Pocallum — Funk

Nou Barris meets New Orleans

Sat, 17 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Every spring, the Ateneu Popular 9 Barris builds an imaginary bridge between Nou Barris and New Orleans. Not a tourist postcard — a recognition that both cities share something fundamental: music as a tool for social cohesion in neighbourhoods that need it.

The formula is simple and effective: a second line through the district streets, a brass band that brings people out onto their balconies, DJ sets with a soundsystem, Creole food, and a closing concert. All in one day, for everyone.

9b in Black

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000

9b in Black was Nou Barris’ black music festival. Three editions that brought blues, soul, funk, hip-hop and breakdance together in one space — a celebration of a musical culture with no single origin and no single colour.

The first edition, in February 2011, coincided with the centenary of Robert Johnson’s birth — one of the most legendary blues guitarists in history. It was no minor coincidence: 9b in Black wanted black music to feel not like a foreign genre but like a shared root.