Kulturarena Jena | Mourning (A) BLKstar

In the organizer's words:

Music is our common language. Music connects us humans, transcends borders and official languages and creates a wonderful space for feelings and exchange. And somehow it can always be experienced differently: Different cultural flavors make it possible, they open up a fascinating kaleidoscopic variety for us. How lucky are we that we can always look through this kaleidoscope and get to know formations from all over the world?

The Cleveland-based collective Mourning [A] BLKstar is testimony to this good fortune. In a cross-generational, cross-gender and cross-genre blend of black culture, the band dedicates itself to a musical account of "the looming apocalypse" in the US. And how could one announce this evening without thinking of current developments in a time that is sometimes hard to grasp. There are simply constructed catchphrases, lies and polarization of people in the highest political offices buzzing across the screens, crises, division and oppression take up an alarming amount of space. At the same time, we are experiencing community, compassion and strong people standing up for each other.

The music of Mourning [A] BLKstar allows us to give free rein to our heavy, but also joyful and grateful feelings. Between dusky grunge, shimmering R&B, soulful blues and experimental jazz, the group constantly changes its own flavor and deliberately avoids being pinned down to a specific genre. The texture of the works results from the contribution of each individual member, merging live instruments with hip-hop productions and opening eyes and ears to the African diaspora.

"I feel like each album evolves based on who we are at that time - not just who we are personally, but what's happening in the world, how we deal with what's happening in the world, how we deal with what's happening within ourselves," says vocalist LaToya Kent. "We create from that space of the heart, not just out of solidarity, but out of empathy."

This exciting Afrofuturist collective is touring the USA and Europe with its music - fortunately also stopping off in Jena.

Price information:

Advance booking: € 10.00 Box Office: € 15.00