Meet Angelica Hairston | Executive Director & Founder, Challenge the Stats

We had the good fortune of connecting with Angelica Hairston and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Angelica, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
As a young Black harpist in Atlanta, I remember the excitement of waking up early on Saturday mornings, to rush to Atlanta Symphony Hall for youth orchestra rehearsals, coachings and lessons. I would immerse myself in a world of music and art, but as I looked around, I rarely saw myself represented in the classical music communities that I loved so dearly.

Fast forward to 2016 and our country erupted in social unrest after the murder of Trayvon Martin. I remember sitting in a practice room with a burden to fight for justice with the tools that I knew best; the power of the arts. In that moment, Challenge the Stats was born; an organization that not only empowers Black, Indigenous, and Artists of Color, but uses music as a tool to fight for social justice.

Whether bringing classical music through live streams into hospitals for patients and frontline workers, or presenting events highlighting the disproportionate impact of the COVID 19 pandemic on communities of color, Challenge the Stats serves as a beacon of honesty and activism as we use the arts to push toward systemic change in our city, in our nation, and in our world.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Much of my work rests on the belief that artists have the tools to change the world. I find myself constantly inspired musically and personally through artistic collaborations where we see creatives serving as a beautiful model of society. Through collaborative arts, we can witness individuals working together toward a common goal, problem solving as a team, welcoming dissonance and discomfort, and ultimately bringing the most vulnerable parts of themselves to the table for the sake of a greater good. That’s powerful stuff!

In leading Challenge the Stats, I’m most proud of the way we’re creating new spaces for this kind of creativity, community, and advocacy for BIPOC. Whether it’s through our concert series or sparking imagination of young people through our educational engagements, our highest priority is to empower a generation of classical musicians of color to ignite social change in Atlanta and across the nation.

The statistics and realities are daunting as we face the racial inequality that too often defines classical music spaces. Professional orchestras remain among the least diverse institutions in America, including musicians, administrators, and staff. A 2016 study commissioned by the League of American Orchestras found that only 4.2% of US orchestral musicians and only 8.3% of US orchestral staff are Black or Latinx. While orchestras are just a snapshot of our field at large, this lack of equity is mirrored throughout the classical performing arts ecosystem. In addition to the on-stage challenges, the structural racism faced by communities of color at large also halts progress, creativity, and limits access to critical resources.

It’s been thrilling to lead Challenge the Stats as we create new structures that center around social justice through the arts, empowers BIPOC artists across the nation, and serve communities with authenticity and equity. To date, CTS has impacted the lives of over 2,000 students and 250 musicians of color across the nation through concerts, workshops, and other programs presented in partnerships with First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta, NPR’s From the Top, Morehouse and Spelman Colleges, the Atlanta Symphony, and the Sphinx Organization at venues from the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta to the John D. O’Bryant African American Institute in Boston. And there’s so much more ahead!

We’re excited about our next collaboration on October 23rd at 6pm at East Point City Hall. The event, “Art In Motion,” draws inspiration from African sculptures and paintings, featuring an unforgettable artistic collaboration with music from Okorie “OkCello” Johnson, dance by Ballethnic Dance Company, and live visual art by Ashley Bella Daramola of ArtzyBella.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
When I’m not practicing, you can definitely find me out with friends on a hike at East Palisades Trail or co-working at Black-owned coffee shops. Shoutout to two of my favs: Hodgepodge and Gilly Brew Bar!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
While I’m grateful to be facilitating this work as an Executive Director, much of the credit really goes to the artists themselves and my extraordinary Challenge the Stats administrative team and board.

One of the most beautiful things I’ve seen emerge from the work of Challenge the Stats is a very special community of support where artists can show up as their full selves – a reality that many BIPOC artists don’t often get to experience in this field. Challenge the Stats artists consistently step on stage as “the first” or “the only” BIPOC in countless classical music settings. While the nature of trailblazing can sound exciting, it’s also an incredibly isolating, vulnerable, and often exhausting experience.

When a group of artists who’ve all felt the tinge of being “the only” finally have a moment where they are joined onstage by fellow artists of color; it’s a deeply healing environment. I think that’s what makes our ability to advocate together that much stronger – being a part of a family where there’s a shared basis of community and belonging. This freedom allows for artists to show up fully as themselves and take the stage with a layer of honesty that isn’t always afforded in our field.

Website: https://angelicahairston.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angelharpist/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/angelharpist

Other: https://challengethestats.org/

Image Credits
Alex D. Rodgers, Kevin Parker (Cre8tiv Images),