Students at Johnson C. Smith University are preparing for their debut performance at one of the world's most prestigious concert venues in the world.
Twenty-five students from the JCSU choir will perform gospel and contemporary music at New York’s Carnegie Hall as part of an event titled “Sounds of the Season,” which spotlights distinguished musical ensembles across the country. Dr. Angelica Brooks leads the choir. Brooks says they hope to showcase their music in a different light.
"Bringing it to Carnegie Hall takes it out of the sphere or perspective of it being fun music to now being, no, this music is high art, and that is the goal: to bring music from our culture that has these messages about who we are as Black people," Brooks said.
The choir is one of four ensembles performing at the renowned venue, which has hosted iconic musicians, including Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. As part of the trip, students will explore New York.
"It will allow them to envision themselves doing even bigger and better things in the future. Some of them have never even been to New York, so to be able to go to New York to perform, to take tours of New York, we're also gonna see a musical while we're up there to have this experience. I know for many of our students it's gonna be life-changing," Brooks said.
Lamar Chance, 21, is a member of the choir. Chance says the performance at Carnegie Hall is also a chance to showcase the lasting significance of historically Black colleges and universities.
"We are here, we will be here, we will continue to be here. Regardless of where you may want us to be, we're going to be here. Like, you may want us to stay here in North Carolina, but no, we're going to go to New York. We're going to perform in New York. We're going to show who we are in New York and hopefully in the future, more places outside of New York," Chance said.
The JCSU choir will perform in New York during Thanksgiving week.
