Music, poetry, and Looney Tunes.
This December, acclaimed Hmong hip-hop MC, spoken word artist, and community organizer Tou SaiKo Lee returns to Thailand with documentary filmmaker Justin Schell for the final installment of We Rock Long Distance. This will be Lee's second trip to Thailand since his birth there in 1979 on the Nongkhai Hmong refugee camp, and his first since 2008. That trip is chronicled in Schell and Lee's documentary Travel in Spirals, which recently screened at the Twin Cities Film Fest.
While in Thailand, Lee will reconnect with family members still in the Hmong villages around Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, learn about the traditional poetry of kwv txhiaj and paj huam, collaborate and record with singers and poets, conduct workshops, and explore the connections between Hmong hip-hop in Thailand and Hmong hip-hop in America as he explores the global movement of hip-hop amongst the dispersed Hmong people.
To help with production expenses, we're holding a fundraiser for the trip on Friday, November 11 (11/11/11) at CoCo, featuring traditional and contemporary music and poetry from Hmong and non-Hmong performers, including the b-boy crew Looney Tunes, traditional Hmong violin and poetry from Yaj Ceeb, and a set by Fresh Traditions, the collaboration between Tou SaiK and his grandmother, Youa Chang.
What: We Rock Long Distance in Thailand Fundraiser
Where: Coco – 213 E. 4th St., St. Paul, MN 55101 | Map
When: November 11, 2001 - 6:00pm – 9:00pm
Cost: $10 Adults | $5 Youth 16 and Under | Free admission for Elders 60 and above
Please come out, tell your friends, and thank you for your support! You can RSVP on Facebook.
If you can't make it, you can also support the trip by purchasing a DVD of Travel in Spirals or a hand-made "WRLD" kente bracelet from Ghana, or by making a tax-deductible donation to the project through IFP Minnesota.
