I worked with a Kenyan photographer friend to start a modest photobook library in Kibera, Nairobi’s largest slum (aka more politely an ‘informal settlement’). This will be a community resource but it’s especially for a local photo program, a weekly class for young people that I was a guest speaker at earlier this year. Basically they have zero access to such books, which are so vital to inspiration and learning but are impossible to find locally here.

I rounded up some book donations in DC before heading back to Nairobi.

Finding Your Vision workshop in Nairobi’s Kibera slum, working with young photographers from the area.

We turned our garage and driveway into a climate-arts ‘cafe’, with live music, art on the fence (and in the garden), and a couple of climate-related speakers from local groups.

Tune in to Takoma Radio (www.takomaradio.org) with host Eric Bond, Takoma Park photographer Bill Crandall, Minsk photographer Andrei Liankevich, and a representative from the Belarus Culture Solidarity Foundation for a discussion of contemporary Belarus. In the dramatically shifting current events playing out right now as people demonstrate against their long-time authoritarian president, how are artists playing a role in supporting democratic change?

Final event of the season! Informal and stripped-down, anyone is welcome to play/sing/read/speak. A common mic will be provided at a COVID-safe distance for overall amplification.

Defying all musical labels, Argentine guitarist/composer Cristian Perez weaves together genres from throughout the world to reveal the universality of music. With a strong foundation in classical, jazz and South American music, he crafts a singular voice, rich in sensitivity and nuance, that freely explores the possibilities of music as an art form. His debut album “Anima Mundi” has received numerous reviews around the world and reached #13 in the CMJ World Music charts in the USA. Cristian has been featured in Vintage Guitar Magazine and is a former Artist-in-Residence at Strathmore Music Center.

The Mir Manley Band was formed in the DC area during the early stages of the pandemic, and the instant chemistry of its members quickly thrust them on stage. Their sound is inspired by the richness of North and South American rock/folk music, R&B, blues, and jazz. The band stands out for its diverse background. Chilean vocalist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Mauro Mir, previously based in Germany and Spain, has had an international career performing in prestigious venues as a principal singer with Maryland Lyric Opera and Washington Opera. Co-founder guitarist/composer Dave Manley, originally from Detroit, has performed around the world with artists such as R&B legends Jill Scott and Prince. Bassist TJ Turqman and keyboardist Gena Photiadis are prolific musicians and songwriters in their own right, releasing several records together. Drummer Joe Palmer, alumni of the Berkeley College of Music, comes from a prestigious musical family and has performed and toured extensively. They are preparing a Christmas release of original material.

[Update - this event was cancelled by request of the county, but Josh did play a livestream on our Viaduct Live FB page]

Josh Arnson is this week’s Roadside Attraction. Josh (of Colonel Josh and the Honky Tonk Heroes) grew up in the DC scene, playing in bands like the Caves, the Golden Bats, and Insect Surfers. He moved to Pittsburgh and eventually Austin, Texas where he was an original member of the famed Asylum Street Spankers. He calls his solo material Paisley-Tonk, his own unique genre mixing psychedelic pop and hardcore honky-tonk.

Munit Mesfin is a local Ethiopian-American singer-songwriter who loves sharing Ethio-soul in musical sets that dip into new and old genres. She encourages the audience to sing along in English and Amharic. She will perform with Argentine guitarist and composer Cristian Perez.

Over the past decade, Munit performed in a duet based in Ethiopia that toured around the world, helping reshape the contemporary Ethiopian music scene. She is currently working on her third album (her first solo project) that fuses Ethiopian traditional sounds with rhythms from around the African continent, pushing Ethiopian music forward in a new pop sensibility while bringing songs for positive social change in Amharic and English. Since returning to the United States, she has performed with various groups that re-imagine jazz, reggae, funk and soul.

facebook.com/munit.mesfin
instragram.com/munit.mesfin
http://www.cristianperezguitar.com/

Audience members should wear masks and practice social distancing. The street will be blocked off and some chairs will be available, but people also can bring their own lawn chairs.

