Lil’ Keke is one of three performers scheduled to appear at Beto 2020 rally on Thursday. (Image: Lil’ Keke Facebook Page)
Beto O’Rourke announced Lil’ Keke, Cure for Paranoia and NuFolk Rebel Alliance will perform at Thursday night’s 6 p.m. Rally Against Fear at the Theatre at Grand Prairie.
Beto is inviting everyone including community leaders, advocates, and all candidates—from the incredible field running in the U.S. Senate primary to those running for the U.S. House, state legislature, and county-wide seats—to join together and show a unified strength while directly confronting Donald Trump’s dangerous hatred and division on the night he tries to spread it across the battleground state of Texas.
“This is all about Texans of good conscience—Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and those who don’t identify politically—coming together to stand up against fear, hatred, racism, and intolerance and to stand up for this country at our defining moment of truth,” said Beto. “Everyone is welcome.”
Thursday’s event will be the second time this year that Beto has directly countered a Trump rally in Texas. Back in February, Beto brought together thousands in his hometown around a positive and ambitious message while Trump visited El Paso to attack immigrants and spread lies about the border.
Following the deadliest attack against the Latinx community in American history, which left 22 dead in El Paso, Beto called on Americans to recognize the connection between the dissemination of hate speech by Trump and acts of violence committed across America.
Since the launch of his presidential campaign in 2015, Trump has publicly espoused racist, white supremacist, and degrading attacks against people of color, immigrants, women, entire faith communities, those living with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ Americans. That hatred has manifested itself in violence across the country as hate crimes rose over three straight years and counties that hosted Trump rallies saw hate crimes rise by more than 200%.
The competing rallies also highlight Texas’s status as a battleground state. In 2018, Beto unlocked Texas’s 38 electoral votes by building a diverse grassroots campaign that forever transformed Texas and put the state in play for the first time in decades. Swinging the state by 25 points since 2014, he received more votes than any Democrat in Texas history, won Independents for the first time in decades, and got the support of nearly half a million Republicans while running on a progressive agenda.
Polling has shown Beto can win the state’s 38 electoral votes, ensuring that Donald Trump is resoundingly defeated in November of 2020.
Performers scheduled to appear
A Houston native, Lil’ Keke quickly proved himself one of the strongest artists in the region, debuting in 1997 with Don’t Mess wit Texas, which sold 40,000 copies in Houston alone. Keke would then release nine independent solo albums and a handful of collaboration LPs (with Slim Thug, Big Hawk, and his crew Herschelwood Hardheadz) before signing with famed northside label Swishahouse in 2005. His long-awaited Swishahouse debut, Loved by Few Hated by Many, appeared in 2008 and featured Birdman, Paul Wall, and Slim Thug as guests. Wall returned for 2012’s Heart of a Hustla, a street release issued by the Hustle Town label, and Swishahouse dropped 2014’s official LP Money Don’t Sleep with 2 Chainz, Yo Gotti, and Devin the Dude on the guest list. Keke received a President’s Volunteer Service Award from President Barack Obama in 2016.
Cure for Paranoia is the soul-infused hip-hop outfit that has become the new face of Deep Ellum, the storied Dallas neighborhood. The Texas musicians quickly made a name for themselves and were awarded Dallas Observer’s Best New Act in 2016 & Best Group Act in 2017. In less than two years, the group has been put on festival bills with artists like Run The Jewels, Flying Lotus, Phantogram and Purity Ring. Their diverse music has allowed them to share bills with a wide range of artists such as Ludacris, 21 Savage, Lil Yachty, George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelik and tour with Bone Thugs -n- Harmony.
NuFolk Rebel Alliance is a duo fronted by Leo Minimum Tek (Outernational) and Pedro Erazo (Gogol Bordello). Their eclectic sound roots its foundation in folk music but its heavily influenced by urban, dub, reggae and punk music. Formed in 2018, they have released an LP, “Tribute to The Clash”, toured the United States, Mexico and Europe, and on October 16th, 2019 they will release their first single from their upcoming album, “FRONTERAS.”
Luke Chacko is a 13-year-old from Arlington, Texas who became a viral internet sensation after an impromptu performance on stage with Idina Menzel at the Theater in Grand Prairie. He will perform the national anthem.
