Best Mind-Body Connection: Frankie Knuckles House Music Celebration – Grand Crossing

On a warm Saturday evening in August, the unmistakable sounds of house music reverberated from the lush grounds of the Kenwood Gardens. The Rebuild Foundation—a community-focused arts nonprofit founded by Chicago-based artist Theaster Gates—hosted its third annual “Soul Liberation: A Frankie Knuckles House Music Celebration” on August 18.    

Kenwood Gardens, an outdoor events space located in the Grand Crossing neighborhood, was developed on thirteen abandoned lots as a part of the Rebuild Foundation’s neighborhood transformation initiatives. The artful landscaping and abundance of native plants and flowers creates a feeling of serenity and ease in what was once a sight of disinvestment. This natural beauty creates the perfect background for the celebratory, transient music and dancing that filled the cemented event platform and spilled far out onto the sprawling green lawns. 

House music—a unique form of electronic dance music that spans disco, post-punk, and R&B— was invented in Chicago’s underground Black, queer dance scene in the 1980s. The late Frankie Knuckles, often referred to as “The Godfather of House Music” is known as one of the genre’s most prolific and innovative music producers and remixers. Gates and his collaborators hosted the first “Soul Liberation” in 2022 to honor Knuckles’s legacy. 

Celeste Alexander, a mentee of Knuckles, served as this year’s curatorial director and delivered  the skillful DJ set of a veteran who’s committed decades to her craft. Alexander invited up-and-coming DJs to take the stage including k.tea and CtrlZora. She also featured legendary Chicago DJs with Greg Gray, Duane Powell, and Alan King rounding out the event’s lineup.

With over 600 people attending the festival some years, Rebuild Foundation chose to position this year’s event as a fundraiser with ticket sales directly supporting the organization’s house music programming. Guests were also welcome to buy from local food vendors and purchase the festival’s inaugural t-shirt. 

Neighbors and house heads from across the city of every race, age, and gender danced in pairs, in cyphers, and alone amongst the crowd—some staying for the event’s full six-hour duration. The festival is a reunion for many house music lovers who’ve been around for decades and experienced Knuckles’s regular performances at now shuttered venues like the Warehouse and the Power Plant. Simultaneously, the event welcomes all generations, with a plump, dimpled baby dancing on the grass, elders lounging in folding chairs, and young folks bringing new dance moves to the center of the crowd. 

With the Chicago commemorating 2024 as the 40th year of house music, “Soul Liberation” stands out as an annual event that embodies the values of house music culture including creative self-expression and liberated movement.

As the Metra train rolled past and dense trees rustled in the evening breeze, DJ Alan King played the day’s final set. Everyone, myself included, danced to the music, welcoming a kind of euphoric laughter with strangers turned friends, moving our bodies together in loving community. 

Kenwood Gardens, 6929 S Kenwood Ave. Sundays, 10am–4pm. (312) 857-5561