Larry Watson
Photo: Promise Place School
BOSTON, Mass.—The Foundation For International Justice, Inc. and Promise Place School announce that Lawrence “Larry” Watson and his Jazz Group “Workforce” will perform live at the First Annual Gala fundraising event for Promise Place School, to be held at the Boston Seaport Hotel, 1 Seaport Lane, Boston, MA 02210 on Saturday evening, September 26, 2015, from 6-10 p.m.
Larry Watson is an inspiration to many as a master teacher, an activist, and a musician. By joining his musical talents with his life-long struggle for human and civil justice, Watson is a soulful messenger for the next millennium—a modern-day Paul Robeson. He is currently Associate Professor of Voice at Berklee College of Music, as well as an Associate Professor at the Art Institute of Boston at Lesley University and an Adjunct Professor in the Black Studies Department at Boston College.
New England audiences have embraced the music of Watson for more than thirty years. He now enjoys a domestic and international career performing throughout the country and around the world. He spent last Christmas in Asia delivering his own special brand of holiday music to the people of Singapore and Malaysia. A return engagement took Watson to Shanghai, China, where he wowed the Chinese people as lead male vocalist in a concert entitled “The American Songbook.”
Mr. Berry Gordy, Founder of the Motown Record Company, the most successful record company of the 20th Century, said the following: [pullquote]“This powerful baritone, who easily swoops up to the tenor range, sings, with a groovy beat, lyrics that convey messages smoothly delivered yet relevant to the Black cause. He is the respected inheritor of the Great Black Music tradition of blues, jazz and gospel, but his own man too.”—Kay Bourne, music critic for the Bay State Banner[/pullquote]
“First, I want to say as great as Motown was, if we had had Larry Watson (thunderous applause) it would have been even better … it would have been amazing, he was incredible, his rhythm … we would have been off the charts if he would have been there.”
Kay Bourne, music critic for the Bay State Banner writes:
“This powerful baritone, who easily swoops up to the tenor range, sings, with a groovy beat, lyrics that convey messages smoothly delivered yet relevant to the Black cause. He is the respected inheritor of the Great Black Music tradition of blues, jazz and gospel, but his own man too.”
Mr. Watson has been special guest with billing on concerts with Al Green, Smokey Robinson, Oleta Adams, Little Richard, Gladys Knight, The Neville Brothers, Tata Vega, Jean Carne, and The Boston Pops Orchestra. He has also been the soloist at several events honoring three Supreme Court Justices, President Nelson Mandela, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, The Honorable Reverend Desmond Tutu, former Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, and President Barack Obama.
Learn more about Larry Watson at www.lawrencewatson.com.
Promise Place School is an initiative of the Foundation For International Justice, Inc., which was founded by Stonewall Veteran Erica Kay-Webster to create a year-round living and learning environment for unaccompanied homeless LGBTQQIA homeless youth. These youth, much like Ms. Kay-Webster, have experienced familial rejection upon coming out. In the United States, there are over 600,000 homeless LGBT youth struggling to survive without any form of support system. We believe Promise Place School is the best alternative in preparing our youth for a successful future.
For more information on Promise Place School, event information, and online ticketing for the Gala on September 26, 2015 please visit www.promiseplaceschool.org/events.
[From a News Release]
