OkCello

Schedule

Wed, 05 Nov, 2025 at 07:30 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

The Moon | Tallahassee, FL

Advertisement
Ticket on Sale Dates:
Sponsors and Members - July 14 - August 5
General Public On Sale - August 7
_____________________________
“Hereness is the first of all sacred things.” – OkCello
Okorie “OkCello” Johnson is an American cellist-songwriter whose artistry integrates cello performance, live-sound-looping, improvisation, and storytelling – all culminating in original compositions that collide classical with jazz, EDM, reggae, and funk.
His music is inspired by the exploration of African Diasporic melodies and narratives and their intersection with people’s perceptions and assumptions about the classical and european nature of the cello. As well, his work with improvisation attempts to embody the phenomenon of wordless prayer.
In 2021, Okorie OkCello Johnson was selected to be one of the presenters at the Democratic Republic of the Congo Biennale (Scheduled for September 2022) for his proposal of a sound installation project entitled “Vessel of Breath,” a meditative cello composition comprised of harvested sound, collaborative compositions, and community interviews. In addition, he was selected to participate in the Kennedy Center’s artist residence program entitled Office Hours (scheduled for March 2022), in which he will begin workshopping the process for the sound installation project above. 2021 also saw his inclusion in the InStyle February issue, which identified him as a member of the “Creative Class Making Atlanta the New Epicenter of American Arts.” He was also identified in Atlanta Magazine’s “Atlanta Rising Creative Class [that] Is Gaining New Recognition on the National Scene.” Finally, a documentary he scored for the Atlanta Journal Constitution, “Imperfect Alibi” won a regional Emmy, he released his third studio project Beacon in September of 2021, and in December, he released a holiday album entitled, An OkChristmas.
In 2020 Okorie was commissioned by Flux Projects to create improvisational work entitled “Stir Crazy” directly responding to the isolation that stemmed from the COVID19 quarantines. He then collaborated with visual artist Fahamu Pecou and poet Jon Goode to create a performance art piece entitled HUE+MEN that, in response to the murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor, asserted through sound, imagery, and poetry the sanctity and power of Black humanity. He also went on to be selected by Emory University to participate in its inaugural Arts and Social Justice Fellowship program, created by the Emory Center for Ethics. In that program, he and 5 other Atlanta artists were commissioned to create in collaboration with Emory professors and their classes pieces of art that spoke to the racial reckoning that the US experienced that summer.
In 2019, he had the honor of performing at SXSW for Choose ATL and the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau, performing at the Oak Hill Stage of the Atlanta Jazz Festival, opening for Grammy award winning artist Van Hunt, being a featured artist on the Story2019 festival at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville, opening for Grammy award winning recording artist Maxwell at the Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park, and being invited to perform in Havana, Cuba at the classical music festival Habana Classica, which coincided with the 500th birthday of that capital city.
He is a recipient of the Alliance Theatre’s 2018 Reiser Atlanta Artists Lab grant, and a 2018 Creative Loafing Readers’ Choice winner for Best Local Jazz Act. His sophomore album Resolve was named one of ArtsATL’s top local albums of 2018.
Furthermore, over his career, Okorie has had the opportunity to perform and/or record with India.Arie, De La Soul, and Big Boi of OutKast, amongst many others.
Okorie describes his circuitous route to this unusual solo cello career in the following quote: “After years of putting my cello down and picking it back up, after years of deciding that the cello wasn’t financially practical, after years of thinking that my other voices were my native ones, I realized that the cello was the oldest, the most central and the most sacred part of me. I resolved never, ever, to deny it again.”
Advertisement

Where is it happening?

The Moon, Tallahassee, Florida, United States

Event Location & Nearby Stays:

Opening Nights at Florida State University

Host or Publisher Opening Nights at Florida State University

It's more fun with friends. Share with friends

Discover More Events in Tallahassee

Housewright Virtuoso Series: Choral Festival with Andrea Ramsey
Wed, 05 Nov at 06:00 pm Housewright Virtuoso Series: Choral Festival with Andrea Ramsey

Ruby Diamond Concert Hall.

