{"type":"doc","content":[{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"text":"","type":"text"}]}]}

Jeffrey Bissoy-Mattis

A recap of the music, the people, the heat, the optics, and the challenges of staging a new cultural happening on Juneteenth.


Awa Mally for MPR

The highs and lows of Planet Afropunk: Minneapolis

Hold onto your wigs, the Queen is back. Four days 

 date of her seventh solo studio album, the eagerly anticipated 

." A co-production between Beyoncé, Tricky Stewart and 

 (who last collaborated on 2009's "Single Ladies"), "BREAK MY SOUL" honors a long lineage of liberatory queer anthems, like 

Whether it's a dead-end job or a relationship that's not going anywhere, Beyoncé wants you to release the stress. Over a pulsing dance melody, she croons, "Got motivation, I done found me a new foundation, and I'm takin' my new salvation and I'ma build my own foundation," before delivering an uplifting mantra of "You won't break my soul" in the chorus. Built around a four-count sample of the gay club staple "Show Me Love" by Robin S. and an interpolation of NOLA rapper 

's 2014 bounce record "Explode," the retrofuturistic track is a seamless blend of disco, house and gospel pop with dulcet, meticulously-arranged vocals ready for the ballroom.  

LaTesha Harris

A.M.P.A.S. via Getty Images

Beyoncé - BREAK MY SOUL (Official Lyric Video)

Beyoncé's new single is out. Listen to 'BREAK MY SOUL'

The Something In The Water music festival had its first run in Washington, D.C., over the weekend.

The festival's creator, Pharrell Williams, moved it to Washington, D.C., from Virginia Beach, Va.

The three-day event included performers such as Anderson .Paak; Ozuna; Raveena; Tyler, the Creator; J Balvin; Denzel Curry; Omar Apollo and many more.


Take a look at the scene and the performances:


Joshua Bryant

Tyrone Turner

Vanessa Castillo

The 3-day music festival had its first run in Washington, D.C. this year.


Joshua Bryant/NPR

See some of our favorite pictures from Something In The Water Festival

 can be summed up as “chaotic-death-grind-rap-core,” according to drummer Theo Galetka. However, such an 

 definition still falls short of fully describing the excitement that killusonline brings to the Minneapolis scene. 

Since the rejuvenation of live music in this weird post-mid-COVID landscape, killusonline have made a name for themselves with their frenetic, frenzied live act. The band members take pride in it, promising “the most lit live show you’ve ever been to” in their 

. Beyond delivering on this promise, it’s clear that they take pride in their artistry and are deeply committed to pushing the envelope harder than a disgruntled mail carrier. 

Formed in 2019 in Minneapolis, the killusonline members are lead vocalist Mory, drummer Theo Galetka, guitarist Max Folina, bassist Sean Clements, and keyboardist Mary Miranda. With only three singles on Spotify, killusonline remain ephemeral. For now, their legacy exists in the form of the memories made from their live performances. 

One live set that lit up every face in the band upon recollection was a house show in Minneapolis this past September. “I looked down, and there's blood all over my synth,” Miranda recalls. “I looked at my nails, because I'm a nail biter, and I was like, ‘Oh, s***.’” Luckily, the blood wasn’t from Mary’s chewed cuticles. Instead, it came from someone who had hit their head on a pillar in the basement — normal house show things. That show also had Mory hanging from the rafters, a sweat-drenched Folina performing in the crowd, and Galetka accidentally starting a mosh pit while tuning his drum set. Galetka ran into a fan who had attended at a record store recently. What started as the usual “great show, etc.” conversation ended with the fan explaining how they got their lip piercing torn out in the pit. While he was sad to hear about the injury, Galetka was glad to hear they had a good time. 

 be a slightly esoteric genre descriptor. Guitarist Max Folina expands on Galetka’s answer, explaining, “I think it's a culmination of all of our interests. I'm really into crazy 

 stuff, and we all have some interest in rap music. Some of us are really into jazz, we’re all into a bunch of different stuff.” Theo explains further, “All of us have such different musical backgrounds and interests. At the end of the day, when we come together the energy fuels us ... At the moment, metal and rap are the first things that come to mind. Whatever we settle on will be a combination of our collective tastes.” Miranda, who joined the band earlier this year, was drawn in by their use of noise. “The electronic aspect on top of the instrumentals was a really cool combination. I think that makes Killus unique,” Miranda says. 

killusonline almost never happened. “I hit up Mory over Instagram and had an interesting interaction with him,” Clements explains. “Basically, he had this Instagram account that had no followers, no pictures, no nothing,” says Mory. It probably didn’t help that this random, blank account messaging Mory was named “killuskilluskillus.” Luckily, after a tense exchange of direct messages, Clements got a chance to explain everything to Mory. Together, with Clements’ former bandmate Folina, Galetka, and eventually Miranda, killusonline was born.  

