The Urban Appalachian Community Coalition, host to the 41^st Annual Appalachian Studies Association Conference, invite you to take part in a series of free music, film and literary programs, supported in part by ArtsWave, to be held at downtown and Over the Rhine locations during the week leading up to the Conference,  April 3-8, 2018.

Tuesday, April 3

Urban Appalachian Film Festival. – 7:30pm. Mini Microcinema, 1225 Main Street. Two films, The Mountain Minor and Pieced Together, with discussion and Q&A. Free, donations welcome.In partnership with Cincinnati Museum Center’s Insight Lecture Series.

Thursday, April 5

Urban Appalachian Film Festival. – 5:30-7:30pm. Mini Microcinema, 1225 Main Street. Two films, The Mountain Minor and Pieced Together plus a literary reading by Dana Wildsmith. With discussion and Q&A. Free, donations welcome. In partnership with Cincinnati Museum Center’s Insight Lecture Series. 

Appalachian Hip Hop at Elementz. 6:00 – 8:00 PM, Elementz, 1100 Race Street. We welcome Appalachian activist and hip hop artist Drew Carter, from Portsmouth, Ohio. After a period away, Carter returned to his homeplace and has devoted himself to his community. Joining him will be young performers who have been exploring identity and home through spoken word arts. Elementz creative director Abdullah Powell will emcee the program.  For more about Drew Carter and Appalachian hip hop, look to the UACC blog post Appalachian Spoken Word and Hip Hop.

Bluegrass Show and Jam at Herzog Studio. 6:30 – 9:30 PM, Herzog Studio, 811 Race Street, Floor 2. The program will begin with an overview of the Historic Herzog Studio by co-sponsor, Cincinnati USA Music Heritage Foundation, followed by a showcase of Cincinnati bluegrass led by Michael Henson. Bands include Ma Crow and Company, the Hartstrings Bluegrass Band, and Carter Bridge.  Bring your instruments for a closing bluegrass jam in this historic space.

Urban Appalachian Film Festival. –9:00pm – 12:30am. Two films, Linefork and Meadow Bridge. Millennium Hotel, W 5th St, Downtown. Free. Viewing and Filmmakers discussion.

Friday, April 6

Old-Time Jam and Show at Northside Distilling Co. 7:00 – 10:00 PM, 922 Race Street. Cincinnati’s storied old-time music community is hosting an open jam, featuring short hourly performances by old-time bands followed by an open jam for everyone. Lineup: 7pm Doc & Ruth; 8pm Mountain Minor crew featuring Dan Gellert; 9pm The Corncobs. High-level jamming between performances, so bring your old-time instrument and join the band! Join the event on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/events/404995496611584/

Southern Appalachian Writers Cooperative Annual Read Around and Swarp.  9:00 – 11:00 PM, Arnold’s Bar & Grill, 210 E. Eighth Street. The Southern Appalachian Writers Cooperative (SAWC) invites both local writers and those in town for the Appalachian Studies Association Conference to bring a couple of pages of poems or prose to share with writers from near and far. Or just show up to listen and socialize with old friends from the writing community and nurture new ones. Founded in 1974, SAWC is a grassroots effort of writers, editors, and activists from the region dedicated to the support of contemporary Appalachian literature and writers, and to using our voices for common good.

Urban Appalachian Film Festival. – 10:00pm – 12:30am.  Two films, The Mountain Minor and Pieced Together. Millennium Hotel, W 5th St, Downtown. Free. Viewing and Filmmakers discussion.

Saturday, April 7

Urban Appalachian Showcase, 7:30 – 9:30 PM, Saturday, April 7 at the Aronoff Center, Jarson-Kaplan Theater, 650 Walnut Street. The showcase features urban Appalachian writers, singers, musicians, and spoken word artists including bluegrass legend, writer, and radio personality Katie Laur.

Appalachian Drag Show at Below Zero. 8:00 – 10:00 PM, Below Zero, 1120 Walnut Street. Queens Busting Seams in the Queen City! The fabulous drag show will feature local talent from some of Cincinnati’s famous queens and a few from the Appalachian region.

Square Dance at Southgate House Revival. 8:30 – 11:30 PM, Southgate House Revival, 111 East Sixth Street, Newport, KY 41071. Free admission. Come dance the night away! Northside Square Dance will host the square dance, with callers and musicians from across the region anchored by our own sizzling Northside Volunteers.

Urban Appalachian Film Festival. – 10:00pm – 12:30am. Two films, The Breaks: Centuries of Struggle and A Coal Miner’s Journey. Millennium Hotel, W 5th St, Downtown. Free. Viewing and Filmmakers discussion.