📆When: March 12th
⏱ Time: 2-4 PM
📍Where: Kittay Senior Apartments
🎶Dive into Group Activities and Musical Enrichment!🎶
🎤Featuring the Award-Winning Morrisania Band Project (MBP)!
In partnership with The Kindness Club
🔊 Be part of this special gathering filled with music and community.
See You There for an Unforgettable Experience!
:
Your contribution supports a vibrant community through the joy of music. Contribute to our mission:
Catch Morrisania Band Project at our latest and greatest shows!
2. February 14th, 2:30-3:30pm: Morris Park Nursing Home
3. February 15th, 1-4pm: Black History Month Celebration
4. February 16th, 6-9pm: Black History Month Celebration at Heyground Harlem
5. February 18th, 4-7pm: Dear Mama Coffee Presents the 2024 Soul Odyssey
6. February 19th, 6-7pm: Music Monday at The Forum, Columbia University
7. February 24th, 1pm: Senator Guzman Rivera’s Black History Month Celebration
Check out some highlights from the Best of the Bronx Celebration at Maestro’s on January 10th.
🌐 Morrisania Band Project has a NEW WEBSITE!
Stay in touch with us on Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok @MorrisaniaBand.
Rev Lena Irons Unity Park
E 168th St and Washington Ave, Bronx
2-4pm
Our special guests will be
October 15th – ANITA WEBB and KLASIQ
October 22nd – CALVIN WEST JOHNSON & UNLIMITED SOUL
It’s gon’ be lit just like September was. Check out these tidbits.
You can also catch us at The Italian Fest at Mount Loretto (October 8th) and Bronx Night Market (October 29th).
All details will be posted on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @MorrisaniaBand.
Fresh off our Crescent City Mini-Tour, we’re keeping it light this month.
Getting it in with some relaxation and family time.
Friday, September 2nd, 2:30-3:30pm, Morris Park Rehab, 1235 Pelham Pkwy N, Bronx, 10469
Saturday, September 3rd, 7pm, Private event, Jamaica, NY
Sunday, September 4th, 6-7pm, Richmond County Fair, 441 Clarke Ave, Staten Island, 10306
Saturday, September 17th, 9:15-10:30pm, Queens Night Market, 4701 111th St, Queens, 11368
Tuesday, September 27th, 12-2pm, Lunchtime Concert Series, Joyce Kilmer Park, 161st St and Grand Concourse, Bronx
Now check us out in N’awlins last month! Don’t we look like we’re having a blast?
Shoutout to the following for making this tour possible:
The Battlefield Bar (Vincent and Dave)
Crescent City Farmers Market (Francesca)
Deborah Belle (photos, support, and delicious breakfast)
Don McAllister (photos and support)
Gaylin McAllister (giver of some award-winning, authentic Creole cuisine at the Gumbo Shop)
Guitar Center Elmwood Shopping Center (equipment rental and mad hook-up)
Irma Thomas, Soul Queen of New Orleans (just felt like y’all should know that)
JetBlue (delays and all)
Joe Diehl (NOLA guitarist and founding MBP member)
RetroPunkz Band (because they’re amazing)
Roné Greaves (lead and background vocals)
Sonder New Orleans (self-service hotel is what they call it)
We appreciated this experience and look forward to more travels and tours.
Thanks for the memories, tips and donations, New Orleans. We’ll be back.
Stay in touch with us on Facebook, Instagram, or the Twitter @MorrisaniaBand.
This month, we’re headed to New Orleans from the 11th – 13th! But first, you can catch us around NYC starting this Tuesday.
Tuesday, August 2nd, National Night Out, 2pm, Carmansville Playground, 151st St and Amsterdam Ave, NYC, 10031
Wednesday, August 3rd, 3pm, Train Park Garden, Orloff Ave and Gale Pl, Bronx, 10463
Saturday, August 6th, 3pm, Dance Party NYC, 442 E 162nd St, Bronx, NY 10451
Thursday, August 11th, 4:30-6:30pm, Thursday Mid-City Market, 500 N Norman C Francis Parkway (Lafitte Greenway), New Orleans, LA 70119
Friday, August 12th, 1-3pm, Oscar Dunn Park, 768 Decatur St, New Orleans, LA 70116
Saturday, August 13th, 9:30pm-1:30am, The Battlefield Bar, 2029 Paris Rd, Chalmette, LA 70043
Friday, August 19th, 10pm-midnight, Silvana, 300 W 116th St, NYC 10026
Sunday, August 28th, 11:30am-12:30pm, Riverdale Y Sunday Market, 4545 Independence Ave, Bronx, 10471
Tuesday, August 30th, 12-2pm, Bronx Borough Hall Greenmarket, Joyce Kilmer Park, 161st St, Bronx
We appreciate y’all showing up and showing out at our live performances! Thanks for those tips and donations.
Get up with us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter @MorrisaniaBand.
Season’s Greetings to our friends, family, and supporters!
