Join CLE Records founder Jim Ellis as he discusses and plays The Modern Dance by Cleveland’s own Pere Ubu. While commercially unsuccessful at the time, the bands debut album, which drew inspiration from everything from the Rust Belt and garage rock to performance art and Doris Day, is seen as a highly influential turn in the development of post-punk and is consistently ranked one of the best albums of all time.

Tracing his roots to the 1970s punk era, Jim Ellis has always had a passion for the cutting edge. He played bass for the proto-punk band X_X while publishing a cult-classic, independent fanzine named CLE.

After stepping away from the music scene for a while, Jim has returned with the opening of CLE Records in early 2026. This groundbreaking label is set to bring attention to the great vibes shaking The Land. “Quality is really important to me,” said Jim, in talking about the new productions. “There’s great music happening somewhere in Cleveland every night of the week. Live performances are where it’s at. And we work with the best to make sure the recordings capture exactly what they should.”

Founded by Jim Ellis, CLE Records is a fanzine resurrected as a record label and dedicated to the diverse Indie scene in Northeast, Ohio. 

This event is free and open to the public

Drop the Needle is part of our Echoes music series, a free monthly series celebrating Cleveland’s homegrown music scene through five distinct events, each with its own dedicated day of the month. For more information on Drop the Needle and our other Echoes events, check out the link below.

Visible Voice Books is excited to welcome New York Times featured author Wilbert L. Cooper to discuss his new book The Black Shield. Cooper will be accompanied by special guest DJ Red-I.

An intimate, bold work of literary nonfiction, The Black Shield is an urgent exploration of the complex duality of the Black cop. Cooper grapples with a knot of contradictions: Is the Black officer a sign of progressive change, or of a system that shifts its appearance without changing its outcomes? How to reconcile the fact that policing helped lift his family out of poverty while it has kept its knee on the necks of his people? Fearless and singularly powerful, The Black Shield gives us an American story about race and power that has never been told before.

Wilbert L. Cooper grew up in the suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio. He studied journalism at Ohio University and earned a master's degree in publishing at New York University. He has written for outlets such as The Guardian, The New York Times, the Marshall Project, and The Wall Street Journal. His Vice documentary The Cleveland Strangler was nominated for a National Magazine Award. In 2024, he was the recipient of the Richard J. Margolis Award. The Black Shield is his first book.

DJ Red-I, also known as Brittany Benton and Phamily Foto, is a Cleveland-based DJ, producer, curator, educator, and label builder whose work connects hip-hop, house, soul, funk, electronic music, and physical music culture. A longtime presence in Cleveland’s music community, she is known for creating spaces where artists, DJs, producers, and listeners can gather around sound, discovery, and local creative history. Through her work as a performer, producer, record shop owner, and founder of YES PLS Records, Benton uses music as both a cultural document and a community-building tool. As Phamily Foto, her production leans into groove-driven electronic textures, warm rhythms, and house-adjacent sounds, while her DJ practice reflects a deep commitment to movement, memory, and connection.

The Black Shield can be purchased here and in store.

Join us from 2 PM to 4 PM as we welcome olula negre and Julian Terrell Otis, co-curators of the AfriClassical Futures series, for a Saturday Session of improvised music for cello and voice. Combining folk song, electronics, storytelling, and free improvisation, negre and Otis will traverse memory, place and belonging to craft music alive with spontaneity and expression.

A grandchild of twin migrations from Alabama and Puerto Rico, olula negre, is a creative musician (cello/voice/banjo), avant-folklorist, multi-disciplinary artist and curator based between Cleveland and Chicago. With deep reverence for Black music throughout the Americas, olula creates multi-instrumental electroacoustic music blending cello, singing and effects pedals to create music that queers contemporary classical, experimental jazz, and folk traditions. 

Vocalist and curator Julian Terrell Otis is a pioneer in advancing Black culture through groundbreaking improvised, electronic, and movement-based performances—including celebrated roles in George E. Lewis’s Afterword and Julius Eastman's Prelude for the Holy Presence of Joan of Arc. A 2021 Creative Capital Awardee, Otis actively fosters community through initiatives like his Self Care = Resistance! improvised jams and the AfriClassical Futures series at Elastic Arts.

