GAMA: Gathering All Muslim Artists

12/22/2022

Loss is inevitable in the human condition. Grief is our emotional response to loss and can take on many forms. Healing is how we grow around that loss, accepting it and thriving despite it.

Thank you to the artists of the world who can reflect that human experience in a validating and liberating way. How cathartic, to feel seen, through art and music.

As we close out the Khamsa project, we are filled with gratitude. This is not the end of the journey though, we hope you pick up the torch just as we did, and continue the work of healing in your own communities.

Do check out the album on Bandcamp, as well as the podcast on Spotify to dive deeper into the project. As always, link is here: https://linktr.ee/khamsaproject

Speech by Lead Artist Guled Muse. Video by Tyler Austrie

12/21/2022

Can we normalize talking about grief and healing? If we never allow ourselves to discuss the difficulties and the darkness, we may be preventing ourselves from healing.

Lets have the difficult conversations. Let's invite trust and intimate vulnerability in our relationships. Let's heal.... Together.

Thank you to all the visual, lyrical, and musical artists who contributed to the Khamsa project. Album is out now on bandcamp and will be available on all streaming platforms Dec 21st!

Video by Tyler Austrie

12/15/2022

Tune into our latest episode of 'Khamsa the Podcast', where we discuss Oakland music and artistry, healing, and striving towards excellence in developing his craft with powerful MC and Khamsa artist Spore Breeze.

We hope you enjoy the conversation and gain inspiration from it...the episode is available for streaming now on Spotify.

Catch Khamsa the Album, available on BandCamp now, and on all streaming services on December 21st.

12/13/2022

Major love to Oakland Voices and Brandy Collins for attending and covering our Khamsa exhibition.

Link here to read further: https://oaklandvoices.us/2022/12/08/khamsa-multimedia-project-gives-voice-to-black-muslim-immigrant-and-refugee-artists-in-processing-grief/

Major props to all our community partners and artists!

12/12/2022

Tune into Khamsa the Podcast (https://open.spotify.com/show/2xp6UQH8YA3A0aMDRRAm20 ), for our upcoming interview with artist Spote Breeze, who explores his background coming up as an Oakland youth, working on his craft with fellow artists, and exploring the realities of the world, including grief, through art and writing.

His work has been featured on our album, which you can find on BandCamp now (https://khamsaprojectartist.bandcamp.com/album/khamsa-the-album ), and released by Simmons Music Group on all streaming platforms Dec 21st.

Khamsa the Album was made possible by a collaboration with Guled Muse, ARTogether, GAMA: Gathering All Muslim Artists and with funds from the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Arts.

12/08/2022

Visual artist Fahd Butt reminds us to listen to our heart, and give it a voice through art. He then takes us on a journey into his own heart through his artistic depiction of the five stages of grief, during the Khamsa art gallery in West Oakland, CA.

Humans are a diverse group of people, we all grieve, heal, and live in different yet similar ways. Fahd expresses his deepest emotions and experiences through his art.

How do you heal and grieve?

Video by Tyler Austrie, speaker is Khamsa artist Fahd Butt ()

12/06/2022

Visual artist Zara, took us through a journey into her own heart as our guests witnessed her emotional expression, manifested and materialized as multi media art pieces during the Khamsa art gallery in West Oakland, CA.

Humans are a diverse group of people, we all grieve, heal, and live in different yet similar ways. Zara expresses her deepest emotions and experiences through her art.

How do you heal and grieve?

Video by Tyler Austrie, speaker is Khamsa artist Zara

12/04/2022

For seven weeks, we hosted local communities in a gallery experience that we curated around the five stages of grief. The Khamsa project was built on the foundation of a musical album: one track for each stage of grief, and the gallery allowed participants to step into the mind of the album.

Through visual and musical expression, we enabled our community members to journey through the five stages of grief, reflect on their own healing process, and share with us their own tools for grieving and healing.

Although the exhibit concluded in October of 2022, the project lives on through the 'Khamsa' the album, and "Khamsa The Podcast", a series of interviews with the participating artists, available on all streaming platforms.

Video by Tyler Austrie. Speakers (in order) are Zara (Visual Artist), Guled Muse (Lead Artist), Michelle Lin ( ARTogether), Abbas Mohamed (GAMA), and Fahd Butt (Visual Artist).

Khamsa: The Five Stages of GriefFor seven weeks, we hosted local communities in a gallery experience that we curated around the five stages of grief. The Kha...

12/02/2022

Tune into Khamsa the Podcast on Spotify , for our upcoming interview with producer Pat Mesiti-Miller aka pAS dOO, who breaks down his artistry in producing, sound engineering, and podcasting, and explains how technology can aid in democratizing healing through storytelling.

His work has been featured on our album, which you can find on BandCamp now (https://khamsaprojectartist.bandcamp.com/album/khamsa-the-album), and released on all streaming platforms Dec 21st.

Khamsa the Album was made possible by a collaboration with Guled Muse, ARTogether, GAMA, and with funds from the Duke Doris Foundation for Islamic Art Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Arts.

12/01/2022

Major love for Guled Muse's Op-Ed on grief, culture, hip hop, and healing in national outlet News One.

Guled is the lead artist of our latest project, Khamsa, which explores the five stages of grief through artistry and lyricism. Be sure to read the article to dive deeper into his philosophy: https://newsone.com/4455507/processing-grief-through-culture-bay-area/

Our album comes out on Dec 21st on all streaming platforms, but is available early on bandcamp now: https://khamsaprojectartist.bandcamp.com/album/khamsa-the-album

ARTogether

10/05/2022

Let's get deep and discuss grief through as many styles and media as we can.This First Friday, join us for live musical and spoken word performances from Khamsa’s upcoming hip hop album.

This evening will feature performances by music artists Spote Breeze, D. Lee, Gavin Grant, and spoken word artist Abbas Mohamed. Get an exclusive first listen to the album while experiencing Khamsa’s visual art gallery.

Space is limited and RSVP through Eventbrite is required: www.eventbrite.com/e/khamsa-oakland-first-friday-tickets-428310758007

Video by

ARTogether

10/04/2022

We would like to thank and express our deepest gratitude to everyone who showed up at our open mic with on Sep 30th.

It was a gathering of open and honest expression where we held and experienced grief together, as a community.

This was an impactful evening for many, especially as we were able to raise over $1,500+ to feed the hungry in the name of Belal Esa and Asim Al-Awjri, two brothers who were recently shot and killed near Oakland Islamic Center.

This is how we grieve in community. This is what holding space looks like. This is what support looks like.

Hope to see you at our next event, on the 7th of October at ! We will have selling Halal food, as well as live performances. Link in bio.