Our virtual concert series was a blast this year, despite all the challenges of 2020. We did a little of everything from interviews, celebrating birthdays, covering classic hits, more interviews, giving accolades to service members, creating new music, and showing love to our community. Shout-outs to:
ARTISTS 4 JUSTICE
Blackfort
Boogie on the Boulevard
Bronx Council on the Arts
Bronx Music Heritage Center
BronxNet
Councilmember Vanessa Gibson
EZ Soul
Fidelis Care
Long Island University
Make Music New York
Musicasa
Onest TV
The Point
Si Se Puede
SoRich TV
Stonewall CDC
thisistheBronx.info
UpFront Band
Much love to Joel Stephen for those quarantine video shoots.
We even got our social distancing on at a few live events in Staten Island, Brooklyn, St Albans, and Wappingers Falls. And our Aretha Franklin tribute concerts are still going on strong!
Thanks for your support, kind words, donations (always welcome). We promise you that 2021 will be even more lit, virtual and live.
Stay in touch with MBP on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter @MorrisaniaBand.
Best wishes in the New Year!
Join us at the Hudson River next Sunday, May 26th , from 12-5pm for Summer on the Hudson’s Mamapalooza.
Riverside Park South
Pier I – 500 W. 70th St., NYC
A free annual festival featuring music, vendors, wellness activities, art, and activism.
MBP takes the stage from 3-3:45pm.
It’s free but you know we like headcounts and such.
#summeronthehudson
#livemusiconthehudsonriver
#cantwait
My name is Elissa Carmona, a singer, Air Force veteran, and founder of the award-winning Morrisania Band Project. I was born in the Bronx and have ties to the Morrisania community for over 40 years. A college graduate, I currently work as a performer, public arts director, and fundraiser, primarily within the South Bronx.
On April 28, 2019, I attended the community forum held at Andrew Freedman Home (AFH). Also in attendance were 2-3 Bronx media outlets, panelists, artists, and community members. I’m grateful for the opportunity to voice my concerns about the It’s The Bronx cancellation, however, I was mostly disheartened at the results of this forum. In addition to being misquoted by a fellow attendee, no viable solutions were offered other than a list of demands drafted by Hydro Punk, a Bronx-based community collective. Towards the end of the meeting, a shouting match ensued between a local artist and forum host.
Morrisania Band Project was one of the scheduled headliners for the It’s the Bronx Festival on March 23, 2019. Since mid-February, this was public knowledge and a quick Google search would have demonstrated our mission and community ties. We were not notified of any protests or possible cancellation until the Wednesday before the event. The reason given were protests, led by Hydro Punk, to put an end to outside developers exploiting Bronx artists for gentrification purposes. No protest leader reached out to Morrisania Band Project beforehand to supply information that may have led to an informed decision on my part. Instead, it was implied that these actions were for our own good. While this could be true, not making us a part of the initial conversation makes the protesters no different than the issue being protested. It’s The Bronx founder, Marco Shalma was referred to as “slimy and shitty”. He was not present yesterday to defend himself and where’s the proof?
At the AFH forum, I mentioned that protest is a construct of privilege. Not every Bronx artist shares the same lived experiences. Some of us have the freedom to protest and others don’t. One artist called me “self-serving” and another misquoted me completely by switching the word “protest” to “social justice”. An opportunity was not granted for me to defend myself or refute either statement. Bronx Council on the Arts, Partnerships for Parks, and Citizens Committee for New York City have graciously funded our public concerts. We’ve also had consistent support from Councilmember Vanessa Gibson, Assemblyman Michael Blake, thisistheBronX, and a host of nonprofit agencies. I write grants to fund Morrisania Band Project and am well-supported in my community. The cancellation actually yielded me more opportunities than an actual performance, so thanks! But does every artist here have those same opportunities and resources?
I share common goals with Hydro Punk and their followers, in that, I too, see our beauty when others don’t. Like them, I demand to be a part of the conversation, and don’t wish to be displaced from the borough I call home. I do applaud efforts made to highlight wrong-doing on the part of outside developers. In this case, accusations were made but concrete facts have yet to be produced. I’m still willing to hear this out.
The exploitation of working artists is a serious concern, however, working for free does not always constitute exploitation. That distinction seems to have been overlooked. At some point, every artist has performed without monetary compensation for various reasons; building a following, establishing a brand, or promoting a cause they believe in. Sometimes the opportunities presented are greater than payment. As artists, we are required to do our homework, research these opportunities, and advocate for ourselves when necessary. Morrisania Band Project was not exploited by It’s The Bronx. We would have welcomed monetary compensation were it offered, however, we were guaranteed a performing platform, expert promotion, and high visibility. This enabled Morrisania Band Project to network with new Bronx artists, build a stronger following, and secure gainful opportunities outside of the event. For that I remain grateful, and have been shown no reason why I should not.
Yesterday I posed the question, “As artists, what are our social responsibilities to each other”? Initially, this question was met with silence. The meeting concluded with a list of researched demands executed by Hydro Punk. Here’s mine:
My wish is that my letter is taken in the spirit intended, which is growth, inclusion, and more opportunities for Bronx artists of all ages and backgrounds. Hopefully, what I witnessed yesterday will not be indicative of what we can build by standing together, and not separating ourselves with ego and an unwillingness to listen and consider all Bronx artists.
Elissa Carmona, MSW
Morrisania Band 