Signature Series Presents Country Music: Black Roots and Branches New Dangerfield, Dom Flemons, Donna McElroy, and Farayi Malek headline this October 29 concert spotlighting Black artists impact on country music.
By
Nick Balkin
October 9, 2024
Farayi Malek
Image by Najee Visuals
As Ray Charles once said, You take country music, you take Black music, you got the same goddamn thing exactly. Berklee's Signature Series concert Country Music: Black Roots and Branches brings this truth to life, celebrating the often-overlooked contributions of Black musicians to country music with performances by New Dangerfield, Farayi Malek, Dom Flemons, Donna McElroy, and more.
Produced by Farayi Malek, an assistant professor in the Ensemble Department, and Matt Glaser, artistic director of the American Roots Music Program, the event expands the narrative around country music's roots by highlighting the rich, interconnected history between Black and White traditions within the genre.
The concert takes place at the Berklee Performance Center on Tuesday, October 29, and will feature four sets, by New Dangerfield, Malek, Flemons, and McElroy, with additional appearances from Berklee faculty and esteemed guests. Highlights include Malek's homage to Black country singers and a grand finale performance of Freedom Highway by the Staple Singers, featuring all of the artists.
About the PerformersNew Dangerfield: This Afro-futurist string band brings a fresh take on Black musical traditions, blending old-time music with contemporary influences. Founded by award-winning banjoist Tray Wellington, the band includes Ka a Kater, Nelson Williams, and Jake Blount. Together, they celebrate and reimagine the Black string band tradition, weaving both original and historical pieces into their performances.
Farayi Malek: A Grammy-nominated jazz vocalist and rising star in American roots music, Malek will perform a set that features an homage to Black country pioneers like Linda Martell and a tribute to Ray Charles's country-soul fusion. Her dynamic interpretations honor the legacy of these artists, combining tradition with innovation.
Dom Flemons: Known as The American Songster, Flemons is a Grammy-winning musician, historian, and multi-instrumentalist whose work spans over a century of American roots music. A cofounder of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Flemons is an expert on the contributions of Black cowboys and will showcase this fascinating part of country music history in his set.
Donna McElroy: A powerhouse vocalist, McElroy will explore the connections between jazz, blues, and country music. Her set will feature unique takes on country-influenced songs, including a Nat King Cole version of Hank Williams's Cold Cold Heart and a playful rendition of The Ballad of Thelonious Monk. McElroy, professor emeritus of voice, retired from the college in 2021 after 24 years of service.
Admission is $15/$20 in advance and $20/$25 day of show. For those with a Berklee ID, admission is free/$5 in advance and $5/$10 day of show.
Tickets are available online or at the Berklee box office.
Related Categories
News
Most Popular
Jim Lucchese
Image by Kelly Davidson
Jim Lucchese Named Berklee's Fifth President A 20-year music industry veteran and a committed artist advocate with deep Berklee roots, Lucchese sets the tone for a new era at the institution.
Latest
Image courtesy of Tyler Golden/NBC
Berklee Alum Aliyah Khaylyn Wows The Voice Coaches with Tamar Braxton Song The recent alums version of Braxtons Love and War for her blind audition left Michael Bubl calling her the total package.
Berklee College of Music has announced the Leon V. Rosenberg Presidential Scholarship in Jazz Studies for students who will pursue jazz at the college.
Image by Kelly Davidson
Berklee Announces Leon V. Rosenberg Presidential Scholarship in Jazz Studies This permanently endowed scholarship honors the legacy of Leon V. Rosenberg, a passionate jazz fan and arts advocate
Gail Wilson has been named Berklee's vice president of finance, a role she began on September 30.
Kelly Davidson
Berklee Announces Gail Wilson as Vice President of Finance Wilson will oversee Berklee's budgeting, financial reporting, controller's office, and campus services, managing the Finance Department and operating and capital budgets.
Read All
Subscribe The latest sounds, stories, and ideas, sent to your inbox weekly.
North America Stories
06/04/2026
Michigan legends bring a new voice to the broadcast as TNT Sports and CBS Sports...
06/04/2026
From high school sports all the way up to the major leagues, building high-quali...
06/04/2026
Quickplay, an AI company for the media and entertainment industry, has been accepted into the Advanced tier of the TwelveLabs Ecosystem Partner Program. Quickpl...
06/04/2026
Grass Valley has announced the Future Playmakers Program, a global initiative to...
