The first Give to the Max Day is today! GiveMN.org will be matching donations made to Minnesota nonprofits today, November 17, until tomorrow at 8 am CST. Let’s stand up and show everyone the tremendous caring that Minnesotans are capable of! Thanks to The Bush Foundation, The Minneapolis Foundation and The Saint Paul Foundation who are sponsoring Give to the Max Day by committing funds to match contributions. Every donation big or small helps.

visit GiveMN

PRESENTS

A Teaching Tool, Widening World Views of Students

Cultural Jambalaya, previously featured on NEED’s blog, is excited to release their first educational DVD. “Windows & Mirrors” includes global images and narratives highlighting fascinating people and intriguing cultures.

Supported by a study guide, the DVD is a resource for Middle School teachers to engage
students subjects, including social studies, geography, history, diversity and language.

HELP CULTURAL JAMBALAYA CELEBRATE THE RELEASE OF THEIR FIRST DVD!

Thursday – October 22, 2009

Guthrie Theater’s Target Lounge, 4th Floor
818 South 2nd Street
Minneapolis, Minnesota

6pm – Cocktail Reception
7pm – DVD Preview and Presentation
-with special guest explorer and educator Ann Bancroft-

Tickets $35 in advance – $40 at the door
Ticket price includes a complimentary DVD
Bring a Teacher! (each paid guest may bring a teacher for free)

For tickets call the Guthrie Box Office – 612.377.2224

Cultural Jambalaya

On behalf of NEED, I would like to thank everyone who was involved with the Minnesota screening of Media that Matters. The night was a complete success!

As local organization staff and moviegoers filled the lobby of the Oak Street Cinema, I couldn’t contain my excitement. Since this was the first Media That Matters screening NEED has ever held, we had no idea what to expect. The night exceeded anything we could have hoped for. Poetic Assassins opened up the event with a moving spoken-word performance, and all the presenters made inspiring connections to work being done in Minnesota.

The best part of the night came after the films were over and people thanked us for bringing important issues to the big screen. This was exactly what we were hoping to achieve. With your help we were able to bring people together and show the great work of Media that Matters.

Thanks again for all your support!

>> view list of films and organizations involved.

On October 8 at 7 pm the Media That Matters film festival will make its Minnesota debut at the Oak Street Cinema. Poetic Assassins will open the night with a spoken-word performance, and festivities will wrap-up with an afterparty at Stub & Herb’s.

Throughout the evening, leaders from nonprofit and community organizations will present 11 award-winning short films that represent different social issues. Each organization’s work will relate to a certain film’s message. At the afterparty the organization leaders will be available to answer questions and explain how to get involved.

Part of ticket proceeds will go to Media That Matters, and Finnegan’s Irish Amber will donate all of their beer proceeds to charity. Help us make an impact by joining us for a night of entertainment, inspiration and conversation. Get your tickets today!

>> more details

The Media That Matters film festival is co-presented by Arts Engine and Cinereach.

These girls are sponsored by Minnesotans. Photo | Julie Roberts

“Masala” is a mixture of spices, a staple of Indian cuisine. Masala Jam is a spicy blend of musical talent that will take the stage at Gluek’s Bar in downtown Minneapolis on October 13 to benefit street children in India.

The hot list of performers includes the smooth jazz and R&B of Wain McFarlane and Friends, reggae from Ryan Liestman and Ipso Facto, and gospel and soul from JD Steel. Internationally-renowned guitarist and composer Billy McLaughlin will toss in some acoustic zest. The sultry vocals of George Scott McKelvey, of Rhythm Jones fame, will sweeten the lineup. Shawn Douglas, Brian David Band, Michael Wright and many others lend a hand in the cooking of this spicy blend of entertainment.

Thousands of children in the slums receive 32 gallons of milk a day! Photo | Julie RobertsMasala Jam will benefit Care & Share, a foundation dedicated to giving “children their childhood back” by helping to alleviate the devastating effects of poverty on orphaned and street children in Vijayawada, India. Care & Share supports three children’s villages, where nearly 2,000 orphans are schooled, clothed, fed, sheltered and nurtured in a loving community. The kids can stay active with skating, biking and soccer that are also on offer at the facilities.

Care & Share receives funding mostly through child sponsorship. Sponsors donate a dollar a day to an individual child, and develop a familial relationship through correspondence with the sponsored child and organization. “Every penny, except for some flyers and mailings, goes directly to the kids,” says Julie Roberts, US director for Care & Share. Two hundred children are sponsored by Americans and 5,000 by citizens of Italy, with the need growing every day as more children are losing their parents to AIDS. Read the rest of this entry »

Film Crew & Sound: Lisa Walker, Mark Hentges, Zach Nelson, Lance Lundstrom, Chase Hentges, Nate Peterson
NEED’s first-ever music event proved an event worth repeating. The concert brought together NEED readers, music lovers and 12 bands. This unique night of music yielded nearly $5,000 in donations to help street kids in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Although inclement weather resulted in a last-minute venue change from Peavey Plaza to Hell’s Kitchen in downtown Minneapolis, turnout and energy remained high. Undeterred, Twin Cities musicians performed back-to-back sets of acoustic and a cappella music. The Hell’s Kitchen staff was extremely accommodating in allowing all the musical acts onto their stage and housing the large crowd that attended.

The eclectic sounds of the evening ranged from the soulful vocals of Sounds of Blackness to Wookiefoot’s Mark Murphy’s quirky acoustics. Along with raising awareness and donations for street kids, the event provided a great opportunity for local musicians to get their music heard by a spirited audience.

