BAM! SCAD hosting celebration of Georgia’s Black musical artists on Feb. 28
Savannah College of Art and Design will explore the chronology of Black music in Georgia at the BAM! concert on Feb. 28 at Buckhead Theatre.
BAM! (Black Artists in Music) will feature students, faculty, and staff performers interpreting the music of Ma Rainey, Otis Redding, Gladys Knight, Ray Charles, James Brown, Outkast, and more
The evening was conceived by SCAD executive ensembles artistic director Mike Evariste (South Pacific, Hair, Jesus Christ Superstar: Live in Concert), choreographer and SCAD performing arts professor Tiffany Evariste (Aladdin), and host and SCAD performing arts professor Isaiah Johnson (Hamilton, The Color Purple) — all Broadway veterans.
Performers will include SCAD HoneyBees members Terrence Williams Jr. (B.F.A., performing arts, 2022) and American Idol winner Candice Glover (B.F.A., dramatic writing, 2022); Showtime at the Apollo winner George Lovett (B.F.A., performing arts, 2011); Kingdom Business and Empire star Kiandra Richardson (B.F.A., performing arts, 2013); and members of the SCAD student executive ensemble, the Bee Sharps.
Glover, who won the 12th season of American Idol, said getting a degree from SCAD was the fulfillment of a dream she’d had since childhood.
“I grew up in a little town in South Carolina near Savannah, so we’d always come to the mall there,” Glover recalled. “I’d see all these students with sketchpads and art supplies walking to class at SCAD, and I wanted to do that so much.”
Glover praised SCAD for allowing its students and faculty to work in multiple art disciplines, which led her to star in the acclaimed SCAD TV series G.R.I.T.S. (Girls Raised in the South). She credits fellow performer George Lovett with getting her to SCAD in the first place.
“George called me and said SCAD was looking for singers for its [vocal ensemble] The Honeybees,” she said. “He got me in. It was a big deal.”
As music coordinator for BAM!, Glover has been putting in long hours working on the musical arrangements, working with backup singers, and preparing for her own songs. She’s excited for the audience to go on the journey of Black music in Georgia.
“This is a real celebration of music and a chance to show the big impact Black people had on music in Georgia and the world,” she said. “Come dance and sing along to these iconic songs and take away a little culture and education, too.”
Tickets for BAM! are $10 for SCAD Card holders, students, seniors, and the military or $20 for the general public. Tickets are available at this link.
