Afro Roots Fest Moves to Miami-Dade This Weekend April 22 – 24 with Concerts in Doral, Miami Beach, and Homestead

MEDIA ALERT

April 18, 2022 – Miami-Dade County, FL – This weekend marks the “Miami-Dade” portion of Afro Roots Fest, when the festival holds three consecutive days of events in Doral, Miami Beach, and Homestead. On Friday, April 22, The Doral Yard hosts Cortadito and friends, featuring Jude Papaloko (Haiti), Panafrik, ITAWE (Colombia), and DJ Kumi (Nicaragua). The location is 8455 NW 53rd Street, Suite 106, Doral, FL, 33178, and the show is free and open to the public. Music begins at 7 p.m. 

The North Beach Bandshell (7275 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33141) is the site of the next concert, which stands as the signature event of the Afro Roots Fest series and is happening on Saturday, April 23. Scheduled to perform are Sinkane (Sudan), Dayme Arocena (Cuba), Son Mandinga (Venezuela), and DJ Lance-O (USA). General admission tickets are $30 and available online at bit.ly/ARFMB2022. Doors open at 6 p.m., music begins at 7, all ages welcome. 

Wrapping up the weekend is a limited capacity RSVP live performance of the Everglades Songbook Suite at the Long Pine Key Amphitheater (40001 State Hwy 9336, Homestead, FL 33034) within the Everglades National Park on Sunday, April 24, beginning at 4 p.m. Inspired by Elias’ 2016 AIRIE (Artists in Residence in Everglades) artist residency and co-presented by Community Arts and Culture and  Live Arts Miami, the performance will feature a variety of musicians from around the world. This event will be part of the park’s 75th anniversary celebration, and park entry fee applies. 

For more information, visit AfroRootsFest.com.

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ABOUT COMMUNITY ARTS & CULTURE

Incorporated in September 2002, Community Arts and Culture, Inc. (CAC) is a Miami-based non-profit organization that fosters an appreciation and understanding of a vast assortment of arts and cultures through workshops, lectures, and artistic performances in local communities for individuals of all ages and social backgrounds.

The award-winning Afro Roots Fest is a multi-county and multi-event concert series organized by CAC. This year, the festival has added new stops in Gainesville and Hollywood, gained new partners,and added a series of music and dance workshops.

More information and the full schedule is available at AfroRootsFest.com and through CommunityArtsandCulture.org.

MEDIA CONTACT
Mut Communications
Michael Mut
786.426.2277
info@mutcomm.com

Grammy-nominated Musician Jose Elias to Perform “Everglades Songbook Suite”, a Free Concert in Everglades National Park during Earth Day Weekend!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Live performance of original work to commemorate the park’s 75th Anniversary

April 12, 2022 – Homestead, FL– Community Arts & Culture (CAC) and Live Arts Miami (LAM) are proud to present Jose Elias’ Everglades Songbook Suite (ESS), a dynamic live concert event featuring new musical compositions and soundscapes that celebrate the sights and sounds of the Florida Everglades at 4 p.m. on Sunday, April 24, at the Long Pine Key Amphitheater within Everglades National Park. Presented in honor of Earth Day and the park’s 75th anniversary, the concert is free and open to the public. Park admission required.

Everglades Songbook Suite is presented as part of LAM’s EcoCulturaseries of performances for the planet, and as the culmination of CAC’s annual Afro Roots Fest. The event is being produced with support from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and filmed for its “Arts Across America” docu-series.

“We are thrilled to be a part of bringing music into this glorious setting as part of our EcoCultura series, celebrating Earth Day in our beloved Everglades National Park,” said Kathryn Garcia, LAM’s Executive Director. “Through projects like these, artists can inspire us all to listen to, connect with and take care of our planet.”

The vastly resplendent Everglades has inspired countless works of literature and art, including this new musical composition created by Grammy-nominated musician, composer, and producer Jose Elias. A 2016 Artist in Residence in Everglades (AIRIE) fellow, Elias wrote the music for ESS after spending considerable time at Everglades National Park. The project, which stands as the creative and artistic statement of his experiences, first came to fruition on June 21, 2021 as a short film shot in the Everglades, co-produced with LAM and AIRIE for International World Music Day. Now it returns with its first ever live performance at Everglades National Park.  

“I’m very happy to have the opportunity to perform the ESSin the environment that inspired the piece in the first place,” said Elias, who is also the founder and executive director of the Miami-based nonprofit CAC. “To have it coincide with the 75th anniversary of the national park is a personal and professional honor.”

The project features a rotating cast of musicians playing a variety of global instruments, including the Cuban tres, Venezuelan cuatro, percussion and woodwinds, indigenous flutes, and the African Kora. Featured musicians alongside Elias (Cuba) will include: Morikeba Kouyate (Senegal), Aboubacar Camara (Guinea), Carlos Ochoa (Peru), Damian J. Sanchez (Cuba), Gino Coca Mir (Puerto Rico), Kenneth Metzger (Puerto Rico), Samuel Tommie (Seminole Tribe), Aboubacar Soumah (Guinea), and Rajesh Bhandari (India).

“The park is happy to partner on projects such as this that help others see and understand the Everglades in new and unique ways,” said Pedro Ramos, Superintendent of Everglades and Dry Tortugas national parks. “We are excited that the Everglades songbook performance is going to be a part of the seminar series celebrating the 75th anniversary of Everglades National Park.”

The artwork of Canadian-born Scottish artist Deborah Mitchell, a certified Master Naturalist from the University of Florida, will adorn the stage during the performance. Mitchell’s creative process is derived from experience-based field work, where observations become the driving force for studio work. Her photography-based work evolves into paint, fabric and / or installation-based collages.

