We Black Folk Kickoff- Presented by BAMS and HipStory

Cinamon Blair is a singer, songwriter, musician and has been growing her creative expression over the past 40 years. “I love to sing, vocalize harmonies and use music as a tool to self-sooth as well as to build connections, educate and activate myself and the listener into whatever needs to happen.”

Lydia “The LovelySinger” Harrell is one of Boston’s finest musical treasures. Her sultry, soulful voice and evocative songwriting have garnered her the attention and respect of the nation’s finest musicians and venues.  Jazz/Soul is where her heart is, however, Lydia has shown an unbreakable ability to mold herself into any musical situation.  Be it performing with the Boston Pops, serenading NBA fans with America’s National Anthem, or lending her vocal talents to a chart-topping deep house singles by British record label, Reel People Music, Lydia’s dedication to extracting the pure essence of song goes virtually unmatched.

Some of her notable musical accolades include singing lead on a Bob Marley Tribute Album distributed by Sony Music Latin, winning the 2015 Duke Ellington Jazz Vocal Competition, performing at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, NYC (2016), winning the 2017 Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival Voice Competition and winner of the Best Song at the 48 Hour Film Project Boston. More recently, Lydia sang on the 2022 Daytime Emmy Winning song, “Grateful For It All” written by Brad Hatfield, Gaye Tolan Hatfield and Jeff Meegan and aired on The Young and The Restless in May 2021. Lydia was invited to sing backing vocals for the great Jon Batiste in September 2022 along with The Boston Pops accompanying. 

In addition to her accomplishments as a musical artist, Lydia is a film/TV, voiceover and theatre actress. She has appeared in many commercials, films and theatre productions. She was cast in the New Repertory Theatre production of “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill” playing the role of the one and only Billie Holiday. Unfortunately the show was canceled due to the pandemic. Since then, Lydia has appeared in the 2023 Hulu/20th Century Film, Boston Strangler and performed as Sarah’s Friend in Ragtime: The Symphonic Concert with the Boston Pops. In March 2023, she released her first single that she composed, performed and produced in many years, Don’t Let It. Since being a part of the Club Passim Folk Collective, Lydia has become inspired to record several new projects all coming very soon. Lydia is also a voice instructor at, one of the top music colleges in the world, Berklee College of Music and Berklee Online.

Melo Green is a New England based Indie artist who loves to blend folk, rock and R+B music. You may know of him from his appearances with Kids on A Hill, The Frotations, The Velcro Soul, The C.O.M.P and Boston Common Band.  In the words of Thich Nhat Hahn, “Don’t just do something, sit there” and listen to Melo Green.

Prolific collaborator and award-winning multimedia artist Cliff Notez seamlessly manifests a mix of hip hop, jazz, folk, soul and R&B that’s been likened to “Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp A Butterfly, blended with the paranoia of Radiohead’s Kid A.”

Their music reveals the repercussions of trauma, exposes the realities of the Black experience,
and shares an intimate journey towards healing. Heavy lyrical themes are often juxtaposed with uplifting sounds: bright horns, sparkling keys, snappy percussion and glowing guitar riffs.

Cliff Notez’s work has caught the attention of publications like The New York Times, NPR, The Boston Globe, and Boston Herald, among others and have garnered shoutouts from the likes of Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley. They performed at Boston Calling Music Festival in 2022 and have previously shared the stage with Ja Rule and Gym Class Heroes.

It’s no surprise Uproxx dubbed Cliff “one of the most remarkable music figures in Boston,” as their influence extends far beyond the hip hop scene. Passionate about social justice and amplifying Black stories, Cliff Notez has worked hard to give back to their local community and to lobby for inclusion. Currently an Assistant Professor at the Berklee College of Music—and having previously taught at Harvard, MIT, Emerson, and Northeastern University—Notez shares their industry expertise in college classrooms and they are working to develop Berklee’s first Bachelor of Arts in Black Music.

As the founder of digital media company HipStory, Cliff Notez brought hip hop to one of the largest art museums in the world. Their programming for the Late Nite series at the Museum of Fine Arts created an opportunity for rappers to perform at one of Boston’s most prestigious institutions—giving the genre access to cultural conversations it is often left out of.

Cliff Notez was named “Best Musician” and one of the “100 Most Influential Bostonians” by Boston Magazine, and listed among the “50 Most Influential Bostonians” by Boston Common Magazine. With over 11 Boston Music Award nominations and as the winner of “Song of the Year” in 2020 and the coveted “Best New Artist” award in 2018, Cliff Notez continues to be a central figure of the Boston music scene.

In 2023 Cliff Notez embarks on an sonically adventurous release schedule of 5 singles that pave the intro for his next opus, All Us in Wonderland, beginning with the first track “Could Be Normal” on Feb. 14th that calls back to the lyrical delivery of Outkast and the wonderment of Prince.