Our final episode in the "Reimagining Utopia" series focuses on "Utopia In Performance" and includes conversations with artists who are creating works that give us hope and imagine a better, more equitable society.

Damon Locks is an artist,  musician and educator as well as the founder and leader of Black Monument Ensemble, a vibrant collective of artists, musicians, singers and dancers, making work with common goals of joy,  compassion and intention.  The contributors come from all facets of the diverse well-spring of Black Excellence in Chicago and are a multi-generational group ranging in age from 9-52 years old at this recording. In addition to Locks, current and consistent BME members include: instrumentalists Angel Bat Dawid, Ben LaMar Gay, Dana Hall, and Arif Smith; singers Phillip Armstrong, Monique Golding, Rayna Golding, Tramaine Parker, Richie Parks, Erica Rene, and Eric Tre’von; and dancers Raven Lewis, Cheyenne Spencer, Mary Thomas, Bryonna Young, Tiarra Young, and Keisha Janae.

Locks has a stated interest in work that explores “The Black Nod” which, as he explains, is “an unspoken acknowledgment that happens often out in the world – a sort of ‘I see you’ moment exchanged between Black people.” His work with BME attempts to do the same. Fronted by a jubilant choir, the ensemble embraces a kind of civically engaged, artistic approach to activism originally heard in the 1960s from bands like the Voices of East Harlem and on albums like Max Roach’s We Insist; or originally seen in the photography of Kwame Brathwaite and the art of Emory Douglas. Merging influence from the subsequent half-century of artistic & technological evolution, Locks employs a cyber-punk palette of disparate implements (including beatbox, boombox, telephone, and megaphone) to make narrative compositions of mined sound, beats & archival speech (a la Madlib or Supa K) which are brought to life by the ensemble in electric, improvisational performance. It’s a truly multi-dimensional sound that spans mediums, genres, and generations; past, present, & future.

Founded in 2014, Propelled Animals is a group of artists, dancers, scholars, musicians, and designers who embed innovative and provocative art in unconventional spaces. They are committed to creating work that interrogates, challenges, and ultimately attempts to dismantle the systemic "isms" of oppression. They adapt their projects and processes to address the specific needs of the communities they engage. Our performances encourage efficacy of the body, resilience, and radical tenderness as strategies for self-empowerment. Their work is centered on art as social action and ritual as performance.

The Propelled Animals have presented work nationally including six site-specific performances at institutions including: University of Iowa and Englert Theatre (Iowa City, IA); University of Northern Iowa (Cedar Falls, IA); Wassaic Project (Wassaic, NY); Grinnell College (Grinnell, IA); Lynden Sculpture Garden (Milwaukee, WI). In 2019 they were artists-in-residence at Lynden Sculpture Garden and the STUDIO for Creative Inquiry at Carnegie Mellon University. 

This episode Includes the song "Now (Forever Momentary Space)" by Black Monument Ensemble with the following artists:

Players:
Angel Bat Dawid – clarinet
Ben LaMar Gay – cornet & melodica
Dana Hall – drums
Damon Locks – samples & electronics
Arif Smith – percussion

Singers:
Phillip Armstrong
Monique Golding
Tramaine Parker
Richie Parks
Erica Rene
Eric Tre’von

Lyrics & Compositions by: Damon Locks. Recorded August 27th-28th and September 29th, 2020, at Experimental Sound Studio, Chicago. Engineered & Mixed by: Alex Inglizian. Mastered by: David Allen.

The episode also includes an audio excerpt of Propelled Animals collaborator Boubacar Djiga playing the tama – which was used in their piece STATE(D) part of the 2021 Pivot Arts Festival performance tour.