From the City of South Burlington:
Enjoy an evening celebration of Black culture and remembrance as South Burlington offers education, poetry and music in honor of Juneteenth. This event is hosted by local poet Rajnii Eddins, who talks about the history of this bittersweet holiday and shares some of his work.
For more information visit: www.southburlingtonlibrary.org/juneteenth-event?c=20240619T180000&e=20240619T200000
About the artists:
Originally from Seattle Washington, Spoken Word Poet/Emcee and Teaching Artist Rajnii Eddins has been engaging diverse community audiences for over 30 years. He was the youngest member of the Afrikan American Writers Alliance at age 11 and has been actively sharing with youth and community in Vermont since 2010. Rajnii’s diverse talents and passions allow him to offer a wide variety of powerful experiences that foster connection, learning, and mutual growth. He thrives at creating spaces that are educational, explorative, and celebratory, whether in a classroom, a conference hall, a community center, or online. See more of Rajnii's work at his website here.
Abizo is a rising star in the world of Congolese music and a force to be reckoned with. Based in the US since 2019, he broke through in 2020 with his electrifying singles "BLESSED" and "POSITIVE ENERGY". His mixtapes "BLESSED" and "POSITIVE ENERGY" have been met with critical acclaim, particularly in his home country. The singles "BINA" and "COMME MESSI" catapulted him to even greater success. Abizo's recently released album "RUMBA FLOW" is a testament to his growth, featuring 20 vibrant tracks and quickly surpassing 100,000 streams worldwide. See more of Abizo on his instagram page here.
Hailing from the vibrant music scene of Burlington, VT, Ambaye Quartet offers a fresh and inviting sound in the world of jazz fusion. Formed by a group of dedicated musicians united by their love for innovative music, the quartet is eager to share their engaging performances and diverse blend of genres. Vocalist Rachel Ambaye, guitarist Griffin DeMatteo, bassist Emilia Winquist, and drummer Zach Brownstein thoughtfully blend elements of traditional jazz with modern influences. Their repertoire, which includes jazz standards and more, features complex rhythms, improvisational flair, and an eclectic mix of genres that they hope will resonate with and captivate audiences.
Edwin Owusu is a public speaking lecturer and debate coach at the University of Vermont holding a Bachelor's degree in Political Science and a Master's degree in English. He is better known by his stage name SINNN and has been a mainstay in Burlington, Vermont’s music scene for the better part of two decades. Born in Ghana and raised in the Bronx, he is a hip-hop and Afrobeats artist. The music is composed of shareable moments from his journey disseminated to audiences through meticulous attention to detail. Some he's shared the stage with include local greats like the David Grippo Funk Band & Myra Flynn as well as national acts like Jennifer Hartswick, Wyclef Jean, LEDISI, Gyptian, Pusha T, Wu-Tang Clan, Wale, & more! Edwin is also a Hip-Hop music instructor and teaches a Rhetoric of Hip-Hop seminar course at the University of Vermont. See more of Edwin's work at his website here.
