- General Admission: $40
- UCSD Student: Limited Free Tickets via SSO
About
Carlos Simon
Grammy-nominated Carlos Simon is a multi-genre composer and performer who is a passionate advocate for diversity in music. As winner of the Sphinx Medal of Excellence 2021 and Composer-in-Residence at the Kennedy Center, Carlos is a unique voice and sought-after cultural ambassador for new music Globally as well as an important spokesperson for the Black community and new audiences.
Simon is passionate about social outreach and his work addresses complex themes that include migration, belonging and community – especially illuminating the transatlantic slave trade, the Jim and Jane Crow era, and the injustice people of African ancestry face today. His unique upbringing and journey into music has resulted in his music possessing both classical textures and structures in a contemporary aesthetic alongside strong jazz, hip-hop and heavy gospel influences as well as branching out in to the world of Film – Carlos Simon’s music transcends genre.
Listed in the Kennedy Center’s Next 50’, his recent commissions have been granted by the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Kennedy Center, Minnesota Orchestra, Los Angeles Opera, Philadelphia Orchestra, PBS and the Washington National Opera as well as his work being set to ballets by Washington National Ballet and American Ballet Theater. He is signed to Decca Records/Classics and his next album (following his Grammy-nominated release) which sees original music and a variety of celebrated guest artists with Carlos at the piano, will be out in 2023.
Hub New Music
Called “contemporary chamber trailblazers” by the Boston Globe, Hub New Music is a “nimble quartet of winds and strings” (NPR) forging new paths in 21st-century repertoire. The ensemble’s ambitious commissioning projects and “appealing programs” (New Yorker) celebrate the rich diversity of today’s classical music landscape. Founded in 2013, Hub has grown into a formidable touring ensemble driven by an unwavering dedication to building community through new art. Over the last decade, Hub has commissioned dozens of new works and continues to usher in a fresh and culturally relevant body of work for its distinct combination of flute, clarinet, violin, and cello. Hub is proud to collaborate with today’s most celebrated emerging and established composers, and is equally proud to count many of them as friends.
Marco Pavé
Tauheed “Marco Pavé” Rahim IIis a Memphis, TN, native and hip hop artist, advocate, and educator producing work influenced by Memphis’s legacy of blues, soul, and trap with KRS-One-meets-Project-Pat sensibilities. Marco Pavé has collaborated with Grammy Award-winning producers, charted at #2 on CMJ, and was featured on MTVU, The Source, The Root, MTV News, and more. Marco Pavé is also a Memphis Music Ambassador with Music Export Memphis and Founder of Radio Rahim Music, an independent record label that works at the intersection of hip hop, arts communities, technology, and activism.
MK Zulu
Jared “MK Zulu” Bailey is a Grammy-nominated trumpeter/rapper/singer/songwriter from Forestville, Maryland. Graduating from Howard with a Bachelor’s in Music Business, he later received his Master’s in Jazz Performance from Rutgers. Since then, MK has been working as a teaching and performing artist in the DMV through various outlets. MK Zulu has had the opportunity to perform at some of the city’s most prominent venues including The Atlas Performing Arts Center, The Howard Theatre, and the John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Center. Thriving in collaboration, he participated in over 25 releases as a contributing performer. MK’s collaboration with composer Carlos Simon for his album, “Requiem for the Enslaved”, was Grammy nominated for Best Contemporary Classical Composition. Meanwhile, his latest solo project “The Legend EP” is an energetic package of songs created to motivate others to never give up on their dreams. This project led to MK being listed among The Source Magazine’s Top Talents to Watch Fall 2021. MK Zulu’s effortless fusion of jazz, hip-hop, r&b, and funk allows him to connect with listeners from all different walks of life.
John Rawlins III
John (He/Him/His) is a Campus Diversity Officer and Director of the UC San Diego Black Resource Center. He is an EDI/Student Affairs professional with 16 years of experience as an administrator and advocate for students, more specifically students of color. John is a native of the Washington, DC Metropolitan area and earned his Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University and his Master of Arts degree from The Johns Hopkins University. John comes to UCSD from California State University San Marcos where he served as Director of the Black Student Center and Special Assistant to the Chief Diversity Officer in the Office of Inclusive Excellence. John’s passion to support students of color began during his undergraduate career, where he served in many leadership roles in student organizations and campus advisory boards. John would begin a celebrated career at Ithaca College, continue at The Johns Hopkins University, and the international headquarters of his fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., before heading West to CSUSM. John holds memberships with NASPA, ASCAP, and is a Life Member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He serves as the 16th and current President/CEO of the Cornell Black Alumni Association and serves on several alumni boards for the institution. John is also a Gospel recording artists and vocalist who has performed on national and international stages alike. He has been honored to share the stage and sing with artists such as jazz icon Wynton Marsalis and Gospel legend Kirk Franklin.
