LIVE MUSIC, Book Reading with Dr. KnuckleHead and Kevin Goins: SOUL FUNK

Join us on October 9th for a special event! Award-winning civil rights lawyer, musician, and activist Amir "Dr. KnuckleHead" Whitaker will be in Durham to return to his Carolina roots. The event also features Funk and soul legend Kevin Goins who will share special performances. Join us for FREE!

Amir will share stories from his journey as a civil rights lawyer and artist. He will be reading from his autobiography (The KnuckleHead's Guide to Escaping the Trap) which discusses his Carolina roots and grandparent's migration experience. He'll also share his music that features Gullah Geechee rhythms and chants from the Carolinas.

THE MUSIC: Dr. KnuckleHead's upcoming album (Sonic Sorcery x Liberation) is a journey of resilience, self-emancipation, and spiritual awakening. With poetic lyrics, infectious grooves, and soul-stirring melodies, Dr. KnuckleHead’s music resonates deeply and inspires change. Featuring an eclectic group of musicians on piano, violin, banjo, drums, bass, trombone, saxophone, and West African instruments, the album brings a rich tapestry that pushes boundaries. The songs reflect his experiences with joy, struggle, incarceration, deportation, healing, grief, travel, and spiritual evolution.

BOOK: The debut hardcover of Amir’s autobiography is here! A new paperback edition will also include lyrics from his new music project. The book shares Amir’s transformative journey through challenges that molded him into an agent of change: rebounding from incarceration and expulsion, earning five college degrees over 12 years, and traveling to 30 countries before his 30th birthday. It offers an intimate glimpse into the mind and soul of Dr. KnuckleHead, with lyrics and bonus material included.

Learn more at www.drknucklehead.com

ADDRESS: Durham Main Library (Conference Room #3214)

300 N. Roxboro St Durham, NC 27701

KEVIN GOINS is a legendary Funk and Gospel musician hailing from Plainfield, New Jersey. He is best known as the founder of the band Quazar, a pivotal force in the P-Funk movement. Emerging in the 1970s alongside his brother, Glen Goins, and drummer Jerome “Bigfoot” Brailey of Parliament-Funkadelic, Quazar became renowned for their powerful fusion of funk, jazz-funk, and rock. Over the decades, Kevin Goins continued to shape the funk and soul music scene, collaborating with iconic artists such as Bernie Worrell, Bobby Womack, and Bootsy Collins. His musical journey expanded internationally with his UK-based band, P Theory, and he plays with Watermelon Funk in NJ.

DR. KNUCKLEHEAD is a multi-faceted artist and human rights lawyer blending music, activism, and healing traditions. As a composer and hip-hop soul guitarist, he channels his experiences into a genre-defying sound he calls “Sonic Sorcery.” His artistry, rooted in the ancient traditions of griots and conjurers, uses words and music to rally listeners toward liberation. FULL BIO: Amir is an educator, author, human rights lawyer, and artist. He is the founder and director of Project KnuckleHead, a nonprofit organization empowering youth through music, art, and educational programs since 2012. Often referred to as “Dr. KnuckleHead,” Amir was introduced to the criminal justice system as a child when he visited both his mother and father in Pr*son. At age 15, Amir himself was arrested and entered the juvenile justice system. Problems at school eventually led to him being expelled. Despite these hardships, Amir went on to complete five college degrees. As a lawyer referred to as a “civil rights and education stalwart” by the Daytona Times, Amir has negotiated settlements and policy changes that have improved the lives of youth across the country. Amir is currently a senior policy attorney with the ACLU of Southern California. He has taught varying grade levels and in different educational settings for over a decade, and has held teaching certifications in Florida, California, and New Jersey. He has written for publications like TIME Magazine and Washington Post. Amir's autobiography, “The KnuckleHead’s Guide to Escaping the Trap” has been featured on and in. As an artist, Amir has collaborated with musicians around the world while studying and teaching styles of music and dance of the Afro diaspora. His art has been displayed in galleries, libraries, and billboards around the world. He received his doctorate in Educational Psychology from the University of Southern California, juris doctorate from the University of Miami, and his bachelors from Rutgers University.

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