June 24-25, 2024 CANCELED
Dear FFRF Member,
For many reasons, including a too-low reservation response, we are regretfully having to cancel the Godless Gospel performances slated for June 24 and June 25.
The Godless Gospel Concert will be opened by comedian Leighann Lord.
Leighann Lord:
Stand-up comedian and author Leighann Lord was the New York City face of the African Americans for Humanism outreach campaign sponsored by the Center for Inquiry and it’s Millions Living Happily Without Religion campaign. Author Chris Johnson featured her in The Atheist Book: A Better Life. Leighann is a former co-host of the Emmy-nominated StarTalk with Neil de Grasse Tyson.
She has shared her comedic and hosting talents at many secular conferences including American Atheists, American Humanists, Center for Inquiry, CSICon, DragonCon’s Science and Skeptical Tracks, The PA Freethought Society, NECSS: The Northeast Conference on Science & Skepticism, PASHTACon, The Freedom From Religion Foundation, and Skepticon. Leighann was honored with the 2019 Humanist Arts Award from the American Humanist Association and most recently, the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award.
As a veteran standup comedian, Leighann has been seen on:Lifetime, VH-1, Comedy Central, Netflix, DryBar Comedy, HBO, and Showtime. She is the author of Leighann Lord’s Dict Jokes: Alternate Definitions for Words You’ve Probably Never Heard of But Will Definitely Never Forget (Volumes 1 and 2) and Real Women Do It Standing Up: Stories From the Career of a Very Funny Lady.
Leighann is the creator of the People with Parents Podcast where she shares stories about the role reversal between her and her aging parents. The Wall Street Journal called it one of the “10 Podcasts for Older Adults That Promise to Entertain—and Enlighten.” She has recently published, People with Parents: The Podcast Transcripts.
Dan Barker
FFRF Co-President Dan Barker, besides doing a little entertaining at the piano, will speak on his brand new book, “Contraduction: The Death of the Design Argument.” After 140 debates for FFRF, Dan proposes a new way of looking at assumptions behind “fine-tuning” arguments for the existence of God. He’s the author of other books, including “
God: The Most Unpleasant Character in All Fiction”, “
Godless”, “
Life Driven Purpose”, “
The Good Atheist”, “
Just Pretend: A Book for Young Freethinkers”, “
Losing Faith in Faith: From Preacher to Atheist”, and “
Free Will Explained”.
Godless Gospel
An encore of the acclaimed debut of Godless Gospel will take place on Friday night, Oct. 13. FFRF Co-President and musician Dan Barker is executive producer and Andre Forbes, a former gospel producer, is artistic director. Songs are by Andre and Dan. The first rehearsal and demo tape was recorded in February 2022.
Vocalists include (in alphabetical order):
Tahira Clayton, a well-known New York City jazz singer who has her roots in gospel
Candace Gorham, author of The Ebony Exodus Project
Heather Kinley, a country artist and member of duo The Kinleys
Cynthia McDonald, an activist with Freedmen of Chicago
DeAngela Morant, a business woman
Steven Phelps with the Nashville Sunday Assembly
Mandisa Thomas, president and founder of Black Nonbelievers
Instrumentalists include (in alphabetical order):
Aaron Hill, Organ/Keyboard
Amos Perry on Bass
Charles Wilson, Drummer
Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime chance to witness Godless Gospel off-Broadway. Register for Monday’s performance here, or Tuesday’s performance here.
FFRF warmly thanks FFRF Member Eric Krebs, longtime off-Broadway and Broadway producer, for his generous offer to use the theater space. The suggested donation will help offset some of the costs related to expenses for musicians, equipment rental, flights and accommodations, and help FFRF keep taking Godless Gospel on the road. Look for future news on the Godless Gospel album release!
