Americana songstress Valerie June is curating a stacked livestream concert to encourage voting in the upcoming election and benefit two organizations fighting voter suppression. Voice Your Vote will take place on Sun., Oct. 18 in partnership with City Winery and is inspired by June's "Young, Gifted and Black" Spotify playlist and the spirit of Nina Simone (the playlist's name is a nod to her groundbreaking 1969 song).
Watch: Exclusive: Valerie June On Newport Folk & "Astral Plane"
June will perform during the virtual event, along with the Black Pumas, Brittany Howard, Chastity Brown, Deva Mahal, Jon Batiste, Kandace Springs, Amythyst Kiah, Leyla McCalla, Lizz Wright, Rhiannon Giddens with the Resistance Revival Chorus, and others. More artists will be announced soon.
According to the press release, "Voice Your Vote will feature an array of Black artists, musicians, and poets, who will share their art and use their voice to uplift efforts to mobilize voting and stop voter suppression, a tactic commonly used to primarily target Black and brown communities. Proceeds from the event will be distributed to Fair Fight and Movement Voter Project's Black-Led Organizing Fund, two organizations working to support fair elections and grassroots voter mobilization around the country."
"This year, 2020, has unveiled so many wounds that we have the power to change by voting," June wrote in the release. "From systemic racism to climate change, it can feel overwhelming to look at the countless issues we're facing in the world today and to decide which ones to focus on changing, but collectively showing up in record numbers to cast our ballots is one of the simplest ways we can raise our voices. I believe that by voting in this year's election we have the power to end the year on a high note, so voice your vote."
The event will be aired on music streaming platform Mandolin on Oct. 18 at 3:00 p.m. PT / 5:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. ET. Tickets are available on City Winery's website for $15.
