Chris Anderson

Byron C. Anderson or Chris is a songwriter/producer, DJ, MC, drummer, and videographer who has toured internationally for more than 10 years. He has performed and/or recorded with Erykah Badu, R Kelly, Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Gorillaz, Mos Def, members of Wu Tang Clan, and other A-list artists. His recent work includes leading Global Heat band in 25 shows at schools and youth centers throughout the Reno, Nevada region, sponsored by Pioneer Center for the Performing Arts; features on Seattle’s King 5 Morning News (NBC), ITV DJ Sessions, MTV 2, VH1 and other TV shows; and two upcoming CD releases of his original music with Triple-Platinum Producer Richard Garcia of PMG. Chris is currently on iTunes with Buttonpushers flagship song “Top of the World.” While Chris’s songs cover a wide range of topics, his songs “Puppets” and “Streets” are particularly relevant to this proposed project’s underlying theme of economic and social struggle.

Chris received 2017 GAP Award funding for One Hour to Man Up, a multimedia performance piece addressing socio-economic issues woven around his life story growing up in a rough neighborhood of Chicago. The piece will have original songs supported by a live Jazz/Soul/HipHop trio and theatrical interludes where he interacts with backdrop projection video. The performance opens with a video backdrop projection of a collage of video and still images highlighting urban black populations, with older (1970s) to present-day economic and social circumstances. The backdrop projection will als obe used to create the feeling for each scene or theatrical interlude in relationship to the lyrics of the song. The award will also fund a touring show and educational outreach program, particularly relevant to the proposed project’s underlying theme of economic and social struggle.