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What reinvigorated them was a newfound spirituality centered on Daoism and the continuation of their community work. Those dual sparks fanned the creation of Vibrate D.C., an event meant to simultaneously serve as a fundraiser, concert and visual art haven.
“Music is a universal way of communicating with each other, relating with each other,” says Algios, who performs under the DJ name Jett. “So I thought, ‘What if we have multiple spaces that celebrate healing and spirituality, that it doesn’t just have to be in a confined place? It can be everywhere, us all vibrating together.’”
Last year marked the pilot of the fundraiser, which raised money to support the LGBTQ+ community in Ukraine. But the small event at 618 Cocktail and Whiskey Lounge’s tight space was just the blueprint.
This year, Vibrate, which is being co-hosted by the Daoist organization Daesoon Foundation, will be held at the Owl Room, which opened on 14th Street in March. The venue is operated by the former managers of U Street Music Hall, with the same commitment as the defunct club to the prosperity of the underground scene. “We’ve been waiting for a space like this for so long,” Algios says. “It genuinely understands and respects the culture.”
BRAWS (Bringing Resources to Aid Women’s Shelters), the beneficiary of this spin, is an organization that provides resources to women and children in crisis. Joo Lee, a Vibrate partner alongside Algios, says choosing a new cause each year provides the flexibility to adapt to issues worth highlighting as they come.
Algios opens the evening, followed, among others, by Bernard Farley (B_X_R_N_X_R_D), founder of Black Techno Matters, and Mary Yuzovskaya, a Berlin-based DJ who will spin a three-hour set of entirely vinyl records. Joo Lee provides live finger painting, which she says is a deviation from her traditional artwork to a more abstract and emotional form.
“As an Asian American, emotions are often denied in a way,” she says. “And so the work that’s coming out is part of the series that I’m doing that is about expression of emotion … like hope, rage, joy, anger.”
At the end of the night, the art she creates will be auctioned to benefit BRAWS, as will a portion of the profits. The Vibrate founders are also collecting new undergarments for donation.
“We’re at the margin,” Lee says. “But we’re using the margin as a safe space, and a place where we can celebrate, but also a place of empowerment, because we feel we don’t have control sometimes. We’re trying to create a space that welcomes everyone — in an act of resistance, but radical resistance through joy and celebration.”
May 5 at 9 p.m. at Owl Room, 2007 14th St NW. $24-$25.
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