- Hi, I'm Satori Shakoor and here's what's coming up on "One Detroit Arts and Culture."

It's all about the Concert of Colors, the history behind Midwest's biggest diversity in arts festival in metro Detroit.

We'll talk with founder, Ismael Ahmed.

Plus, sea performances and hear how the artists are connecting with the audience in a whole new way.

It's all ahead.

On "One Detroit Arts and Culture" - [Announcer] From Delta faucets to bear paint, Masco corporation is proud to deliver products that enhance the way consumers all over the world experience and enjoy their living spaces.

Masco, serving Michigan communities since 1929.

Support for this program is provided by the Cynthia & Edsel Ford Fund for Journalism at Detroit Public TV, The Kresge foundation.

- [Announcer] The DTE Foundation is a proud sponsor of Detroit public TV.

Among the state's largest foundations committed to Michigan focused giving.

We support organizations that are doing exceptional work in our state.

Visit DTEfoundation.com to learn more.

- [Announcer] Nissan foundation and viewers like you.

(upbeat music) - Hello and welcome to "One Detroit Arts and Culture".

I'm your host Satori Shakoor and I'm at the Northville gallery on main street in Norville.

This week's show is all about the Concert of Colors, which has been metro Detroit's premier diversity theme music festival.

It happens every summer over a span of several days with 152 arts organizations.

It's free for everyone to enjoy diverse sounds and performances.

A big highlight each year is musician Don Was and his all star Revue.

Back in 2020, no one could gather in person, but thanks to Detroit public television and WDET radio, the concert was broadcast over four nights.

It was a chance for all of us to enjoy the music we were missing.

This year the festival celebrates its 30th anniversary and will take place in July.

But to get your music fix now, let's go back in time and celebrate 2020's show.

You'll hear from Concert of Color's founder, Ismael Ahmed.

plus performances from Last Gasp Collective and Don Was all star Revue with Tasha Owens and artist Xiao Dong Wei.

It's all coming up.

But first up is Will Glover with Ismael Ahmed.

- We're here to talk about the Concert of Colors and really quick for those of us who are uninitiated.

Just tell us what the concert is, how it got started and what the whole idea behind it is?

- Well, the Concert of Colors has its roots going way back here in Detroit and actually is part of an international movement called Rock Against Racism.

I'd been doing concert for causes for years and was part of a group that had focused on bringing music into communities where racial justice questions were a big deal.

The Concert of Colors was launched 28 years ago and it started off small and it was a one day event of the five major communities of color, but it's now growing to include everyone.

And it's six days long this year.

It's in almost all of the major arts venues usually, although this year, because of COVID that won't be the case.

And it draws somewhere between 30 and 50,000 people.

It brings in artists from all over the world but also focuses very much on the talent and the communities of Detroit.

And it's not just music, it's educational activities like the forum, community culture and race and a whole set of other things children's stuff.

And I can go on and on, but it is a major thing in Detroit like the Techno Festival or the Jazz Festival.

And our mission is very much still the same thing, to bring communities together to celebrate our different cultures and to look at the questions of justice, racism and harmony.

- So obviously as you alluded to this year hasn't been normal for anyone.

And I can only imagine the difficulty that that presents when you're trying to put together a week long concert.

So was it more difficult this year to get artists to participate?

- Yeah, in fact, frankly, we lost a key artists as a result of it.

Dropped out at the last few minutes.

But overall I think this is interesting pivot because in the sense that people who watch this will be all over the world this time, we were gonna cancel.

And then Larry Bransky at the DIA said, "Well let's go to kind of more mainstream TV and radio and see what we can do."

And we've had a long relationship with WTVS who are great to work with and also WDET Detroit Public Radio.

And so what we did is talk to them and we came to an agreement.

So we won't be doing the kinda usual streaming that most festivals are doing.

This is gonna be a big deal.

And it's enhanced because we have relationships with world music festivals across the planet who are all gonna be streaming and working with us.

I just heard today that the Kennedy center will be sending out notices across the United States.

We're talking to Quest TV about including the Don Was Revue.

It will be available to millions of people.

So the good part is that many more people will get to be part of the Concert of Colors.

Also view the music of Detroit which is really important.

Almost all our artists are Detroiters but the bad thing is we won't be able to do it together.

And there's something lost by that.

Especially when you bring people of all colors and nationalities and sexual preferences together to really enjoy each other and come to know each other through celebration.

And so that's kind of missed but I think we will have an awful good program.

- Why not take the year off maybe to recoup, re-strategize?

Why is it so important that the concert continue through times like these?

- Well that's exactly right, times like these.

The world is in turmoil and America is in turmoil.

And the question of racial justice inequality are major questions now and the place of cultures and all that is important.

So having the Concert of Colors, which has always stood for all of that and brought together the cultures of the world to celebrate together is really important this year, more than ever.