Those who attended had a chance to pick up free copies of NEED magazine and to donate to the Nurani Insani School for Street Kids. To add to the atmosphere, children from Youth Performance Company dressed as street children. Following a bagpiper as he paraded around downtown, the children handed out flyers for the event and then milled around Hell’s Kitchen accepting donations in cups. Hell’s Kitchen served a beverage called “Jakarta River Water.” A portion of the drink’s sales were donated to the Nurani Insani school.

Online donations to the Nurani Insani school will be accepted until September 22.
>> more info about the event, the Nurani Insani school and how to donate

Please check back for upcoming events. We’d love to see you there!

Billy Johnson. photo | Steve FloydThe Street Music for Street Kids event on Thursday, August 20th was an amazing success. The one-night street music festival that was scheduled to be held outside at Peavey Plaza had to be moved inside due to substantial rain. The fantastic staff at Hell’s Kitchen were overly gracious in welcoming the entire event onto their stage and the large crowd into their seats. People were standing in the aisles, crowding booths, and sitting on any patch of space they could find on seats or on the stairs. The mass of people that braved the weather were rewarded with show like no other. Twelve great local bands put aside their amplifiers and electronics and played back-to-back sets of beautiful acoustic music. The event raised nearly $5000 in one night for a school helping to educate street kids in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Mark Murphy from Wookiefoot. photo | Steve Floyd
We at NEED are extremely grateful for the relentless support of so many who helped us put this event together from the city of Minneapolis, Peavey Plaza, Hell’s Kitchen, Lisa Walker and the film crew, and all the musicians who came out in support of street kids.

We have many more photos and video to come!

Sounds of Blackness. photo | Steve Floyd
If you can, go out and support these local musicians at their next shows here in the Twin Cities.

Sounds of Blackness – CD Release Party at the Mall of America Rotunda. Tuesday , August 25 6:30 pm Free and open to the public

Aby Wolf – Late Night at Barbette. Monday, August 31, 10:00 pm

Hyland – Benefit show at The Crossing. Saturday, August 29, 7:15 pm

Enchanted Ape – Downtime Bar. Friday, August 28, 9:30 pm. $5 cover

Billy Johnson – Crave. Thursday, August 27, 8:00 pm & – JJ’s Dry Dock Friday, August 28, 5:00

The Get-Rites – Acadia Café. Friday, September 12, 9:00 pm

Ada Jane – University of Duluth. Tuesday, November 17, 9:30 pm

Wookiefoot – Harvest Fest. Friday, September 11-Saturday, September 12

NEED co-founder Kelly Kinnunen was featured on Twin Cities radio station KFAI on August 18 at 8 AM to talk about NEED’s upcoming music festival. Interviewed by Pam Hill Kroyer, Kelly described plans for the event, who it will benefit, and how listeners could get involved. This was a great opportunity for NEED to get the word out about the Street Music for Street Kids benefit concert, which will be held in Minneapolis at Peavey Plaza on August 20 from 6 to 8 PM. Kelly told the KFAI audience about the struggle plaguing the street children of Jakarta, and of the hope that the event’s beneficiary, the Nurani Insani School for Street Children in Jakarta, strengthens in them.

Listen to the program on KFAI website

Sounds of Blackness have been making music since the early 1970s. They have performed on the world’s largest stages, including the opening ceremonies for the 1994 World Cup and the 1996 Summer Olympics. They have sold millions of records, won three Grammys, and been nominated for awards ranging from The Emmys to the NAACP Image Awards. Sounds of Blackness are more than a band, they are a movement. With melodic melodies they draw upon genres of jazz, gospel and field hollers to celebrate African and African American culture. Becoming a voice for both comfort and inspiration, they speak to the problems of the world, and uplift their audiences with messages of hope and acts of service.

Building upon this foundation, Sounds of Blackness are ready to release their new album “The 3rd Gift: Story, Song & Spirit.” Their CD release celebration, free and open to the public, will be held on Tuesday, August 25 at 6:30 pm at the Mall of America rotunda. Recently I got a chance to speak with the band’s music director and producer, Gary D. Hines. He explained that the title of their new album comes from the prolific civil rights activist W.E.B DuBois, who “pointed out the countless contributions that people of African descent have made to the world and American culture, a notion that at the time was largely dismissed. But in addition to all of those things [DuBois] said, we have brought our three greatest gifts, the gifts of story, song and spirit.” A clear example of how Sounds of Blackness stays cognizant of the past while keeping an eye on the future. Read the rest of this entry »

photo | Bronson Enriquez

THU. August 20th 6:00 – 8:00 pm
Peavey Plaza 1111 Nicollet Mall, Downtown Minneapolis

Enjoy an evening of FREE music dedicated to helping street children.

Street Music for Street Kids is a unique and dynamic free event to raise support for the Nurani Insani School for Street Children and to raise awareness of street children around the world. A series of musical acts will perform a cappella and unplugged.

Featuring
Sounds of Blackness • Aby Wolf • Mighty Fairly • Wookiefoot’s Mark Murphy • Innocent • Ada Jane • Semeron
and more.

Street Music for Street Kids is a unique and dynamic free event to raise support for the Nurani Insani School for Street Children and to raise awareness of street children around the world. A series of musical acts will perform a cappella and unplugged.

Street children in Jakarta, Indonesia beg using music to help support themselves and their families. The Nurani Insani Foundation School was started to educate the street children and break the cycle of poverty.

Donations will be accepted at the event and the afterparty, and through the microsite. Wookiefoot will be matching donations up to $2,000. 100% of all donations will go to the Nurani Insani School for Street Children.

Visit events calendar for details
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