AFROPOP SPECTACULAR Cal Performances offers a double bill of African electropop on Friday night at Zellerbach Hall. Vocalist Alsarah, born in Sudan, combines classic East African pop with electronics, the Middle Eastern oud, percussion and her own vocal harmonies with her group, the Nubatones. “She has the makings of an Afropop queen,” writes PopMatters. Singer, songwriter and guitarist Natu Camara has been dubbed “the Tina Turner of Guinea,” and led West Africa’s first all-female hip-hop group, The Ideal Black Girls, in the 1990s. Friday, Nov. 8, 8 p.m., Zellerbach Hall.
FAIR CHANCE HOUSING If you want to learn about Berkeley’s Fair Chance Housing ordinance, coming up to the City Council soon, pop into the panel discussion at the David Brower Center on Saturday afternoon. Advocates see the proposed ordinance as a way to prevent homelessness and tackle discrimination against previously incarcerated persons. Mayor Jesse Arreguín will be joined by Katie Dixon from All of Us or None, Krista Gulbransen from the Berkeley Rental Housing Coalition, Megan Abell from TechEquity, Margaretta Lin from Just Cities and a representative from UC Berkeley’s Underground Scholars. The panel will be moderated by Berkeleyside’s Lance Knobel and John Jones III from Just Cities. Saturday, Nov. 9, 12:30 p.m., David Brower Center, 2150 Allston Way.
JONI MITCHELL BIRTHDAY Ann Moss, an East Bay soprano whose work spans classical, jazz and experimental lines, has pulled together an intriguing group of local musicians to pay a birthday tribute to Joni Mitchell: “One of the greatest poet-composers of our time.” Pianist Matt Berkeley, guitarists Carrie Smith and Patrick Anseth, violinist Justin Ouellet and bassist Joe Kyle Jr. are among the players who are joining Moss at The Back Room on Sunday. Sunday, Nov. 10, 7:30 p.m., The Back Room, 1984 Bonita Ave.
EXQUISITE CORPSE I don’t know about you, but when I was younger, I got a huge kick out of exquisite corpse projects, where one person draws a head, another a torso, and another the lower body, etc. André Breton and his fellow surrealists were onto something. Berkeley children can try their own exquisite corpse projects on Saturday at the Berkeley Art Museum. Artist and teacher Erin McCluskey Wheeler will be leading two 90-minute workshops for children 6-12 to find inspiration in the museum’s Strange gallery and then work with them on their own exquisite corpse art project. Spaces are limited to 12 kids per session. Saturday, Nov. 9, 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m., BAMPFA, 2155 Center St.
EVENING IDEAS FEST OK, we’re liberally extending the weekend to next Thursday, but there are only a few tickets left for Berkeleyside’s own Evening Ideas Fest at the David Brower Center. The first of the series of four evenings features conversations with Rumman Chowdhury on how artificial intelligence is a new form of colonization and Anat Shenker-Osorio on how progressive ideas can be framed for political victories. It will be both mind-opening and fun. Thursday, Nov. 14, 7 p.m., David Brower Center, 2150 Allston Way.
Don’t miss these other events covered on Berkeleyside:
A prayer from Yemen Blues at Freight & Salvage
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘Collisions’
