Thank You! | Street Music for Street Kids

Billy Johnson. photo | Steve Floyd

The Street Music for Street Kids event on Thursday, August 20th was an amazing success. The one-night street music festival that was scheduled to be held outside at Peavey Plaza had to be moved inside due to substantial rain. The fantastic staff at Hell’s Kitchen were overly gracious in welcoming the entire event onto their stage and the large crowd into their seats. People were standing in the aisles, crowding booths, and sitting on any patch of space they could find on seats or on the stairs. The mass of people that braved the weather were rewarded with show like no other. Twelve great local bands put aside their amplifiers and electronics and played back-to-back sets of beautiful acoustic music. The event raised nearly $5000 in one night for a school helping to educate street kids in Jakarta, Indonesia.


Mark Murphy from Wookiefoot. photo | Steve Floyd

We at NEED are extremely grateful for the relentless support of so many who helped us put this event together from the city of Minneapolis, Peavey Plaza, Hell’s Kitchen, Lisa Walker and the film crew, and all the musicians who came out in support of street kids.

We have many more photos and video to come!


Sounds of Blackness. photo | Steve Floyd

If you can, go out and support these local musicians at their next shows here in the Twin Cities.

Sounds of Blackness – CD Release Party at the Mall of America Rotunda. Tuesday , August 25 6:30 pm Free and open to the public

Aby Wolf – Late Night at Barbette. Monday, August 31, 10:00 pm

Hyland – Benefit show at The Crossing. Saturday, August 29, 7:15 pm

Enchanted Ape – Downtime Bar. Friday, August 28, 9:30 pm. $5 cover

Billy Johnson – Crave. Thursday, August 27, 8:00 pm & – JJ’s Dry Dock Friday, August 28, 5:00

The Get-Rites – Acadia Café. Friday, September 12, 9:00 pm

Ada Jane – University of Duluth. Tuesday, November 17, 9:30 pm

Wookiefoot – Harvest Fest. Friday, September 11-Saturday, September 12

Sounds of Blackness: Inspire and Deliver

Sounds of Blackness have been making music since the early 1970s. They have performed on the world’s largest stages, including the opening ceremonies for the 1994 World Cup and the 1996 Summer Olympics. They have sold millions of records, won three Grammys, and been nominated for awards ranging from The Emmys to the NAACP Image Awards. Sounds of Blackness are more than a band, they are a movement. With melodic melodies they draw upon genres of jazz, gospel and field hollers to celebrate African and African American culture. Becoming a voice for both comfort and inspiration, they speak to the problems of the world, and uplift their audiences with messages of hope and acts of service.

Building upon this foundation, Sounds of Blackness are ready to release their new album “The 3rd Gift: Story, Song & Spirit.” Their CD release celebration, free and open to the public, will be held on Tuesday, August 25 at 6:30 pm at the Mall of America rotunda. Recently I got a chance to speak with the band’s music director and producer, Gary D. Hines. He explained that the title of their new album comes from the prolific civil rights activist W.E.B DuBois, who “pointed out the countless contributions that people of African descent have made to the world and American culture, a notion that at the time was largely dismissed. But in addition to all of those things [DuBois] said, we have brought our three greatest gifts, the gifts of story, song and spirit.” A clear example of how Sounds of Blackness stays cognizant of the past while keeping an eye on the future.