WHAT:   MDC’s Live Arts Miami Presents Everglades Songbook Suite
WHEN:   Sunday, April 24, 4 p.m.
WHERE: Everglades National Park, Long Pine Key Amphitheater

                40001 State Hwy 9336, Homestead, FL 33034

                Parking is located at the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center, guests can take trolley to Long Pine  

                Key Amphitheater. Trolley will run to and from both locations from 2 – 6 p.m.  

Tickets: This event is free with limited capacity. RSVP strongly encouraged at bit.ly/ESSENP2022. Please note that park entrance fees apply.

For more information, please visit AfroRootsFest.com. Click here for Photos and Videos.

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ABOUT COMMUNITY ARTS & CULTURE

Incorporated in September 2002, Community Arts and Culture, Inc. (CAC) is a Miami-based non-profit organization that fosters an appreciation and understanding of a vast assortment of arts and cultures through workshops, lectures, and artistic performances in local communities for individuals of all ages and social backgrounds. The award-winning Afro Roots Fest is a multi-county and multi-event concert series organized by CAC. This year, the festival has added new stops in Gainesville and Hollywood, gained new partners,and added a series of music and dance workshops. More information and the full schedule is available at AfroRootsFest.com and through CommunityArtsandCulture.org.

ABOUT LIVE ARTS MIAMI
Live Arts Miami is one of the city’s oldest and boldest performing arts series: an action-driven platform for powerful performances, impactful community programs and learning experiences that spark dialogue, raise awareness around pressing issues, and open minds and hearts in all who take part. Its EcoCultura initiative, a series of performances for the planet, features artists tackling climate change through dynamic dance, theater, and music events. Created in 1990, Live Arts Miami is proud to be a part of Miami Dade College’s celebrated Department of Cultural Affairs. For more information, please visit www.liveartsmiami.org and follow @liveartsmiami on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates.

EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK
Everglades National Park protects the largest subtropical wilderness in the United States. Established in 1947 as the first national park created for its biodiversity, the park’s 1.5 million acres are home to critically threatened and endangered species including the Florida panther, the American crocodile and the West Indian manatee. The Everglades is also the main source of drinking water for residents of South Florida. Learn more at nps.gov/ever and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

MEDIA CONTACT
Mut Communications
Michael Mut
786.426.2277
info@mutcomm.com

Afro Roots Fest Debuts in Homestead at the Historic Seminole Theatre April 27

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Award-winning Cuban artist Danay Suarez and Keys-based guitar virtuoso David Feder to perform concert in the heart of the city’s extraordinary, restored district

Homestead, FL – April 7, 2019 – An important premiere such as this calls for a remarkable venue. The Afro Roots Fest will make its debut in the City of Homestead at the historic Seminole Theatre (18 N Krome Ave, Homestead, FL 33030) on Saturday, April 27, 2019 with a special presentation of Cuban singer / songwriter Danay Suarez and Islamorada-based guitarist David Feder beginning at 8 p.m. Tickets for the all-ages show are available online at bit.ly/ARH19. The event is being produced and presented by the Miami-based musical non-profit Community Arts and Culture (CAC).  

“The musical driver of this year’s festival is the celebration of women in world music, and we would be hard-pressed to find anyone better than Danay to represent the vanguard of Afro-Cuban music today,” says Jose Elias, festivalfounder and CAC’s executive director. “We know that audiences will truly enjoy her art and connect with her music, as will they with David’s, who is an exceptional talent on guitar.”

The four-time Grammy-nominated Suarez is a thoughtful, eloquent vocalist who singularly combines soul and hip-hop with reggae and the traditional Cuban styling called son. Her latest offering Palabras Manualesfeatures contributions from Stephen Marley, Idan Raichel, Roberto Fonseca and Jason Matthews. A veteran of many major national and international music festivals, Danay won the prestigious La Gaviota de Inspiración award during the 2017 Festival Viňa in Chile.

Feder fuses his background of jazz and classical music with Flamenco folk stylings and a multi-cultural island vibe. His music has been featured on NPR’s All Songs Considered, World Café Live, PBS Art Loft, NPR’s Folk & Acoustic Music, among other outlets. Feder spent six weeks at the top of the Broadjam World Music Chart with his critically acclaimed album “Black Emerald” and has been featured on All My Children(ABC), Art Loft (PBS), the NBC Good Morning show, National Park Service educational videos, and Florida Everglades documentaries.

Now in its 21st year, the Afro Roots Fest – named one of “South Florida’s Ten Best Music Festivals” by the Miami New Times – is a travelling affair that brings music from the African diaspora and the Caribbean to the masses.

This event is being made possible with the support of Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, and Knight Foundation. For more information, call 786.650.2073 or visit www.AfroRootsFest.com.

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ABOUT COMMUNITY ARTS & CULTURE

Incorporated in September 2002, Community Arts and Culture, Inc. (CAC) is a Miami-based non-profit organization that fosters an appreciation and understanding of a vast assortment of arts and cultures through workshops, lectures and artistic performances in local communities for individuals of all ages and social backgrounds.

In addition to the joint venture with the Little Haiti Community Center called Let the Children Have Music, and the ongoing World Music Tuesdays series at the Wynwood Yard, CAC co-produces the Roots in the Schools program, which brings music to Miami-area schools.

For more information, please visit www.communityartsandculture.org.

MEDIA CONTACT
Mut Communications
Michael Mut
786.426.2277
info@mutcomm.com