“E.D.E.N.: Eventually Dreams End in Nightmares”
A pop up exhibition by Mahdi Atif “Freakishnerd” and a ticketed performance by Genesis Renji
June 11 – 12, 2022
MARN was pleased to invite the public to a weekend of “E.D.E.N.: Eventually Dreams End in Nightmares” at the MARN ART + CULTURE HUB which included a pop up exhibition by Mahdi Atif “Freakishnerd” in MARN’s Gallery June 11-12th and a ticketed performance by Genesis Renji Sunday, June 12th from 5pm – 8pm.
PERFORMANCE DETAILS
On June 12, 2022 from 5-8pm, WoLF Studios MKE hosted Genesis Renji at the MARN ART + CULTURE HUB for a performance of his EP ‘E.D.E.N: Eventually Dreams End in Nightmares’, featuring music from Freakishnerd and Genesis Renji. The night kicked off with an opening performance by Milwaukee based R&B vocalist Clayton.
During his set, Genesis Renji revisited the garden where he found love, and eventually heartbreak. Audience members were engulfed in the new sound and styles of Renji, along with unreleased songs that didn’t make the project. Renji described E.D.E.N as his “therapy before therapy” and the outlet he used to “explore his emotions, frustrations, and heartbreak.”
Genesis Renji is an Emmy-nominated recording artist and engineer from Milwaukee, WI. The poet-turned-emcee has evolved his sound and performance abilities over time with a diverse and anthem driven catalog full of introspective verses and boastful rhyme schemes.
Stream and purchase ‘E.D.E.N’ on www.genesisrenji.com.
Clayton is a Milwaukee based R&B vocalist that sets himself apart from his contemporaries with his full, lush harmonies and sweet-sounding vocals. He is reinventing the outlook on any imagination of a typical R&B song by using aspects deriving from classical music, including the use of stacked harmonies and adlibs with smooth transitions led by theatrical vocals. His music brings beauty to moments like messy arguments and loneliness, makes you hungry for the moments that foster growth, and makes you thirsty for the deep colors it brings to your mind’s eye. Clayton has been featured on Lyrical Lemonade and has had the opportunity to perform at the world’s largest music festival, Summerfest.
EXHIBITION DETAILS
The “East of E.D.E.N.” exhibition, which ran June 11 to 12, 2022, featured the work of Mahdi Atif “Freakishnerd” who designed and shot the award winning cover art for “E.D.E.N.: Eventually Dreams End in Nightmares”, winner of Radio Milwaukee’s 2022 Album Artwork of the Year Award. This exhibition featured photographs from the initial cover art shoot.
Madhi Atif, aka Freakishnerd, is a Milwaukee-born photographer, currently working in the Midwest. He uses photography to seek an understanding of Black life in the Midwest, lending to a realistic, yet picturesque vision of the people & places that populate a collective cultural experience. Through a blend of portraiture & photojournalism, Freakishnerd seeks to define the Black Midwestern identity.