• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • HOME
  • NEWS+OPINIONS
    • NEWS TO US
    • COLUMNS
      • APPARENT HORIZON
      • DEAR READER
      • Close
    • LONGFORM FEATURES
    • OPINIONS
    • EDITORIAL
    • Close
  • ARTS+ENTERTAINMENT
    • FILM
    • MUSIC
    • COMEDY
    • PERFORMING ARTS
    • VISUAL ARTS
    • Close
  • DINING+DRINKING
    • EATS
    • SIPS
    • Close
  • LIFESTYLE
    • CANNABIS
      • TALKING JOINTS MEMO
      • Close
    • WELLNESS
    • GTFO
    • Close
  • STUFF TO DO
  • TICKETS
  • ABOUT US
    • 5 DOUBLE-U’S
    • MASTHEAD
    • DISTRIBUTION
    • ADVERTISE
    • SUBMISSIONS
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • Close
  • BECOME A MEMBER

Dig Bos

The Dig - Boston's Only Newspaper

READ CURRENT STREET ISSUE

DIG Year End 2020

SOUL OF THE CITY

Written by SOPHIA GUERRIER Posted June 21, 2019 Filed Under: A+E, MUSIC, Performing Arts, Poetry

 

BAMS Fest returns for a second year with new twists and attractions

 

In its sophomore year, the Boston Arts and Music Soul Festival is returning with the same core mission as last summer: to celebrate the rich culture of black artists and arts in our community. Some of the general info is also familiar—for starters, it will go down at historic Franklin Park.

 

Start digging through the details, though, and you will find a seriously unique experience, one that builds on 2018’s breakout and then some.   

 

This year’s BAMS Fest takes place on Saturday, June 22, and runs from noon to dusk, which provides plenty of time to experience the visual and musical showcases offered, as well as other experiences like workshop on Afro-Brazilian and African dance. As a main attraction, an all-minority lineup of 19 artists and musicians, hailing largely from Boston but also from around the country, will hold down two stages. Headlining is Grammy-nominated R&B singer Eric Roberson, while rising hip-hop talents such as Cliff Notez, Red Shaydez, and Luke Bar$ will show out alongside vocalist Aleecya and others. Bringing a dance vibe, Brazilian dance group SambaViva will perform, as will a variety of afrobeat, funk, jazz, and soul artists.

 

Earlier this year, BAMS announced its partnership with Berklee College of Music after the school shuttered its annual Beantown Jazz Festival after 12 years. Terri Lyne Carrington, the artistic director of the Berklee Institute for Jazz and Gender Justice, came on as a co-curator for BAMS Fest, and played a key role in selecting artists from in excess of 2,000 applications.

 

“It’s one thing to play at a club, but it’s different to have a festival experience,” said Carrington, “It’s competitive. … It makes you step up your game when you’ve been chosen.”

 

Beyond the music, BAMS will bring a “social justice, art themed” exhibition featuring upcoming New England painters and graffiti artists arranged by Rob “Problak” Gibbs, a coordinator of art and dance for BAMS Fest. Furthermore, the vast affair has added a BYOG space, as in Bring Your Own Game. Attendees will be able to not only enjoy entertainment all around them but can also make their sister draw four in a more organized setup than last year.

 

“People wanted to bring their own dominos, spades, and Connect Four games and just sit and watch the festival,” said Catherine Morris, founder and executive director of BAMS Fest. “So we just created a whole area where they could do that.”

 

In addition to the festival itself, which is free and open to the public, there will be a vendor market full of food trucks and creative entrepreneurs. Local minority-owned businesses of various types will be there for visitors to spend their cash, making for a marketplace aimed to aid the growth of businessmen and women in the community.

 

In speaking with the Dig, Morris emphasized the importance of including these minority-owned enterprises. BAMS Fest, she said, will “give them an opportunity to benefit from visitor traffic.” “A lot of those dollars are concentrated downtown,” she said, “so a lot of people don’t … notice or acknowledge that there are people of color here.”