This event is free and open to the public

Saturday Sessions are part of our Echoes music series, a free monthly series celebrating Cleveland’s homegrown music scene through five distinct events, each with its own dedicated day of the month. For more information about the Saturday Sessions and our other Echoes events, check out the link below.

On 21 September, the world marks the UN International Day of Peace.

Today, amidst staggering volatility, the search for peace feels overwhelming—but it has never been more urgent.

Peace is more than the absence of war; it is the foundation necessary to collectively tackle humanity’s challenges. It is the lived experience of safety, dignity, opportunities and cooperation in our daily lives.

Under the theme Invest in Peace: For Everyone, Everywhere, Every Day, this year’s International Day of Peace honours the 'everyday architects of peace'—people driving local action, laying the groundwork for stability, and building a lasting peace from the ground up. It helps serve as a reminder that everyone, everywhere can do their part for peace.

In collaboration with the Heartfulness Institute, join speakers Rhonda Crowder, Brian Jones, and Nidhi Shekar for a conversation on how to find inner peace, and how to live it, grow it, and share it!

This is a free event and open to the public.

Starting in September, the Masters of American Music Series moves to a new time slot: 6–8pm on the fourth Wednesday of each month here at Visible Voice Books. The earlier time makes it easier to join us after work and still get home at a reasonable hour, with the full kitchen and café open throughout the evening.

Kicking off the new schedule on Wednesday, September 23, Roots of American Music Educational Program Director Charlie Mosbrook, winner of the 2019 Woody Guthrie Folk Festival Songwriting Contest, explores the life, legacy, and music of Woody Guthrie.

Woody Guthrie’s songs grew out of the lives of ordinary people. Their struggles, their hopes, their work, and their dreams for a better world. From This Land Is Your Land to the countless songs and stories he left behind, Guthrie helped shape the tradition of American folk music and inspired generations of songwriters who followed.

Charlie Mosbrook has been exploring and performing Woody’s music for decades. He first performed Guthrie’s music at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in 1996, in a Hard Travelin’ program that also included Roots of American Music Founder, Kevin Richards, and Roots board member, Jason White. Thirty years later, Charlie was invited back to support the Woody at Home program with Anna Canoni, granddaughter of Woody Guthrie and president of Woody Guthrie Publications.

Charlie has led workshops throughout the U.S. on the history, legacy, and music of Woody Guthrie, bringing the stories behind the songs to audiences of all ages.

In July of this year, Charlie released an album of Woody Guthrie songs, There Is a Better World Coming, which has received steady airplay on folk radio programs throughout the United States and Canada.

In addition to his role with Roots of American Music, Charlie Mosbrook is the current Vice President of Folk Alliance International and president of Northeast Ohio’s Folknet, and a recipient of the prestigious Folk Alliance Region Midwest Lantern Bearer Award.

Come join us for an evening of songs, stories, and the remarkable life of Woody Guthrie—and discover why his music still speaks to us today.

This event is open to the public. Tickets are available for pre-sale and at the door.

Join local authors Deanna Adams and Adrian Zonneville as they talk about their latest novels. While Zonneville’s and Adams’s books are quite different, these two authors love to team up to talk about their books and tell entertaining stories about their process and experiences. They’ll be on hand to chat about their books and sign copies.

Deanna Adams is an award-winning writer and native Clevelander whose work explores her love of Northeast Ohio, with a particular focus on its music and history. She has written three books about Cleveland’s rock scene and five novels, including her latest, The Kryptonite Club, a young adult novel about five teenagers brought together in the aftermath of a school shooting. Her 2024 novel, A Place We Belong, is set in Cleveland during Eliot Ness’s tenure as the city’s safety director.

In addition to writing, Adams is a speaker and instructor who brings writers together through her annual writers’ conferences. She is also known as “The Book Whisperer” at the Cuyahoga County Library’s William N. Skirball Writers Center.

