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Boston Globe
29-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
At BAMS Festival, the full spectrum of Black culture takes the stage
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up In the 'Beat Feet' dance tent, Stiggity Stackz offered breakdancing workshops, Boston Rhythm Riders demonstrated how to line dance to this year's Southern soul cookout staple 'Boots on the Ground,' and Chanel 'Ms.5678' Thompson taught guests how to move to Jamaican dancehall and Cape Verdean music. Advertisement Speaking after her session, Thompson said she aimed for an uplifting mix of music 'so that people felt joy, ultimate joy, that might be missing in these times that we're in.' It was also common to hear such sentiments from audience members. 'It's important for there to be hypervisibility of Black joy, because right now, I believe that a lot of politicians and even the media are profiting off of Black pain by sharing the worst of what we're going through right now,' said Melanie Wilkerson, 32, who was visiting from Brooklyn when her friends told her about the festival. 'We're going to liberate ourselves and find our joy in the process.' Advertisement Such a need especially exists in Boston, opined Ashé Brooks-Cook. The 42-year-old from Roxbury was at his fourth BAMS Festival. 'You look around, you see us, and there aren't many spaces and places where you see people that look like you, especially in mainstream Boston,' he said. 'So I love just being around my people, the atmosphere, the positivity, the music, the culture.' Hannah Betit (center) dances with others in front of the BAMS Festival stage. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff The festival offered inspiration from as far away as Africa — courtesy of a workshop by Afrobeats Dance Boston — and as nearby as the blocks surrounding Franklin Park. At the KidChella family stage, 21-year-old spoken word artist Val Lapree, who grew up in the neighborhood, read a piece called 'Wishful Thinking' that she wrote in the aftermath of the 2020 George Floyd murder. The poem was a sharp, critical look at the concept of 'Boston Strong.' Many of the local artists took advantage of their main stage performances to put together special presentations. Solari Blue into a high-energy revue. Likewise, Boston rap legend Advertisement Titi Ngwenya holds a carnation she bought at BAMS Festival while she listens to live music. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff R&B chanteuse Kasia Lavon had performed at a prior BAMS Festival as a background vocalist for rapper Red Shaydez. This year, she got to lead her own ensemble and highlight her powerful songwriting skills. Speaking after her set, Lavon said her band and singers had spent months planning and rehearsing every element of the set — including her bold red and pink outfit. 'It was important for us because this is home, and because so many people pour their hearts into this festival to honor Black culture,' said Lavon. Other local performers ranged from the dynamic precision of the recently formed dance crew The Peacekeepers. to the ultra-versatile Boston producer and artist Haasan Barclay, who leaned into his pop and hip-hop sides before strapping on his electric guitar for a blast of punk rock. Watching the crowds stream in after early afternoon sprinkles let up, BAMS Festival board chair While its Franklin Park presence shrank from two days to one this year, the festival expanded its reach with Advertisement Noah Schaffer can be reached at . Jeffrey Kelly can be reached at
Boston Globe
21-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
BAMS Festival expands through new events and continued ‘Momentum'
Toki Wright, BAMS Festival's community partnerships and programs manager, said the festival's organizers have always wanted to create an event like Essence Festival of Culture in New Orleans or South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, allowing them to bring together small businesses, creators, curators, and promoters from the area and spotlight their work. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'BAMS Fest has never been about self-aggrandizement,' Wright said. 'It's never been about 'look at me, look at us.' It's always about highlighting what's happening in the arts and culture sector, highlighting small businesses, highlighting community development.' Advertisement The series launches this Wednesday in Cambridge at The Sinclair with a local musician showcase called ' Other live music events in the series focus on DJs and producers; Thursday's 'She's in the Mix' gathering at The Record Company aims the spotlight at women DJs and producers through live DJ sets, mini music workshops, and panel discussions, while 'The Stew: Beat Showcase' at High Street Place will test music producers' skills on Sunday with a live beat-making contest. Advertisement Two parties also help Momentum ramp up for Saturday's festival: the karaoke and game-filled ' Play Playe Edition' on Thursday at the Emerson College UnCommon Stage, and Friday's 'Make 'Em Sweat: Kickoff Party' at the Boston nonprofit Artists For Humanity. Elle Varner at BAMS Festival 2024. KBarber Photography On Friday, the Museum of Fine Arts will show the film ' The screening tees up Little Brother to take the stage at BAMS Festival the following day at Franklin Park. R&B artist Lalah Hathaway and genre-blending singer-songwriter Durand Bernarr also lead this year's lineup as headliners, with Boston performers such as Kasia Lavon and Cole Rodriguez rounding out the afternoon. Folks looking to explore Momentum's non-music offerings can check out a fashion designer showcase on Thursday called Momentum ends at Boston City Hall on Monday with 'BAMS Fest Day,' which includes a screening of the documentary 'BAMS Festival: A Local Anomaly' and will be officiated by Mayor Michelle Wu. The film chronicles the festival's creation by founder Catherine T. Morris, as well as the events leading up to last year's edition of the event. Advertisement Wright said Momentum has allowed BAMS to further diversify their events and support artists, vendors, and programming in a way that previously wasn't possible due to factors like time constraints. 'We want to highlight this city,' he said. 'Specifically, we want to highlight these creators of color, and say, 'You are valid and important and you will survive, and there's an ecosystem here that will help you with your survival.'' Because Momentum takes place during Pride Month, and roughly a week after Juneteenth, Wright said he hopes BAMS Festival and its accompanying events will continuously demonstrate intersectionality and showcase how Black and brown people aren't monoliths. 'For us, it's about saying, 'We're not one thing. We're not one identity. We're multiple identities',' he said. 'We're also loving people. We are also embracing people. We are also innovators and creators. And we create safe spaces, and we create an environment where this is the possibility for us.' Wright's past experience has taught him that hosting a festival is like creating a city within a city. He said that with BAMS Festival, organizers are trying to create safe spaces for people to feel loved, be themselves, and have productive conversations about complex topics such as race and queerness. 'This is bigger than just the show,' Wright said. 'This is really building a world that we want to live in.' BOSTON ART & MUSIC SOUL FESTIVAL MOMENTUM EVENT SERIES Advertisement June 25-June 30. Single tickets for most Momentum events start at $10, while BAMS Festival is free. For more information, including events, locations, and times, go to
