Open Stage @ HaiBayo: A Night of Community, Creativity & Celebration

On Thursday, April 25, Stomping Grounds Audiovisual Production hosted its first Open Stage at the new HaiBayo space in Uptown Chicago, and the night was nothing short of electric. Thank you to everyone who came through to celebrate, perform, and build with us!

The evening opened with a heartfelt welcome from youth wrapping up their visual arts class—an inspiring reminder of why we do this work. From there, the mic stayed wide open, with performances spanning stand-up comedy, classical music, soul-stirring poetry, rap, and song. It was a true showcase of raw expression and collective energy.

💥 Featured Artist Spotlight: Complex Theory

The night’s featured artist, Jarvis Charles aka Complex Theory, delivered a powerful performance rooted in love, memory, and movement. As a gifted MC, producer, and vinyl lover, his presence set the tone for the night. He’ll also be leading workshops for 5th–8th graders as part of the new HaiBayo Cares program—we highly encourage families to sign up their young creatives!

🙌 Shoutouts + Community Thanks

Special thanks to the entire HaiBayo team, especially Tran and Jefferson, for helping bring the event to life and staying till the end to support. Jefferson also captured some stunning photos from the evening—we’re sharing them on our social media and will archive them here soon.

Big love to our Audiovisual Production team:

• 🎧 DJ 1Solo, who curated the soundtrack to the night

• 🎥 Cassius, who completed day two on the AVP crew—welcome to the family!

We also want to thank Mari and Quincy from The Beautiful Kat Gallery for sharing space, selling Locked Achievements catalogs, and uplifting the voices of incarcerated youth through art. Don’t forget to stop by the new window display on the corner of Winthrop and Granville to support young visual artists.

None of this would’ve happened without the leadership of Uran Kabashi, SGLAI’s Program Manager, who continues to guide our events with care, intention, and a deep love for the community.

📺 Missed it? Watch the Recap!

We recorded the whole evening so you can catch the vibes even if you weren’t in the room.📹 Watch the full Open Stage recap on YouTube

Stomping Grounds Open Stage @ HaiBayo is a monthly event, and we’d love to see you at the next one. Whether you’re performing, building community, or just pulling up for the vibes—you’re welcome here.

Peace and power,The Stomping Grounds Literary Arts Initiative Team