Music in Common produces a variety of mission-driven projects that build upon our existing programs to address urgent issues of our time.
BLACK LEGACY PROJECT
The Black Legacy Project is a musical celebration of Black history to advance racial solidarity, equity, and belonging.
The Black LP is a national project produced in partnership with community stakeholders at the local level. Developed in the summer of 2020 and launched in September 2021, the Black Legacy Project travels the U.S. bringing together Black and White artists and artists of ALL backgrounds to record present day interpretations of songs central to the Black American experience and compose originals relevant to the pressing calls for change of our time. Community roundtable discussions help inform how these songs are interpreted and written. The project has launched with week-long residencies in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts, Atlanta, Los Angeles, the Mississippi Delta, Denver, the Arkansas Ozarks, and Boise. A feature-length documentary film and seven-part docuseries are in production, highlighting the project and some of the many places it has traveled to. Two albums, Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, feature 24 songs reimagined, written, and recorded in the project.
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A touring band brings the music of the project to audiences nationwide in powerful and engaging performances. In addition to this interactive musical celebration and educational experience, the tour includes film screenings of the Black Legacy Project docuseries, community conversations, roundtable discussions, and school programs.
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The Black Legacy Project is funded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (opportunity numbers DHS-21-TTP-132-00-99 and DHS-22-TTP-132-00-01) and a long list of national and local partners, including major funding from the Fulton County Board of Commissioners, Walmart Foundation, Massachusetts Cultural Council, and Truist Foundation .
THE ABRAHAM JAMMS
The Abraham JAMMS seeks to disrupt, mitigate, and transform the rising tide of anti-Muslim and anti-Jewish hate in the U.S., particularly on college campuses. Music in Common partners with universities across the country to engage students, faculty, and staff of all faiths in directly addressing the issues that cause increased anti-Semitism and Islamophobia to prevent all forms of faith-based hate. In skillfully curated, face-to-face conversations led by MIC trained facilitators and organizational partners, participants unpack the drivers of faith-based hate and examine the connection between Islamophobia and anti-Semitism to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. From these conversations, the group collectively writes a set of lyrics, guided by three MIC musicians representing each of the Abrahamic faiths who craft the lyrics into powerful, finished songs.
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In addition to releasing the Abraham JAMMS songs, a documentary film of the project will be produced and shared with audiences world wide, including on the campuses where the project takes place. Music in Common works closely with a faculty / staff advisor on each campus, providing them training in MIC's unique methodology and curriculum so that the important work of the project can continue after the songs are completed.
UNITED SONGS OF AMERICA
United Songs of America (U.S.A.) addresses the political divisiveness and culture wars ripping apart our nation and aims to bridge these dangerous divides to prevent politically and socially motivated acts of violence from erupting. All too often this polarization and clash of ideologies is oversimplified as a binary of us vs. them when in reality the foundation of this unprecedented divisiveness is much more intersectional and complex. Further, a 2022 Pew Center analysis finds that the Democratic and Republican parties have pushed further to the left and right fringes, leaving a rapidly diminishing political center where many Americans feel like they have no political home or voice.
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Around the country, neighbors across a wide range of perspectives and viewpoints gather for roundtable discussions to address the most heated topics of the day - abortion, immigration, book banning, Critical Race Theory and more. A song addressing the topic is selected as the basis of the discussion. Through examination and interpretation of the lyrics led by MIC trained facilitators, participants are able to constructively unpack the issues. From these conversations, the group collectively writes a set of lyrics, guided by three MIC musicians representing the political left, right, and center who craft the lyrics into powerful, finished songs.
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In addition to releasing the U.SA. songs, a documentary film of the project will be produced and shared with audiences world wide, including in the communities where the roundtable conversations take place. The project engages a large network of national and local partners to organize ongoing discussions.
