The Folk Collective is a quarterly gathering of twelve select artists, musicians, and cultural thought leaders. Through an active exchange of ideas and conversation, Passim aims to collaborate with The Folk Collective to present inclusive and equitable events that welcome and invite diverse audiences and artists to the Passim stage.
For more information about The Folk Collective contact shea@passim.org
supported in part by a generous donation from Nine Athens Music
For a taste of the Folk Collective, check out the recap of Cliff Notez’s show on May 4th, 2023, about Genre Bending & the Power of Collaboration.
Upcoming Folk Collective Events
Naomi Westwater & Friends Re-Imagining Lilith Fair
Sept 30th, 8pm: Reimagining Lilith Fair is a tribute to the feminist music scene of the 1990s with an intersectional lens for today. This event will celebrate women and gender expansive artists in the Greater Boston music scene playing their original music and 90s cover songs. This show is produced by singer-songwriter Naomi Westwater and will be followed by a talk on intersectional feminism in the music scene today. Naomi will be joined by Pamela Means and Melissa Ferrick.
Kim Moberg Album Release: A concert to present “The Seven Fires Prophecy: Suite for Humanity”
Oct 6th, 8pm: A concert to present The Seven Fires Prophecy: Suite for Humanity. This original composition retells the ancient Anishinaabe Legend of The Seven Fires Prophecy in song. Long ago, the Anishinaabe were visited by prophets who gave 7 predictions of what the future of this planet would bring.Each prophecy was called a fire and each fire referred to a specific period in time.
The Lamplighter Sessions: Step Right Up!
Oct 27th, 8pm: The Lamplighter Sessions at Club Passim began over ten years ago and has evolved into a multi-night, one room festival of improvisational art- music, spoken word, visual art, and theater, and always including Hallowe’en. Peter Mulvey was the initial instigator but Barry Rothman soon seized the marionette strings, or the controls of the starship, or what have you. John Prine, Dolly Parton, John Lennon, Stevie Wonder, Joni Mitchell, and more… the wheel will spin and land on an iconic songwriter. Then one of the four singers onstage (all members of Passim’s Folk Collective) will throw themselves into the deep end, and sing a song by that luminary. Repeat until we’re all satisfied. With Peter Mulvey doubling as carnival barker and including Stephanie McKay, Almira Ara, and Maxfield Anderson.
The Lamplighter Sessions: Remember When You Loved Me
Oct 30th, 7pm: The Lamplighter Sessions at Club Passim began over ten years ago and has evolved into a multi-night, one room festival of improvisational art- music, spoken word, visual art, and theater, and always including Hallowe’en. Peter Mulvey was the initial instigator but Barry Rothman soon seized the marionette strings, or the controls of the starship, or what have you. Three members of Passim’s Folk Collective, Naomi Westwater, Lydia Harrell, and Peter Mulvey, will each bring their own songs & choice classics to the fray, and the Crumbling Beauties (who will have slept onstage) will bestir themselves and create a wilderness of sound for the singers to inhabit. Look for happy accidents, accidentals, and perhaps even accents.
2022-'23 Cohort
Alastair Moock
Alastair Moock is an award-winning singer-songwriter; a Grammy-nominated family musician; social justice and Songwriting educator for all ages; and co-founder of The Opening Doors Project, an anti-racist music organization. The Boston Globe calls him "one of the town's best and most adventurous songwriters," and The Washington Post says, "every song is a gem."
Almira Ara
Almira Ara is a singer-songwriter intent on becoming the bridge between rock and r&b. With influences from contemporary r&b artists such as Kehlani and Syd, and rock influences from Willow, Lenny Kravitz, and Nirvana, Almira takes the rarest parts of rock and R&B to wield their sound.
Anju
Anju is a singer, songwriter, producer, and performer shaped by the people and places in Minnesota and Massachusetts. Their music conjures imaginary lovers, scents of citrus, and visions of hairy brown skin under the sun. Anju was highlighted by NPR's All Songs Considered as an outstanding Tiny Desk Contest entrant. They are currently teaching piano, violin, and guitar to young musicians and working on their debut full-length album.
