On April 10, 2002, our journey began...

We opened our doors as a lounge/performance venue and invited people in to party.

Philly was blowing up with so much talent!

And Your VibeMistress Stephanie Renée invited everyone in to be a part of the movement!

On Wednesday nights, it was THE GROOVE open mic jam session.

Where artists like rapper Flo Brown would come through to share a verse

And taragirl would sing soulfully

Thursdays were our loungey vibe night with SPIN CYCLE

Fridays were about the spoken word, as poets gathered for TESTIFY

Poets like Naila...

and BERNARD COLLINS

Saturdays were for a collaboration with Power 99FM's Tiffany Bacon and Rod Elam for a set they called INNER CITY LIVE

Up and coming artists like LIZZ FIELDS

ABBY DOBSON

Def Poetry Jam on Broadway artist BLACK ICE

CHINUA HAWK

MAYA AZUCENA

JAZMINE SULLIVAN

and a singer/songwriter named JOHN STEPHENS (before he became a LEGEND) graced the stage.

And on Sundays, it was all about hiphop sounds with XFAD (Cross Fade).

with DJ RAZOR RAMON as our resident cutmaster

There were special events like the DEMO workshop presented by ASCAP for aspiring songwriters and producers.

a gospel showcase featuring contemporary groups like JEHOVAH'S CHOSEN

a concert honoring notable Philadelphia horn players called BLOW

with proceeds benefiting the Grover Washington Jr. Foundation

trombonist JEFF BRADSHAW was also featured

Our SENSEI DJ competition, hosted by JaHipster

the judges

the hands of XOTIC D, our winner

Social networking with preferred adult beverage sponsors

and artists like RENEE NEUFVILLE (formerly of Zhané) as the featured entertainment

private concerts with experimental groups like BURNT SUGAR ARKESTRA

Listening parties for new CD releases like saxophonist MIKE PHILLIPS

And a super-exclusive private performance with ALICIA KEYS

We had a vocal, loyal clientele...

STEVE BOOTH took a lot of pictures to capture the moments

But a rift with the financial backers forced us to refocus our approach and goals.

We started mentoring teens and working with them on a documentary about the Philly arts scene

They learned about the artists and gave us some storyboard and logo ideas.

And out of their collaborations, the first draft of NO SUCH THING AS NEOSOUL was born!

We screened the rough cut locally, got great feedback, and retooled it.

Added more behind-the-scenes footage and performances

Even caught Jill Scott doing a poetry-only benefit show

Then submitted it to the Denver Pan-African Film Festival and got accepted!

(even met DON CHEADLE while we were there)

Branched out to more community programs like re-igniting the 12th HOUSE WRITER COLLECTIVE

started an a cappella ensemble called VOICE and had several public performances

Started interviewing artists like WILL DOWNING about their process and side projects

LINA

RAHSAAN PATTERSON

FRANK MCCOMB

VAN HUNT

LALAH HATHAWAY

and ERIC ROBERSON

We started a show, SOUL SANCTUARY RADIO, on WQHS. That evolved into a podcast.

and additional shows on Jazz Syndicate Radio UK

and ProjectVibe

With our finished film, we got invited to shoot other artist projects...

like JHELISA ANDERSON'S tribute to Nina Simone at the first New Orleans Jazz Festival after Hurricane Katrina

And we screened other people's projects too

Went to Miami during American Black Film Festival to show our doc and network with other indie artists

Captured local concerts like jazzman JOSHUA REDMAN

and the reclusive MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO

Partnered with the historic CLEF CLUB for more GROOVE jam sessions

and ALL OF THAT was in just our first 5 years!

We're 24 years old now and counting. Imagine what else we can do from here?

We post the latest episode of I HEARD THAT directly to this page, ICYMI.

For this episode, Your VibeMistress Stephanie Renée and Shareese hosted a 3-hour telethon in honor of Soul Sanctuary’s 24th Anniversary. The first hour included live spoken word and portraiture from Bernard Collins, then they slid into the usual show format under the theme AND THE YEAR WAS…recalling hits that were big when Soul Sanctuary was born in 2002. Take a look at and listen to what they shared, and subscribe to the SoulSanctuaryInc YouTube channel so you don’t miss any upcoming shows. [Full audio (and video for this one) is available on our Mixcloud channel, and will be in rotation on Soul Sanctuary Radio.]

In honor of Soul Sanctuary’s 24th Anniversary, we created a quick compilation of some of our favorite artist interviews. Full content from each of these chats is available on our YouTube channel.

During the pandemic, like everyone else in the world, we did our best to create and share content to keep our Congregation engaged and involved in something positive. One of the things that emerged from that time was a video series we called CONTINUUM, focused on the power and responsibility of our legacy creators. Our debut episode featured a conversation with Rain Pryor Vane, talented actress and daughter of legendary comedian Richard Pryor.

And if you want to skip the chat and go straight to the musical performances, we’ve got PLENTY of those too!

There is magic when camaraderie hits the stage. Clip from ERIC ROBERSON joining OMAR for a quick soulful snippet during a recent concert at City Winery Philadelphia.

A quick snippet of the legend BABYFACE, performing at Roots Picnic 2024.

Host Jay Ross of Maryland public access TV show, The Poet's Joint, featured Soul Sanctuary in a segment about spoken word shortly after our doors opened in 2002. Your VibeMistress Stephanie Renée discusses her own journey as a spoken word artist and how Soul Sanctuary would be featuring all kinds of underground and independent artistic expression.

On April 10, 2017, nonprofit arts education foundation Soul Sanctuary celebrated our 15th Anniversary. So we used this auspicious occasion to share our debut documentary with the world for free. Shot between 2003 and 2005, this film tries to answer the question of why Philadelphia played such an integral role in what the world has come to know as "neosoul" music.

Visuals

Soul Sanctuary, Inc. * PO Box 211 * Bala cynwyd PA 19004

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