Sounds of an Empire – The Roots & Power of Qawwali A multi-disciplinary project by Mustafa Chaudhry in collaboration with Soul City Arts. A ‘work in progress’ piece exploring the heritage of Qawwali and the music of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and its roots within the city of Birmingham.Capturing the essence of a…
Soul City Arts regular Soul Fire Sundays is back! Live-art, great food, curated sounds and conversation takes over our Port Hope studio warehouse for the first time. Before covid Soul Fire Sundays was a regular event which took place every few months. We are now back with the same format, but a new venue -…
Birmingham street-artist and curator Mohammed Ali tells the story of the city, celebrating the graft that is embedded in its DNA. Ali says, ‘Birmingham is no Paris, Tokyo or Milan, it is gritty, but it has soul and that’s how we like it’. Digital visuals are presented alongside performances from celebrated storyteller and author Polarbear…
Soul City Arts’ warehouse space is multifunctional; from hosting school students, film crews to immersive dining events and workshops. Our Port Hope warehouse is a 4000 sqft industrial space in the heart of Sparkbrook that has been described as an ‘Oasis of Creativity’. We recently reimagined the space by transforming it into a unique cinema…
Hip hop celebrates its 50th anniversary, and in 2024, breakdancing – officially named ‘breaking’ – will be at the Olympics for the first time at the Summer Games in Paris. To mark this moment, Bboy Bobak Champion is brought Birmingham-based Muslim young men together to develop their breaking skills and showcase their skills. Salaam ‘O’…
As part of the University of Birmingham’s Culture Forward initiative, Soul City Arts created an installation entitled ‘NOMAD’ for Festival ’23. The event took place on Thursday 3rd August 2023 from 11-4pm at the Exchange Building in Birmingham, Artistic Director Mohammed Ali brought a specially made ‘nomadic reflection booth’ for the public to step inside…
Thousands turn out for #EidinKingsHeath ‘Eid in Kings Heath’ was an unprecedented celebration event for everyone of all faiths and backgrounds. Thousands joined throughout the day to join in with the Islamic festival of Eid that took place at All Saints Square on Sunday 2nd July 2023 between 12pm-6pm. Neighbours and residents gathered to experienced…
On Tuesday 30 May 2023 on Hwyl Stage at the Hay Festival performers and directors from two ground-breaking acclaimed productions, Peaceophobia and Waswasa – which explore faith, systemic racism and the lived experience of young Muslim men in Bradford and Birmingham – discussed why the arts are so secular and if audiences are scared of…
Millions of Muslims around the world begin fasting as the holy month of Ramadan starts. During this time, the spirit of community and togetherness is at the core of every Iftar, the opening of the fast, bringing blessings. In this spirit, Soul City Arts invited people from all communities whether they fast or not, to…
Our show Waswasa was drawn to a close in September to packed audiences at the Birmingham Hippodrome. We are now inviting you to join us in the new home of Soul City Arts – a 4000 square-foot warehouse space in the heart of Sparkbrook, Birmingham.We are hosting a special Waswasa Reflection & Sharing event on…