Please join us this Thursday for the inaugural event of Central Park Sessions, a concert series to celebrate the opening of Madison’s new Central Park location, 215 South Brearly Street at Ingersoll just off Willy St. in the Marquette Neighborhood.
The first Session is a night of African music to benefit WORT and Project 1808, which gives community aid to Kabala, Sierra Leone, the home of WORT programmer Alhaji Njai. Project 1808 staff and volunteers, directed by Mr. Njai and his Panafrica co-host Linda Vakunta, work to improve educational opportunities in Kabala.
Madisonian by way of Mali, local favorite Tani Diakite and his Afrofunkstars will start the evening off with great dance music. The second act is Mokoomba, who are rising stars from Zimbabwe, and the grand finale features Wake Up Madagascar with the legendary “King of Salegy” music, Jaojoby performing with guest stars including wonderful singer and activist Razia Said and guitarist Charles Kele. WORT will broadcast and stream the full five-hour PanAfrica Session via a live remote with Linda and Alhaji on-site to spin dance music between sets, pre-empting our regular programming.
There will be a nice selection of food and drink each evening and chairs and tables will be set out on the Great Lawn of the new park. You can bring your own chairs but please, no carry-ins; admission is free and all ages, and food and beverage sales help keep it that way. In addition, WORT and the Urban League have partnered with Greater Williamson Area Business Association and will benefit from the proceeds of refreshments and raffle tickets sold at the concert series. Come find a WORT volunteer and get your raffle tickets today, and don’t forget to join us in person and/or listen to the live remote broadcast this Thursday!
That’s the WORT-FM & Project 1808 benefit concert from 5-10 pm on Thursday, 7/31/14. Call 608-241-7143 or visit
www.marquettemusicfestivals.org for more information.
Thursday, July 31st– PanAfrica Session
5:00- 6:00 pm– Tani Diakite & the Afrofunkstars (Madison/Mali)
6:30- 7:45pm– Mokoomba (Zimbabwe)
8:30- 10pm — Wake Up Madagascar featuring Jaojoby and Razia Said
Upcoming sessions:
Thursday, August 7th — Blue Moon
5:00- 6:00 pm– John Primer & Chicago/Madison All-Stars
6:30- 7:45pm– Paul Cebar Tomorrow Sound (Milwaukee)
8:30- 10pm — Robert Randolph and the Family Band
Thursday, August 14th — Don’t Mess With Texas
5:00- 6:00 pm– Cris Plata and Extra Hot (San Antonio/ Sun Prairie)
6:30- 7:45pm– Jon Dee Graham (Austin)
8:30- 10pm — Grupo Fantasma (Austin)
