Lalah Hathaway's "Made In Chicago" Album Release Party
About this Event
We invite you to join us at The Land School on October 1, from 7 PM to 9 PM, for a special program as we welcome the Lalah Hathaway, Daughter of Soul, back to The Land School to celebrate the release of her newest album, Made in Chicago.
Born in Chicago and returning to the city where she first learned to be a musician, Hathaway honors this release on the South Side with a deeply personal reflection on home, nostalgia, family, and the musical memories and rich lineage that continue to inform her work.
The evening will open with collective listening to selections from the album, followed by a conversation with Rebuild’s founder, Theaster Gates, on music, place, and the Chicago sounds that have carried through Hathaway’s life and artistic practice. The night will culminate in a dance party spun by Rebuild’s decade-long house music partner, Duane Powell.
Tickets are available for $30. We look forward to welcoming you.
About Made In Chicago
With her new album, Made in Chicago, Lalah Hathaway turns her gaze toward home.
Rooted in the city that shaped both her family and her musical identity, Made in Chicago is a deeply personal exploration of memory, place, family, and the sounds that live within us long after we leave home. The album reconnects Hathaway with Chicago not simply as a birthplace, but as a source — a city whose streets, neighborhoods, musicians, rhythms, and stories remain woven into the way she hears and creates music.
“Chicago is home," Hathaway explains. "It’s where my family is from. It’s where my father’s family is from. It’s where I was born. It’s where I learned how to be a musician.” For her, the city is not simply a setting or a point of origin, but “a feeling, a sound, a way of moving through the world.” Made in Chicago grows from that connection — from the memories, people, and musical language that continue to shape her.
Her connection to the city became the foundation for a deeply personal collection of songs about memory, family, loss, love, place, and the sounds that helped form Hathaway’s musical imagination. Rather than simply revisiting the past, Made in Chicago reimagines it — examining how childhood memories change as we carry them with us into adulthood.
The result is an illumination, a suite of nine songs with flavors and attitudes that stand apart from any of Lalah’s previous output. “I feel these songs live at the intersection of nostalgia and melancholy,” says Lalah. “I will forever be processing the loss I suffered as a child when, in the winter of 1979, my father died at age 33. That pain is permanent. And so is the imprint his music has on mine. But MADE IN CHICAGO is not a ‘daddy album.’ It’s much more about the joyful music I heard heading into my teens. I had always taken piano lessons, but at 13 when I started attending a performing arts school, everything changed. Just those two words—performing arts—had me thinking differently. The world opened up.
Across Made in Chicago, that spirit expands into something larger: an artist at the height of her powers returning to the foundations of who she is while continuing to move fearlessly forward. “This record is about looking back without getting stuck,” Hathaway says. “It’s about honoring where I come from and understanding that it is still part of me, wherever I go.”
About Lalah Hathaway
Lalah Hathaway is a singer, songwriter, producer, and musician of extraordinary depth, her rich and unmistakable voice moves effortlessly between R&B, soul, jazz, funk, and gospel. Occupying a lane entirely her own, the five-time GRAMMY Award winner has spent her career expanding the possibilities of modern soul.
Born into one of American music’s most influential families as the daughter of legendary singer and songwriter Donny Hathaway, she inherited an extraordinary musical legacy but quickly established a voice, sound, and career unmistakably her own. While studying at Berklee College of Music, Hathaway signed her first recording contract, releasing her self-titled debut album in 1990. Its breakout single, “Heaven Knows,” introduced audiences to the remarkable depth, warmth, and emotional precision that would become hallmarks of her work.
In the years since, Hathaway has built a body of work that places her among the defining vocalists of her generation. Her acclaimed albums have moved comfortably between contemporary R&B, jazz, soul, and more adventurous musical territory, while her instinctive musicianship has made her an equally compelling collaborator. She has worked with a remarkable range of artists including Stevie Wonder, Prince, Herbie Hancock, Kendrick Lamar, Pharrell Williams, Robert Glasper, Anderson .Paak, Mary J. Blige, Snarky Puppy, and many others.
It is the work of an artist who understands where she comes from without being confined by it: daughter and innovator, historian and futurist, vocalist and musician, interpreter and songwriter. More than three decades into her career, Lalah Hathaway remains one of contemporary music’s most compelling voices — carrying the tradition of soul forward not by preserving it in place, but by continually discovering what else it can become.
About The Land School
The Land School, a new pedagogical platform at the site of the former St. Laurence Elementary School, proposes a radical model of artistic experimentation and archival stewardship, providing space, time, access, collaborative inquiry, process-driven programming, and performance, all led by an intergenerational cohort of artists, archivists, scholars, craftspeople, cultural workers, and creative organizations invested in culture as a service.
The Land School's Policies and Protocol:
Upon arrival, please enter the building at the entrance on S. Dorchester Ave.
Ride sharing is encouraged as parking is limited. Please be sure to not block the entrances and exits of our neighbors.
Firearms on the premises are strictly prohibited.
No smoking, vaping or incense is permitted inside.
No pets are allowed inside.
No professional photo/video equipment is allowed unless preapproved by Rebuild.
Please be mindful of your neighbors by respecting their personal space and bodily autonomy.
No violence - verbal or physical - will be tolerated. Any guest creating an unsafe environment will be removed from the premises immediately, at the discretion of the Rebuild staff.
We take the safety of our guests seriously. If any guest is found violating these protocols, they may be escorted off the property immediately and will not be welcome to return.
Notice of Photography and Videography
By entering The Land School, you acknowledge and consent to being photographed and/or videotaped. Images and recordings may be used for promotional, archival, or other purposes by the organizers. If you do not wish to be photographed or recorded, please notify a staff member upon arrival. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.
Thank you for reviewing and honoring The Land School's policies and protocol.
We look forward to welcoming you!
Agenda
🕑: 07:30 PM - 08:30 PM
"Made In Chicago" Listening & Conversation: Lalah Hathaway and Theaster Gates
🕑: 08:30 PM - 09:30 PM
Dance Party with DJ Duane Powell
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 30.00
