Cody Chesnutt at The Paul Robeson Theater

Saturday, December 22nd
Cody ChesnuTT
with opening sets by Emily King and Sparlha Swa
7pm and 10pm, $15 door

EMILY KING Unable to be contained by any one category, Emily represents the best of what our musical future might look like. Rather than concentrate on the differences between hip-hop and rock, party music and protest music, black and white, she's committing herself to finding common ground. Her last album, East Side Story, has received a grammy nomination for best contemporary R&B Album. She will be opening for the 7pm show with a special acoustic set.

Solo on guitar, SPARLHA SWA is a velvetine clash of impeccable vocals and haunting modal chords. Hers is a sound that ascends to Sade-like smoothness but with rougher rock edges, catchy hooks, and an international feel. She is a sure promise of wonder for music listeners of any genre. She will be opening for the 10pm show.

CODY CHESNUTT Cody first blew us a way with The Headphone Masterpiece -- A sprawling work of genre defying nuggets, spanning from sweet 60s soul to first wave British invasion to dirty south hip hop and post-modern dream pop. Since then, he has been back at work in his studio space (which he calls The Sonic Promiseland), cooking up a multimedia video and soundtrack entitled The Last Adam and a new collection of songs entitled The Live Release. He joins us at the Paul Robeson Theater, to unfurl his long-awaited creations.

www.emilyking.com
www.sparlhaswa.com
http://myspace.com/codychesnuttmusic


The Paul Robeson Theater
The Paul Robeson Theater is a tiny little gem of a venue, tucked in the heart of Fort Greene, Once an old church, the theater was converted to a community arts space by the infamous Dr. Josephine English. Dr. English is a legend in her own right. An ardent health care activist and local health care provider, she has been serving the community of Fort Greene for decades. Loved and revered by those she served (Malcolm X and Betty Shabazz insisted that she deliver all of their children!), Dr. English is a veritable Brooklyn hero. She decided to develop the Paul Robeson theater as a tribute to its namesake: an arts facility devoted to preserving and presenting black theatre and cultural arts enrichment for local youth.

The building, within walking distance of the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) is, however, “outside” of the BAM Cultural District and the potential financial and other assistance represented by this development initiative. So join us as we come together this month to appreciate a venue as rich in history as it is in acoustics, and pay homage to the vibrant community of local arts.