After some practice sessions in Galetka’s basement, the band knew they had something special. The ultimate proof of concept for the band would come in the form of live performances. “Our live show is definitely where we found our stride,” Galetka says. "I feel like the music we make is just so visceral, rhythmic, and intense that when we get into the song, it’s go time, you know?” 

killusonline’s cohesion as a band, and more importantly as a group of friends, shone through the laptop screen during an interview over Zoom. “When I'm on stage, the s*** that Sean be doing definitely hypes me up,” said Mory. “I look over and he’s jumping off of his amp.” Clements admits it’s something they love to do, making a point to run up and push Mory at the start of every show. killusonline feed off of each other to create a self-sustaining engine of energy. “It almost feels like the same camaraderie as if you were playing a team sport, in a weird way. It’s even like being in a musical or something. We're all working together towards this thing and you really are just in tune with what each other is doing,” Galetka says.

This past Friday, killusonline performed at the Underground Music Café in downtown Minneapolis. Sebastian Carreon, the event’s promoter, says he was drawn in by the band’s energy, comparing them to Rage Against the Machine. “They know how to rile up a crowd and unify everybody,” he says. “They bring a lot of people together from every corner of Minnesota.  I just thought that would be super sick to be a part of.”  

Many in the crowd that night shared this sense of unity and immersion. "I've seen them two or three times now. They have a unique sound that a lot of people just connect with. It makes me really happy because I feel like the energy in the room when they perform is a lot different than other bands. Everyone's just hype as f*** to see them," crowd member Kiara Decker said at the show. There was also Chloe, who noted their refreshing intensity; Olivia, who said she loved their energetic, angry music; and, of course, Tyler, who noted that everyone in the room is “locked in” when killusonline performs. With so many common threads, it would be easy to assume there was a script these people were reading from. However, to assume that would be ignoring a simple fact: killusonline are just that good. 

 was also in attendance Friday night. "'Raw' is the word,” he said, describing killusonline’s sound. “Every performance that I go to just makes me want to go to another show. You can tell that they’re all friends, and they all enjoy what they're doing. I feel like that's what makes their music great.” Alex Kimball, musician and guitarist in Mbye’s live band, also praised killusonline’s raw sound: "They're bringing hardcore back in a cool way that isn't corny and overproduced. There are too many post-hardcore bands like Memphis May Fire and Asking Alexandria that are just trash. But these guys are rough. There's no f***ing editing going on.”  

Although their sound is raw, killusonline take great care in the construction of their music and hope people can hear it shine through the chaos. "I know I be screaming this s*** when we perform it,” Mory confesses. “But if you listen to what I'm saying, I'm saying s*** n****s don't be saying... You just gotta listen to the music. You gotta feel it, bro.” Mory and the band accept that some are going to get the deeper message, and some will just vibe to the music. Saying what they have to say is all that matters to the band. “We want to bring something to the table that's a little bit unique,” Clements says. “Something that might make people raise their eyebrows. Like, ‘Okay, they're doing something new.’” The band is also focused on capturing the energy of their live performances in their future recordings, along with adding some slower songs to their live performances so that crowds don’t get too burnt out.  

With Folina currently studying abroad in London and Galetka on tour with Miloe, killusonline say they’re most focused on getting new songs released and refining their sound. “There's a pretty big growth mentality,” Clements confirms. “Whenever we're faced with a situation of doubt, we just keep going, have faith, and persevere. It's a very positive mentality, which is maybe weird for a band called killusonline." More than anything, the band is focused on building community with each other and Minneapolis itself. “It's just overwhelming, the sense of optimism for the project from people I talked to,” Galetka shares. “Even if there was no one f***ing with us, we would still have this overwhelming sense of optimism because when we come together, it's just great.” 

Check out killusonline’s latest single “

” and their video performance on Flavor World:

The Minneapolis group says they put on “the most lit live show you've ever been to."


