Kontra the Collective knows that local music scenes don’t just happen. Artists need rooms to play and people willing to show up before the algorithm tells them to. The collective is building - brick by brick - a creative community allowing artists to get a step up in the industry, from performance opportunities and networking events, to playlisting opportunities, writer workshops, and access to grants and resources
Last night was Kontra’s Hit Shuffle! event, featuring a range of music for all palates and blending different crowds into one room to discover new sounds.
The night opened with dancers, which to me immediately signaled the level of intention behind the show. That’s what makes Kontra and their artists special--they are curating a whole live music ~*experience*~ for the audience.
And being part of an audience is important. I reject the idea that we don’t owe each other anything. I think we owe each other a lot, actually. We owe each other attention, encouragement, curiosity and, when we can give it, our presence. That’s the beauty of community... or a music scene. We show up because we’ve ~collectively~ decided that the things we care about are worth sustaining. And I think the DC music scene - and the artists from this Hit Shuffle event - deserve the sustenance of your support:
Father Sokka performing on stage at Songbyrd Music House
FATHER SOKKA & T.A.T. (@fathersokka on IG, @tat.band on IG)
“Listen up, a they/them is talking.” Father Sokka said it. I suggest you pay attention.
Father Sokka & T.A.T. blend the raw energy of punk with the Baltimore/DMV rap scene, and the result is ELECTRIFYING. With Father Sokka, there is a freshness reminiscent of the first time you heard artists like Megan Thee Stallion or Doechii--not because Father Sokka sounds like either of them, but precisely because they don’t. Their flow doesn’t feel like something you’ve already heard. It’s distinctive, clever as fuck, and backed by T.A.T.--a live band generating enough energy that Pepco is already plotting how to bill us for it.
By the end of their hype set, the crowd was buzzing and begging/chanting for another song. Father Sokka casually revealed that this iteration of the band has only been playing together for six months.
… Six months?! If this is what they sound like in their infancy, Father Sokka & T.A.T. are absolutely one to watch.
Organized Khaos performing on stage at Songbyrd Music House
ORGANIZED KHAOS (@iamokmusic on IG)
In addition to her sumptuous, choir-standout voice, there’s something deeply warm and welcoming about Organized Khaos as a performer. One minute she’s offering the crowd affirmations and encouragement, and the next, she’s singing about thinking about an ex and realizing she probably needs to go back to therapy. Relatableeee.
Her song “Unfiltered” turned the room into an early-2000s R&B music video: hot backup dancers and Organized Khaos supplying her signature vocals, delicate but clear and powerful, with gospel roots showing underneath. When she switches into rapping, she’s commanding without losing any of her femininity. And while can do it all herself--provide the smooth chorus vocals AND the hard hitting rap verses--she made her set feel like a special event by bringing out other artists and featuring on their songs, too.
Organized Khaos is creating ‘Beautiful Things’ through her music and community building with Kontra the Collective. Keep an eye out for her debut album in November.
Risk performing on stage at Songbyrd Music House
RISK (@rscybusiness on IG)
RISK makes the kind of music that makes you feel seen, with raw and vulnerable lyrics over polished, catchy indie pop sound. And then there’s their stage presence. There was a bubble machine. There was lore drop between songs. There was sweat in her eye. At one point, RISK paused to request that a hero from the audience come forward with a tissue--and, of course, someone answered the call. That’s the kind of community Kontra is building here in the DMV.
RISK is funny and magnetic between songs, then a switch flips and she makes herself completely vulnerable to the music--which confirms that being human is hard, and weird, and you’re not the only person who thinks so. Is this indie pop or is it small group therapy?? The combination of technical songwriting, emotional honesty, and the ability to command a room makes RISK feel like an artist who’s turning “is it just me?” into “…oh, there are a lot of us.” They are on the way to building a very big audience of people used to feeling like the odd one out.
Now that you’ve heard about the artists who are paving the way for a better, more accessible DC music scene… Here’s the call to action. Support artists while they’re still within arm’s reach. Hear it first. Say you were there. Be there at the beginning of something big. Be a part of the scene.
Live music is magic, y’all. And the magic is in no small part because YOU are there.
I remain, as ever, A GODDAMNED PATRON OF THE ARTS
and I hope you will too.
-carley
Written by Carley Philips