06/04/2026
El l der de operaciones impulsa la producci n en estudio mientras encuentra insp...
06/04/2026
The ops leader helps lead the charge in studio for the Spanish-language broadcas...
06/04/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
06/04/2026
The National Hockey League (NHL), in partnership with Verizon and the New Jersey Devils, today announced the opening of the NHL Innovation Lab powered by Verizo...
06/04/2026
Rock League, a new professional curling league, has announced that ESPN+ will stream its inaugural 2026 season for fans in the United States. The first Rock Lea...
06/04/2026
Advanced Systems Group has announced the appointment of Andrea (Andy) Cummis as Vice President of Systems Design and Engineering. In this role, she will lead de...
06/04/2026
Backed by Bolt Ventures, the venture brings Bryson DeChambeau, Grant Horvat, and...
06/04/2026
With this environment we can start that collaboration even earlier because we ca...
06/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/04/2026
Dalet Showcases Dalia Agentic AI and End-to-End Media Workflows at NAB Show 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Dalet, a leading technology and...
06/04/2026
OpenDrives Shows Off Sports Expertise in Sports Business Hub located in NAB Show...
06/04/2026
Proton to Demonstrate 3D Application at NAB 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Yet further creative potential unleashed through innovation in ...
06/04/2026
Autoscript Highlights Voice-Driven Prompting and PTZ Solutions at NAB 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Experience Autoscript Voice, PTZ prom...
06/04/2026
Mediaproxy Highlights Significant Enhancements to its LogServer suite at NAB Sho...
06/04/2026
April 6th, 2026
TRIBECA STUDIOS AND LILLY ANNOUNCE WINNERS OF INAUGURAL VITAL...
06/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Expands Kids Entertainment Lineup With Playground App ...
04/04/2026
The University of Arizona's Men's Basketball team has only loss twice th...
04/04/2026
1080p HDR arrives, a new generation of storytelling tools takes center stage, an...
04/04/2026
Michigan legends bring a new voice to the broadcast as TNT Sports and CBS Sports...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
DHD Introduces AI-Based Audio Noise Reduction to XD3 IP Core
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
The accompanying image shows the rear panel of the ...
04/04/2026
Macnica Redefines ST 2110 Flexibility with Two Speeds on One Card
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
New for NAB Show 2026, MEP100 SmartNIC now sup...
04/04/2026
Unified Media Workflows for Story-Centric Production
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
Framelight X unifies field capture, editing and publishing ...
03/04/2026
Michigan's Fab Five will reunite for an alternate presentation of the Mich...
03/04/2026
Avid will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (April 18-22, Booth N2226, Las Vegas Convention Center), demonstrating its Content Core platform and new AI-driven workflow c...
03/04/2026
Mark Roberts Motion Control (MRMC) has announced the appointment of Nick Barthee as Chief Operating Officer.
The announcement follows MRMC's transition fro...
03/04/2026
Interra Systems has announced that Elite Media Technologies has selected its BATON file-based QC solution for media workflows. Elite Media Technologies speciali...
03/04/2026
Ateme has announced that Moldtelecom has deployed Ateme technologies across its streaming workflow, covering encoding, delivery, operations, and analytics.
Mol...
03/04/2026
Grass Valley will demonstrate Framelight X, its content management platform, at NAB Show 2026. The platform connects capture, ingest, editing, and publishing in...
03/04/2026
Encompass Digital Media and Techex have announced a cloud-native Master Control ...
03/04/2026
Live Vertical Video automatically track the action on the court via AI technology and delivers a fully optimized, 9 16 live feed for viewers...
03/04/2026
As the Illini make their first trip to college basketball's biggest stage si...
03/04/2026
After last summer's Softball National Championship victory and last week'...
03/04/2026
The University of Arizona's Men's Basketball team has only loss twice th...
03/04/2026
Eight games across four tournaments will be played in three venues; accommodatio...
03/04/2026
The Ottawa Senators and Bell Media have announced a long-term rights extension for regional Ottawa Senators games on TSN and RDS. TSN Radio 1200 remains the exc...
03/04/2026
Massive production in Phoenix is run out of Game Creek Video Flagship mobile uni...
03/04/2026
New York April 2, 2026 TelevisaUnivision, the world's leading Spanish-la...
03/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
Signature Series Presents Country Music: Black Roots and Branches New Dangerfield, Dom Flemons, Donna McElroy, and Farayi Malek headline this October 29 concert spotlighting Black artists impact on country music.