Julian Green

killusonline - Live from Flavor World (#13)

Rising band killusonline are fueled by visceral live energy

Is there a song that you just love? Do you have a favorite jam? Or are you a fan of a certain genre of music and will listen to anything that falls in line with it?

MPR News host Angela Davis introduced us to 

, the new music stream available online and via mobile app dedicated to celebrating Black musical expression from hip-hop and R&B to Afrobeats, funk and electronica. 

Carbon Sound launched on Thursday and is a collaboration between The Current and KMOJ/The Ice. The project is funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Other stations launching as part of 

 include Radio Milwaukee and WJSU-FM in Jackson, Mississippi. 

Angela Davis

The Current launched Carbon Sound on Thursday. The new music stream, website and app is dedicated to celebrating Black musical expression across genres — including hip-hop, R&B, Afrobeats, funk and electronica. MPR News host Angela Davis talked with the team behind Carbon Sound. 


The Current launched Carbon Sound on Thursday, June 16. The new music stream, website and app is dedicated to celebrating Black musical expression across genres — including hip-hop, R&B, Afrobeats, funk and electronica. MPR News host Angela Davis talked with the team behind Carbon Sound. 

Meet the team behind The Current's Carbon Sound

. The new music stream, website, and app is dedicated to celebrating Black musical expression across genres — including hip-hop, R&B, Afrobeats, funk, and electronica. Carbon Sound can be found at 

 and on Carbon Sound’s new app, which can be found in the Google Play Store and 

The project is funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and has been developed in partnership with Minneapolis community broadcasting station KMOJ’s HD2 station, 89.9 The Ice. The team behind Carbon Sound is content director Julian Green; the voice of Carbon Sound, Sanni Brown; and community engagement specialist Andre Griffin. Other stations launching in this new format include Radio Milwaukee and WJSU-FM in Jackson, Mississippi.

Julian Green built and manages the music library for Carbon Sound and oversees content output. During his time at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, he was program director of Radio K and founded their online hip-hop stream The Vanguard. He crafted the mission and vision of Carbon Sound and guided the project in its initial stages. “The mission and the vision here are my passions. It’s showing the depth, breadth and beauty of Black musical expression and showing how it's foundational to the whole canon of musical expression in this country,” he says.

, The Current’s hip-hop and R&B show airing Wednesdays. The show will now also be heard on Carbon Sound, airing Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. CT.

Brown brings more than 10 years of experience in radio at stations KMOJ-FM, KFAI-FM, and 107.1 MyTalk to the role. Outside of her work in broadcasting, Brown is a professional speaker, licensed barber and singer who performs as a solo artist and with Lady Lark. She is a graduate of Concordia University, St. Paul, winner of Brown College’s "You Wanna Be A DJ?" voice talent, and self-described “certified Nerd Goddess.” “What’s most important to me is that we’re bringing something to the community — we’re public media, we’re here to give more than we get,” Brown says. “I want Carbon Sound to feel how I feel when I walk up on a barbecue I was invited to. I want it to be like that feeling of, ‘it's safe here.’”

Andre Griffin, community engagement specialist

Andre Griffin is a graduate of Augsburg University with a passion for community outreach and education. He has worked as a youth mentor at Banyan Community and as a community outreach specialist for the Pan-Afrikan Student Union. “My love of history and my love of my North Minneapolis community guides my work every day,” he says. “I believe in abundance, we believe in abundance, and I am so glad to be a part of bringing more abundance to the Twin Cities.” His focus at Carbon Sound is to help elevate and amplify local music and artists on the stream and airwaves, as well as being active in the community, and helping provide digital and physical spaces for artists and fans to engage and connect.

Freddie Bell, general manager of KMOJ’s Center for Communication and Development (CCD) and KMOJ-FM, The People’s Station, says, “This partnership will help extend and help elevate what we’re doing on The Ice and beyond. Now listeners who are looking for a wider variety of Black music in the Twin Cities will have a destination to find all these different sources of programming. ”

“I’m excited for MPR be joining the cohort of new stations under the CPB’s project to develop a new format for public media. We’re so proud of the work this team has done to create such a powerful addition to the local music community,” says David Safar, managing director of The Current. “We’re also grateful to the funding from the CPB and thrilled to be collaborating with Freddie his team at KMOJ and The ICE.”

