Not only is 2020 the Year of Chicago Music, it’s also the 35th year for the nonprofit Arts & Business Council of Chicago (A&BC), which provides business expertise and training to creatives and their organizations citywide. To celebrate, the A&BC has launched the #ChiMusic35 campaign at ChiMusic35.com, which includes a public poll to determine the consensus 35 greatest moments in Chicago music history as well as a raffle to benefit the A&BC’s work supporting creative communities struggling with the impact of COVID-19 in the city’s disinvested neighborhoods.
Ayana Contreras: What’s one of your favorite Chicago music moments?
What makes Chicago such a hotbed for musical invention, and a place so full of really exciting collaborations?
Yeah. I was just on a call with a bunch of alumni and the directors of the Chicago Children’s Choir, trying to figure out some ways to help them move through this time. The top of the list of “This cannot happen” is people singing in a room together. We’ve got to figure out a way to give that moment back to kids in Chicago, because it’s really important. It’s important for people to get out of their world, and for some kids to get out of their family space and feel they have chosen family around the city that they can collaborate with. v
