Carnegie Hall today announced that boundary pushing hip-hop duo Soul Science Lab will present exclusive 'making of' excerpts from their forthcoming visual album-Make a Joyful Noize-in a special online streaming event on Wednesday, May 26, 2021 at 7:00 p.m. on Carnegie Hall's website, Facebook, and YouTube channels. Make a Joyful Noize will also be available to watch on-demand following the premiere on carnegiehall.org. Commissioned by Carnegie Hall as part of its 125 Commissions Project, Make a Joyful Noize explores the redemptive power of self-love, and the transformative potential of affirming and unifying experiences that uplift the human spirit in the face of oppression. The album blends sound and multimedia using music, affirmations, interviews, images, spoken word, and dance to celebrate unapologetic Black joy as a healing force for transformation.
The Make a Joyful Noize presentation will include behind-the-scenes footage of the making of the album, feature perspectives from the artists on the nature of Black joy, as well as interviews with peers and special guests from around the globe.
Chen Lo and Asante' Amin-the duo behind Soul Science Lab-will answer questions during the stream from viewers tuning in from home. Make a Joyful Noize is presented as part of Learn with
Carnegie Hall, a collection of the Hall's Weill Music Institute programming created for families, educators, and young musicians, exploring the power of music to spark growth, curiosity, and connection. For a special look into Make a Joyful Noize, click
here.
"Make a Joyful Noize was inspired by a genuine need for healing, and by my ancestor's ability to channel their pain and trauma into magnificence that continues to bring joy and wonder to the world," said
Chen Lo. "So much of our work has focused on the struggle of my people because of our experience. Intentionally creating around joy was critical to my own personal healing, well-being, and mental health. This project started as a vision for a performance that celebrated the nuance and dimension of Black joy. It later evolved into an ecosystem including a visual album, a curriculum, and a film collection that explores the extraordinary power and transformational healing that comes from Black joy. Given how exhausting it is to be Black in America, the timeliness and urgency of this energy grows with each passing day. I hope this project inspires people to build and protect spaces of unapologetic joy where they can be."
"Make A Joyful Noize came out of a necessity to create from a place of self-care," said Asante' Amin. "Black people are brilliant, resilient, and determined, but we are tired of experiencing so much racially-motivated trauma in our everyday lives and on our timelines. We [Soul Science Lab] set out to create something that tapped into the radical power of Black joy and healing as a powerful force of resistance. This project is not just a show -- it's an idea whose time is now, because we are summoning the courage and intentionality to heal ourselves now. We want to live as our whole selves, unapologetically, Black and beautiful. We want others to be inspired to do the same: to be positively transformed by what life has given them; we want to see you Make a Joyful Noize."
Available today,
Carnegie Hall has released a series of
10 hip-hop educational videos for teens in which Soul Science Lab challenges students to examine how artists respond to the world around them. By breaking down their artistic process for Make a Joyful Noize, Chen and Asante' open the door for young thinkers, activists, and musicians to share their own vision for the world. These videos are available in part due to
Carnegie Hall's partnership with the NYC Department of Education Office of Arts and Special Projects and the New York Community Trust to create robust direct-to-student remote musical learning materials to serve K-12 teachers and students in New York City for immediate use in this school year. Also available for grades 6-8,
Speak Your Music sheds valuable insight from
Carnegie Hall teaching artists into the creative process of songwriting. These videos and resources are now available on
Carnegie Hall's
website to serve parents, teachers, musicians, and students around the world.
