
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
28/03/2026
Globecast, the leading provider of broadcast, media and entertainment managed services, will showcase its reimagined approach to media operations at the 2026 NA...
28/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
27/03/2026
Comcast Business deployed network infrastructure for the 2026 PLAYERS Championsh...
27/03/2026
Czech production company CS live has equipped its newest outside broadcast van w...
27/03/2026
Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Perth, Western Australia has developed new broad...
27/03/2026
Deltatre has announced that CEO Andrea Marini will step down after five years in...
27/03/2026
DAZN has announced plans to launch DAZN Inflight, a live sports service for airline and maritime passengers, slated for 2027. Aviv Giladi, President of DAZN Par...
27/03/2026
Grass Valley has announced the completion of a live production deployment with NVP, a European media company specializing in live sports production, for LALIGA ...
27/03/2026
The Masters and Prime Video will debut Inside Amen Corner, a dedicated feed that...
27/03/2026
ESPN and the World Series of Poker (WSOP) have reached a multi-year agreement to bring the WSOP Main Event back to ESPN platforms. Coverage will include a three...
27/03/2026
USSI Global has opened its Media Transport Solutions Lab on its Melbourne campus. The engineering center provides a platform-agnostic environment for testing al...
27/03/2026
From 14-camera coverage to official review from Variant Systems Group, Sellitto ...
27/03/2026
The United Football League (UFL) has named Sportable its Official Connected Ball and Player Tracking Partner. Sportable's connected football and wearable pl...
27/03/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent rating news and is derived from press rel...
27/03/2026
The Atlanta Braves and FuboTV have announced a multiyear distribution agreement to carry BravesVision on Fubo's live TV streaming platform beginning Opening...
27/03/2026
Besides restructuring for Season 3, the league worked with FOX and ESPN over the...
27/03/2026
The Atlanta Braves open their 2026 MLB season tonight against the Kansas City Ro...
27/03/2026
With new teams and new venues to adapt to, the spring-football league's part...
27/03/2026
By Lucy Spicer
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Marshall Electronics Showcases New Feature-Rich CV320 and CV520 IP and 3G-SDI PO...
27/03/2026
Sony Electronics Inc. Elevates Professional Video Workflows with Powerful Update...
27/03/2026
GatesAir Extends AirWatch365 Managed Service with Edge Gateway Site Appliance
Brie Clayton March 27, 2026
0 Comments
NAB marks global launch of servic...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
At NAB Show 2026, Net Insight will showcase the next evolution of Nimbra Edge, its orchestration and control layer designed to manage live media services across...
27/03/2026
Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced powerful new innovations that further elevate the company's sports streaming solution. The advanced capabilities enh...
27/03/2026
Bitmovin, the leading provider of video streaming solutions, today announced significant new capabilities for Player Web X, its next-generation web video player...
27/03/2026
Riedel Communications today announced that Czech-based production company CS live has equipped its newest outside broadcast (OB) van with an integrated Riedel i...
27/03/2026
130 Industry Experts Confirmed as Show Celebrates its 10th Anniversary
MPTS, the UK's largest and most influential event for the media, production and tech...
27/03/2026
Grass Valley today announced the successful completion of a major live production deployment with NVP, a leading European media company specializing in live spo...
27/03/2026
Showcases resilient solutions for satellite-to-IP migration, REMI and hybrid live production
Appear ASA (Appear, OSE:APR), a global leader in live production t...
27/03/2026
San Francisco, California, March 2026 - Microsoft Ignite, a major annual conference hosted by Microsoft for developers, IT professionals, partners and business ...
27/03/2026
Clear-Com is proud to highlight its support for worship teams through professional communication solutions, with the deployment of its EQUIP wireless system a...
27/03/2026
Orban Collaborates with Sage on Virtualized EAS Technology Demo
Brie Clayton March 26, 2026
0 Comments
Sage Alerting Systems (SAS), in cooperation wit...
27/03/2026
Berklee Alums Bring GIANT to Broadway Brian and Dayna Lee BM '13 met and fell in love at Berklee, and now their production companys first Broadway debut i...
26/03/2026
Extron and Audio-Technica have announced that their Design Solutions devices, Ce...
26/03/2026
SPORTEL Asia took place March 24-25 at the Orchard Hotel Singapore, drawing 370 participants representing more than 220 companies from 35 countries. Approximate...
26/03/2026
LTN will demonstrate satellite-to-IP migration solutions for broadcasters, cable networks, MVPDs, and station groups at NAB Show 2026 (Booth W2100).
The C-Ban...
26/03/2026
The Seattle Mariners have partnered with Daktronics to install an upgraded outfi...
26/03/2026
The Esports Foundation (EF) has awarded National Team Partner status to organizations and individuals across more than 100 countries and territories for the Esp...
26/03/2026
Telestream has announced expanded integration between its Vantage workflow platf...
26/03/2026
FOR-A Corporation has announced a partnership with Nippon TV and NVIDIA to distr...
26/03/2026
CBS Sports and the WNBA have expanded their partnership through a new long-term, multiplatform rights agreement. CBS Sports will feature up to 20 regular-season...
26/03/2026
Zac Brown Band will star in the Sunday Night Baseball show open on NBC and Peacock, NBC Sports announced. The open was filmed at American Family Field, home of ...