About the piece

Born in Princeton, NJ in 1898, Paul Robeson was a Renaissance man. Despite experiencing severe racial discrimination and violence throughout his life and career, Robeson was elected valedictorian of his class at Rutgers College (after being the only African-American student there), was selected as an All-American football player, starred in iconic productions on Broadway (Othello), and became a popular film actor (Show Boat). In the 1920s and 1930s, he reached international fame as a bass-baritone concert artist, singing African-American spirituals to audiences around the world. Robeson used his voice to connect people, champion his musical heritage, and advocate for social causes he believed in such as labor rights, anti-colonialism, and racial equality, including in his manifesto Here I Stand. However, his enthusiastic support of the Soviet Union during the McCarthy era cost him both his freedom and his career. From 1950 to 1958, the U.S. government revoked his passport, blacklisted him from mainstream stages, and placed him under intense FBI surveillance, severely damaging his career and finances. Paul Robeson’s voice was shut down by a society that was too afraid of those who looked differently or thought differently.

Written for  two rapper-singers, a choir, and orchestra, Here We Stand brings a contemporary perspective to the story and legacy of Paul Robeson. This piece explores moments from Robeson’s life and how they are parallel with more recent events in American history such as former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick‘s protest against police brutality in 2016 and the murder of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis, MN in 2020. The non-chronological narrative is led by two characters–Paul Robeson and a fictional contemporary activist–in a fusion of concert music, hip hop, funk, and rock. 

Composer Gilad Cohen and lyricist/rapper Ronvé O’Daniel have been working on this piece since 2023. The world premiere of Here We Stand will take place at Richardson Auditorium in Princeton, NJ, less than half a mile from where Paul Robeson was born, in a concert honoring the 50th anniversary of Robeson’s death.

Here We Stand

For two rapper-singers, SATB choir, and orchestra (2027)
Lyrics: Ronvé O'Daniel
Music: Gilad Cohen
Length: 30 minutes

Commissioned by American Composers Forum, Princeton University, and Adele and John Gray Endowment Fund, with additional support from New Music USA and Ramapo College of New Jersey.

World premiere:

Paul Robeson Golden Anniversary Concert
Sunday, February 21st 2027 at 4pm
Richardson Auditorium, 68 Nassau St, Princeton, NJ, USA

Paul-Jordan Jansen, bass-baritone, rap
Ronvé O'Daniel, rap, baritone
Princeton Glee Club
Decoda Ensemble
Gabriel Crouch, conductor