The Current has launched a new stream and app featuring hip-hop, R&B, Afrobeats, funk, electronica, and more — funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and developed in partnership with KMOJ’s HD2 station, 89.9 The Ice.


Carbon Sound is a new stream celebrating Black musical expression

Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has announced a new album, titled 

CD and products on her website. Several streaming services, including 

, also announced the forthcoming Beyoncé release on social media. No further details about the new album have been released.

Rumors of a new 2022 release first started to spread online June 9 after Beyoncé removed her profile pictures across all of her social media pages, with her highly organized fanbase 

 theorizing the avatars signaled new material on the horizon.

Across her extensive career, Beyoncé has maintained her position as one of the most powerful, attention-commanding performers in music, reshaping pop stardom in the process. Though she last released a proper, solo studio album in 2016 with 

, her second visual album that also premiered as an HBO film of the same name, Beyoncé hasn't been quiet, working in film, fashion and contributing to other artists' projects, including a 2020 feature on rapper 

"By all means, she appears to be the hardest-working entertainer alive, judging by the set parameters of the industry," critic Kiana Fitzgerald 

 of Beyoncé for NPR Music. "The title 'pop star' doesn't fit anymore: Bey has weaved together an entirely new matrix of celebrity."

In March, Beyoncé opened the 2022 Academy Awards with an elaborate, neon-clad performance of her song "Be Alive," from the film 

, which also earned the artist her first Oscar nomination. In 2019, she 

. The soundtrack featured the song "Black Parade," which won a Grammy in 2021 for best R&B performance, becoming her 28th Grammy Award. The win helped Beyoncé 

 for most Grammy wins by a female artist, and earned her a tie with Quincy Jones for most Grammy wins for a performer. 

In 2018 Beyoncé became the first Black woman to headline the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Later nicknamed "

," the performances featured revamped, freshly arranged versions of her biggest, most beloved songs and a set that channeled the marching band culture of HBCUs (historically Black colleges and universities.) The Coachella set 

 the next year in a behind the scenes Netflix documentary on the performances, as well as on 

 the performance: "She's created an entire world to encompass the music that she's put out over the last two decades of her career."   

Ashley Pointer

Hazel Cills

The album will be the pop star's first solo studio album in six years.


Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Beyoncé announces new album 'Renaissance'

This Juneteenth, I'm finding it hard to celebrate.

It's hard to reflect on freedom in this deafening swell of discord, this crescendo of threats to our most basic human and civil rights. It's hard to stand upright in this storm of unending violence, to find footing on ground riven by such deep and jagged divisions. It's hard, in such darkness, to believe in the dawn of a better day.

But as we observe this holiday, I have to remember that freedom has always been hard fought and hard won. All we can ever do is believe in tomorrow and work to make it better, despite all evidence and against all odds.

At the turn of the 20th century, the sociologist, historian and civil rights activist W.E.B. Du Bois imagined a world that defied the realities of Jim Crow America. In his poem "Credo," he states his belief that all people deserve "the space to stretch their arms and their souls; the right to breathe and the right to vote, the freedom to choose their friends, enjoy the sunshine and ride on the railroads, uncursed by color; thinking, dreaming, working as they will." Sixty years later, the composer Margaret Bonds took inspiration from his words to write a piece of music full of pure passion and soaring beauty, even as violence raged and fires burned across America, as the civil rights movement fought on for the promise of those same freedoms, still unattained.

This Juneteenth, I turn to Du Bois' words and Bonds' music — to all the lessons of our history. I offer you a collection of music that insists on the promise of freedom, however long in coming. Music that counters the shrieking dissonance of conflict with the radiant warmth of its harmonies, that offers us comfort in our sorrow and sustenance in our struggle. Songs that ground us with the steadiness of their rhythms and embrace us in the lines of their melodies. Music that brings us hope and faith and even joy, urging us to stand and fight another day, reminding us that what we are celebrating on this holiday is our freedom to believe, even in the hardest of times.

In 1964, Margaret Bonds wrote this intimate yet infinitely powerful piece of music, inspired by the words of W.E.B. Du Bois' "Credo." The feel of these notes under my fingers reminds me to reflect on the struggles and triumphs that came before us and also urges me to look ahead at the brightness of what can come next. I've put out a call to young people across the United States, asking them to share what they believe in, to create a "Credo" for our present, a design for our future. 

 to their words — confident and deep in conviction — and maybe you, too, will rest easier tonight, knowing that tomorrow is in their hands.

