event talent
a sample of our community's rich visual and musical talent
AMEYA OKAMOTO
Ameya invites viewers to participate in the performance of protest and resistance through art-making.
Artist + organizer Ameya Okamoto is a dynamic 22-year-old from Portland, whose creative work lives at the intersections of art and social justice.
Using accessible materials like wheatpaste, permanent marker, spray paint, and posters from digital artworks, she curates workshops and art actions, creating opportunities for group healing through the collaborative processing of violence, memorialization, and generational trauma. Ameya invites viewers to participate in the performance of protest and resistance through art-making.
Her work has been profiled by Paper Magazine, NPR and Hyperallergic among others. In 2018, Ameya was announced a YoungArts Finalist in Visual Art and US Presidential Scholar in Art and was included in the NY Post's top 6 rising art stars at Miami Art Basel. She is a 2019 Adobe Creativity Scholar, 2020 Laidlaw Research Fellow, and the recipient of a 2022 Project for Peace Grant. Ameya is currently researching the role of protest art in social movements and sustainable beautification. She is the founder and creative director of IRRESISTIBLE, creating art for social change.
Ameya is a painting student at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and studies Sociology at Tufts University. She is also an avant-garde nail artist and cosmetology student at A Plus Nail School, working towards her nail tech license.
THE CHRISTOPHER BROWN QUARTET
When The Christopher Brown Quartet isn't performing at festivals, corporate events, and other special performances, they can be found every Wednesday night at The 1905 in NE Portland.
As the youngest son to Portland Jazz legend and former Motown staff drummer, Mel Brown, Christopher Brown has managed to carve a similar niche for himself as a drummer, bandleader, and leader within the greater Portland Jazz scene.
And while Christopher also spent many years earning his stripes within the musical trenches of New York City, what separates him from his father is his 20 years of military service, two music degrees, teaching positions at two major colleges, and forays into television, movies, and music videos (most notably "American Gangster" starring Denzel Washington & Russell Crowe, as well as Beyonce's 2010 music video "Countdown").
Christopher serves not only as a professor within the PSU Jazz Studies department, but he serves as the director of the Metropolitan Youth Symphony's Jazz Program, in addition to being the communications-lead within Habitat for Humanity's Ambassador Council (Portland Metro East) as well as the artistic coordinator for TASTE.
Since 2017, the Christopher Brown Quartet has maintained a consistent performance schedule that has made them the busiest Jazz group in all of Portland.
Tahira Memory
Currently, Tahirah can be seen showcasing her catalog live via local events & venues, soon to be touring again, as well as working on new music and professional writing endeavors behind the scenes.
Ever relevant soul singer/songwriter Tahirah Memory is a Portland, Oregon native. Described as having "...a beautiful instrument, a truly warm and gorgeous sound..." audiences have been inclined to feel as though they come away from a performance post an intimate conversation rather than crowded venue. Born to a musician father, who would later win a Grammy, the musical influence was present from inception.
The 2015 release, of Tahirah’s debut album “PRIDE”, created huge buzz amongst soul and jazz music lovers in Europe, with frequent radio play in the UK, topping the UK Soul Chart and garnering support elsewhere internationally, along with support from famed music outlet SoulBrother Records. Chris Wells of Echoes Magazine says her "depth of tone and easy elasticity is glorious to behold."
Miss Memory has been seen touring domestically and internationally as a background vocalist for long time vocal icon KD Lang, as well as Jarrod Lawson, and foremost as front-woman on her own successful tours abroad. Since the release of Tahirah’s follow up soul album, “ASHA”, in April, 2019, she was nominated by SOULTRACKS for Best Female Vocalist, Best Album, and Best Song of 2019, has completed a sold out UK run, and has amassed even more international radio airplay.
Drae Slapz
“Energetic” - “Rare” - Hard Hitting”
These are the phrases typically used to describe the soundscape of Drae Slapz.
Born in Portland Oregon, Slapz is typically holding it down as the live DJ for some of Portland's most exciting hip-hop acts--including Mic Capes, Brookfield Duece and Rare Vibe.
Slapz does this while maintaining his monthly event "The Kickback," DJing corporate events and performing his own music live.
His latest announcement finds the popular DJ getting from behind the boards once again and back into the booth with his full length project "NRG."