The Cedar Presents
WEST BANK BLOCK PARTY
Saturday, October 1, 2022 / Event Start: 2:00 PM CT
All Ages
Outdoors, mixed seated and standing
Free
This is a standing and seated outdoor show on The Cedar plaza. To request access accommodations, please go to our Access Page.
Prospective attendees can RSVP to this event online.
In the case of inclement weather, we will reschedule the event to a later date.
ABOUT THIS SHOW
Come join us out on The Cedar plaza for a West Bank Block Party before we all head inside for the winter! We’re bringing together artists, community members, and organizations to celebrate the hard work going on in Cedar-Riverside to move our community in a positive direction. Using art as a catalyst to bring people together, we aim to uplift the diversity of our community, while shining a light on our similarities and opportunities for connection.
Head on down to this free event on Saturday, October 1st - you won’t want to miss the performances, the food, and the folks who make this neighborhood a cultural gem of Minneapolis. We’ve got a wide range of local community artists sharing their music and art throughout the day including Lady Midnight, Hassan Shahid, DJ Fawzi, Jada Brown, Deeq Abdi, Buranburr dancing and a short preview set from Fanaka Nation.
Make your own West Bank day of it, hopping around to local restaurants to grab food and drinks. And for the adventurous among you, join us for our ticketed show in the evening in The Cedar hall with outstanding Ethiopian Israeli artist Gili Yalo who swirls together funk, psych, jazz, roots artist and local hip-hop, Afrotrap rising star, Fanaka Nation with his full band - come celebrate!
Artists performing include:
- DJ Fawzi at 2:00 PM
- Jada Brown at 2:30 PM
- Hassan Shahid at 3:00 PM
- Caasho Baraanbur dance and music at 3:30 PM
- Fanaka Nation (solo) at 4:00 PM
- Deeq Abdi at 4:15 PM
- Hoka-Hey Singers at 4:30 PM
- Lady Midnight (duo DJ set) at 5:00 PM
Organizations tabling include:
- Abdirahman Mukhtar and Daryeel Youth
- KFAI
- People's Center (free COVID-19 tests)
LADY MIDNIGHT
Lady Midnight is a vocalist and performance artist who draws upon her multidisciplinary background and Afro-indigenous roots to create work that reflects our collective lives. The City Pages named Lady Midnight Best Twin Cities Vocalist and named her highly anticipated debut album Death Before Mourning Best Album of 2020. She has performed across the country, sharing stages with legendary acts like Common, Moby, Andra Day, and Aloe Blacc. As a film composer, she has been commissioned by the Walker Arts Center and artist Kara Walker.
Lady Midnight holds space for Black, Indigenous, people of color, refugee, and immigrant youth within her creative community residencies and projects like NDN Collective, indigenous students on the Red Lake reservation, refugee and immigrant girls and non-binary students participating in Girls Getting Ahead in Leadership in partnership with Women’s Initiative for Self Empowerment, and Kulture Klub Collaborative (a non-profit for youth experiencing homelessness). She has dedicated her life to empowering youth, using her art to inspire change and heal collective trauma.
In addition to her own solo releases, Lady Midnight has lent her voice to projects such VANDAAM, Parables of Neptune, and Malamanya.
To learn more about Lady Midnight:
DEEQ ABDI
Deeq Abdi was born in Somalia, the nation of poets, after the outbreak of the civil war. Abdi started using poetry as a form of expression from a young age, when he learned the finer points of Gabay; an ancient form of Somali poetry from family. After moving to the United States in 1998, Deeq embraced other forms of expression, including spoken word poetry and hip hop. Living in Minneapolis with a Somali mother and Irish American father gives unique perspective on creating art and culture.
FANAKA NATION
Fanaka Nation has been consistently adding a new energy to the Minneapolis rap scene. Fusing Hip Hop with African and other world sounds, you get the album “Culture Rap 1: AFROTRAP."
To learn more about Fanaka Nation:
HASSAN SHAHID
Hassan Shahid, aka Shahidi, is a singer, songwriter, and award-winning performer. Born and raised in the Twin Cities, his narrative is focused on black male vulnerability; he hopes to share this message through his emotional and intentional songwriting, providing healing through feeling.
Hassan has performed at venues including the Cedar Cultural Center, the Mall of America rotunda, Peace Plaza in Rochester, and The Commons in downtown Minneapolis. In 2020, he was commissioned by The Cedar to compose and perform 30 minutes of new music. His album, Complicated Bliss, is currently streaming on Spotify, YouTube and Apple Music. Songs include “Disbelief,” “Chicago Love,” and “Focus More on Me.”
To learn more about Hassan Shahid:
JADA BROWN
Jada Brown is an earthy soul, jazz, folk, and pop singer from St. Michael, Minnesota. She is based in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area where she is active in the creative community as well as the women's and indigenous rights movements. Amidst a set of singles released with producer Adriatic, she was a part of the University of Minnesota's Battle of the Bands, and has performed at many regional venues including Icehouse MPLS, Part Wolf, and 7th St. Entry-- all prior releasing a proper solo album.
In an interview with The Wake Magazine, Jada states "I've been performing since I was 13. When I started performing I did lots of covers. I have been playing piano since I was 10. I try to transcribe songs by ear, and then I started making my own songs. When I was like 16 I started writing and composing." Her experience shows in her confident stage presence, and versatility to perform jams that verge on hip-hop, such as the single "Like I Do," to vibes more inspired by old-time ballads and folk songs, like her work with Collin Peters.
She has collaborated with Sophia Eris, Mike The Martyr, Myka 9, katrah-quey, Farr Well, and more from the Twin Cities area, in particular. Jada Brown joins Automatic Records for her highly anticipated album dubbed Admiration.
To learn more about Jada Brown:
DJ FAWZI
DJ Fawzi aims to foster connection within the Somali community among kids, parents, and elders in the face of the growing fentanyl crisis and the distance that drug abuse often creates. Mixing in poetry, rapping, and positivity, she is intent on bringing community members together in the creation of this work, inviting youth, community leaders, and other artists into the process in order to foster empathy and support for youth who are struggling.
To learn more about DJ Fawzi:
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
