OKC Philharmonic, Jabee Williams kick off tour at OKC church home of Clara Luper

Carla Hinton, Oklahoman
·3 min read
Rapper, activist and entrepreneur Jabee Williams, alongside Maestro Alexander Mickelthwate, at Williams' right, performs a musical selection with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic at Fifth Street Baptist Church, 801 NE 5, the home church of the late civil rights leader Clara Luper. [Provided}
Rapper, activist and entrepreneur Jabee Williams, alongside Maestro Alexander Mickelthwate, at Williams' right, performs a musical selection with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic at Fifth Street Baptist Church, 801 NE 5, the home church of the late civil rights leader Clara Luper. [Provided}
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A local rapper and the Oklahoma City Philharmonic have teamed up to perform at several churches in northeast Oklahoma City.

Jabee Williams, an Oklahoma City recording artist, entrepreneur and social justice activist, is touring houses of worship with the philharmonic to perform at least two collaborative musical efforts.

The first stop on the tour was March 26 at Fifth Street Baptist Church, the home church of the late Oklahoma City civil rights leader Clara Luper, and her daughter Marilyn Hildreth, who is also a civil rights activist. Williams said he and the philharmonic, under the direction of Maestro Alexander Mickelthwate, will perform on April 30 at Fairview Baptist Church, where the Rev. John A. Reed is senior pastor. He said the tour will visit the Rev. Derrick Scobey's church, Ebenezer Baptist, on May. 7.

Rapper, activist and entrepreneur Jabee Williams performs a musical selection with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic, under the direction of Maestro Alexander Mickelthwate, at Fifth Street Baptist Church, 801 NE 5, during a visit to the house of worship which was the home church of the late civil rights leader Clara Luper. (Photo: Provided)
Rapper, activist and entrepreneur Jabee Williams performs a musical selection with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic, under the direction of Maestro Alexander Mickelthwate, at Fifth Street Baptist Church, 801 NE 5, during a visit to the house of worship which was the home church of the late civil rights leader Clara Luper. (Photo: Provided)

Williams said his friendship with Mickelthwate that began several years ago served as a springboard for the church tours. Williams said the music director was interested in learning about Oklahoma City's Black community and he paid particular attention to stories about Luper and the Oklahoma City sit-in movement. Luper, as Oklahoma City NAACP Youth Council advisor, famously led 13 Black youths to march to the whites-only Katz Drug Store and sit at the counter of the downtown eatery until they were served.

That civil rights effort in August 1958 was the beginning of the historic Oklahoma City sit-in demonstrations to integrate restaurants and other businesses in the Jim Crow era of segregation.

Mickelthwate said he initially approached Williams with the idea of collaborating on two musical selections around Black History Month a few years ago. More recently, they got together to add another selection called "Stand Strong" that is focused on Luper and her leadership.

The church tour is viewed as a way to bring people together from different cultures and different parts of the metro area. Mickelthwate and Williams said the selections performed during the church visits are not included in Oklahoma City Philharmonic's "Oklahoma Stories: Clara Luper Centennial" concert on May 13 at the Civic Center Music Hall. However, the collaborative selections being performed at the predominantly Black churches on the tour convey many of the themes central to Luper's story.

"It's always about really embracing the entire community and it's spreading the word about the philharmonic," Mickelthwate said of the church visits. "In this case, it's about Clara Luper and I just really wanted to spread the word. Music becomes the common denominator that connects us all."

Maestro Alexander Mickelthwate is the music director for Oklahoma City Philharmonic.
Maestro Alexander Mickelthwate is the music director for Oklahoma City Philharmonic.

Meanwhile, Williams said he had introduced the music director to the Rev. A. Byron Coleman, Fifth Street's longtime senior pastor, and his wife, Dr. Sharri Coleman, several years ago. Mickelthwate said he had visited the church several times and enjoyed the services.

Luper's daughter Hildreth was an "original sit-inner," one of the 13 youths who participated in the first sit-in at Katz. She said it was fitting that the church tour begin at Fifth Street, 801 NE 5, because her mother was "super involved" in the church, giving the welcome on many Sundays and also serving as superintendent of one of the church's auxiliaries. And, she said, seven of the original sit-inners were Fifth Street members.

Hildreth said Fifth Street has also been gracious in allowing the Clara Luper Legacy Community to have its Freedom Fiesta Celebration Program at the church. The Freedom Fiesta is the annual commemoration and celebration of the Oklahoma City sit-in movement held annually in August.

Jabee Williams is shown during the "Realizing the Dream" tour in February 2023 at the Oklahoma History Center in Oklahoma City. (Photo: NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN)
Jabee Williams is shown during the "Realizing the Dream" tour in February 2023 at the Oklahoma History Center in Oklahoma City. (Photo: NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN)

Hildreth was at Fifth Street when Williams and the philharmonic performed together for church members. She said the church tours were a great way to expose more people in the community to the Oklahoma City Philharmonic.

Fifth Street's senior pastor Coleman thanked the rapper-activist, Mickelthwate and the philharmonic for being part of the recent church service. He said Fifth Street would not let Luper's story be forgotten.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC Philharmonic, Jabee take musical collaboration on tour of churches