LAURYN HILL, THE MAHOTELLA QUEENS, AND MARIZA MAKE THEIR HOLLYWOOD BOWL DEBUTS
SUNDAY, JULY 14 AT 7:30 PM
KCRW's World Festival 2002
Media Sponsor: STAR
On Sunday, July 14 at 7:30 p.m., the popular annual concert Global Divas returns for its third year to celebrate female artists from around the world. This year's concert features Lauryn Hill with a rare acoustic set; the soulful singing trio The Mahotella Queens; and the visceral expressions of fado singer Mariza, all in their Bowl debuts.
Backbeat Live pre-concert performances take place one hour prior to the concert at the Patio, and are free to all ticket holders. The July 14 session features Mamak Khadem and Shahla Sarehchani performing music from the Middle East.
The concert opens with Portugese-raised singer Mariza infusing her own style into fado, also described as "blues with hope." Originating in the mid-19th century, fado has enjoyed increasing popularity worldwide with fado clubs and old and new styles of the music popping up around the globe. Adding to the program are South Africa's Mahotella Queens, together for more than two decades, who perform their celebratory praise songs with the gutsy harmony for which they are known. And, following the release of her much-anticipated album, Fugee member and musical visionary Lauryn Hill will wrap up the evening with an acoustic performance featuring songs from her new album.
Global Divas III is the third concert of KCRW's World Festival 2002, which was created in partnership with KCRW (89.9 FM/National Public Radio). The series continues on July 28 when Femi Kuti headlines African Funk with Michael Franti & Spearhead; and on August 11, World Reggae features Steel Pulse, Burning Spear, and Lucky Dube. The series ends with The Beat of Brazil on September 8, when Leny Andrade takes the stage with special guest Oscar Castro-Neves, and Mônica Salmaso. All concerts begin at 7:30 PM.
Five-time Grammy winner LAURYN HILL became a media and cultural idol after releasing 1998's The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill for which she wrote, arranged, and/or produced almost every track. Prior to finding international success, Hill was (and still is) a member of the Fugees, which has been on sabbatical while the solo careers of Hill and co-Fugee Wyclef Jean soar. Lauryn Hill has been called the "mother of hip-hop invention," breaking new ground with mainstream acceptance of rap, as well as merging styles including hip-hop, soul, reggae, and R&B.
Originally hitting the stage as South African idols and heroes of the apartheid resistance movement in 1986, THE MAHOTELLA QUEENS are a female vocal trio with an explosive mix of traditional African music (Zulu, Sotho, Shangaan, and Xhosa), South African jazz (Marabi), rhythm and blues, soul, and American gospel. The Queens won the World Music Artist of the Year at WOMEX Award 2000 for their spectacular live performance and "finely honed art of passionate singing."
Born in Mozambique but growing up in Portugal, stunning fado singer MARIZA was exposed to fado at a very early age. At six she was already participating in the fado evenings at community events. Although she was attracted to soul, gospel, and jazz in her teens, she returned to fado and had her first major national exposure in 1999 as a guest on a tribute concert for Amalia Rodrigues in the Coliseums of Lisbon and Oporto. Her debut album Fado Em Mim was recently released.
One of the largest natural amphitheaters in the world, with a seating capacity of just under 18,000, the HOLLYWOOD BOWL has been the summer home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic since its official opening in 1922, and, in 1991 gave its name to The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, a resident ensemble that has filled a special niche in the musical life of Southern California. A hit from its very first season, the Hollywood Bowl has remained popular and accessible to a wide cross-section of Southern California's diverse population. To this day, $1 buys a seat at the top of the Bowl for many of the Los Angeles Philharmonic's concerts. While the Bowl is best known for its sizzling summer nights, during the day California's youngest patrons enjoy "Open House at the Bowl," the Southland's most popular summer arts festival for children, now in its 34th season. Attendance figures over the past several decades have soared: in 1980 the Bowl first topped the half-million mark and last summer, close to one million admissions were recorded. It is no wonder that the Bowl's summer music festivals have become as much a part of a Southern California summer as beaches and barbecues, the Dodgers and Disneyland.
EDITORS PLEASE NOTE:
Sunday, July 14, 7:30 PM
HOLLYWOOD BOWL (2301 N. Highland Ave. in Hollywood)
Global Divas III
LAURYN HILL
THE MAHOTELLA QUEENS
MARIZA
KEVIN LINCOLN, host
KCRW's World Festival 2002
Media Sponsor: STAR
Backbeat Live pre-concert performances take place one hour prior to the concert at the Patio, and are free to all ticket holders. The July 14 session features Mamak Khadem and Shahla Sarehchani performing music from the Middle East.
Tickets ($1 - $70) are on sale now at the Hollywood Bowl box office, by calling Ticketmaster at 213.480.3232, at all Ticketmaster outlets (Robinsons May, Tower Records and Ritmo Latino locations), or online at hollywoodbowl.com. For general information or to request a brochure, call 323.850.2000.
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Elizabeth Hinckley, 323/850-2047; David Barber, 323/850-2023