K. Adrain Zonneville performed for more than half a century as Charlie Wiener, a professional singer/Songwriter/musician/Comedian. Performing in 49 states, half of Canada, Ireland, and the Netherlands. He shared the stage with such notables as Gordon Lightfoot, Randy Newman, John Prine. Michael Stanley, Eddie Money, Todd Rundgren, Cheap Trick and a host of others. After 57 years as a performer, he hung up his guitar and jokes to stay at home and write books. His second great love. He has now produced twelve books including a memoir of David Spero, A Life in The Wings, a biography of his father, Z, a children's book about the family dog, Greta, Lost Dog Found, and nine novels which run the gamut from general fiction to light fantasy. Each book has received glowing reviews by those who are now faithful followers. His last two novels, Tales of the High Seas and Lowlands, and Die-alogue are considered by many to be his best thus far.

This is a free event and open to the public.

Join us from 2 pm - 4pm as we welcome Max Shaffer for our latest Saturday Session. Shaffer is a passionate and emerging classical guitarist noted for his emotionally evocative performances. Max has had the privilege to study in masterclasses with some of the world’s most renowned guitarists including David Russell, Lorenzo Micheli, Eduardo Fernandez, Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, and more. Max received his Bachelor of Music in Guitar Performance at the University of Washington with Michael Partington and was a teaching assistant to renowned pedagogue Bruce Holzman at Florida State University while acquiring his Master’s degree. Max's program, Experiment with Time, explores a vast swath of the guitar repertoire, ranging from music for the vihuela (an instrument that predates the guitar) all the way up to modern day. Max is currently a teacher for the Cleveland Classical Guitar Society’s Education Program and is a faculty member at the Music Settlement.

Join Max as he explores how the guitar has changed over hundreds of years and why this music is still incredibly pertinent to this day.

This event is free and open to the public.

Saturday Sessions are part of our Echoes music series, a free monthly series celebrating Cleveland’s homegrown music scene through five distinct events, each with its own dedicated day of the month. For more information about the Saturday Sessions and our other Echoes events, check out the link below.

Matthew Ellis’ new book of poetry, his first, Little Heresies is a rebuke of fundamentalist religion. These poems reexamine the foundational texts that inform today’s major Abrahamic religions through a childhood rooted in the church and a grown, queer perspective—irreverently.

Matthew Ellis (he/him) is a queer poet living in Columbus, Ohio. With a background in chemistry, he spends his time teaching yoga and following creative pursuits in music and writing.

This even is free and open to the public.

Visible Voice is excited to welcome the Sam Hooper Group to our stage on October 2. The Sam Hooper Group is an exciting Cleveland based band rooted in the blues. Originally formed while Hooper lived in Boston, the group has evolved throughout recording and tours are the USA as well as Asia, developing their own interpretation of the classic art form that is the blues.

Hooper has kept the approach fresh, since returning to his hometown roots in Cleveland, OH twelve years ago and performing all over Northeast Ohio. The current band is a mix of talented musicians who are old and new friends with experience in jazz, rock, funk, and blues.

This event is open to the public. Admission is $10. Tickets are and available for presale and at the door.

Join us for an afternoon for a special Saturday Sessions celebrating singer/songwriter Ashley Brooke Toussant and the release of her new album, Sing About Everything. Aside from featuring a performance from Toussant, the afternoon will also include a Kate Bush puppet show from Susie Underwood.

A Canton native, Toussant grew up surrounded by family members who sang. After she began teaching songwriting in her children’s school district, she was inspired to create an album of songs for listeners of all ages. Sing About Everything pairs Toussant’s delicate vocal style with lyrically rich songwriting that both children and adults can enjoy.

This event is free and open to the public

Saturday Sessions are part of our Echoes music series, a free monthly series celebrating Cleveland’s homegrown music scene through five distinct events, each with its own dedicated day of the month. For more information about the Saturday Sessions and our other Echoes events, check out the link below.

How does a novel change when it is adapted for the screen? What are the merits of each medium? Visible Voice Books invites you to the next meeting of our new Movie vs. Book Club, where we’ll discuss these very questions.

