(cheerful percussion intro) (dramatic opera music) - Opera is that alien art form that kind of just hits you in a certain way that no other art form does.

(opera music continues) (cheerful instrumental music plays) I grew up in the Pentecostal Church in Norfolk, singing in the choir.

And you know, gospel music is such a special thing for me because it's music that really speaks and it's so free flow.

You know, we don't use sheet music.

So I think that's really kind of influenced who I am as an artist and I really carry that with me even into, you know, the classical realm.

(gospel music plays) When I got to high school, it was the Governor's School for the Arts that really changed everything for me.

Whew.

My audition song for Governor's school, they had on the list, like you could sing an Italian art song and I didn't know Italian from French, from German like I didn't know anything.

But there was another option where you could sing The Star Spangled Banner.

And so I sang that as my audition and that's how I got in.

(dramatic instrumental music) I went to my first opera at Virginia Opera I think I was like 13.

I'd never seen an opera or really knew much about it and I saw De Valkyrie.

My attention span was quite short.

I mean, I didn't know what to expect.

It was a long piece and I kind of fell asleep maybe like around, yeah, 30 minutes into it.

But the cool thing that woke me up was the Act three the Ride of the Valkyries theme.

(Ride of the Valkyries plays) And I heard that and I started to wake up and I turned to Alan Fisher.

He was the head of the program at the time, and I said "Isn't this from a cartoon?"

♪ Kill the wabbit, kill the wabbit ♪ ♪ Kill the wabbit ♪ I was so confused, like how did the opera rip this from the cartoon?

And he was like, "No, the opera came first."

And you know, the light bulb kind of came on as like, oh this is kind of a cool vibe and that really struck me because I was fascinated with how opera is so encompassing of a lot of different art forms with the big costumes and the orchestra, the acting, the singing.

It really sort of blew me away.

(opera music begins) ♪I once was a boy... ♪ The first audition that got me a major role would be Fire Shut Up in My Bones at the Metropolitan Opera and this all happened during the pandemic and that was a life-changing thing for me because it it opened the Metropolitan Opera season after two years of being shut down.

It featured Terence Blanchard who was the first black composer who's worked to be featured at the Metropolitan Opera.

So there's a lot of major impact of doing that show and it, it holds so much meaning for me.

While I love the classics, opera can be so much more.

It can be something for everyone.

One of the things I strive to do in my career is be an advocate for composers of color because there have been so many great and brilliant composers of the day who were held at the gate and who didn't have, you know the opportunities to really get their music out there.

Such brilliant music and it needs to be heard and our stories need to be told.

(operatic music begins) ♪ Would that I were a jewel, ♪ ♪ A shattered jewel, ♪ ♪ That all my shining brilliants ♪ ♪ Might fall at thy feet, ♪ ♪ Thou dark one.

♪ - It was really special to me to perform in my hometown because it's something I don't really, you know get a chance to do that often.

So to be able to present a program which featured all black composers, you know, pieces that I really care about and love, and to share that with folks in the community who have known me for a long time and have been so supportive was a really special thing.

(operatic singing) When I was a student, it was a special thing to see alumni come back and share their stories with me.

I'm just honored to be asked back to Governor's school and, and share my story with the students and hopefully, you know, it helps them along their paths.

(operatic duet begins) - I was gonna go to the show but I didn't know I was gonna be performing for him.

So when the opportunity came, I definitely accepted it.

It was just a transformative experience.

(operatic duet continues) I really appreciate that Will has taken out the time to come and to just work with us and to give us some insight.

When you learn, you are not just learning to see where you can get to but you can also help everybody else.

♪ What we doing to do you want to see ♪ ♪ With the Crispy lines ♪ ♪ Faded away, like a jump shot ♪ - The Factotum.

I co-wrote it with a friend of mine who I went to Governor's School.

We were in the same program together and it's loosely based off of The Barber of Seville and it's set in a black barbershop.

- When we created the first demo, you know that was a meaningful moment to me to say like, oh wow this, we really have something that other people care about.

You know, it's not just like a thing that will hook me up about.

And I was excited about it.

Like, oh, other artists are excited about it too - With Rico.

You know, it's just such a a significant thing that I would've never dreamed of in a million years.

♪He's the baddest barber around ♪ ♪ Don't you know he's the baddest ♪ ♪ Barber at it in town ♪ ♪ Ain't nobody... ♪ - We wanted to focus on coming together again and focus on the idea of family focus on that idea of resilience.

- We did it because we wanted to tell a story of black joy and to continue to add to the cannon of what opera can be.

- I'm nervous to see it premiered and, you know, but also very excited.

Being open to what speaks to you is, is most important.

You can be an opera singer or a visual artist or a dancer but you can also do other things.

You don't have to stay in one box.

If you feel called, tell a story or write something.

I feel like you know, the sky's the limit.

Don't let anything hold you down from doing that.

(audience applause) (instrumental music plays)