Lalin St. Juste, co-founder of 7000COILS

WC04—a continuation of our event series curated by Bay Area artists and collectives—takes place the afternoon of Saturday, March 30th at El Rio on their sunny back patio. And it’s our pleasure to introduce the curator for this special event: 7000COILS. More than an independent local label, 7000COILS is a nexus of Blackness, Queerness, and Wellness—and they have arranged a powerful meeting of art and community for WC04, featuring live performers, DJ sets, and a variety of vendors.

One of the founders of 7000COILS, Lalin St. Juste is an impressive sonic alchemist in her own right, offering up solo experimentation under her own name as well as performing as the lead vocalist for electro pop group The Seshen. Read on for an interview with Lalin to learn more about 7000COILS and the vision for WC04 (tickets).

What is 7000COILS?

Lalin St. Juste: 7000COILS is an holistic wellness arthouse with many facets; event production and culture building, apothecary, record label and collective. It’s queer, it’s radical, it’s us. All of which is centered in the liberation of the African diaspora.

How did it come together?

Dan and I started this project a couple of years ago as a means to pave our own way and design the spaces we want to take up. We want to do whatever we want, in our way, on our terms. It has grown since then, and we’ve been joined by our comrades B. Dukes and Madre Guía.

What is your vision for the future?

This is just the beginning! We want to continue to offer a variety of alternative sonic experiences and a spectrum of healing centered offerings for our community. Currently we’re hosting weekly sound baths at BlaQyard, our queer black experimental art house in Fruitvale for our BIPOC community.

How does 7000COILS fit into or take inspiration from the Bay?

The Bay has a beautiful DIY culture and we are in the legacy of this. Creating and making for ourselves, challenging the status quo, taking guidance from those who came before us… all of this is activated here.

What are you excited about for the WC04 party at El Rio?

We’ll be welcoming in spring and showcasing black queer artists whose work we are inspired by. We want everyone to come and meet someone new, discover something new and to be in community. This is a deeply emotional time for many of us – we get to come together and connect and uplift one another.

Tell us about each of the artists on the lineup, and why you chose them.

We wanted black queer artists to take the center stage. The vision is to elevate these artists and have them be supported by community.

DPNY is an artist who I’m really intrigued by. Their work is honest and vulnerable and raw.

Mahawam I’ve been a fan of for years because of their unique sound and lyricism. Ever since I heard ‘Michelle Pheiffer’ years ago I was hooked and knew they were an artist I would be excited by. I’m looking forward to a project they are putting out next month.

Blu Moon is the stage name for B. Dukes who is a multi-faceted artist. They possess a haunting power about them and are able to create a soundscape that is otherworldly. I want more folks to see this human in action. They are also a part of 7000COILS!

Zero Charisma is an artist that I’ve been wanting to see live for a long time because I love their voice and the energy of their music.

Eartha Kunt is an exciting drag artist that is a force and incredibly powerful on stage. This is the alter ego of artist Gabriele Christian (Rupture/Oysterknife) who is a special kind of performer.

Tell us about the charity we’ll be raising money for.

As we approach almost of a year of war in Sudan which has displaced 6 million people, we’re raising money for the Sudanese American Physicians Association (SAPA) because we want to raise awareness to the ongoing catastrophic humanitarian crisis happening in Sudan and help support this association that is operating two hospitals in the region of Omdurman-Khartoum. This org also has several campaigns directed towards providing medical services and food in Sudan.