 

After attracting a crowd of more than 2,000 in the rain last year, this year it’s projected that between 6,000 and 10,000 heads will rally to the cultural mecca on Saturday.

 

“I think that [BAMS Fest is] another statement amongst a lot of the statements that are being made, and collectively showing Boston is deserving of a lot more respect than it has gotten musically for marginalized voices and people of color,” Cliff Notez said.

 

BAMS FEST. SAT 6.22 AT FRANKLIN PARK, NOON TO DUSK. FREE. MORE INFO AT BAMSFEST.ORG.

SOPHIA GUERRIER
More from author
  • SOPHIA GUERRIER
    https://digboston.com/author/sophia-guerrier/
    THE BRIDGESIDE CYPHER, WHICH TAKES OVER CENTRAL SQUARE ONCE A MONTH, IS MORE THAN A RAP BATTLE
  • SOPHIA GUERRIER
    https://digboston.com/author/sophia-guerrier/
    WHY THE WILD THINGS ARE: CLIFF NOTEZ RETURNS FROM HIS LATEST CREATIVE JOURNEY WITH A NEW LENS ON LIFE
  • SOPHIA GUERRIER
    https://digboston.com/author/sophia-guerrier/
    IAN KARMEL: FOR 'LATE LATE SHOW' HEAD WRITER, COMEDY LIFE IS A FANTASY COME TRUE
  • SOPHIA GUERRIER
    https://digboston.com/author/sophia-guerrier/
    SUMMER CYCLES: TRAIL REMIX

Filed Under: A+E, MUSIC, Performing Arts, Poetry Tagged With: BAMS Fest, Beantown Jazz Festival, Berklee College Of Music, Catherine Morris, Cliff Notez, Dorchester, Eric Roberson, Franklin Park, Luke Bar$, MIT, Music, Red Shaydez, Roxbury

WHAT’S NEW

Harry Brill. Photo courtesy of Gary Zabel.

RADICAL AND RELEVANT: THE LIFE OF HARRY BRILL

Aerial View Parkman Bandstand at Boston Common. CC BY-SA 4.0 2017 by AbhiSuryawanshi.

NO HONEYMOON FOR BIDEN: 1/20 PROTEST ON BOSTON COMMON, 4 PM

IT'S HARDER THAN EVER TO FIND A BATHROOM IN BOSTON. WHAT'S THE CITY DOING ABOUT IT?

IT’S HARDER THAN EVER TO FIND A BATHROOM IN BOSTON. WHAT’S THE CITY DOING ABOUT IT?

ON NATIONAL DAY OF ACTION, PROTESTERS CALL FOR EVICTION MORATORIUM

ON NATIONAL DAY OF ACTION, PROTESTERS CALL FOR EVICTION MORATORIUM

WU AND CAMPBELL TO SPEAK AT MAYORAL CANDIDATE WEBINAR

WU AND CAMPBELL TO SPEAK AT MAYORAL CANDIDATE WEBINAR

Hard right wingers casually tour the Capitol during last week's attack. Via C-SPAN.

HOW TO DEFEAT THE HARD RIGHT

Primary Sidebar

HEMPIRE FREEDOM PACK 25% OFF

FEATURED EVENT

Most Popular

  • APPOINTED SOMERVILLE OFFICIAL SPURS OUTRAGE WITH TWEETS FROM DC MOB SCENE by MARC LEVY
  • Aerial View Parkman Bandstand at Boston Common. CC BY-SA 4.0 2017 by AbhiSuryawanshi. NO HONEYMOON FOR BIDEN: 1/20 PROTEST ON BOSTON COMMON, 4 PM by MATTHEW ANDREWS
  • VIDEO: COP WHO BRAGGED THAT HE HIT PROTESTERS SHOWS HOW BAD APPLES THRIVE IN BOSTON by CHRIS FARAONE
  • STATE LOOKS TO SPEND $75K TO PREVENT FUTURE STORROWINGS by DAN ATKINSON
  • IT’S HARDER THAN EVER TO FIND A BATHROOM IN BOSTON. WHAT’S THE CITY DOING ABOUT IT? by ZACK HUFFMAN

