Evento

Kev Choice Ensemble

Dance thru the night dressed in black and white!
Join us for a New Year's Eve Black and White Ball presenting -straight from Oakland- the Kev Choice Ensemble featuring hip hop star and master pianist Kev Choice. The show will start at 9 p.m and doors will open at 8:30 p.m.
The evening will also include MC, hip hop singer and multi-media artist RadioActive who will open the show.
Choice is well-known to locals after he performed at a sold-out show several years ago. He is a classically trained, jazz-educated pianist and a highly technical rapper and has been a staple of The Bay Area music scene for the last ten years. Critics consider him one of the most exciting up and coming musicians today.
Choice and his ensemble are known for combining elements of hip hop, jazz, soul, funk, and classical music into one power packed show.
An Oakland native, he obtained a Master's Degree in piano performance from U.C. Berkeley and is in high demand as keyboardist. He has toured with renowned artist in the hip hop and R&B/soul world such as Lauryn Hill, Dwele, Too Short, DJ Quik, Goapele, Michael Franti and Spearhead, Martin Luther, Zion I and others. During his career Choice has won numerous awards and was nominated for many honors including "Most Multi-Talented Musician", "Best Musician" by East Bay Express, and "Best R&B/Funk Artist" by SF Weekly. His All-Star Ensemble consists of some of the Bay Area's most talented musicians, producers and artists including vocalist Viveca Hawkins, saxophonist Howard Wiley, producer/keyboardist Antario Holmes, and the powerful rhythm section of Greggo Simmons, Hassan Hurd, and Marcus Phillips. Choice's much anticipated album "The Power of Choice" was released in November of this year.
Also returning to the theater is opening act Radioactive. Originating from Boston, MA, he embodies the essence of hip hop. He is an emcee, beatboxer, writer, painter, and b-boy. He plays musical instruments, incorporates electronic beats with his beatbox and commands active audience participation during his fresh, soulful original live performances.
Radio Active is best known for his long-standing association with Michael Franti and Spearhead, but the Western Addition local has for years been a host of Bay Area open-mic nights and battles and spit (both lyrically and rhythmically) onstage with Talib Kweli, Galactic, Ani DiFranco, and a ton more.
The Arena Theater bar and snack stand will be open.