Black Violin members Kev Marcus and Wil Baptiste are pictured. Submitted photo

Black Violin returns to the stage at Reg Lenna Center for The Arts on Saturday on the “Give Thanks Tour” employing playful storytelling, whimsical string melodies, and hard-hitting beats to highlight the unifying pillars of the holiday season: giving back to others and being wholeheartedly thankful.

The “Give Thanks” concert will be presented Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Reg Lenna Center for The Arts. Tickets are on sale at reglenna.com and by calling 716-484-7070. The box office is open Monday and Friday from noon to 5 p.m. and Wednesday from noon to 8 p.m. The Reg Lenna Center for The Arts is located at 116 E. Third St., Jamestown.

The band will be bringing the Give Thanks album as well as its Grammy nominated album Take the Stairs to audiences across the country. Fans can expect to hear top hits Impossible is Possible and Showoff. The group previously played a sold-out concert at The Reg in 2017.

For 16 years, Black Violin members Kev Marcus and Wil Baptiste have been merging string arrangements with modern beats and vocals. The two met in orchestra class at Dillard High School in Ft. Lauderdale, becoming classically trained on the violin and viola through their high school and college careers. Post-college, they reconvened to produce beats for South Florida rappers, and began building an audience in local clubs. They later went on to win Showtime at the Apollo in 2005, and eventually sold out headline performances at venues across the country, including a sold out two-night headline run at The Kennedy Center in 2018.

“The stereotypes are always there, embedded so deep in our culture,” Baptiste said in a news release on the band’s website. “Just by nature of our existence we challenge those ideas. It’s a unique thing that brings people together who aren’t usually in the same room, and in the current climate, it’s good to bring people together.”

Black Violin spent 2020 finding creative ways to share their music with fans during the pandemic lockdown. Fans were able to watch the duo perform through the live streaming platform StageIt. They continued their musical education outreach by hosting a free Masterclass Series on their Youtube channel. Black Violin also continues to work with youth through The Black Violin Foundation, an organization dedicated to empowering youth by working with them in their communities to provide access to quality music programs that encourage creativity.