Bay-area born and bred, jazz and gospel trained, and internationally respected, Valerie Troutt is a musical collagist, borrowing from ancestral centuries of sound, channeling spirits, and delivering the stories of our love, loss, and lives. There’s a light in this unapologetically unconventional artist/teacher/activist for whom art and activism are intertwined. Within this spiritual and social justice-driven performer is a lifelong hunger for craft, for connection, for cultural narratives and an indefatigable thirst to serve as an agape griot to a waiting and hurting people.
For this special concert for the West Oakland Sessions, Valerie will debut songs from her upcoming project titled "Let the Light In”. Featured alongside Valerie are Nora Free on saxophone, Colin Hogan on keys, Michael “Tiny” Lindsey on bass, and Ruth Price on drums. This date also follows a performance for Angela Davis’ curated musical selections for the Oakland Symphony Playlist series.