The Mourning [A] BLKstar Residencies

Acclaimed Cleveland-based Afrofuturist music collective, Mourning [A] BLKstar, releases a five episode docu-series featuring live musical performances, interviews, and behind the scenes footage in a sweeping response to the devastating impact the global pandemic has had on those who rely on music for their financial and spiritual sustenance. The Mourning [A] BLKstar Residencies docu-series follows the collective as they prepare their sixth studio album and reimagines on-stage music performance during the coronavirus shutdown. Set in five iconic Northeast Ohio music venues, the series offers an innovative alternative to the now commonplace live-stream experience in its unique reframing of in-venue, live performance to be enjoyed within a home environment.

The Mourning [A] BLKstar Residencies includes music from the collective’s entire catalog, along with unreleased material from their upcoming follow-up album to 2020’s The Cycle, released May 15th by Don Giovanni Records. AFROPUNK’s Nathan Leigh notes The Cycle “demands multiple deep listens, rewarding the listener with new details and nuances,” and Pop Matters’ Bruce Miller called a, “necessary, secular gospel for the healing of a truly damaged nation.” One of the album’s singles, “If I Can If I May,” was featured on NPR Music’s All Songs Considered New Music Friday and the collective was also named one of NPR’s 100 best bands to see at SXSW 2019. Mourning [A] BLKstar was recently featured as the cover story for The Wire’s September 2020 issue.

Produced by the collective’s founder, RA Washington, and trumpeter, Theresa May, the series recorded at five iconic venues across Northeast Ohio during the coronavirus shutdown: AVclub, Mahall’s, Beachland Ballroom, Grog Shop, and Musica.

The docuseries episodes will be released weekly over a five week period on blk//blur, a new streaming channel that supports the work of artists and curators through a collective economy. New episodes will drop every Wednesday between November 11 and December 9, 2020. Six-month streaming access to the entire series can be purchased for $35.

http://www.blkblur.art

This series is generously sponsored by SPACES’ Urgent Art Fund with funding from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.