And so we've struggled to do it and it hasn't been easy.

Sometimes I feel like a dentist filling teeth, cavities just keep popping up.

We had a little bit of a COVID scare at the DIA.

They are very, very careful and very worried about taking care of the people who come there and work there.

And there was a person who had COVID and they had to do tracing and they sanitized the entire wing that we're in.

And so we actually were off for a while.

We were not going to do it.

And then after the tracing, they found that there was that person had been nowhere near there and they took time to sanitize.

So we had to change our shooting schedule and call back all of the artists.

And within that Roy EirS, who is 80 years old, just didn't feel comfortable coming.

So we lost his performance.

But we found a really cool group out of Kalamazoo, Michigan called the Last Gas Collective that are right in that vein hip hop, soul, jazz and even a little classical music, great voices, all African American groups, young people are very cool ♪seeing your problems ♪ We aint got nothing to comment ♪ ♪ A post close reflection showed me glass in my window ♪ ♪ Clearer now than ever ♪ You always found a way to blossom ♪ ♪ Bro always been beautiful If people wanna know more about this, go to concertofcolors.com, the whole schedule is there, information about the bands, what time, how to stream or how to watch it on TVs?

'Cause you can watch it on the TV set or you can listen to it on WDET.

- Detroit public television partnered with the Concert of Colors to bring amazing performances into our homes.

We shot these over three days and it was incredible.

So here's a look at just one of them, a performance from Last Gasp Collective.

(bright upbeat music) ♪ Singing and doing what you want to want to ♪ ♪ and you don't ever come through come through ♪ ♪ enjoy your that I do for you ♪ Baby what am I getting into ♪ Come through voodoo ♪ Really thought you mmh mmh ♪ It's true I'm disappointed boo ♪ ♪ I guess forever now ♪ Saying and doing what you want to want to ♪ ♪ And you don't ever through ♪ Come through ♪ Enjoying ---- that I do of you ♪ ♪ Baby what am I getting to ♪ Come through voodoo ♪ Really thought you mmh ♪ Its true I'm disappointed boo ♪ ♪ I guess forever the best ♪ Lala lala lala lala ♪ Sane ♪ Your love drives me insane ♪ Reason there's no pain ♪ Just keep screaming my name ♪ Oh babe ♪ I want you to stay ♪ Stay with me ♪ But you wanna play ♪ Gonna be okay ♪ Sane ♪ Your love drives me insane ♪ Pretend there's no play ♪ Just keep screaming my name ♪ Oh baby ♪ I want you to stay ♪ Stay with me ♪ But you wanna play ♪ Gonna be okay ♪ I think its crazy you think I'm crazy ♪ ♪ I think its crazy you think I'm crazy ♪ ♪ I think it's crazy you think I'm crazy ♪ ♪ Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah ♪ It might not be the end ♪ I might just be afraid ♪ You might be my lesson ♪ Four big words for the win ♪ It might not be the end ♪ You might just be a friend ♪ You might be my lesson ♪ I hope it was worth the wait ♪ Might not be the end ♪ You might just be my friend ♪ You might be my lesson ♪ Hope it was worth the wait ♪ I think it's crazy you think I'm crazy ♪ ♪ I think it's crazy you think I'm crazy ♪ ♪ I think it's crazy you think I'm crazy ♪ ♪ I think it's crazy you think I'm crazy ♪ ♪ Yeah yeah yeah yeah - We're Last Gas Collective, we're from Kalamazoo, Michigan.

We like to thank the Concert of Colors for hosting us and allowing us to come and get off some of this pent up energy we've had this whole COVID season.

Again, my name's Jay Jackson.

This is Jessica Ivy.

We're Last Gas Collective.

We're so thankful to be here and we hope y'all have a wonderful time wherever you're tuned in from.

Again, thank you, Concert of Colors.

Let's have a good time.

♪ I think I'm crazy you I'm crazy ♪ ♪ I think I'm crazy you think I'm crazy ♪ ♪ I think it's crazy you think I'm crazy ♪ - Next up Will Glover talked with Xiao Dong Wei who plays the Ahu which is a Chinese violin.

(violin playing) - For people who are unfamiliar with Ahu, can you just give us a quick explanation as to what it is?

- For instance, there's two strings.

So when you think it's Chinese violin people think violin and compare with the Western violin.

So we have a two strings.

That's a big difference with two strings and the other big difference is Ahu doesn't have fingerboard.

The third one is the ahu have only two strings and the ball is tracked in between these two strings.

So we play, we call it inside and outside.

- What does it mean to you to be part of a now 28 year old tradition of bringing music and cultures from all over the world together?

- Oh, what music do is bring people together.

It's all about people.

So this concert of Color all kind of diversing.

Mr. Ismael produce this...

He's just such a wonderful.

