This weekend is Memorial Day weekend, which typically serves as the kickoff to summer with barbecues, parties, and more. However...you know what’s up this time around. If you don’t have any plans to keep yourself occupied this particular weekend, social media is chock full of entertainment at your fingertips, and The Root is here with options. Not only do these virtual events cover the entertainment aspect we need, but many of them are philanthropic, as well.
Check out a few events happening this weekend if you’re looking for a little something to do. Also, make sure to take a walk!
May 21
Charity
- Patti LaBelle, Questlove, DJ Jazzy Jeff and more will perform during a charity concert to benefit Philadelphia’s PHL COVID-19 Fund. According to Philly Voice, the fund has raised over $16 million already “and assisted nearly 400 nonprofits working on the front lines” of the pandemic; it’s primarily focusing on aiding senior citizens, low-income residents who don’t have healthcare, the disabled, and those who are experiencing homelessness.
The event, which begins at 7 p.m. ET, airs on local ABC, NBC and CBS affiliates. It will also be streamed at Inquirer.com and Radio.com.
Music
- Hawaiian multi-instrumentalist soul musician Ron Artis II will perform during Pickathon’s Concert a Day, a partnership with The Recording Academy’s MusiCARES Foundation. Concert a Day aims to bring together music lovers in order to “bring hope, foster community, and encourage mental health.”
The concert begins at 4 p.m. ET, and will stream on YouTube, Twitch, and Facebook.
MAY 22
Dance
- The New York City Ballet will be airing a performance of Christopher Wheeldon’s Liturgy and Carousel (A Dance) at 8 p.m. ET on their website. From April 21 to May 29, the legendary dance company is presenting two ballets a week “along with a full slate of other online programming, including new podcast episodes and live-streamed movement classes for all ages, to coincide with the dates of our now-canceled Spring 2020 performances at Lincoln Center.”
MAY 23
Music
- Jamaicans, stand up! Beenie Man and Bounty Killer were announced as the next battle in the Verzuz series, which will take place at 8 p.m. ET on Instagram Live. Nothing says summer quite like a bashment, so this will hopefully be a great event with some great music.
- Washington State arts organizations Wa Na Wari and LANGSTON will highlight a hidden gem on the hip-hop scene—Seattle. 2(06) The Break will honor local hip-hop from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. PST. The weekly event kicked off on May 16, and it will run through June 27.
“Each week, Jazmyn Scott, a Seattle hip-hop supporter and co-curator of the 2015 Legacy of Seattle Hip-Hop exhibit at MOHAI, will pair two Pacific Northwest hip-hop DJs to collaboratively program and record a set composed exclusively of songs by local hip-hop artists of a specific era, from the 1980s to the present,” writes the South Seattle Emerald.