READ CURRENT MEMBER EDITION

DIG Member 1.9 – 11/26/20

READ CURRENT STREET ISSUE

DIG Year End 2020

Footer

digbos

RADICAL AND RELEVANT: THE LIFE OF HARRY BRILL http RADICAL AND RELEVANT: THE LIFE OF HARRY BRILL https://digboston.com/radical-and-relevant-the-life-of-harry-brill/ #obituary #organizer #radical #sociologist #democracy #politics @UMassBoston @BklynCollege411 @UCBerkeley #Boston #Massachusetts #NewYorkCity #Berkeley #California
NO HONEYMOON FOR BIDEN: 1/20 #PROTEST ON BOSTON CO NO HONEYMOON FOR BIDEN: 1/20 #PROTEST ON BOSTON COMMON, 4 PM https://digboston.com/no-honeymoon-for-biden-1-20-protest-on-boston-common-4-pm/ #opinion #progressive #left #action #inauguration #Boston #Massachusetts
Light and sweet and hoppy, we’re loving this lat Light and sweet and hoppy, we’re loving this latest incarnation of a #beer that’s been in the making for months. https://digboston.com/video-jacks-abby-x-boston-celtics-pride-and-parquet-hoppy-lager-unboxing-tasting/ #fun #video #review #Boston #Massachusetts
Jostling for position and influence are the disadv Jostling for position and influence are the disadvantaged candidates, existing industry participants, and municipalities … https://digboston.com/the-road-to-home-delivery-pt-5-dogs-in-the-fight-identifying-the-players/ #cannabis #politics #analysis #Massachusetts
The candidates will be interviewed about the upcom The candidates will be interviewed about the upcoming race. https://digboston.com/wu-and-campbell-to-speak-at-mayoral-candidate-webinar/ #politics #mayor #campaign #Boston #Massachusetts
Participants took to the streets in the hope of sw Participants took to the streets in the hope of swaying the Biden administration. https://digboston.com/on-national-day-of-action-protesters-call-for-eviction-moratorium/ #housing #justice #protest #national #Boston #Massachusetts
“They refuse to respond to this humanitarian cri “They refuse to respond to this humanitarian crisis where people really need them. We’re just ignoring this problem and it’s getting worse and worse.” https://digboston.com/its-harder-than-ever-to-find-a-bathroom-in-boston-whats-the-city-doing-about-it/ #politics #unhoused #homeless #bathroom #public #health #Boston #Massachusetts
Environmental #justice and #climate change advocat Environmental #justice and #climate change advocates are pushing for its passage. https://digboston.com/baker-urged-to-sign-game-changing-climate-bill/ #environment #globalwarming #legislation #politics #Massachusetts
In short, it’s amazing. For details, check the # In short, it’s amazing. For details, check the #video … https://digboston.com/video-night-shifts-tea-party-is-subtle-love-for-people-who-hate-most-hard-teas/ #review #fun #beer @NightShiftBeer
HOW TO DEFEAT THE HARD RIGHT: Some thoughts on the HOW TO DEFEAT THE HARD RIGHT: Some thoughts on the Capitol attack and building a more democratic nation. The latest from DigBoston's @jasonpramas. https://digboston.com/how-to-defeat-the-hard-right/ #democracy #politics #Capitol #US #America #attack #Biden #Trump #grassroots #movement #analysis #strategy #MAGA
Load More... Follow on Instagram
Social Buttons

DigBoston facebook DigBoston Twitter DigBoston Instagram

Masthead

About

Submissions

Advertise

Privacy Policy

Customer Service

Distribution

About Us

DigBoston is a one-stop nexus for everything worth doing or knowing in the Boston area. It's an alt-weekly, it's a website, it's an e-mail blast, it's a twitter account, it's that cool party that you were at last night ... hey, you're reading it, so it's gotta be good. For advertising inquiries: [email protected] To reach Editorial: [email protected] For internship opportunities: [email protected]