In The Groove

Pop-oriented R&B singer Amerie, the daughter of a Korean mother and an African-American father who was a career military member, grew up on bases from Alaska to Germany. As a young girl, Amerie lived in a variety of places including South Korea, Germany, Texas and Alaska because her father worked for the United States military. Having to constantly adapt to new environments, Amerie developed a strong sense of self early on. As a youth, she gained an appreciation of the classical arts (from her mother) and of music (from her father), and she also studied dance from an early age.

Since Amerie first debuted in 2002 she has always thrown her mind, body and soul into her songs. Amerie’s sound has steered contemporary R&B away from synthetic sounds through the use of live instrumentation. Never one to follow another’s lead, Amerie is an aggressive mix of trunk rattling hip-hop, raw soul reminiscent of James Brown and classic Zeppelin-era rock ‘n’ roll. She strives for a live, hard, rock sound with a mean edge and a bit of swagger. The instrumentation of her music has a strong personality before she even opens her mouth.

Dancers, gymnasts and actors interact with outrageous and surrealistic props and sets to create an almost cinematic experience that is Diavolo. Founded in 1992 in Los Angeles by Jacques Heim to create large-scale interdisciplinary performances that examine the funny and frightening ways individuals act with their environment, Diavolo has been redefining the concept of dance since. Constantly changing the image presented to the audience, Diavolo has developed a movement vocabulary that creates an almost cinematic experience of powerful images that develop abstract narratives of the human condition.

The company creates performances collaboratively under the guidance of Heim. The sets created are outrageous and surrealistic and form an intrinsic part of each piece of work. Everyday items such as doors, chairs and stairways provide the backdrop for dramatic movement – leaping, flying and twirling – that creates metaphors for the challenge of relationships, the absurdities of life and the struggle to maintain our humanity in an increasingly technological world. Diavolo redefines dance through dynamic movement, enlightening communities through trust, teamwork and individual expression, and it continues to propel the evolution of dance and entertainment by continually pushing the boundaries of both the performer and the stage.

Paul's Thorn's music is the soulful embodiment of the Mississippi heartland encompassing country, gospel, rhythm and blues and rock ‘n’ roll. Born in Mississippi, Thorn grew up shaking his leg and tambourine while singing in his father’s revivals.

Thorn's musical persona is a genuine Southern paradox, a bona fide tough guy with compassion for the social fugitive. Behind his music simmers an old fashioned spiritual sensibility. His music is filled with demented optimism and his blazing country grooves will make even Chuck Berry want to join the musical fray. Thorn's live performances are equally blistering. A hardcore veteran of the road, he rocks the musical pulpit with a bottle of Jim Beam and a six-string guitar.

Thorn's knack for using snapshots from everyday routine as the basis of his writing owes entirely to his distinctive abilities and commitment to linking these elements into a profession of mercy and forgiveness. He serves up a slice of life that is both lyrical and believable. It's hard to label his rock, blues, gospel, delta style of music but his lyrics are sharply honed, his compositions complicated and his sense of character is that of a great short story writer.