Embedded Files
photo credit: Ella McDonald
photos by Kat Concepcion
Premiere of "Road Noise!"
Premiere of "Road Noise!"
Boston Center for the Arts, October 2025
Boston Center for the Arts, October 2025
"Road Noise!" is a performance art piece composed for electric guitar, voice and electronics with lighting and visuals. First composed in late summer 2025 for Volume 7 of the BCA's #HellaBlack series, the piece is a retrospective of Simpkins' adventures as a working musician paired with an exploration of the social, emotional, and material conditions of a Black woman in the American music industry. Using sound samples from the MBTA (recorded live in September 2025), the work pays homage to the countless hours of travel on public transit that continue to afford Simpkins vast stretches of time for introspection and imagination. The piece is slated to receive a second presentation in May 2027 (location TBA).
Gabriella was photographed by Barry Schneier and interviewed by James Sullivan (Boston Globe) for "The Song Is Still Being Written": The Folk Music Portrait Project (published in 2024). The book includes portraits and interviews of various artists and luminaries connected to the Boston-area folk/roots music community who remain committed to continuing the folk tradition of creating art of and for the people. Paired with the release of the book was an exhibition at the Boch Center's Folk Americana Roots Hall of Fame in Fall 2024.
Photo Credits: Ella McDonald, painting by Paul Schulenberg, Joakeem Gaston, Sasha Pedro
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