What is RISE?
Blessings Intelligent Souls, my name is Randell Adjei and I am the creator and founder of R.I.S.E Edutainment. RISE stands for Reaching Intelligent Souls Everywhere. What is now recognized as an arts and social consciousness movement, really started as an idea. The journey of RISE began two years ago on April 16th 2012 with the idea of bringing people together through the magic of the arts.
When RISE first started, I didn’t have any expectations of its longevity. I never had a long term plan. All I knew was all I had to do was put love into it. So I did. The first RISE Poetry show, there was a little over 20 people in a small community space inside Scarborough Town Centre. Every Monday, somehow, more people came to share their voice. As the weeks turned into months, the number of youth doubled. Yet, every single week the level of talent within our community continued to surprise me.
Four weeks into RISE, I met Anthony, an up and coming photographer. We connected instantly. Since we’ve met, he and I have worked closely to build RISE into a movement. We’ve worked together to build:
1) RISE Poetry Monday
RISE Poetry is the backbone of RISE Edutainment. Through RISE Poetry, we’ve helped provide a space for more than a thousand youth to creatively express themselves in a positive space and build innovative leaderships skills. At the end of every month, emerging artists get to interact and hear first-hand
from professional artist during RISE’S Alchemy, Benevolence and Culture panel
discussions. RISE Poetry is a place where people come knowing they will be accepted. Where people come to create and share, and most importantly, to love and be loved. The teachings of self-love and the deconstructing of the word ‘impossible’ allows artists to believe in their infinite potential.
2) Edutainment Convention
Last year, we worked on the first
annual Edutainment Convention which was a weekend filled with workshops at the
North York Civic Centre and performances at the Toronto Centre of the Arts. The
main purpose of the Edutainment Convention is to bridge the gap between
upcoming artists and professional artists. Most importantly, we aim to Edutain: educate others through entertainment.
3) 416RISE
416RISE is the anniversary celebration of RISE. The numerology of our start date happens to coincide with the area code of our city of Toronto. This year we had an arts enrichment panel with highly respected community leaders such as Giancarlo "Lo"Falcioni Dean of the business academy at The Remix Project, Dwayne Dixon Executive Director of Manifesto, Sabra Ripley City of Toronto Culture Arts Services Management Staff, Michael Prosserman Founder of Unity Charity and will be moderated by Amy Hosotsuji of GYC Toronto. And featured performances from international artivists, D’bi Young & Maestro Fresh Wes and local talents.
4) Artist Development and Workshops
Together we’ve gone to elementary schools and high schools to teach students how to dig deep within their hearts, build the courage to translate their feelings on paper, and confidently share it with their peers and others.
What is YEMOYA?
YEMOYA is a three week international artist residency, developed by D’bi that combines trans-disciplinary arts training with wellness practices for the (w)holistic development of people. Founded in summer 2008 in Toronto Canada, YEMOYA’s intensive twenty-one day program focuses on the creative, physical, mental, emotional and spiritual growth and development of its resident artists, using the Sorplusi Method. YEMOYA alumni include international artists such as Ngozi Paul, Kemba King, Titilope Sonuga, Jamilah Malika, Ria Hartley, Che Kothari, Bahia Watson, Mriga Kapadiya, LInda Kaoma, Amanda Parris, Adiyana Morris, Liza Paul, Julene Robinson, Raphael Cohen, Lishai Peel, Colanthony Humphreys, Kalmplex, Erin Bosenberg, Webster McDonald and Geordie Gescha. Residencies have been hosted in Canada, England, South Africa, Belize, Jamaica and The Bahamas.
Why is it important for us to attend this residency program?
Our art is our passion. We live through it. Now, we strongly desire to grow as individuals, as artists, and most importantly artivists. We want to be able to influence, inspire and uplift the world through the power of our art. YEMOYA will help us develop our artistic skills so that we can not only sustain ourselves as full time artist, but also stretch our influence beyond the city of Toronto. We want to inspire as many intelligent souls as possible. We’re thinking big… to prove that there is no such thing as “I can’t”.
What We Need & What You Get
The fact of the matter is that both Anthony and myself don't have the funds to cover the flight and the residency program itself.
Therefore All funds raised will go towards the following:
1. Our return flight to Hawaii! 2. The residency program! 3. Food!
In return for the generous people who can afford to support us, we are offering Original signed prints from the world renowned photographer Che Kothari. One on one workshops with the founder of the YEMOYA program and the award winning international dub poet D'bi Young. We are also offering one on one workshops with Lishai Peel and myself. Lastly you can get your own personal shoot with Anthony if you're in need of some photos!
Can't Help Financially? Other Ways to Support
We totally understand that not everyone is in a financial position to help in the way that they would like to. So, we ask instead to share our campaign and let people know about the change we will make through art and love. We extend our hearts with gratitude and appreciation for your time and support! We love all of you, intelligent souls.
Blessings from Randell and Anthony
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“The best way to find your self is to
lose yourself in the service of others”.
