2013 R&B Festival at MetroTech kicks off a summer of free live funk, dub, Afrobeat, brass band, West African, blues, and soul Thursdays (except Avery*Sunshine on Wednesday, July 3) Jun 6—Aug 8, 12—2pm MetroTech Commons June 6: Mint Condition June 13: Bobby Rush June 20: Kaleta & ZoZo Afrobeat June 27: Stooges Brass Band July 3: Avery*Sunshine July 11: Sly & Robbie featuring Bunny Rugs from Third World July 18: Fatoumata Diawara July 25: Bombino Aug 1: Sheila E. Aug 8: Shuggie Otis First New York Partners is the Presenting Sponsor of the 2013 R&B Festival at MetroTech. Brooklyn, NY/May 2, 2012—BAM announces the 2013 BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech. Now in its 19th year, the festival continues to feature R&B legends alongside vibrant and groundbreaking newcomers with 10 free outdoor concerts from June 6 through August 8. Event producer Danny Kapilian said, "With this year's 19th annual BAM R&B Festival, the total number of artists who have graced our stage reaches 202! (Booker T & the MG's remains the only act to perform twice). Classic stars making their MetroTech debuts in 2013 include the Twin City funk/pop legends Mint Condition (opening on June 6th), Chicago's timeless star Bobby Rush bandleader, percussionist, and Prince alumnus Sheila E and Mr. "Strawberry Letter 23" himself Shuggie Otis (closing on August 8th). New Orleans funk returns with the fabulous Stooges Brass Band, and contemporary soul diva Avery*Sunshine spreads her love and music on July 3rd (the season's only Wednesday afternoon concert, due to the holiday). Africa will be well represented this summer with New York City's own Zozo Afrobeat Orchestra led by Benin/Nigeria native star Kaleta, Mali's newest sensation Fatoumata Diawara, and a surprise artist from Niger (whose new album is produced by the Black Keys' Dan Auerbach). Finally, watch for a surprise pair of all-time reggae legends on July 11th as they dub-step their way across Downtown Brooklyn. BAM R&B keeps you movin' and groovin'”! This year's BAM R&B Festival is part of the inaugural Summer@MetroTech, a summer-long festival presented by Forest City Ratner that will fill MetroTech Commons with culture, sports and innovation. The free lunchtime performances will be held Thursdays at noon (except for a Wednesday, July 3 Avery*Sunshine concert), at MetroTech Commons, located at the corner of Flatbush and Myrtle Avenues, rain or shine. For more information, call BAM Ticket Services at 718.636.4100 or visit BAM.org after May 6. About the artists Mint Condition, formed in the late 1980s, hails from St. Paul, MN. The group, known for its wide- ranging musicality, deftly plays traditional jazz, mainstream R&B, rock, funk, Latin, and Jamaican- based rhythms. Original members include Stokley Williams (lead vocals, drums, percussion), Ricky Kinchen (bass guitar), Homer O'Dell (guitar), Larry Waddell (keyboards, piano), Keri Lewis (keyboards, synthesizer), and Jeffrey Allen (saxophone, keyboards). Mint Condition wrote and produced the 90s R&B hits "Breakin' My Heart (Pretty Brown Eyes)" and "What Kind of Man Would I Be" and was recently inducted into the SoulMusic Hall of Fame. Bobby Rush, born Emmet Ellis, Jr. in the north Louisiana town of Homer, has been performing since the late 1940s. Rush built his first instrument, a primitive guitar or "diddley bow," and by his early teens was donning a fake mustache and appearing at local juke joints as a solo artist. In the mid-1950s Rush moved to Chicago and played with bands that included Freddie King, Earl Hooker, and Luther Allison. Rush recorded for labels including Jewel, Philadelphia International, and Warner Brothers, and toured widely on the "chitlin’ circuit,"—the decades-old network of clubs that stretches in a rough triangle between east Texas, north Florida, and Chicago. Rush's showmanship is also prominently featured in Richard Pearce's documentary film The Road to Memphis, broadcast on PBS in September 2003, and as part of Martin Scorsese's film series, The Blues. In the last decade Bobby Rush has gained new audiences through performances at the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, and on festival stages in Europe and Japan, while continuing to play to packed houses in chitlin’ circuit clubs in Nesbit, MS; Macon, GA; and Smackover, AR. Zozo Afrobeat Orchestra is a 13-piece Afrobeat ensemble based in New York City and led by Beninese star musician Kaleta. “Zozo” taken from the Goun and Fon word for “something hot,” features musicians from around the world and is led by African music luminary Kaleta. Born in the Republic of Benin and raised in Nigeria, Kaleta grew up recording and performing with legendary Nigerian musicians Fela Kuti and King Sunny Ade. After moving to the US, Kaleta toured with Femi Kuti and most recently with Lauryn Hill. With Zozo Afrobeat, Kaleta’s music pays homage to the greats while maintaining its own distinctive sound and energy. Like Fela Kuti, who used his music to challenge a