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Solemn Brigham of hip-hop duo Marlowe will perform in Madison on Jan. 30 as part of Black Box Sessions series

Posted: 01/23/25

Solemn Brigham of hip-hop duo Marlowe will perform in Madison on Jan. 30 as part of Black Box Sessions series

Solemn Brigham, rap prodigy and half of the acclaimed hip-hop duo Marlowe, will perform selections from Marlowe’s albums in Madison, Wis., on Jan. 30 at 8 p.m. at the Play Circle Theater as part of the Wisconsin Union Theater’s (WUT’s) Black Box Sessions

Created in 2017, Marlowe arose from a more than 15-year friendship between Brigham and producer L’Orange. They first worked together during childhood as part of a group known as Lost Artists. Years later, Brigham was featured on L’Orange’s album “The Ordinary Man,” which ultimately inspired the creation of Marlowe. 

Marlowe’s first two albums, “Marlowe” and “Marlowe 2” received multiple Album of the Year awards from BBC6, Yahoo! Entertainment and Amoeba Music and earned the title of #1 hip-hop album in the U.K. on iTunes. In addition, Marlowe was featured in Gatorade’s Olympic campaign in 2021 and video games like NBA 2K22, Saints Row and Fortnite. 

Building off of the first album, “Marlowe,” Brigham found more involvement in production and style in the duo’s second album, “Marlowe 2.” In an interview with PopMatters, Brigham discussed the themes of identity status and redemption when asked about the creation of “Marlowe 2.” 

The album focuses on the inner reflection of the two artists and combines a broad range of emotions with jazz and gospel. Brigham said he wanted to dive further into who he is and speak on how people may be seen versus who they are. 

“Marlowe’s music exemplifies what this year’s Black Box Sessions is about: celebrating the history of hip-hop and embracing the boundary pushing innovation happening now in the genre,” said Kate Schwartz, Black Box Sessions curator, Wisconsin Union Directorate Performing Arts Committee programming advisor, and WUT artist services manager.

Through the Black Box Sessions, the WUT team hopes that audiences and artists alike will experience a strong sense of simultaneous nostalgia and novelty. The team designed the series as club-style concerts that occur in WUT’s black box theater, the Play Circle. 

Tickets to all WUT performances are available online, in person at the Memorial Union Box Office or by phone at (608) 265-2787. Additional Black Box Sessions events include Smif-N-Wessun on Feb. 13, 2025, and Blackway on March 6, 2025.

WUT has a more than 80-year history of bringing what’s next now in performing arts to stages in Madison through student-led collaborative artistic direction.

Patrons can visit union.wisc.edu/theater for information about the full 2024-2025 season lineup and to purchase tickets to WUT events, such as the performance by Marlowe’s Solemn Brigham on Jan. 30.

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