Alona Wartofsky

Nov 7, 2024 | washingtoncitypaper.com | Brandon Wetherbee |Dorvall Bedford |Alona Wartofsky |Joe Warminsky |Amelia Roth-Dishy

Thanks for being a member of City Paper! The first line on Halpine’s debut LP, “I’ve got to know if you’ll be around when the big bomb drops down,” doesn’t feel as much like foreboding as a comfortable inevitability. The mostly solo project of Joey Bentley is reminiscent of the type of bedroom recording that became de rigueur in the early Pitchfork era. The sound itself doesn’t suffer from any lo-fi trappings.

Nov 1, 2024 | washingtoncitypaper.com | Alona Wartofsky

Thanks for being a member of City Paper! In publicist and strategic planner Stacey Palmer’s estimation, the DMV’s go-go community can and should become a political force. Beyond the musicians, that community encompasses those who support the music in various backstage and behind-the-scenes roles and its sizable community of fans. “We have the numbers, and as a collective, we matter,” she says.

Jul 31, 2024 | washingtoncitypaper.com | Heidi Pérez-Moreno |Matt S. Siblo |Alona Wartofsky |Stephanie Rudig

Thanks for being a member of City Paper! Inside Signature Theatre, the songs of Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, and Sarah Vaughan are being channeled and echoed through the voice of Awa Sal Secka. The performer and playwright, who was born in New York and raised in a Gambian household, has been performing locally since she moved to the area in 2005—her first show at Signature was roughly seven years ago, when she played an apostle in Jesus Christ Superstar.

Feb 28, 2024 | washingtoncitypaper.com | Alona Wartofsky

Thanks for being a member of City Paper! Throughout his life, Reuben Jackson listened to the music he loved—jazz, of course, but also Jimi Hendrix, Prince, John Prine, and Claude Debussy. As a jazz scholar, Jackson’s understanding of music was profound, and his knowledge vast. As a poet, he listened closely to the people around him, savoring each word’s timbre, musicality, and resonance.

Nov 24, 2023 | washingtoncitypaper.com | Alona Wartofsky

Thanks for being a member of City Paper! At various times between the early 1980s and early 2010s, nearly every Black neighborhood in the District had its own fledgling go-go band. Early on, these bands were made up of children and teenagers who learned music in the public schools and honed their skills in summer recreation programs.