Castle of our Skins

08/20/2026

THROWBACK TO OUR BSU FELLOWS 🖤🎶

For the past five years, the Castle of our Skins BSU Intercollegiate Fellowship has brought Black Student Union students from local colleges and conservatories together to build community, collaborate across schools, make music & art, have fun, and cultivate their creative agency.

Swipe through some of our favorite memories from past cohorts! 📸✨

And if you’re thinking, “Wait… how do I get in on this?” — good news: the 6th Annual BSU Intercollegiate Fellowship application drops this September.

Whether you’re arriving in Boston with a whole community already, or looking to find your people, there’s a place for you here. 🖤

Stay tuned for application details!

08/18/2026

🎥 What inspires you to start something new?

During our HBCU Artists as Entrepreneurs panel earlier this month, moderator Dr. Ciyadh Wells asked our panelists to reflect on the experiences and ideas that inspired them to build something of their own.

In this clip, Kyle Exum 😊🤘🏽🎈 talks about becoming a content creator at a time when the field was still brand new, while AVID WILLIAMS shares how they helped bring a production of H. Leslie Adams’ opera to life at the Schaumburg Library in New York.

Their stories are a powerful reminder that creative entrepreneurship often starts with seeing a possibility—and having the courage to pursue it. ✨

This conversation was recorded on August 1 at Union Chapel as part of the Martha’s Vineyard HBCU Arts Festival, a collaboration between HBCU Arts and Castle of our Skins.

▶️ Watch the full panel on our YouTube channel:
YouTube.com/Castle of our Skins

08/18/2026

🎥 Missed our HBCU Artists as Entrepreneurs panel on Martha’s Vineyard? You can still catch the conversation!

Recorded live on August 1, 2026 at Union Chapel in Oak Bluffs, this engaging and inspiring conversation brought together visionary HBCU creatives who are redefining what it means to build a creative career today.

Moderated by Dr. Ciyadh Wells, the panel featured Dr. Jolie Rocke, Avid Williams, Kyle Exum, Stacey Allen, and Sarah Ruff, exploring how artists are transforming their talents into thriving enterprises, building sustainable careers, uplifting their communities, and shaping cultural narratives.

▶️ Watch the full panel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_PesIuqyJ8

The Martha’s Vineyard HBCU Arts Festival was presented through a collaboration between HBCU Arts and Castle of our Skins.

Moderated by Dr. Ciyadh Wells with Dr. Jolie Rocke, Avid Williams, ...

08/17/2026

🎉 We’re thrilled to be a 2026 Free for All Endowment Fund grantee!

Castle of our Skins is honored to be among 21 organizations selected by the Boston Foundation’s Free for All Endowment Fund, honoring the legacy of conductor Charles Ansbacher.

Since 2016, the fund has invested more than $1.6 million in organizations working to expand access to classical, orchestral music, and related cultural experiences across Greater Boston. This year’s grants represent the largest cycle in the fund’s history—and we’re proud to be part of it!

This support helps make it possible for us to continue creating spaces where Black music, Black artistry, and Black stories are centered, celebrated, and accessible to our communities. 💛

Thank you to the Boston Foundation and the Free for All Endowment Fund. We’re grateful to be in community with our fellow 2026 grantees and excited for what’s ahead!✨

📷Niko Alexander/FPoint Productions

08/14/2026

We’re Hiring a Marketing Manager 📣✨

Love Black artistry, culture, storytelling, and community? Castle of our Skins is looking for a Marketing Manager to join our team!

This collaborative, part-time role will lead marketing and communications for our concerts, programs, and initiatives—helping share COOS’s work with audiences locally and nationally.

In this role, you’ll:
📱 Develop social media campaigns across Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn & more
✍🏾 Craft organizational messaging, copy, website content, newsletters & press communications
🎨 Lead marketing collateral and digital content production
📧 Coordinate our Mailchimp newsletter strategy
📊 Evaluate campaigns and audience engagement
🤝 Build marketing partnerships and cross-promotional opportunities
📸 Help organize our photo/video archive and digital media
💫 Collaborate across our artistic, development, and operations teams

The basics:
🕐 Part-time, 20–25 hours/week | Hybrid
📍 1–2 in-person days/week in Nubian Square (Roxbury), with remote work
💰 $31/hour
🩺 100% employer-paid medical, dental & vision insurance
🌴 10 days PTO + 14 observed holidays + summer & winter administrative closures
📅 Start date: October or November 2026

We’re looking for someone with 2–3 years of arts marketing experience, strong writing and editing skills, comfort with Canva or Adobe Creative Suite and social media platforms, and—most importantly—a deep commitment to Black history, arts, cultural representation, and our mission.

Applications are due September 7, 2026.

Learn more about the position and apply at castleskins.org/opportunities.

Know someone who would be a great fit? Share this post with them! 🖤

Questions? Email Rachel Styles, Operations Manager, at [email protected].

08/12/2026

Save the date: September 20th for BLACKOUT Night at Purpose 🖤

Join us at Dean Hall in The Calderwood Pavilion (527 Tremont St.) for a special BLACKOUT Night at Purpose on Sunday, September 20, in partnership with The Huntington ( ) & Embrace Boston ( ).

Created as a cultural affinity space for individuals of the African Diaspora, BLACKOUT Night offers an opportunity for Black audiences to gather, connect, celebrate, and experience theater in community.

✨ 6:00 PM — Pre-show reception with Castle of our Skins
🎶 Live music by COOS artist Díjí Kay ( )
🍴 Light bites + drinks
🎭 7:00 PM — Performance of Purpose

🎟️ Pay What You Wish tickets start at just $5! Go to www.huntingtontheatre.org/blackout

Come early, grab a drink, connect with community, and enjoy an evening of powerful storytelling and Black artistry.

08/11/2026

📚✨ A Little History is coming back to MAAH!

In a few weeks, Castle of our Skins returns to the Museum of African American History - Boston and Nantucket ( ) for our signature edutainment workshop, A Little History!

📅 Sunday, September 6, 2026
⏰ 1:00–2:00 PM
📍 Museum of African American History (46 Joy St., Boston, MA)

Presented by COOS Teaching Artist Ken Allen, A Little History is a fun-filled, interactive workshop that brings Black history to life through music, movement, storytelling, and imagination.

Young elementary students are invited to sing, clap, move, imagine, and invent as they explore the stories of trailblazing figures including Phillis Wheatley, Garrett Morgan, Angela Davis, Barack Obama, and more!

Come learn, play, and celebrate the people whose stories continue to shape our world. 💛

Free and family-friendly!
🎟️ RSVP: givebutter.com/a-little-history & join us at MAAH on September 6.

08/07/2026

And just like that, Martha’s Vineyard HBCU Arts Fest has come to a close. Thank you to everyone who came out to the Vineyard to join us this week for arts, community, and connection. We can’t wait to do it again next year!

08/07/2026

https://www.youtube.com/live/IvRjK50Mqu0

In case you missed it... ⛪🎶

As part of the Martha's Vineyard HBCU Arts Festival, festival artists from HBCU Arts and Castle of our Skins had the joy of sharing music during Sunday's worship service at the historic Union Chapel Martha's Vineyard.

If you weren't able to join us in person—or you'd simply like to experience it again—you can now watch the full service on YouTube.

08/06/2026

"But the highlight for many was the HBCU Arts Festival held at Union Chapel with presentations made by Castle of our Skins entitled Blacknificently Divine"

Rev. Otis Moss 3rd is a spectacular preacher and spiritual leader who graces the Union Chapel pulpit every first Sunday in August.