Black Women's Blues Festival celebrates powerful, pioneering Black women of the blues. Showcasing legendary artists, established performers, and emerging talent, this intergenerational, interdisciplinary program features the best vocalists, instrumentalists, and poets of the blues that you'll find anywhere in the world! Join us for what is sure to be an historic afternoon of blues, blues, and more blues.

LOCATION CHANGE AS OF 8/15/21: NOW PRESENTING BLACK WOMEN'S BLUES FESTIVAL OUTDOORS AT MARTIN LUTHER KING JR CIVIC CENTER PARK 2151 MLK WAY IN BERKELEY SUNDAY AUGUST 22, 2pm

Due to the current data regarding the spread of the COVID-19 Delta Variant, out of an abundance of caution, Freight & Salvage has decided to delay its reopening. We are happy to present Black Women's Blues Festival Sunday August 22, 2pm at Martin Luther King Jr Civic Center Park in Berkeley. During this period in the pandemic, presenting this program outdoors provides the best opportunity to reach audiences with the greatest attention toward our community's safety and health. All tickets purchased will be honored and tickets are still available. There will be seating available, or you are welcome to bring your own chairs, blankets, etc. Street parking is free Sundays or there is parking available nearby at Center Street or Allston Way Garages.

Please don't hesitate to contact my team at fayecarolbiz@gmail.com with any questions.

COVID-19 Information:

At this time, all attendees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and wear masks while at the festival. By purchasing ticket(s), ticket-buyers understand that they will be asked to provide proof of full vaccination against COVID-19 upon entry and will be asked to wear a face mask while at the festival. Either a vaccination card, a photo of a card, or a digital vaccine record (e.g., myvaccinerecord.cdph.ca.gov) are acceptable forms of proof of vaccination.

The Dynamic Miss Faye Carol is one of the premier vocalists of her time. Her unique style and gift for connecting with her audience is astonishing. Performing for audiences in the Bay Area and beyond since the early 1960s, she has shared the stage with artists such as Albert King, Charles Brown, Ray Charles, Joe Tex, Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding, Johnny Talbot & De Thangs, Henry Butler, Eddie 'Cleanhead' Vinson, Gene Ammons, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Pharoah Sanders, Buster Williams, Bobby Hutcherson, and Joan Baez. Her work was featured in the 2016 Oakland Museum of California exhibit “Oakland, I Want You to Know,” and she was a featured contributor in the 2017 documentary film “Evolutionary Blues.” Miss Faye has been honored with the proclamation of a city-wide “Faye Carol Day” in the City of Berkeley and inducted into the Oakland Walk of Fame, the Meridian Mississippi Walk of Fame, and the Pittsburg Entertainment and Arts Hall of Fame, and has received countless awards including the 2016 Bay Area Jazz Journalists Association Jazz Hero Award, City of Berkeley Lifetime Acheivement Award, Jefferson Award for Public Service, four Cabaret Gold Awards, and Top Star Awards Entertainer of the Year. Miss Faye is also a dedicated educator and founder of School of the Getdown. www.fayecarol.com @thedynamicmiss

Pianist, vocalist, and composer Lady Bianca has been thrilling audiences in the Bay Area and beyond for decades. She received her first musical education in the church and later studied at San Francisco Conservatory. In 1972, she played the role of Billie Holiday in the San Francisco stage production of Jon Hendricks' Evolution of the Blues. She has recorded and toured internationally with John Lee Hooker, Willie Dixon, Taj Mahal, Van Morrison, Frank Zappa, Merle Haggard, and Sly & The Family Stone and has released 9 albums of her own, including 3 Grammy Nominated releases. She has appeared at San Francisco Blues Festival, Monterey Blues Festival, and Royal Albert Hall, and in 2002 was honored with “Keys to the City” from the City of Oakland.

Kito Kamili is one of the most authentic and original blues pianists, vocalists, composers, producers, and educators on the planet. She started at the piano at the age of three and began her professional career performing with her mom Faye Carol at the age of sixteen. She has since graced the stage with artists such as Billy Higgins, David Murray, Steve Turre, Terrace Martin, Archie Shepp, Albert King, and Pharoah Sanders. This multi-talented artist has performed at venues such as Yoshi's, Paramount Theatre, Love Center Ministries, Town Hall, and various schools in the Oakland School District. Kito has also toured and performed concert series in Italy, France, Germany, Canada, and Africa.

Emerging artist Theresa Harris is a San Francisco native and graduate of Faye Carol's vocal workshop, School of The Getdown. Possessing a natural blues feeling and authentic soulful delivery, she has been honing her chops performing the blues and fronting bands all around the Bay Area at clubs and festivals.

Poet, playwright, multi-percussionist, bandleader, and radio personality Avotcja has been published in English and Spanish in the USA, Mexico, and Europe, and in more anthologies than she remembers. This award-winning artist has opened for Betty Carter and Susana Baca and performed with with Rahsaan Roland Kirk, John Handy, Bobi & Luis Cespedes, Cuba's Gema y Pavel, Dwight Trible, and The Bay Area Blues Society. She leads her group Avotcja & Modupue, teaches creative writing and storytelling in public schools, and is a popular Bay Area DJ and Radio Personality, hosting weekly shows on KPOO 89.5FM and KPFA 94.1FM. She has appeared at Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, AfroSolo Arts Festival, Yoshi's San Francisco, Yoshi's Oakland, Oakland Scottish Rite Center, Stanford University, Club Le Monmarte in Copenhagen, New York's Henry Street Settlement Theater, and San Francisco's Brava Theater for the Arts.

This project has been made possible in part by a Civic Arts Grant for Festivals from the City of Berkeley in partnership with Berkeley non-profit organization Black Female Project, and by a grant from the Alliance for California Traditional Arts, in partnership with the Walter & Elise Hass Fund, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, Grants for the Arts, and The California Endowment.

The Dynamic Miss Faye Carol

Lady Bianca

Kito Kamili

Avotcja

Emerging Artist Theresa Harris

Special presentation honoring blues legend Sugar Pie DeSanto (not appearing)