The Rochdale Village-based nonprofit 1WorldFestGlobal is hosting its second annual jamboree at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center Saturday, Oct. 7.
Music is a key part, and there will be a Unity Concert Stage at JPAC, located at 153-10 Jamaica Ave., according to Kamell Ellis, the CEO and co-founder of the charity. The event will run from 12 to 8 p.m. and seating starts at 5:30 p.m. The concert starts at 6:30 p.m.
“It’s a multicultural fest,” Ellis told the Chronicle. “Our organization is about bringing different people together from all different religions, races and cultures. We try to show all those things that denote culture. We call it our FMLA, which stands for food, music, language and art, with some technology thrown in. The ‘f’ this year is going to stand for fashion.”
Rapper CL Smooth will headline the concert, which coincides with hip-hop’s 50th anniversary. The office of Councilwoman Nantasha Williams (D-St. Albans) and state Sen. Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans) will honor hip-hop group Whodini with citations.
“They supported us when we launched our theme song, which is called ‘One Love/1World,’” said Ellis. “It samples their song ‘One Love.’”
The theme for this year’s affair is “Fight for Survival.”
“What we are fighting for are those rights that we once thought were inalienable that we never thought would be taken away,” said the nonprofit co-founder. “Voting rights, human rights and intellectual property rights, so forth and so on.”
There will be panels about artificial intelligence, mental health and mindfulness (human and civil rights), hip-hop (freedom of speech) and voting rights, he added.
“The event will also feature artists from the group called the International Cipher Border Patrol Project,” Ellis said. Some of the artists include BNA, Kyah Baby, Laibak and Lisa Ray. “It brings together artists from around the world who make music to knock down borders and walls.”
The Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Grenada, Senegal, Haiti, Iraq and the United States, including the territory of Puerto Rico, are some of the places artists in the group are from, the CEO said.
“The concert is in high demand, so we are asking people to register for early seating,” he added.
To register for the free multicultural festival, which will also include a pop-up shop and a fashion installation, visit 1worldfest.global and click “the event” tab.
“We are just trying to bring people together,” Ellis said. “It’s an educational initiative to inform people of other folks’ culture. Being aware of other cultural identities will help us knock down the wall of cultural ignorance.”
