BOOM Echoes is a long-term collaboration between Charlotte’s BOOM Festival (BOOM) and community partners with a goal to connect audiences with limited access to the arts through arts programming brought to where they live.
With the current iteration of BOOM Echoes we are focused on bringing arts access to Charlotte’s immigrant community. We are connecting the newest entrants into the city/country to the cultural life of their new hometown through art.
BOOM Echoes and its community partners create space for artistic exploration and the sharing of diverse voices, while removing barriers to access such as transportation, expensive tickets, the perceived ‘eliteness’/exclusivity of spaces, and their lack of diversity.
The 11th International Fall Festival is a fall themed celebration for the global community. It is a time to come together and celebrate the changing of a season. There will be many activities for all to engage with. There will be music, performances, pumpkin carving, horseback riding, petting zoo, and more. Don’t forget there will be free food from various international flavors. This event is a joint effort between OurBridge for Kids, Refugee Support Services and BOOM Charlotte. We expect to see you October 19 from 3 – 7pm at 3925 Willard Farrow Dr.
Current list of artists scheduled to perform:
Angel Han
Baba Ayinde
Charlotte Cultural Collective
Duong Pham- Latin Pop Dance
Mexican Folklore - Luz De Mi Tierra
Mufuka Works
SAOKO Latin Dance
Join us Saturday, June 22 from 4pm – 7pm for a day of celebration! It is World Refugee Day! It is a time to recognize our refugee neighbors and celebrate diversity. There will be international performances, family-friendly activities, local vendors, community partners and more!
Meet us at the Refugee Support Services office (3925 Willard Farrow Dr., Charlotte, NC 28215) to join the day of fun. World Refugee Day is a collaboration between Refugee Support Services, Ourbridge for Kids, and Charlotte BOOM.
BOOM is partnering with Refugee Support Services for a winter celebration! You are invited to join us for the Winter Party on Saturday, December 16, 2023 from 11am-2pm at 3925 Willard Farrow Dr., CLT, NC 28215. There will be something for all ages! There will be cookie decorating stations as well as winter themed crafts. Hot chocolate and snacks will be in great supply. Plenty of blankets and socks will be on hand. Expect performances by musicians and dancers throughout the day. Featured performers include:
Kareesha Forreal (Music)
CLT Cultural Collective (Dance)
Melody Shanahan (Dance)
DJ Jah Freedom (Music)
Soca Fit (Dance)
We look forward to seeing you at the Winter Party!
Come out to the 10th annual International Fall Festival happening on October 15, 2023 from 3 – 7pm at OurBRIDGE for Kids (3925 Willard Farrow Dr.). Join OurBRIDGE, Refugee Support Services and BOOM for international food, music, performances, pumpkin carving, horseback riding, and more. It is a celebration of international cultures set to a Fall theme. Come on out and enjoy the fun!
Come out and celebrate World Refugee Day at Refugee Support Services (3925 Willard Farrow Dr.) on Saturday, June 24 from 4 – 7pm! It will be a day to honor our refugee neighbors in Charlotte. Expect international performances, family-friendly activities, local vendors, community partner organizations, and more. There will be an array of cultures represented on stage and in the audience. Come join the fun. It is free and open to the public. This event is a collaboration between Refugee Support Services, Our Bridge for Kids, and BOOM Charlotte.
Join us this Saturday, December 17 at Refugee Support Services (3925 Willard Farrow Dr.) for a Winter themed party. This collaboration between BOOM and Refugee Support Services will bring arts & crafts, kids' activities, performances, music, chalk art and food to the people. Be sure not to miss the live mural painting too. There is something for everyone to enjoy! We have pulled together a very diverse, international lineup to end the year with a bang!
Artists Line-up:
MufukaWorks Dance Co. (dance)
Moving Spirits, Inc. (dance)
DJ Steel Wheel (music)
Mr. Rocky Music Man (music)
Kizomba Alegria Dance Company, Charlotte NC (dance)
Socafitusa LLC (dance)
Bunny Gregory (chalk art)
Marcus Burke (chalk art)
OBRA Collective (Visual art/Murals)
Come and enjoy the entertainment while finding family friendly activities to do.
East Charlotte is filled with a vibrant array of cultures. The thriving immigrant community can be found at every corner. We can see it in the art murals spread across the community. We can taste it at the many international restaurants found on that side of town. BOOM Charlotte is teaming up with Charlotte East, OurBridge for Kids, and Refugee Support Services to celebrate the diversity and culture residing in East Charlotte.
We are celebrating at the apartment complex Sailboat Bay on Albemarle Road on Sunday, Nov. 14 from 2pm-5pm. There will be visual art, dance, music, outdoor games, an open mic, and food. We invite the community to come to the stage and share their art during the open mic portion. Join us for a few hours of art, celebration, and culture!