Audrey Pearl
Audrey is an indie/folk songwriter and artist from Jericho, Vermont, with a passion for writing lyrics that foster imagination, empathy, and wonder for the world around us. She's currently based in Boston, MA, pursuing a major in Songwriting and a minor in Global Studies at Berklee College of Music. When she isn't sitting on her bedroom floor with a guitar and pad of paper, you can find her in the kitchen trying out new recipes or going for long walks in the woods.
Cliff Notez
Award-winning multi-digital media artist, musician, organizer & filmmaker Cliff Notez's art is a continuous exploration of the black mind. Rooted in hip-hop, their art tackles the political and the personal, exploring the intimate consequences of a society where black bodies are easily ignored, forgotten, or disregarded. In 2018 they took home Best New Artist at the Boston Music Awards, and in 2020, Cliff became the first musician to be named "Musician of the Year" for Boston Magazine's 100 Most Influential Bostonians. Cliff's Second full-length album, Why The Wild Things Are, was released on September 11th, 2019.
Gabriella Simpkins
Gabriella Simpkins is an award-winning singer-songwriter, composer, and musician hailing from Cape Cod, MA. Informed by her experiences across genres and performance settings, her music exists at the intersections of folk, classical, jazz, and indie rock. While simultaneously independently managing her career, Simpkins currently attends Salem State University in the BA Music program and focuses specifically on classical composition. She regularly performs her singer-songwriter material in and around Boston and hopes to establish herself as a freelance composer in the coming years.
Kim Moberg
Award-winning Tlingit artist Kim Moberg was born in Juneau, Alaska, and currently calls Cape Cod, MA home. Kim began playing guitar at age 14, but severe stage fright kept her from becoming a professional performer. In 2014 Kim set out to overcome her stage fright and wrote her first song. Kim teamed with Grammy-nominated producer Jon Evans to record two albums: "Above Ground" and "Up Around The Bend." Both have received worldwide airplay, charting on the Folk Alliance International Folk DJ charts and the NACC Radio charts. Kim and Jon are collaborating on her third album, which features songs that tie ancient prophecies to our current social environment. Kim's recognitions include the 2021 Rocky Mountain Songwriting Contest Finalist, the 2021 Great American Songwriting Contest Folk/Americana Finalist, and the 2020 CT Folk Grassy Hill Songwriting Competition Winner.
Lydia Harrell
Lydia "LovelySinger" Harrell is one of Boston's 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 and soul are where her heart is; however, Harrell has shown an unbreakable ability to mold herself into any musical situation. Whether performing with the Boston Pops, serenading NBA fans with America's national anthem, or lending her vocal talents to chart-topping deep house singles by British record label Reel People Music, Harrell's dedication to extracting the pure essence of the song is unmatched. In addition to her accomplishments as a musical artist, Lydia is a film/TV, voiceover, and theatre actress.
Maxfield Anderson
Maxfield Anderson is an American roots multi-instrumentalist, teacher, writer, and music director living in Somerville, MA. As an artist, Maxfield aims to bring new light to honored traditions and to share the joy of making music with others.
Naomi Westwater
Naomi Westwater (she/they) is a queer, Black-multiracial singer-songwriter and producer from Massachusetts. They weave in and out of Folk music, flirting with rock and jazz. Naomi holds a Master of Music in Contemporary Performance and Production from Berklee College of Music. She was nominated for a 2021 Boston Music Award for Best Singer-Songwriter. Naomi's 2021 EP Feelings was featured in Under The Radar, WBUR, Vanyaland, WGBH, Allston Pudding, and The Bluegrass Situation.
Peter Mulvey
Milwaukee native Peter Mulvey dove into the deep end of all of this in 1989, on Grafton Street, in Dublin, singing with all the buskers. Those nights ruined him for any other kind of life. From then on out, it was bicycles, poetry, guitars, living humans in an actual room, coffee, more poetry, trains, the Kennedy Center, a cowshed in the West of Ireland, a cave in West Virginia, and every other digression on this, the road to somewhere.
Stephanie McKay
Stephanie McKay is a recording artist, songwriter, arts educator, and advocate whose artistic practice lies at the intersection of music, community, and education.
