Black voices amplified for Black History Month at Disneyland Resort
- Share via
When community gospel choir KJLH Radio Free Voices took the stage at Fantasyland Theatre at Disneyland Park on Feb. 8, the group hardly needed a microphone. Under the directorship of Tyanta Snow, the group’s powerful voices rang out through the park.
“It’s going to get better after this,” Snow said to a cheering crowd, referencing the lyrics of the song.
The inspiring gospel performance is part of “Celebrate Gospel” and one of the ways Disneyland Resort is amplifying Black voices during the month of February in honor of Black History Month.
“‘Celebrate Gospel’ is one of the featured events of a larger program known as ‘Celebrate Soulfully,’” said singer/songwriter Dedrick Bonner. “We are inviting everyone to experience a wide range of unique music, food and arts and crafts, all of which pay tribute to Black heritage and culture.”
Bonner served as emcee for the special show that included a performance from his own gospel choir, Singers of Soul, headlined by award-winning gospel group DOE.
“Celebrate Soulfully” began as a yearly event at Walt Disney World in Florida and in 2022, the event came to Anaheim for the first time where it has also become a celebrated tradition that creates a culture of inclusion.
“‘Celebrate Soulfully’ is such a treasured event that really brings us closer as a community and helps us foster understanding and being together as one,” said Disney ambassador Raul Aquino Rojas.
A second “Celebrate Gospel” show is planned for Feb. 15 with the Grammy-nominated Melvin Crispell III headlining.
Other live musical performances are scheduled throughout the resort for the month, including nightly music at the Downtown Disney LIVE! Stage featuring Motown, rock, jazz and reggae.
At Disneyland Hotel, “Celebrate Soulfully” artists will perform on select days in the Broken Spell Lounge and a cappella group Sequim Dream will perform in the lobby on Fridays and Saturdays. Throughout the year on Buena Vista Street at Disney California Adventure Park, jazz group Five & Dime arrive by vintage vehicle to the outdoor stage to play hits of the 1920s and ’30s.
In addition to the musical performances, special crafts are being offered this month near the Fantasyland Theatre, like stained-glass window coloring sheets, evocative of the churches where gospel music is sung, and the Giving Flowers Wall, where guests can write down what they are grateful for on a flower to add to the wall.
“In the African American community we always say we like to give people their flowers,” said Bonner. “They say, ‘Give me my flowers while I yet live.’ Giving flowers is a celebration of an individual’s work and acknowledgment and historically speaking, specific flowers were used as special signals to indicate a safe passage to freedom.”
There are also limited-time menu offerings like a fried chicken bowl at Disneyland’s Troubadour Tavern, filled with fried chicken, baked macaroni and cheese, collard greens and sweet potato cornbread and black-eyed pea stew with hot water cornbread from Award Wieners at Disney California Adventure.
At Downtown Disney’s recently opened Parkside Market, Sip & Sonder is pouring a special cold brew coffee made with chicory and cane sugar called “Nod to Nicaud,” honoring a slave turned entrepreneur.
“Born enslaved, Rose Nicaud became one of the first women of color vendors in the city of New Orleans, and her tenacity and success enabled her to purchase her and her husband’s freedom, ultimately establishing a thriving coffee business in the world-renowned French Market,” Sip & Sonder co-founders, Amanda-Jane Thomas and Shanita Nicholas, shared in a statement. “As Black women business owners, we know firsthand the challenges that come with this path and we proudly carry Rose’s legacy forward, knowing that every cup we serve is an opportunity to honor our roots and inspire future generations.”
“Celebrate Soulfully” continues throughout February, with some musical performances returning in June for Black Music Month. Bonner touched on the power music has to tell a story and the impact a gospel choir can make when its members raise their voices together.
“As music historian Alan Lomax once said, as we live so do we sing. That is is the power of gospel music, etched in each lyric and woven in each harmony is the fabric of our story,” said Bonner. “In our story, the word gospel means ‘good news.’“
All the latest on Orange County from Orange County.
Get our free TimesOC newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot.