FESTIVALS MUSIC
Ninth Annual Women's Leadership Breakfast
Thu, 06 Nov at 08:30 am Ninth Annual Women's Leadership Breakfast

Donald L. Tucker Civic Center

Georgia Southern Eagles at Florida State Seminoles Womens Basketball
Thu, 06 Nov at 08:30 am Georgia Southern Eagles at Florida State Seminoles Womens Basketball

Donald L. Tucker Civic Center

CONTESTS TRIPS-ADVENTURES
Parking Georgia Southern Eagles at Florida State Seminoles Womens Basketball
Thu, 06 Nov at 08:30 am Parking Georgia Southern Eagles at Florida State Seminoles Womens Basketball

Donald L. Tucker Civic Center

TRIPS-ADVENTURES
Sunshine Macarons Pop-Up at Cheers & Cheer Merry Market
Thu, 06 Nov at 05:00 pm Sunshine Macarons Pop-Up at Cheers & Cheer Merry Market

The HUB at Feather Oaks, 6500 Miccosukee Rd, Tallahassee, FL 32309, United States

POP-UPS SHOPPING
Energy Ball 2025!
Thu, 06 Nov at 06:00 pm Energy Ball 2025!

Goodwood Museum And Gardens

MUSIC LIVE-MUSIC
Boots for Babies 2025
Thu, 06 Nov at 06:00 pm Boots for Babies 2025

Shiloh Farm Church & Barn

MUSIC NONPROFIT
Sun, 26 Jan at 04:00 pm Tallahassee Block Party: Food, Fun, and Community with Zion City Church!

4409 Blountstown Hwy

ENTERTAINMENT PARTIES
FAMU's Parents and Family Weekend Fall 2025
Fri, 26 Sep at 10:00 am FAMU's Parents and Family Weekend Fall 2025

H. Manning Efferson Student Union, FAMU

ENTERTAINMENT PERFORMANCES
Poetry Night
Tue, 30 Sep at 06:30 pm Poetry Night

1240 Thomasville Road #102 Tallahassee FL

ART LITERARY-ART
Dean Gioia Artist Talk & Gallery Tour
Wed, 01 Oct at 05:30 pm Dean Gioia Artist Talk & Gallery Tour

Tallahassee State College

ART FINE-ARTS
Second Annual Chords for Charity
Thu, 02 Oct at 06:00 pm Second Annual Chords for Charity

The Moon Tallahassee

NONPROFIT CHARITIES
Crowder, Passion, Louie Giglio, Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes in Tallahassee
Thu, 02 Oct at 07:00 pm Crowder, Passion, Louie Giglio, Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes in Tallahassee

Donald L. Tucker Civic Center

CONCERTS MUSIC
Morgan Freeman's Symphonic Blues Experience
Thu, 02 Oct at 07:00 pm Morgan Freeman's Symphonic Blues Experience

Ruby Diamond Concert Hall

CONCERTS MUSIC
Crowder at Donald Tucker Center at Leon County Civic Center
Thu, 02 Oct at 07:00 pm Crowder at Donald Tucker Center at Leon County Civic Center

Donald Tucker Center at Leon County Civic Center

TRIPS-ADVENTURES
Open Mic Night
Thu, 02 Oct at 08:00 pm Open Mic Night

1122 Thomasville RD, Tallahassee, FL, United States, Florida 32303

OPEN-MIC MUSIC
Powerful Voices Open Mic Show - Live Music, Comedy, Poetry+ More!
Thu, 02 Oct at 08:00 pm Powerful Voices Open Mic Show - Live Music, Comedy, Poetry+ More!

Tallahassee

ART MUSIC
Crowder with Passion
Thu, 02 Oct at 11:00 pm Crowder with Passion

Donald L. Tucker Civic Center

TRIPS-ADVENTURES CALENDAR
Downtown GetDown
Fri, 03 Oct at 06:00 pm Downtown GetDown

Downtown Tallahassee, Tallahassee, Florida

MUSIC KIDS
Kingsmen in Tallahassee
Fri, 03 Oct at 07:00 pm Kingsmen in Tallahassee

Lighthouse Children's Home

ENTERTAINMENT CONCERTS

What's Happening Next in Tallahassee?

Discover Tallahassee Events