His music program is so great and so whatever he puts on it is so diverse and yeah, bring the people together.

So I am very happy to be included in this event 'cause I am from other country as you could tell.

(laughing) So I feel welcomed and I feel I can, really connect with people from everywhere, especially this year.

Like we will be more, have more viewers to be able to share this with.

So I'm really, really happy.

- Obviously this is not a normal year because it's hard for us to be able to get together and I'm sure as an artist, it's weird not having that connection with an audience.

So how have you changed your approach?

What have you been thinking about going through all this stuff?

- As a musician we're never bored.

Outside the world don't matter too much for us.

We just practice with enjoy ourself.

And at this time I feel like more blessed to be a musician for myself once like I'm enjoying my time, working on my stuff.

Secondly, we can share this more because people need more music at this time.

So, even just play a piece, make people forget about the trouble for two minutes, it's worth it.

So, and with all the internet, all that things we are able to share with more people.

So very lucky.

I'm always really grateful to be a musician and now it's more than ever.

- What would you say to an artist who's getting started or may have gotten started and stalled out by the pandemic?

What would you say to encourage them?

Or what words of advice would you have for someone who's in that pursuit right now?

- In any time of our life first thing first is be truthful to your heart.

Go with what your heart tells you to go.

And sometimes it looks like difficult or it's impossible.

Well, what do you got to lose?

Just try it.

(rock music playing) - The country isn't just going through a pandemic.

There's a lot of division when it comes to the United states' history with racism and the political climate right now.

Do you think that things like Concert of Colors are a way to really, I guess bridge those gaps and truly bring people together, even if, like you said, it's only for, the length of a song?

- Music and art are so powerful.

It's sometimes beyond our imagination.

So I just want to share very, very short story how powerful it is.

I've been to a old soldier's reunion celebration.

So I went there.

Those are Korean war veterans.

So there's a guy...

So I play the song.

You know, I play the song and in the event with who nobody know what that is, right?

So I play song after I play the song and a guy come talk to me very nicely.

So, "It touched my heart.

I am so, I love the music you play."

So it turns out and later other people tell me, said, "This guy was the Korean war veteran.

He hates Chinese.

He never talked to Chinese before."

So he changed that after that.

- Wow.

- So that was very powerful story for me to think about, bring people together.

Because sometimes music, you just love the music, right?

No matter where you come from and doesn't need to help.

Doesn't have to speak to language.

That's why it's an international language is music.

(rock music playing) ♪ Now you know you should love the baby ♪ ♪ Next lover not be your lover ♪ Super boy change cause you cause you can't yeah ♪ ♪ No I don't wanna ♪ I don't think so ♪ I don't wanna ♪ I don't think so ♪ Cause your still working like a panther ♪ ♪ My man needs me an answer ♪ You're still walking like a panther ♪ What did you say?

♪ I don't think so ♪ I don't think so - And we'll leave you with one last performance from Don Was all star Revue along with Tasha Owens.

Enjoy and I'll see you next time on "One Detroit Arts and Culture".

Take care.

(guitar playing) ♪ Sun gonna shine shine shine ♪ On me one day ♪ Gonna shine shine shine ♪ On me one day ♪ Wind gonna rise rise rise ♪ On me one day Now look here Don ♪ I got the same old blues again ♪ ♪ Same same same old blues again ♪ ♪ Like I've got the same old blues again ♪ ♪ One of these days ♪ One of these days ♪ And my star will rise ♪ Blow blow blow ♪ Blues away ♪ Same old same old same old blues again ♪ ♪ Oh baby I'm tired ♪ I'm tired of you back door man ♪ ♪ Think it hurt me ♪ I said I'm tired I'm tired I'm tired ♪ ♪ Tired of you being ♪ Oh my backdoor man ♪ That's right now ♪ Sunshine sunshine sunshine ♪ Oh Lord oh Lord ♪ Just so shine on me ♪ 'cause I got I got I got ♪ Same old blues again ♪ Same same same same ♪ Old blues again Hey Monster, play something for me.

Yeah.

(guitar playing) - [Announcer] You can find more at OneDetroitPBS.org or subscribe to our social media channels and sign up for our One Detroit newsletter.

- [Announcer] From Delta faucets to bear paint.

Masco corporation is proud to deliver products that enhance the way consumers all over the world experience and enjoy their living spaces.

Masco, serving Michigan communities since 1929.

Support for this program is provided by the Cynthia & Edsel Ford fund for journalism at Detroit public TV, The Kresge foundation.

- [Announcer] The DTE foundation is a proud sponsor of Detroit Public TV.

Among the state's largest foundations committed to Michigan focused giving.

We support organizations that are doing exceptional work in our state.

Visit DTEfoundation.com to learn more.

- [Announcer] Nissan foundation and viewers like you.

(upbeat music)