Summer In Brooklyn – Warm Nights and Hot Sounds

George Clinton Photo by Howard B. Leibowitz/ B.L.Howard Productions

To paraphrase Brooklyn native Walt Whitman, we began the summer in a bellow to our fellow Brooklynites.  To many of us, that term may have seemed foreign after such a prolonged winter season — but not to fret!

You’ve finished digging through the down jackets, dusted off the old shades and brought that boom box (okay, we’ll settle for the iPod) out for a spin because school’s out for summer!  Or, at least, work’s out after 5 p.m. Whatever the case, let’s celebrate as true listeners, exploring the sounds Brooklyn has to offer.

Returning for its 37th season, Celebrate Brooklyn! kicked off in style, with the legendary “Queen of Funk,” Chaka Khan. A tough act to follow, the likes of bass-wielding extraordinaire Esperanza Spalding and the always impressive musical fusions of José James stepped up to the challenge.  On the following night, Brooklyn natives Lucius soothed the audience with their melodic mantras, leaving listeners mesmerized by the spellbinding synchronization of the lead singers and eager for the band’s future music.  Fellow Brooklynite Jason Walker wowed the crowd opening for the phenomenal Lucinda Williams.

Celebrate Brooklyn! also hosts a number of benefit concerts which featured a lineup to brag about, including soft-spoken Irishman, Damien Rice, New York alt band, Interpol, along with Modest Mouse fresh off their exciting album release, “Strangers to Ourselves,” while crowd pleasers Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, and the forever timeless Willie Nelson rounds out the fund raiser performances .

Other acts that comprise the amazing free concerts ranged from our borough’s own Punch Brothers, The New Pornographers, Rhiannon Giddens, Sylvan Esso, Big K.R.I.T. and Angel Haze in July, to Taylor Mac, Third World, and tUnE-yArDs in August.

In case the outdoor concert scene doesn’t keep your musical appetite satiated, the borough is nearly bursting at the seams with concerts.  In festival news, the party is just getting started as a host of celebrations prepare to kick off during the coming months.

Lucius Photo by Howard B. Leibowitz/ B.L.Howard Productions

In its 21st year of celebrating Rhythm and Blues at MetroTech Commons, BAM  plays host to a bevy of impressive acts through August that included Erica Campbell of Mary Mary (winner of the 2015 Grammy  for Best Gospel Album), Al B. Sure!, George Clinton and the Parliament Funkadelic, and NOLA-inspired act Jon Clearly and the Absolute Monster Gentlemen.

In an important year for Hip-Hop culture, particularly in the New York area, the 11th annual Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival hosted Common, Mobb Deep and Lion Babe in July at 50 Kent.  And while the wait may be long, Augusts’ Afropunk is well worth it in a continuing celebration of the borough’s eclectic culture.  From August 21-23, the festival will feature performances by Lenny Kravitz, Grace Jones, Kelis, Danny Brown, Raury, Kaytranada, Brenmar and more, as well as delicious food and drink, amazing art, and inspiring activists at Commodore Barry Park (City Park).

Thanks to Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams, both the landmark Seaside Concert Series and the MLK Concert Series, after a hiatus last summer,  returned in July at Coney Island’s MCU Park with JT Taylor (Kool & The Gang) and Wingate Field in Crown Heights with Morris Day & The Time (Prince’s “Purple Rain” film).

Finally, the army of acts playing at some of Brooklyn’s best venues will only heat up the dog days of summer even further.  Be sure to check out Justin Townes Earle (with Anthony D’Amato), Mac DeMarco and Delta Rae at Music Hall of Williamsburg.

So, soak up the sun and the sounds, and remind yourself of those winter days when you yearned for the warm weather as you can have your (cheese) cake and Brooklyn too … and maybe a Ramen Burger from Smorgasburg.