FirstWorks Heats Up the Season with its Annual Summer Beats Concert Series

Pedro Pastor. Photo courtesy of the artist / Firstworks

Hear the sounds of summer during FirstWorks’ free Summer Beats Concert Series, consisting of three dynamic concerts showcasing global musical talent. For the unfamiliar, FirstWorks is a nonprofit dedicated to connecting audiences with art. 

“We’re now celebrating our seventh year of bringing audiences together for inspiring global and local Summer Beats concerts in our community parks,” says Kathleen Pletcher, Executive Artistic Director of FirstWorks. “Each concert is more than a performance: it’s a celebration of our many paths, roots, and cultures, a chance to come together to learn and dance, and a welcoming and open environment in some of our city’s most beautiful places.”

Two of the performances will take place outdoors at Roger Williams Park, presented in partnership with Roger Williams Park Conservancy and Providence Parks Department. Plan for good eats as well, as both dates will coincide with the park’s Food Truck Friday (located across from the concerts on the Boathouse Lawn). Then, new this year, the series will expand later in the summer to Providence’s 195 District Park. Keep scrolling for a preview.

Etienne Charles Photo by Luigi Creese/courtesy of FirstWorks.

Friday, July 10, at 6 p.m.: Internationally-renowned jazz trumpet maestro Etienne Charles and Gullah Roots will return to Providence to kick off the series. A continuation of Rhode Island’s commemoration of the 250th anniversary, the show will draw inspiration from Lowcountry Gullah-Geechee culture and its connections to Afro-Caribbean music traditions, integrating big band textures with dancers, masquerade and spoken word. 

The GroovaLottos. Photo courtesy of the artist/ FirstWorks

Friday, July 24, at 6 p.m.: Come back to the Boathouse Lawn to enjoy “The Sound of a Good Time” from Grammy-nominated, Soul-funk Afrobeats jam band The GroovaLottos. The quartet is hailed as a leader in the Thump & Soul music scene, which blends soul, rock, funk, hip-hop and Afrobeats, often sharing their talents at live music clubs, lounges and festivals and concerts across Southern New England. 

Pedro Pastor. Photo courtesy of the artist / FirstWorks

Friday, August 14, from 6 p.m.: Wrap up the series at 195 District Park with Spanish vocalist Pedro Pastor and his band Los Locos Descalzos. Known for sparking and inspiring a new generation of singer-songwriters in Spain, Pastor has out out six successful albums and performed at more than 700 concerts across seventeen countries. His style combines elements of African music, cumbia, flamenco, funk and Latin American folklore. 

Learn more about FirstWorks’ free concert series at firstworks.org.