U STREET MUSIC HALL 8-YEAR ANNIVERSARY
Go-Go Returns to U Street with Trouble Funk, Baronhawk and Sol Power All-Stars at U Street Music Hall
7PM / $15 / 18+
U Street Music Hall is kicking of its 8-year Anniversary Week celebration with legendary D.C. go-go band Trouble Funk–along with local support from the District’s own Baronhawk and Sol Power All-Stars–as part of our continuing Go-Go Returns to U Street series. Don’t miss this show!
TROUBLE FUNK
https://www.facebook.com/The-Official-Trouble-Funk-Page-164882714889/
Trouble Funk, a musical group born on the streets of Washington, D.C. , is synonymous with the emergence of the non-stop, percussion driven, best seen live, experience the party, au- dience participatory call and response, grassroots, homegrown music called Go-Go. As the world wide ambassadors of this musical genre, Go-Go, a distant, but older cousin of Hip-Hop, Trouble Funk has taken their sound from the gritty streets of D.C. to the clubs of the nation and the festivals around the world for the past 30 plus years.
The band and their sound, developed by mixing an uproarious blend of swinging, up-tempo 70’s funk with a 60’s style horn section, heavily laden with infectious percussion, topped off with booming vocals and the genre’s trademark call and response, burst onto the music scene in 1978. Trouble Funk, in its infancy, consisted of the writing team of band leader, bassist and vocalist Tony “Big Tony” Fisher, keyboardists Robert “Syke Dyke” Reed and James Avery and trumpet player Taylor Reed. The group was rounded out with the musical prowess of drummer Emmett Nixon, percussionists Mack Carey and Timothy “Teebone” David, guitarist Chester Davis, trombonist Gerald Reed and saxophonist David Rudd while they peppered the musical landscape of the 1980’s with anthems “Drop the Bomb”, “Pump Me Up”, “Let’s Get Small”, “So Early in the Morning”, “Saturday Night Live From Washington, D.C., Parts 1 & 2”, “Say What?” and two R&B/ Hip-Hop Billboard charting tracks, “Still Smokin’” and “Good to Go”.
“Drop the Bomb” was the first Go-Go record to be released outside of Washington, D.C. and was released on the pioneering label, Sugar Hill Records.
Trouble Funk, with their raw, party driven style, was able to capture the attention of musical enthusiasts of a variety of genres catapulting themselves onto the national and international music scene. They would frequently tour with notable punk rock acts Minor Threat and the Big Boys, while still gracing the stage on major music festivals with legendary artists such as Curtis Mayfield, Parliament Funkadelic, Red Hot Chili Peppers, UB40, Def Leppard and Fishbone, to name a few. Trouble Funk also recorded with Kurtis Blow and appeared in his video, “I’m Chillin’”.
BARONHAWK
https://www.facebook.com/DJBaronhawk/
https://soundcloud.com/baronhawkpoitier
Nestled between Baltimore and Washington, DC in PG (Prince George’s) County, Maryland shaped life for artist Baronhawk Poitier. Spending the bulk of his youth sorting through records and other music memorabilia at The Record Exchange in Silver Spring, Maryland, exposed him to decades of music which heavily influenced his pursuit of a career in DJing and production. As a solo artist, he’s played before Vanessa Williams, Nicky Siano, Grandmaster Flash, Slick Rick, DJ Spinna, Dubtribe Soundsystem, Metro Area, Disclosure, Claude Vonstroke, Oscar G, Chromeo Karizma/ Kaytronik and local DC legend Sam “The Man” Burns. The DMC DJ competition and turntablist event has featured him during several of the DC regional battles as one of their party-rocking favs. Poitier was recognized alongside mentor and teacher Kris Klayton aka Karizma/ Kaytronik with a grant from the Maryland Historic Trust and the Maryland State Arts Council in 2015. Together they presented a Baltimore style of dance music production to the entire community through a showcase at the Maryland Folklife Festival and the release of his first EP under the direction of Karizma for R2 Records. His passion for cultural preservation and artist recognition began while working under Junious “House” Brickhouse” as a Artistic Directors and Sound Designers for the 501(c)3 non-profit organization Urban Artistry Inc., an International Culture and Education Project founded in 2005. Serving as a steward for urban dance and music culture globally presented him opportunities to headline battles and dance competitions such as: “The International Soul Society Festival” (USA), “Jam On It” (Bulgaria), “Who Can Roast The Most” (USA), “Clash CPH” (Denmark) and the USA qualifier for the “Flow Mo Anniversary (FINLAND).”
Within LGBTQ dance music community he has earned a name for himself as a member of The NeedlExchange, a DC based, queer DJ collective with partners Bil Todd & Tommy Cornelis. Baronhawk plays an integral role building a resume for the artist group coordinating and playing events such as; Hot Mass (Honcho, Pittsburgh), Fag Bash (P Town) and opening sets for TNXDC showcases featuring The Honey Soundsystem, Sleazy McQueen, Gay Marvine, DJ Harvey, Horse Meat Disco, Kim Ann Foxman and Honey Dijon. Collectively by working through TNX and Urban Artistry, Baronhawk Poitier continues his passion for igniting dance floors into a frenzy while educating fans about cypher etiquette and culture.
SOL POWER ALL-STARS
https://www.facebook.com/solpowerdc/
https://soundcloud.com/solpowerdc
With a shared love for the sounds of the African diaspora, in 2009 DJs Marc Meistro, Stylus, and Deep Sang, and percussionist Hermon Farahi formed the Sol Power All-Stars. The Sol Power sound connects Cuban barrio beats to the beaches of Rio, the discos of Lagos, and the warehouses of Detroit and Chicago. Hermon Farahi’s expansive rhythmic vocabulary provides the percussive glue for the DJs’ genre-bending mixes.
The crew has held residencies in hometown Washington, DC at Dahlak, Eighteenth Street Lounge, and Tropicalia, and appeared at other world class venues at home and abroad. You can find Sol Power releases on taste-making labels, G.A.M.M., BSTRD Boots, Cultures of Soul, and Record Breakin’. The All-Stars have also provided official remixes for Orchestre Poly-Rythmo, Cheick Hamala Diabate, See-I, Rocky Dawuni, and others.
In 2015 the crew launched their own imprint, Sol Power Sound. The record label’s output reflects the global sounds of a Sol Power All-Stars’ DJ set – percussive anthems inspired by rhythms from around the globe. Sol Power Sound releases are available on vinyl and digital formats.
