The BroadStage complex lends itself to some unique concert atmospheres, including the usage of the indoor-outdoor hybrid Plaza space, which hosts the "blackbox" series of blues rhythm performances.
Curating the blackbox series has been NAACP award-winning author and Grammy-nominated producer The Reverend Shawn Amos, who himself will be taking the Plaza stage Saturday evening. Now in its sixth year, Amos took up the blackbox endeavor as a responsibility to create a diverse space and bring artists of color to the BroadStage.
"The goal is to introduce the audience to talent they might not come across otherwise … to bring some diversity to [the] audience in terms of ethnicity, diversity in terms of musical genres, or approach to genres," Amos said.
Wanting to provide opportunities for artists to further their performance resume, Amos lauds the BroadStage and Plaza space as a safe haven for Los Angeles-based musicians. The Los Angeles music scene, he added, has been torn apart in recent years due to streaming-based pay models and the destruction of various venues from high rent costs.
"It’s tough, I think creatives of any sort are fighting to hang on in LA and keep their various scenes alive," Amos said.
The BroadStage scene has remained thriving, however, with the blackbox series eventually transitioning to the Plaza space due to successful growth. The atrium space doubles as a place where the audience can grab drinks and hit the dancefloor.
"You get sort of the best of both worlds, so I’m quite enjoying it," Amos said of the space.
Amos’ enjoyment will be palpable on Saturday evening with a program including songs from his new album, Soul Brother No. 1, which represents the culmination of his decades-long artistic career. Raised as the son of music agent and entrepreneur Wally Amos (founder of the Famous Amos brand of cookies) and R&B nightclub singer Shirlee May, Amos has excelled in both the written word and musical world.
At the beginning of his music career in the 1990s, Amos produced multiple compilation albums, such as the Grammy-nominated historical box set Rhapsodies in Black: Music and Words from the Harlem Renaissance. After more tributes to classic artists, including co-producing a remake of Marvin Gaye’s classic album What’s Going On, Amos returned to roots and blues music in the 2010s and began curating blackbox for the 2018-19 BroadStage season.
His written works have also received acclaim, as his debut novel, Cookies & Milk, was nominated for an NAACP Image Award and is currently in development for the animated world. The chronicles of Amos’ youth was picked up by Disney Branded Television with legendary actor Laurence Fishburne attached as an Executive Producer.
The release of "Soul Brother No. 1" is a celebration of Amos’ journey, and is self-described as "10 funk-inspired joyful blues songs filled with love, hope and concern for all brothers and sisters." Playing blues around the world, Amos added that attendees will probably be amazed by how much fun they’ll have at Saturday’s show.
"I think people sometimes will hear blues [and think] old timey music, [but] they come to it [and] I think they’re surprised [with] how much fun they’re having … it ends up being this unexpected dose of community, of communion, that a lot of people don’t have," Amos said.
The show will begin at 8pm at the BroadStage Plaza, and tickets are available to purchase atBroadStage.org.
