry is a singer-songwriter and musician from Robeson County, North Carolina with Native American roots. She leads the all-Indigenous band Dark Water Rising, and sings and plays hand-drum with Ulali, an all women singing group. Charly has developed a reputation as an ambassador for her People, the Lumbee, descendants of the Tuscarora of NC.
Joe Seamons is Director of the Rhapsody Project, an organization he co-founded with Ben Hunter in 2013 to address racism and promote cultural equity. He works with youth in Seattle to explore the influence of regional and personal history through the lens of American blues and folk songs. He serves as board chair of the Maxville Heritage Interpretive Center.
Kamara Thomas is a singer, songspeller, mythology fanatic, multidisciplinary storyteller, director, and community organizer based in Durham, NC. She works with Country Soul Songbook, an artist-driven and -focused media platform and production team that spotlights performances, interviews, in-depth conversations and cultural offerings rooted in their mission to amplify historically marginalized voices (BIPOC/LGBTQIA+) in country, Americana and roots music.
Brandi Waller-Pace is Founder and Executive Director of Decolonizing the Music Room and is on the board of directors of Folk Alliance International. She has helped to formulate curriculum standards for Texas’ first state-approved African American course. Brandi is an active musician and performs various styles, most often jazz and early American Roots music. She is the founder and organizer of the Fort Worth African American Roots Music Festival.Event Sponsors