[Rescheduled from Sat, June 20th] This week's slate showcases a range of local singer-songwriters. The acoustic guitar is a constant, but each offers a unique voice, style, and perspective on the times. They will take turns performing in an alternating 'song circle' (song triangle?) format:

Silence Echoez (Joey Jenkins) is a DC-area artist whose tunes come in flavors from café ambient to protest anthem. His music and his message emphasize reflection and action, combining influences such as Citizen Cope and Dispatch with icons such as Train and Bob Marley. He has performed his original music at historic DC venues such as the Black Cat and the 930 Club and toured in the US and New Zealand.
https://www.facebook.com/SilenceEchoez/

Takoma Park indie-folk songwriter Annette Wasilik has been writing music ever since she found a Sears Silvertone abandoned in the family basement when she was 14. Her songs center on longing, love, loss, God, home, homesickness and hope. In April 2015, Annette released Songs from the Talking House and in 2016 it won Best Contemporary Folk Recording of the Year from the Washington Area Music Association. Her January 2020 release, Love & Fire, features the powerful ballad for our times “The World is on Fire".
www.annettewasilik.com

In his brief solo acoustic career, Takoma Park’s Bill Crandall (ex-Dot Dash, Adam West, Modest Proposal) has developed an atmospheric, melodic mix of indie folk, psychedelia, pop, and rock. His debut album - recorded under the artist name Místochord - was New World Voyage, a concept album that imagines the first humans to leave Earth forever. His in-progress song cycle, The Forest and the Trees, is a ‘meanwhile back on Earth’ followup set in a climate-changing world. He is also the founder and host of Roadside Attractions and Viaduct arts salon.
https://bill-crandall.squarespace.com/work#/new-world-voyage/

Juels Bland is a Takoma Park singer-songwriter with varied roots in rock, folk, indie, and soul. He's the kind of guy that would send a bio like this: "Juels Bland is a local singer-songwriter that wants to make you feel things." Which is longer than the "human male" he first wanted to send. So besides being a character (in the good sense) let’s say for him that he's an extremely talented and expressive singer and guitar player.

Links:
youtube.com/user/juelsisgewd
juelsbland.bandcamp.com

This week's Roadside Attractions is the immensely talented husband-wife duo Lynn Veronneau and Ken Avis, doing a driveway set just for us!

"Global", "Jazzy", "Retro", "Original" ..... VERONNEAU is all of the above. The acoustic, multilingual, world-jazz sound of the band, fronted by French Canadian vocalist Lynn Veronneau and her English husband guitarist Ken Avis, has been winning-over audiences with their live shows, and three Top 10 charting albums.

Annette Wasilik

Annette's performances are marked by her compelling alto and moving songs that "touch you to the bone". In the tradition of the poet songwriter, Annette’s down to earth and deeply atmospheric songs are explorations into longing, love, loss, God, home, homesickness and hope. Her debut CD, Songs from the Talking House, was awarded Contemporary Folk Recording of the Year by the Washington Area Music Association in April 2016.

Annette performs in venues and festivals from DC up to NYC. In 2019, Annette created a new series, Local Cream, to showcase the best local and regional songwriters. Annette is a member of Azalea City Recordings Cooperative and her January 2020 release, Love & Fire, is her first album on the label. She also co-hosts a songwriting circle at Asparagus Media in Takoma Park.

www.annettewasilik.com

Tip Jar: paypal.me/annettewasilik (tips appreciated more than ever for artists trying to make a living)

~ Huda Asfour and Kamyar Arsani ~

A Palestinian oud player and an Irani Daf player meet in Washington DC. A mystical journey and an exploration of a region's rich musical repertoire begins.

About the Artists:
Huda Asfour, PhD | Oud, Vocals | Palestine
A musician, educator and social entrepreneur, Huda believes in the necessity of transcending borders in both life and music. She is a natural storyteller whose music, through the tenderness of her oud and the lyricism of her compositions, challenges taboos and stereotypes. Huda has released two studio albums, received cultural grants, and collaborated with artists across the globe. She is the co-founder of the DC Palestinian Film and Arts Festival and the Mashriq Maghreb Jam sessions. In addition to her work in music, Dr. Asfour is also a Biomedical Engineer.

Links:
Website: HudaAsfour.com
Bandcamp: asfoura.bandcamp.com
Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/asfoura
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4vAQHgzSHt0bvnu0E7tQUX
iTunes: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/huda-asfour/538516014

Kamyar Arsani | Daf (Iranian frame drum), Vocals | Iran/USA
Born and raised in Tehran, Kamyar Arsani is an Iranian multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter based in Washington DC. Through his solo work and numerous collaborations, Arsani creates music across an array of styles, from classical Persian music to electronic experimentation. Arsani has been a featured artist at the Kennedy Center, the Library of Congress, and numerous other stages throughout the region. Along with his solo work and collaborations, Arsani is also the singer and lyricist of Time is Fire, a pan-cultural rock band drawing equally from global rhythms and Washington DC's storied punk scene. The Washington Post has described their sound as "music from a country that does not exist."

Links:
Bandcamp: https://kamyararsani.bandcamp.com/
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/kamyar-arsani
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3dOCchOS25nnZRRkwpyCMI

Huda & Kamyar's first single: https://versesrecords.bandcamp.com/track/zaw-al-nahar