corrupt Nigerian government, Kaleta has written songs that are socially and politically provocative with a keen sense of humor and a message of hope. Zozo’s remarkable singing, dancing, guitar and percussion playing are matched by the band’s cascade of horns and hypnotic Benino- Nigerian rhythms. Zozo Afrobeat has played at Central Park Summerstage, Lincoln Center Out of Doors Festival, the Brooklyn Museum, NJPAC, and at festivals and venues throughout New York City. Stooges Brass Band is one of the finest contemporary New Orleans brass bands, blending traditional and contemporary hip-hop beats into its high energy show. Their cut loose vibe is contemporary yet deeply rooted in the rich musical legacy of New Orleans. The band garnered the title of "Red Bull Street Kings: Best Brass Band" under the iconic Claiborne Bridge in New Orleans and were awarded the title of "Best Contemporary Brass Band" at the Big Easy Music Awards in 2011. The momentum continued in 2012 with a national club tour and appearances at famed festivals such as Bonnaroo, South by Southwest, and headlining the Utah Arts Festival, Discover Jazz Festival, American Folk Festival, High Sierra Music Festival, Great American Brass Band Festival, and more. In June 2012, the band was invited by the US Embassy to serve as New Orleans cultural ambassadors on a two-week tour through Pakistan. Avery*Sunshine is a singer-songwriter and pianist rooted in gospel resonating with jazz and soul. She grew up singing and playing piano with the regionally renowned Wilmington/Chester Mass Choir. She formed Daisey Rew, a singing duo with Spellman classmate and Broadway singer, Maia Wilson, and lent her voice to the soundtrack for Paramount Pictures’ The Fighting Temptations. Avery*Sunshine performed at the Democratic National Convention in 2008 and at President Barack Obama’s inauguration in 2009. Versed in soul, house, classical, and hip-hop, Avery*Sunshine tells unique, familiar stories with musical brilliance. Avery*Sunshine released her boldly personal self-titled debut album in 2010. Sly & Robbie, the most prolific reggae rhythm section in the recorded music industry, have been featured on almost 200,000 recordings and remixes for artists that include Toots and the Maytals, Black Uhuru, Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Grace Jones, Gilberto Gil, Madonna, Talking Heads, and many others. The three time Grammy Award-winning duo Drummer Sly Dunbar and his bass playing partner, Robbie Shakespeare started working together in the 1970s and are one of the longest lasting production teams in the music history. Fatoumata Diawara is a Malian musician currently living in France. She starred in the 2013 Globalfest and organized and produced the all-star “Save Mali” video seen by millions on YouTube. Diawara was born in the Ivory Coast to Malian parents and moved to France to pursue acting. She appeared in Cheick Oumar Sissoko's 1999 feature film La Genèse, as well as in Dani Kouyaté's popular 2001 film Sia, Le Rêve du Python, and played a leading role in the musical Kirikou et Karaba. She eventually took up the guitar and began composing songs that blend the Wassalou traditions of southern Mali with international influences. She has performed and recorded with Oumou Sangaré, AfroCubism, Dee Dee Bridgewater (on Red Earth: A Malian Journey), and the Orchèstre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou. The EP Kanou was released in 2011, and her debut album Fatou from World Circuit Records was released later that year. In 2012, she was featured in the "30 Songs/30 Days” campaign to support Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, a multi-platform media project inspired by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn’s book. Omara “Bombino” Moctar—Tuareg guitarist, singer and member of the Ifoghas tribe—is a descendent of the nomadic Berbers of North Africa. Born and raised in Niger, Bombino and his family were forced to flee on numerous occasions from the imposition of strict Islamic rule. During one such exile, relatives visiting from the front lines of the rebellion left behind a guitar. Bombino taught himself to play and eventually studied with the renowned Tuareg guitarist Haja Bebe. Bombino—a variation on the Italian word for bambino, “little child”, released the album Nomad on Nonesuch Records in April 2013 with producer Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys. The LA Times describes the sound as “borderless rock heavy on North African time signatures and rhythms, but universal in its charisma.” Sheila E is an American singer, bandleader, drummer, and percussionist, best known for her work with Prince, George Duke, and Ringo Starr. Part of a remarkable music family, her father is Latin jazz legend and timbalero Pete Escovedo, her uncles are acclaimed rock singer-songwriter Alejandro Escovedo and original Santana member Coke Escovedo, and her godfather is "El Rey de los Timbales" (King of the Timbales), Tito Puente.