Three Cheers for the Three C’s: HOORAE x Kennedy Center Takeover

“If you want to go fast, you go alone,” Mo (Morgan) Davis (She/Her), Director, Brand Partnerships, Events and Artist Relations, Raedio/HOORAE says, “but if you want to go far you go together.” 

HOORAE, the L.A.-based multimedia venture created by the multi-hyphenate Issa Rae, focuses on community, creativity, and collaboration — and will temporarily take over The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts from March 24-27. 

What was supposed to be a one-day event blossomed into four days when the inestimable Simone Eccleston, director of hip hop culture and contemporary music at the Kennedy Center, said “Let’s go bigger” when first approached. The weekend event mixes the various strengths of the Kennedy Center’s programming and initiatives with HOORAE’s array of media projects, including the television (HBO) and film (Warner Bros.) production company known for “Insecure” and “A Black Lady Sketch Show.” 

Davis says their programming “activates the community and empowers the creative people” within a shared space. The festival will highlight Black creatives through music, comedy, film, television, dance and community programming. As part of the Kennedy Center’s 50th anniversary, and especially in light of how future-focused and inclusive the programming for the national cultural center has become, this is as much of a homecoming as a takeover. 

The weekend kicks off with a Welcome Party for VIPs (the sponsors who support these creative endeavors) on Thursday night. There’s the stripped down, intimate musical series “pieces” on Friday evening featuring R&B singer Mereba, a short-film festival on Saturday with a premiere by Kid Fury, who does double duty with his “The Read” costar Crissle as they present the live version of their upcoming comedy album on Sunday. There are two more parties: “No Weird Shit Party,” which Davis promises is just lowkey “and really fun” as well as the “Find Your People Party,” a networking event. The HOORAE x Kennedy Center Takeover concludes with “A Sip with Issa Rae,” a conversation between Rae and actress-singer Keke Palmer over bubbles.

Nike, Hoorae, and Beyond the Ball — a nonprofit dedicated to giving students visibility to opportunities in the sports industry outside of being a professional athlete — will host immersive events, including a $25,000 scholarship competition for Howard University students and leading a workout experience for HOORAE attendees and local community members.

“It’s people coming together, finding their tribe, because that’s exactly what the HOORAE model is,” Davis says. “And that’s what the company is: a group of passionate people who came together to build this incredible media conglomerate.”

Davis even hints that the Kennedy Center may be taken over again by HOORAE: 

“Working with Simone has been incredible thus far, and we’re hoping that this is the first of many events, the first of us continuing to uplift creatives in D.C,. but that we will have a long future partnership here on the East Coast.”

Follow HOORAE and Raedio on  their IG’s @hooraemedia and @theraedio. 

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts: 2700 F St. NW, DC; 202-467-4600;
kennedy-center.org // @kennedycenter

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