Georges Budagu Makoko was born and raised in the mountainous Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where he lived and studied for several years before a brutal conflict erupted. After barely surviving waves of violence, he emigrated to Portland, escaping the horrors that hav…
Mari Balow wants you to make friends while you work out. For over a year now she’s led and organized one of the city’s only weekly grassroots workout groups, the Portland Sweat Project, while maintaining a strong supporting role in the Runaways Run Club. Both of these clubs are free and open…
Mark Otim, known by his stage name African Dundada is a South Sudanese-American hip-hop and reggae dancehall artist, whose goal is to use performance as a tool to advance a very utopian, “one love” sort of message. He also works with immigrant youth in Portland, many of whom, he says, consid…
It only launched this winter, but how are you seeing the Farmhouse Fridays night at Oxbow come together? Seems like it could fill a need for the East End. It is jelling nicely at this point. Lots of returning faces, many from the local neighborhood. We are not there to force a certain styl…
Yes Books is very much a staple of Portland. How did you come to own it?
How long have you been the director of the Shoestring Theater and how was it you came to the work?
Could you describe your role with MEJP and how you came to it?
Portland musician Amos Libby recently returned from a trip in the West Bank, where he was researching civil rights and social justice issues. In Portland, Libby is an oud player with the band Okbari and co-director of the Bowdoin College Middle Eastern Ensemble. What was your connection to P…
Pearls of Portland 003: Vivian Ewing, editor of ENTER RURAL SCENE and founder of Wash and Fold Press
What's your assessment of Maine print media, both art-centered and otherwise, and where does Wash and Fold Press fit?
Jim Rand has been the WMPG station manager since 1998 and a DJ since 1986. He hosted The Modern Music Show decades ago and is currently the host of Land of the Lost, playing psych, punk, and garage music, Thursdays from 3 to 5 pm.
Pearls of Portland is a weekly interview with an artist, activist, or cultural agent. POP001: Kristen Stake of the Living Room dance collective.