The Cleveland-based Mourning [A] BLKstar is a collective of musicians, writers and multimedia artists who convey the story of Black Americans to the rest of the world through sounds, words, and images, with a heavy focus on the grim period in history and the diaspora, which saw African populations dispersed across the world through slavery. It was an apocalyptic event that is still occuring according to the group, even to this day, due to the economic and security issues suffered in these areas. Mourning [A] BLKstar uses the experiences of elder generations and their descendants to proclaim their artistic message, and blends them into a stirring concoction of soul, blues, gospel, jazz, hip-hop and avant-garde electronica. During their live show, the seven-piece creates a sweltering, lingering, futuristic soul-funk experience, where live instrumentation is interspersed with programmed sounds and alternating vocalists.