Inspired by the wave of protests against police violence in 2020, this song echoes the protest music of the 1960s in intention and intensity. What grabs me is its juxtaposition of hot fire and cool resolve — the steady, persistent pulse interrupted by moments of percussive explosion. Samora puts it this way: "The first half represents the spirit of uprising and revolt, which requires imagining, courage, strength, organizing, scaffolding and fire. The second half represents our fight against all odds. Overall, I hope the song reflects this beautiful quote by the abolitionist Mariame Kaba: 'Hope is a discipline.' "

The freedom to reimagine your reality, to dream a new life, inspires this first movement of Carlos' string quartet 

, a musical portrait of the Great Migration. It was a defining American journey, the migration of more than six million Black Americans, following a ray of light called hope out of the rural South to the cities of the North, Midwest and West. They left behind everything and everyone they knew, taking only what they could carry. But what they brought with them — their dreams, their courage, their faith in a brighter tomorrow — transformed American life and culture in every possible way.

Leontyne Price: 'I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free'

Leontyne Price sings this gospel-infused Civil Rights Movement anthem with the choir of Rust College, a historically Black institution in Mississippi just a few hours down the road from where she grew up. Her journey from segregated Laurel, Miss., to the greatest opera stages of the world was fueled by the freedom of music and art to demolish artificial borders and barriers of all kinds. One of my most treasured possessions is a photo taken with Ms. Price when I was a little girl in the San Francisco Opera Children's Chorus. Her generous embrace wrapped us kids in the warmth of what a life in music could be, and I caught a radiant glimpse of my own future.

Florence Price: 'Juba' (from Symphony No. 3)

This recording by the Philadelphia Orchestra is evidence of our freedom to reclaim and retell our stories. The recent recovery and revival of Florence Price's 

 is a triumphant correction of history. Price's music itself speaks volumes about our freedom to simply be ourselves, true to our authentic voice and vision. In her time and place, a Black woman seeking entry into the community of symphonic composers was knocking at a formidable door. When Price managed to crack that door open (though not a wide as she would have liked), she brought her ancestors with her, in the melodies and rhythms that infuse her symphonic compositions — echoes of Black spirituals and dances like the Juba, brought to this country by enslaved Africans and held as an essential outlet for self-expression and celebration even within the bondage of servitude. Later this summer, I'll play Price's "Piano Concerto" with this same legendary orchestra. That piece, too, uses a Juba dance in its closing movement, and the composer's indomitable spirit will lift us all up in a few moments of transcendent joy.

I'm haunted by this exuberant tribute to the full-throttle freedom of youth — the rush of the wind on your face as you lean out of the car window, the magic of your favorite song, the innocence of a childhood crush. As a parent, as a horrified witness to the unspeakable dangers to our children today, all I want is to preserve for them the freedom to experience the lazy luxury of "those days when our dreams were there for chasin', but time was better wasted," as this song goes. They deserve the freedom to live and laugh and grow without fear into the possibility of all their unknown tomorrows.

At Billy Strayhorn's funeral, his long-time collaborator and brother in music, Duke Ellington, eulogized the four freedoms by which Strayhorn lived his remarkable life: "freedom from hate, unconditionally; freedom from all self-pity (even throughout all the pain and bad news); freedom from fear of possibly doing something that might help another more than it would help himself; and freedom from the kind of pride that could make a man feel he was better than his brother or neighbor." This summer, I'm playing a new piano concerto based on Strayhorn's songs and I am holding his four freedoms close to my heart as I immerse myself in his music, bringing his legacy to life with some of our greatest American orchestras.

Lara Downes with Tonality: 'I Dream A World'

Finally, on this Juneteenth holiday, let's celebrate our ability and our responsibility to "dream a world where all will know sweet freedom's way," as this song reminds us with its text by that most tenacious and audacious of American dreamers, the poet Langston Hughes.

Photographer Eli Reed began his career in 1970. Initially, he was known for his work in El Salvador, Guatemala and other Central American countries. 

The renowned photographer spent over 20 years documenting the African American experience; much of it as the first full time Black photographer within the Magnum Photo Agency. His book 

 covered the 1970s until the end of the 1990s and includes the Crown Heights riots and the Million Man March.  