Join your host, Isaac, in discussing The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker and its 1987 film adaptation, Hellraiser directed by Clive Barker. We encourage you to purchase the novel from us and watch the movie before the meeting (available for streaming on various platforms).

This is a free event; all are welcome.

Movie vs Book Club is a monthly bookclub hosted by Visible Voices own Isaac. MvB meets on the first Wednesday of every month.

J. Scott Franklin uses words like a painter uses colors. The phrases are as carefully shaped as the strokes of a brush.  His lyrics are about the sound of the words and the images they conjur.  From the first time he put a pen to paper, Scott has striven to put everything aside except the meaning and flow of the story. Highlights thus far in his career include playing in concert with Country Hall of Fame legend George Jones. Scott has also performed in concert with Ralph Stanley (Oh Brother Where Art Thou) and Keith Sykes (Jimmy Buffets former band-mate and co-writer of several hits). He was nominated as Cleveland Scene Magazine's “Best Songwriter”. In addition to performing as guitarist and vocalist, he sometimes performs with his jazz quartet, singing and playing trumpet on jazz standards. Scott has also written close to 30 songs for veterans, many through Project D.R.E.W.  
 
This event is free and open to the public

Saturday Sessions are part of our Echoes music series, a free monthly series celebrating Cleveland’s homegrown music scene through five distinct events, each with its own dedicated day of the month. For more information about the Saturday Sessions and our other Echoes events, check out the link below.

A luminous, deeply felt collection of essays from Riverhorse Nakadate—angler, musician, conservationist, and lifelong nomad—whose devotion to wild places and the healing power of water pulses through every page. For readers of Edward Abbey, Barry Lopez, Mary Oliver, and Jim Harrison, this book is a soulful invitation to step off the grid and into the current.

Across thirty-two essays, Nakadate paddles, hikes, casts, surfs, and canoes through landscapes as varied as the alpine lakes of Colorado, the salt marshes of his native Texas, the trout streams of Minnesota, and the mangrove swamps of the Yucatán. Whether he’s chasing redfish in a hurricane, rescuing baby squirrels or migrating monarch butterflies, or honoring his mother’s legacy with a canoe ride and a slice of sweet-potato pie, Nakadate writes with poetic precision and a fierce, tender reverence for the natural world and his fellow human travelers.

At the heart of the book is a love for water in all its forms—river, rain, surf, snowmelt—and a belief that wilderness is not a luxury, but a necessity. Nakadate’s prose is rich with sensory detail and emotional depth, blending humor, heartbreak, and philosophical insight. He reflects on solitude, friendship, loss, and the quiet heroism of those who, like him, strive to protect our wild spaces. His encounters with wildlife, fellow anglers, and strangers on the road become meditations on connection, resilience, and the redemptive gifts of wanderlust.

Environmental themes run deep: from the threatened Boundary Waters to the shark-finning crisis in the Gulf, Nakadate bears witness to the fragility of ecosystems and the urgency of conservation. Yet his tone remains hopeful, grounded in the belief that small victories—one fish released, one river defended—can ripple outward.

Water Lines is not just about fishing or travel; it’s a celebration of living deliberately, loving fiercely, and listening deeply to the rhythms of the earth. For anyone who’s ever felt the tug of a river, the pull of a distant horizon, or the quiet joy of a campfire under the stars, this book will feel like coming home.

Join us in celebrating the paperback release of Hot Wax by welcoming its bestselling author M.L. Rio to our stage for an afternoon discussion.

This event is free and open to the public.

M.L. Rio has been an actor, a bookseller, an academic, and a music writer. She holds an MA in Shakespeare studies and a PhD in English literature. She is the author of the internationally bestselling novel If We Were Villains, the USA TODAY bestselling novella Graveyard Shift, and Hot Wax. She never stays in one place for long, but keeps her books, records, and four-legged sidekick in south Philadelphia.

The trans handy ma’am is back … and this time she’s buying a house and taking her loyal audience along on the journey

Buying your first home can be an intimidating process filled with questions and uncertainties—how do you know you’re working with a trustworthy lender? What are closing costs and how much should you budget for them? Can you actually afford to fix a fixer-upper?

