The narrative of the DMV as an inhospitable place for creatives is old, dead, and gone. On Monday, NuNarrative Entertainment, the group behind NUNAR and the Uprise DMV Festival, went public with photos of the founders and an announcement of an upcoming concert and launch event.

NuNarrative’s origin starts with three of its founding members, known by their stage names: Chago IV (James Arnold), Daloren (Darius Barnes), and Gomillion (Antoine Gomillion). In 2019, they formed the hip-hop group NuNarrative, the seed at the root of everything to follow. Though the artists have released music individually, they have yet to release music as a group. But this will soon change as they prepare to release a single in March titled “Get to the Bread”.

Being long-time friends, NuNarrative formed to pursue music together with a larger vision of changing the dominant narrative that the DMV suffers from a crab in a bucket mentality––although early on they did not know exactly how the latter would be achieved.

In 2020, the group teamed up with Daloren’s twin brother, writer-filmmaker Damon J. Barnes, to establish NUNAR. The magazine is the first real culmination of NuNarrative Entertainment’s stated mission to put in place a supportive infrastructure for artists and creators in the DMV region. In 2021, the magazine partnered with non-profits in the region to organize the inaugural Uprise DMV Festival. The festival brought together activists, community leaders, and artists across the region in support of efforts towards the collective liberation of oppressed groups in the DMV. Speakers and performers included Democratic congressional candidate Mckayla Wilkes, rapper Matt McGhee, ANC 8C Commissioner Salim Adofo, Baltimore musician John Tyler, and many more.

On March 4th, NuNarrative will host a concert in partnership with the locally-based national media platform ONLe ViBez, where the music group will perform unreleased songs along with a lineup of musical guests including NO!RE and Majjora. NUNAR prints will also be available for attendees. The event will serve as a kick-off for NuNarrative and its vision of creative development, regional solidarity, and international apprize for the DMV. To get your ticket, visit here.