Reed, a 1982 Nieman Fellow at Harvard University, also photographed the effects of poverty on American children for the film 

Lara Downes

This Juneteenth, pianist Lara Downes remembers the freedom that has been hard fought and hard won.


Listen to the Story

© Eli Reed/Magnum Photos

Eli Reed/© Eli Reed/Magnum Photos

Songs to believe in: A Juneteenth playlist

Juneteenth marks the day when, a month after the American Civil War officially ended, Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation. It has since grown into a national celebration of emancipation and an annual homage to Black history, community and culture. 

Learn more about the 1865 origin story and significance of Juneteenth 

Here is a guide to Juneteenth weekend in the Twin Cities: 

Gateway to Juneteenth Live on Location Radio Broadcast

The Morning Show with Freddie and Chantel SinGs will be a live radio show featuring musicians, live DJs, light refreshments, various Juneteenth organizations and a live audience.

, YMCA of the North, 1711 W. Broadway Ave., Minneapolis

Lessons Throughout History With Nothando Zulu 

Local storyteller Nothando Zulu takes to Zoom at 6 p.m. to speak on Juneteenth, Reconstruction, and the Nadir, all the while weaving these histories into current issues and victories. 

Juneteenth Story Strolls (on display all weekend)

Three Minneapolis parks have lined trails with stories to read page-by-page as you stroll along. Feel the sweet summer breeze and reflect on 

Harrison Park hosts an outdoor party, with music to dance to, food to eat and games to partake in from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. 

This bash in Boyd Park features all-day entertainment from a lineup of musicians, dancers, DJs, storytellers and poets, performing from 3 - 7 p.m. Food trucks and St. Paul’s Bookmobile Library are also rolling in for the event. 

At noon, a parade of dance, music and theatrical acts arrives at Bethune Park to join food trucks and vendors for an outdoor celebration happening until 6 p.m. The stage features a variety of performances throughout the day, including dance, drum and historical reenactments. 

, Parade starts at 1250 West Broadway Ave., ends at 1304 10th Ave. N, Minneapolis

Northside Juneteenth Community Celebration at Sanctuary Covenant Church 

This annual Northside celebration of community, creativity and history transforms the front lawn of Sanctuary Covenant Church into a bustling fairground from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. There’s the Kid’s Zone with face painting, a health fair, a few group fitness classes and a variety of vendors to mingle with. 

Midtown Global Market’s celebration promises to be a lively one, with free kids crafts and back-to-back performances from storytellers, dancers and drummers. Creative Innovators, a coalition of young entrepreneurs, are also tabling the event. 

Described quite simply as “a good ole time”, the Sun Ray Library will offer free food, games, crafts and photo opps throughout the afternoon. 

The University’s inaugural Juneteenth commemoration starts with speeches at Willard Park, before marching down Penn Avenue toward the 

Urban Research & Outreach-Engagement Center

. There, a big block party awaits and runs until 6 p.m. with scheduled speakers and performers of all sorts of disciplines. In the downtime, enjoy roller skating, free food and haircuts, collaborative mural making and more. 

Brooklyn-based AFROPUNK makes its Midwest debut over Juneteenth weekend, culminating in a riverside music festival in Northeast on Sunday. Free events and panel discussions unfold across the city on June 18, including AFROPUNK’s signature Solution Sessions, hosted at The Get Down Coffee Company in North Minneapolis. 

This massive celebration sprawls across sections of West Broadway Avenue, from Bryant to Emerson Avenues North, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The party features good fresh food, a Father’s Day Rally, a kids carnival, giveaways, and a whole lot more to keep you busy. Dozens of Black-owned businesses also take part in this full-day festival, in part designed to facilitate community discussions around solutions to systemic socio-economic issues facing Black families today. 

A mix of 16 local and national musicians — including Ari Lennox, Noname, and Miloe — put on a full-day festival in northeast Minneapolis, with food trucks, art galleries, film screenings, and more on-site. 

Minneapolis’ premier jazz club has assembled a stacked lineup for the evening of Juneteenth. The talented and dynamic Ginger Commodore co-headlines the show with esteemed actor, vocalist and community organizer T. Mychael Rambo. They are joined by a slew of other jazz and soul-inspired acts including Geoff Jones, Charmin Michelle and Dennis Spears. 

