Mavis Staples / Toshi Reagon & BIGLovely
American soul & gospel icon with hold-nothing-back, post-modern R&B sensations
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CitiParks Foundation
Mavis Staples
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http://sanfrancisco.carpediem.cd.com
Toshi Reagon & BIGLovely
Born in the Windy City, a green yet uncannily talented Mavis would join the family gospel group, The Staple Singers, at the tender age of 11. Throughout the 1950s, they toured all over America, led by the group’s patriarch “Pops,” garnering a reputation as the most sought after spirituality-based group in the country. During the mid-60s, The Staple Sisters came to be known as the melodious voice of the civil rights movement. With message songs such as “Long Walk to D.C.” and “When Will We Be Paid,” Mavis and her soulful siblings were making quite an impact on the political fabric of the rapidly changing nation. After recording two blowout #1 singles in the ‘70s, “I’ll Take You There” and “Let’s Do It Again,” Mavis fully began her illustrious solo career. Prince would provide direction over two of her most acclaimed albums, Time Waits for No One and The Voice. With plentiful hit records and collaborations with a host of the world’s greatest R&B, jazz and soul artists, Mavis has continued to dazzle crowds with her mighty voice and unrelenting contributions to social causes.
Toshi Reagon is a talented, versatile singer, composer, musician, curator and producer with a profound ear for sonic Americana– from folk to funk, from blues to rock. While her expansive career has landed her comfortably in residence at Carnegie Hall, the Paris Opera House & Madison Square Garden, you can just as easily find Toshi turning out a music festival, intimate venue or local club. Toshi knows the power of song to focus, unite and mobilize people. If you’ve been lucky enough to be in Toshi’s presence, you know you can’t walk away from her without feeling better about yourself as a human being. She aims for nothing less.
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Nick Childers
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