We speak with Karen Seneferu, about The Black Woman is God, a multidisciplinary exhibition, celebrating the Black female presence as the highest spiritual form. Later r&b artist and actor Martin Luther stops by to chat about the SFJAZZ Collective. This year, the SFJAZZ Collective will be celebrating the 50th Anniversary of both Sly & The Family Stone’s STAND! and Miles Davis’s “In A Silent Way.” The SFJAZZ Collective lineup also features vocalist, Martin Luther McCoy , tenor saxophonist David Sánchez, trumpeter Etienne Charles, vibraphonist Warren Wolf, pianist Edward Simon, bassist Matt Brewer, guitarist Adam Rogers, and drummer Obed Calvaire. And lastly, we speak with Ren The Vinyl Archaeologist about happenings throughout the bay area.
Karen Seneferu is one of the most thought provoking visual artists of our time. Born and raised in Oakland California, her childhood was fed by revolutionary politics and the Black Panther Party’s free breakfast program. She earned a B.A. in English from the University of California at Berkeley and has dedicated her life to working as an educator and artivist.
Martin Luther McCoy pka Martin Luther, was born and raised in San Francisco, Ca. His love for soul and rock and roll music was enlivened by his peers as the tsunamic wave of hip hop began to take form. He writes his own words and plays his guitar. Former member of the Roots touring ensemble and star of Julie Taymor’s Across The Universe (Sony Pictures 2007) Martin fearlessly shares his new music.
Ren The Vinyl Archaeologist
As a bay area resident (by way of New York), Ren the Vinyl Archaeologist made his mark by curating top notch events featuring hip hop legends and supporting independent artists from the Bay and beyond. In 2000, his True Skool events won the “Best of the Bay” in the SF Bay Guardian. Ren has appeared on numerous publications, such as the XLR8R, 7×7, SF Weekly, SF Examiner, Mugshot and SF Magazine, to name a few. Since True Skool’s inception in 1999, his online magazine and newsletter has served as a resource that covers hip hop history, politics, emerging artists and events. As a DJ, he has shared bills with world-renowned artists such as Grandmaster Flash, Jazzy Jeff, Kool Herc, Afrika Bambaataa, Kool DJ Red Alert, Q-Bert, Cut Chemist, DJ Premier, Wu-Tang Clan, just to name a few.