Soul of the Southside Juneteenth Festival

A day-long party hosted by iLLism features music, poetry, speeches, a marketplace featuring Black-owned businesses, live art by Sean Garrison, and food vendors. The events are spread across the Hook and Ladder Theater and Under the Canopy space. Performers include Blackfish Movement, iLLism, Basement Gang & Supa Juke, Kashimana, Kokou Kah, and more. 

Long before it became a federal holiday in 2021, Juneteenth has been an important day of remembrance around the country. There's no shortage of Twin Cities festivities this year.


Juneteenth celebrations in the Twin Cities

Nicole Neri for MPR News

Afropunk

A guide to Juneteenth celebrations in the Twin Cities

When singer-songwriter Lizzo's new single, "Grrrls," sparked a heated online discussion over the weekend about ableist language, Black disabled activist Vilissa Thompson noticed that the conversations were dominated by certain people within the disability community.

White disabled people in the U.S. and the U.K. were calling out the singer for using the word "spaz," which many consider an ableist slur. Buried among these critiques, however, was the perspective of Black disabled people, who raised points about the need for cultural nuance and an intersectional lens to the situation.

"The erasure of Black disabled people, when it comes to a Black entertainer, has been very prominent throughout this whole thing," Thompson, a licensed master social worker, told NPR.

Language has history, and it holds different weight to different communities

The term "spaz" originates from the term "spastic," which has historically been used to describe people with spastic paralysis or cerebral palsy. Often used in a derogatory way to describe people with disabilities, "spaz" or "spaz out" has also been used to refer to someone losing physical control or simply acting "weird" or "uncool."

In online conversations, white disabled people in the U.S. and the U.K were speaking about their experiences with the word. Meanwhile, Black people in the U.S. and the U.K. pointed out how the word, which some say is

a part of African American Vernacular English, is used differently by Black people within their countries. Thompson wished there were an amplification of Black disabled people who understand the nuances of those who use the word and those who are reclaiming it.

She pointed out that language evolves and that if the history of the word is offensive or has been used to oppress a particular group, it's on each person to unlearn it.

"The onus is on us to not just unlearn but also update and improve the way that we communicate with each other, so that our words are intentionally used, so that they don't cause unintentional harm," Thompson said.

Thompson believes that the way people go about critiquing others is very important. In reading the discussions online, she said she noticed they perpetuated anti-Blackness and misogynoir, or misogyny directed at Black women.

She noted that rather than fostering an open dialogue about ableist language and engaging in a conversation with Lizzo about it, the critiques piled on and missed the mark.

"I was shocked but not surprised by the way that white disabled people, especially those who claim to be in solidarity with Black disabled people, engaged in the conversation. You are not in solidarity with us if your behavior during this time in addressing Lizzo can be read as problematic [and] offensive," Thompson said.

Holding people accountable is important but so is recognizing the racial dynamics at play

Criticism is much harsher for Black people with high profiles, particularly if they are not disabled and stumble when it comes to disability and language, Thompson added. For example, when white musicians use ableist language in their songs, they may receive some backlash but not the same visceral reaction that Black people do, Thompson said.

"I'm always particular about how white people and non-Black people of color engage with Black women who look a certain way. [Lizzo is] unintentionally a polarizing figure ... because she has the audacity to be comfortable in her skin as a fat Black woman. If she does something that people don't like, the pile-ons feel exacerbated, and at times unnecessarily, when it comes to her," she said.

Lizzo released a statement on Monday acknowledging the "harmful word" in her song and announcing a rerecorded version of the song without the slur in it. "I never want to promote derogatory language. As a fat black woman in America, I've had many hurtful words used against me so I overstand the power words can have (whether intentionally or in my case, unintentionally)," she wrote in her statement.

Shortly after the post and the song's rerelease, disabled people praised Lizzo for being so receptive and for responding well to the community's feedback.

Thompson noted, however, that she was not surprised that Lizzo responded the way that she did. Having done work in Black progressive spaces, Thompson has seen Black people who are not versed in disability but who actively work to do better. They know the importance of understanding when they've messed up and being inclusive to everybody, she said.


"Grace and room for correction are typically not given [to Black people]. The double standard of inconsistent reactions is profound. They don't trust Black people to do the right thing," she said.


Shruti Rajkumar

Lizzo rerecorded a lyric in her new song "Grrrls" after disabled fans called out her use of a word that's considered an ableist slur.


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