With the east side of Charlotte being home to a large immigrant population the performing artists at BOOM Echoes East will reflect just that in their performances. From African dance, to Samba influenced pieces, to poetry that reflects the experiences of East Charlotte residents, there will be something for all to enjoy.
The artists’ lineup at Sailboat Bay on Nov. 14 will include:
Bunny Gregory Visual art
DJ Steel Wheel DJ for @sucasacllt and @afropopnation
Elsie Mufuka, African Dance
Father Mwepu, Musician
Jay Ward, Poetry/Spoken Word
Justin Evans, Poetry/Spoken Word
Kurma Murrain, Poetry/Spoken Word
Lady V, Poetry/Spoken Word
Lorraine Crittendon, Urban Dance
Richard Cutright, Hip Hop
If you love arts and culture, then this is the event for you. We will be outdoors, but masks are strongly encouraged. If you love the arts and want to help with the event, we are looking for volunteers like you, sign-up here.
This event was made possible by our funders: The Knight Foundation, The Infusion Fund, City of Charlotte, Foundation for the Carolinas, National Endowment for the Arts, North Carolina Arts Council, South Arts, Plaza Midwood Merchants Association, and Reemprise Fund.
We would like to thank our in-kind sponsors: Habitat Charlotte Region Restore, Moving Poets, Queen Sheba Ethiopian Restaurant, and Popcorn Explosion.
BOOM Echoes has now become an online experience. We have moved from activating a space in East Charlotte to bringing East Charlotte art, food, and culture into your home via your screen of choice.
BOOM Echoes East is a collaboration between BOOM artists and organizers, Our Bridge for Kids, Refugee Support Services and Charlotte EAST. Join us on Saturday Dec. 5th at 4pm EST to celebrate the artistry and diversity of East Charlotte in an interactive, virtual experience.
View the show on BOOM’s Youtube Channel
BOOM Echoes East Artists:
BOOM Echoes (scheduled for March 15) has been postponed. Once a new date has been identified, additional information will be posted here and via social media: twitter, Facebook, Instagram. We appreciate your patience, and also hope you and yours are safe and healthy.
BOOM Echoes and CharlotteEAST will activate a large, festive space for a neighborhood gathering with creative excitement, magical energy and a community spirit!
Think about a big, open, community space featuring a wide variety of performances and creative activities led by a diverse group of local artists and community partners!
BOOM Echoes encourages this creative and connective energy to spread into our diverse Charlotte communities and beyond.
All artists, residents, families, singles, kids, pets and visitors are encouraged to attend and participate with the network of artists who’ll present that afternoon.
Join us for a free afternoon that is part art festival, part place-making, part community-building, and 100% celebration!
Check out our Facebook Event for more information.
Local cultural and neighborhood organizations may convene in a free information area to share their good work with and in our community. In exchange, the BOOM Echoes team hopes these organizations will spread the word about the local artists’ showcase and engage their respective communities.
*Tables/chairs may also be rented.
Business (art and/or food) vendors based in East Charlotte may participate in a community market with information tables, displays, mobile units, etc. for a small fee. Artist programming will include on-stage performances, site-specific performances and live art creation.
To participate, please email Camerin Watson, BOOM artistic director, at queoscharlotte@gmail.com.
BOOM brings together and celebrates artists from throughout the Charlotte metropolitan region and beyond! And BOOM has built a large, diverse network of artists sharing their creativity.
Yet, we are aware of the huge inequities in cultural programing across our region, including East Charlotte. We understand the need and opportunity for artistic programming in places that have been left out of cultural investments. BOOM wants to help expand and empower artists throughout the area to help them (you!) grow and enrich our lives.
Artists and community partners living and based in various East Charlotte neighborhoods have formed the BOOM Echoes team and have created a hyper-local infrastructure that can grow and develop, based on the needs and wants of the East Charlotte community.
Through BOOM Echoes, community partners like like CharlotteEAST, Latin America Coalition, Southeast Asian Coalition, Refugee Support Services, OurBRIDGE for KIDS, Community Building Initiative, etc. are actively engaging resources and opportunities to foster East Charlotte’s identities, artists, residents and activities. This helps create and further develop a sense of belonging, ownership and pride in the local community and the city at large.
BOOM Echoes is invested in new, interesting and creative ways for neighbors to come together and connect through the arts. As the community population continues to shift, we recognize the importance of bringing these disparate groups together.
Please join us for the fun, creativity and connectedness of BOOM Echoes on Sunday, March 15!
BOOM Echoes is sponsored by Culture Blocks— a community partnership between ASC, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library and Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation to bring arts and cultural experiences closer to where residents live. Culture Blocks is funded by Mecklenburg County.
