West Art is excited to welcome Kassa Overall back to our stage! Kassa is a Grammy - nominated musician, emcee, singer, producer and drummer who melds avant -garde experimentation with hip -hop production techniques to tilt the nexus of jazz and rap in unmapped directions. This tour is in support of his latest album, ANIMALS, and he's joined by an incredible lineup of musicians- a show you won't want to miss! If you were here for his last visit, you understand that magic that lies ahead. If you missed it... here's the second chance you've been waiting for. Grab a friend, snag your tickets HERE, and join us!
What to expect at the show:
>> Doors will open at 7. The show will start at 730 .
>> Tickets are $25 in advance, and $30 at the door if not sold out. Buy them HERE!
>> As always, we’re proud to present an all-ages show with discounted tickets available for students.
>> We will have beer from Our Town Brewery for sale, along with a few non-alcoholic options. This is not BYOB.
>> Parking may be available in the small lot across the street. Beyond that, there’s parking available around Buchanan Park and F&M College in the blocks surrounding West Art.
>> Seating: This show will be a mix of seating and standing room. We suggest arriving when the doors open if you’d prefer to sit.
>> Our space is ADA accessible, and we will do our best to accommodate any specific needs.
Full bio below:
On his first two studio albums GO GET ICE CREAM AND LISTEN TO JAZZ and I THINK I’M GOOD, Kassa layered virtuosic drumming, meticulous production techniques, and incisive lyricism to establish himself as a rhythmic innovator and visionary poet, using his vo ice to address the injustices of the carceral system, the pharmaceutical industry, and anti - black racism, while wrangling with the perils of his own mental illness.
ANIMALS pushes Kassa’s message further too, the title a loaded metaphor for the paradoxes of his life as an entertainer and as a black man in America. ANIMALS is the sound of an artist aware of the cost of embodying one’s natural self in the public eye, a deep reckoning with the two - sided truth that to perform one’s freedom for an audience can mean succumbing to life inside a cage.
Kassa’s current touring ensemble consists of Kassa Overall; the Detroit native Ian Finkelstein, a student of the late Geri Allen who plays keys with Karriem Riggins, Robert Hurst, and Common; Haitian - American percussionist Bendji Allonce, son of Kompa leg end Herman Nau who has worked with Ms. Lauryn Hill and Roberta Flack; Giulio Cetto Xavier, a Bay Area electric and acoustic bassist; and Tomoki Sanders (they/them), a multi- instrumentalist from Japan and New York who plays a saxophone given to them by their father, the great Pharoah Sanders. This diverse group of talented musicians has toured together throughout the US and Europe since the fall of 2021, with performances including North Sea Jazz Festival, the London Jazz Festival, Winter Jazz Fest, and an N PR Tiny Desk Concert that will premiere on April 5, 2023. BBC6 Broadcaster Gilles Peterson, after watching the band perform at the 2022 Worldwide Festival in Sete, described the band’s live show as “completely surreal”.
ARORY is a Philadelphia based artist that specializes in soulful instrumentals often described as experimental hip-hop. Since His music is mainly sample based, his music stems from all types of genres, such as jazz, hip hop, samba, soul, R&B, funk, etc. often coming from the dollar bin at your local record store. ARORY has a prolific mind set that leads to over 10 beat tapes in one year. His last release "experiments from the soul II" is a transcendent experience that makes you feel warm and nostalgic. The project was made solely with a turntable, the sp404mkII and the KO II. Rory focuses on hardware production to keep that raw feeling in his music and explore live finger drumming techniques. His very accurate slogan that describes his music in a nutshell is "experiments from the soul"