In this successor to the #1 New York Times bestseller Safe and Sound, Mercury Stardust demystifies the path to homeownership and sets you up for homeowning success. Learn about the ups and downs of the house hunting process—from putting in an offer to going through inspections and closing—and then join Mercury as she tackles her first year with a fixer-upper that needs to be renovated and updated.

With DIY projects and guides for renovating and maintaining every part of your new house, as well as with tips for weather-proofing and maintaining outdoor spaces like a deck or garden, Lost and Found will empower you to create your dream home. Mercury reveals the good, the bad, and the ugly, including all the emotional highs and lows when things break, emergencies arise, and the unexpected inevitably happens.

The Sounds of Jazz featuring Nancy  Redd on Flute and Vocals originated in 2004. The Sounds of Jazz is a mix of Jazz and Pop Standards.  It is the project of Nancy Redd and Reggie Redd the master mind and major influence of the Sounds of Jazz concept which is to maintain the integrity and class of jazz music for those who grew up with it and to introduce a new generation to the genre. The group has opened for Grammy Award Winning Artists Blues Great Solomon Burke and The Four Tops. Performing at local venues in the Cleveland area, the Sounds of Jazz continues to celebrate the authenticity and origins of  “REAL JAZZ” with a hint of smooth jazz and pop standards.

https://nancyreddjazz.com/
https://www.facebook.com/thenancyredd
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCC0t5mcEe5ySO5cSJr2WOQA/feed

Admission $10 - Tickets available in advance and at the door

We are excited to welcome back Sunshine Daydream to the Visible Voice Stage. Sunshine Daydream are an Ohio-based Grateful Dead tribute band known for their authentic and high-energy performances that transport audiences back to the golden age of rock and roll. With a lineup that includes some of the most talented musicians in the region, the band has gained a reputation for their faithful interpretations of the Dead's classic songs and their ability to channel their own signature improvisational style.

https://www.facebook.com/SunshineDaydreamOhio

🎟 $15 at the door 

Proceeds support the mission of Roots of American Music, which educates, inspires, and connects communities across Northeast Ohio through live performances and arts-integrated music education programs in schools, senior centers, and community spaces. 
https://www.rootsofamericanmusic.org/ 
https://www.instagram.com/rootsofamericanmusic 
https://www.facebook.com/RootsOfAmericanMusicCLE

BADJR is Bethany Joy, Anthony Papaleo, Dan Socha, Josee McGee, and Ray Flanagan each presenting their own original works and backing each other up. You will experience a wide array of song styles, emotions, and dynamics.

BADJR (Bad-jur) or (Bad-june-yur) is a Cleveland based group of songwriters with the intention of spotlighting each other’s own unique work. The origin of the name is an acronym for each member of the band: Bethany Joy, Anthony Papaleo, Dan Socha, Josee McGee and Ray Flanagan. As individuals, they have each honed their crafts and together they share the opportunity of both leading and supporting roles in one other’s songs. This makes for an intimate evening of original music showcasing a variety of artistic visions from some of Cleveland/Akron’s most dedicated working musicians.

Bethany Joy:
https://www.instagram.com/bethany_joy_official?igsi=MWN1bnZlZDE1czByaQ==

https://www.facebook.com/share/1DbXNmXfT8/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Anthony Papaleo:
https://www.instagram.com/a_p_leo?igsi=MWtscDh1bmQ3ajE2aQ==

https://www.facebook.com/share/1KTjzpmpfv/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Dan Socha:
https://www.instagram.com/dansocha?igsi=MWE2MHQ4Y2Z2Z2c4NQ==

Josee McGee:

https://www.instagram.com/joseemcgee?igsi=d2x0dDZsd3gxYXJw

https://www.facebook.com/share/14mpafhpKGX/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Ray Flanagan:
https://www.instagram.com/rayaflanagan?igsi=cmdnYjJhdmt6ajV0&utm_source=qr

https://www.facebook.com/share/1BsJFx8su1/?mibextid=wwXIfr