Blanket Drive Concert

Join the Art + Literature Laboratory and local hip-hop artist Dequadray, on Sunday, March 31st, 2019 at 7pm, for a collaborative blanket drive concert. This impressive lineup of performing artists will feature Isha Camara (poetry), Jasmine Kiah (singing/spoken word), Quaan (hip-hop), and Mama's Boy (hip-hop).

This event will also include work from visual artists: Joi, Adjua Nsoroma, and Auzzie Dodson.

Admission for each attendee is a blanket, which will be donated to the local homeless shelter Porchlight.

Dequadray

Dequadray is a Hip-Hop and contemporary R&B artist hailing from Forest Park, Georgia. With the nostalgia of the 90s and a smooth, fresh voice, his lyrics touch on subjects of love, growth, and his experiences of being Black and Queer. Rapper and singer, Dequadray blends Hip-Hop with funk, soul, and gospel in an incredibly cohesive way. With his debut project, "Dequadray! A Black Sitcom", he invites you to the metaphorical set of his life and experiences that seem too odd to be true or the cameras must be rolling. Nevertheless, he does not take defeat as the end all be all; he continues to grow as everything around and within him tends to change. He most definitely is the artist to watch so make sure you don’t hop on the bandwagon too late.

Isha Camara

Isha Camara is a nineteen-year-old sophomore hailing from South Minneapolis. She’s been writing and preforming poetry since the age of thirteen, working and learning in youth programs and workshops. She was able to write a compilation of poems highlighting her life from birth to eighteen to create her first self-published chapbook, Selfish. Now with some creative writing courses under her belt, she’s been attempting to understand the world of professionally publishing poetry. Most subjects she writes about circle thoughts and experiences of her identity as a Black Muslim woman and the ways in which she navigates in America; then understanding how America responds back to her. Isha’s purpose is to give a narrative that create conversations driven by sympathy and encourage readers to be caring and gentle to a life not theirs and learn how there are beings with dreams, fears and desires outside of their way of living... Read More

Jasmine Kiah

Jasmine Kiah was born and raised in Portsmouth, Virginia. She is a proud scholar of First Wave representing the 10th cohort. Being raised in a religious household, she always challenged rules and ideas presented. She started challenging ideas with performing arts and poetry. By age 16 she was traveling around the country performing spoken word poetry on national stages. She has won many awards and performed on stages with the likes of Jagged edge, and opened for creator of HBO’s Insecure, Issa Rae. Jasmine is a triple threat, with singing, acting and dancing and poetry being at the forefront of her many talents. Jasmine aspires to continue to challenge and uproot a fearless spirit of blackness through her amazing gifts.

Quaan

Quaan is Hip-Hop artist, producer, and audio engineer from New Orleans, LA currently based in Madison, WI. With a sound that varies from hard-hitting, lyrical classics to melodious trap rhythms, the one thing ever present is Quaan’s content. Mixing various topics and moods, Quaan creates versatile performances and productions in a uniquely satisfying way.

Mama’s Boy

Mama’s Boy is an up and coming hip-hop artist from Washington D.C. After grooming himself into skilled poet, he worked with assistants of the mass media department and began putting music to his words. Continuing to master his craft throughout his student career at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, he has thus far put out 2 projects entitled Just a Tape, and Birth of a Super-villain. He’s currently working on his third project self titled Mama’s Boi set to be released late march.

Joi

Hello my name is Joi, and I’m a Milwaukee native. My art is inspired by my life, black women, queerness, and also my trans identity. I work mainly in acrylic and watercolor. I’ve been doing art since I was a small child. It grows with me and captures my experience as I live it.

Adjua Nsoroma

Adjua Nsoroma [born 1999] is a Milwaukee based visual artist. Currently a sophomore studying fashion textile design at University of Madison Wisconsin; recipient of honorable mention in the visual arts department during the 2015 Academic school year; First place winner of Food For thought Award. Adjua has participated (in the Waukesha City Chapter) of the NAACP Act-So competition in 2014, 2015, and 2016. Each year she advanced to the national level competing in painting and drawing. She has been featured in numerous Milwaukee galleries such as the Cocoon Room and the King Commons Center where she has visually intrigued her audiences each time. She focuses on figure painting/ drawing, using symbolism throughout her artwork. She strives to make women visible, especially women belonging to the African diaspora. Acrylic paint is a favorite medium of hers yet sometimes she experiments with cloth magically allowing her... Read More

Auzzie Dodson

Auzzie Dodson is a multifaceted artist from Louisville (Loohavuhl), KY. They began their artistic career at duPont Manual High School where they specialized in technical theatre, painting, poetry, and 3D art. In 2015, Auzzie was selected to train at the Governor’s School for the Arts in Danville, KY for poetry. They currently attend the University of Wisconsin-Madison through the First Wave program. Here they hope to mold art forms together to recant the lives of those silenced by everyday injustices. They know art to be youth centered. Auzzie has worked with numerous organizations that bring art and a voice to youth including Young Poets of Louisville and The JVN Project. Auzzie is most characterized by their bold color blocking technique and focus on people of color. They have always been enamored with art’s ability to transcend the mundane and communicate honesty. Auzzie believes that art is physical and should... Read More

Blanket Drive Concert

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