Celebrating the power of Black influences on country music

INDIANAPOLIS — With all the buzz surrounding music in Indianapolis, a local organization is shining the spotlight in a different direction.

Spirit & Place hosted “My Black Country” at the Madam Walker Legacy Center on Friday.

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The event was a new series in partnership with several organizations, including Indiana University Research and the School of Liberal Arts Center for Africana Studies and Culture.

It was a free chance for the community to learn and celebrate the Black influence on country music.

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“Country music does not exist without Black geniuses,” said Alice Randall. “Country music is intrinsically Afro-Celtic form. Events like this spotlight history that is being lost.”

Randall is a nationally recognized songwriter and author of “My Black Country.”

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She came all the way from Nashville to be a part of the new series presented by Spirit & Place, an organization that creates spaces through programming and collaboration to explore the complexity of the human condition through the arts, humanities, and religion.

“We have a new partnership with IU research, so we’re able to bring in national talent and elevate the messages of others,” said the organization’s program director Erin Kelley.

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“Inclusivity is not a problem and not dangerous. It’s a wonderful space to do something that you might not normally do or to hear something that you might not normally hear,” said Dr. Leslie Etienne, an Assistant Professor of Africana Studies at IU Indianapolis.

Friday’s event also featured performances from Leyla McCalla, founding member of Our Native Daughters and alum of Grammy-winning The Carolina Chocolate Drops .

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The evening was a tribute to GRATITUDE, the theme for the 2024 Spirit & Place Festival, which kicks off on November 1 and runs through November 10.