About Kulture Klub Collaborative
Our Story
KKC was founded by artist Dorit Cypis in 1992 and is now under the direction of Crystal Brinkman. Since its inception, KKC has partnered with YouthLink to access the homeless youth community. KKC is a valued member of the homeless youth serving community, with numerous partners in the metro area, and thousands of dollars of in-kind donations.
No other arts organization in Minnesota works with this population in this long term way. Without KKC, these youth would not have access to consistent arts programming. Entering its third decade of programming, KKC has served over 6,500 homeless youth. KKC has attended over 1000+arts events at over 100 local arts and cultural venues in the Twin Cities.
KKC is an independent 501(c)3 arts organization that brings together artists and homeless youth in the Twin Cities. Through multi-disciplinary workshops, open mics, artist residencies, and art outings (ArtView), KKC brings dignity and respect to these special young people as they enter adulthood.
View our annual reports:
Staff
Siddeeqah Shabazz - Executive Director
Siddeeqah Shabazz(she/her) is originally from Oakland, CA with degrees in theatre from the University of La Verne and the Guildford School of Acting in England. She has been an actor for the last 20 years and has spent the last 10 years working in arts education . As a youth worker she started off as a teaching artist and youth coordinator at Pillsbury House + Theatre and moved on to work at the Guthrie Theater as an education manager. She has worked with youth from all backgrounds and in many capacities and she is passionate about continuing that work as the Executive Director of Kulture Klub Collaborative. She is a consultant with Put Ur Play On Productions in Oakland, CA and as an actor Siddeeqah has worked with the Long Beach Playhouse and Lewis Family Playhouse in southern California. In Minnesota she has worked with Climb Theatre, Shadow Horse, Gadfly, Chain Reaction, Freshwater, and 20% Theaters, Exposed Brick Theatre, Savage Umbrella, Aniccha Arts, Intermedia Arts, Artistry, Underdog Theatre, Transatlantic Love Affair, Full Circle Theatre, and Yellow Tree Theatre. She is also a burgeoning playwright and director and a Doctor Who (2005), Harry Potter, and fiber arts enthusiast!
Kiara Raquel ("RaKi") - Program Manager
Kiara Raquel aka RaKi, is a multidisciplinary artist turned program manager at Kulture Klub. She loves creating art with the amazing youth whom she has been fortunate enough to meet due to their circumstances. As a former participant of KKC, she hopes to inspire participants with her story, as well as encourage them to be their most authentic selves. Born & raised in North Minneapolis, Kiara is no stranger to community engagement, since a teenager she had to bring awareness to social injustices, specifically racial and environmental terrorism. Outside of advocacy and the arts, Kiara enjoys herbalism & traveling to tropical places that she then blogs about on her culture platform — Ethnotrot.
Billy Soden - Development Director
Billy Soden is a freelance writer, published author, and music educator with a long history of working as a musician and in arts management, talent production, non-profits, music education, and educational leadership. As a writer for the world’s largest non-profit independent television and media company based in New York City, Billy was a natural storyteller to a global audience of over 65 million viewers. His articles and blogs have been featured in multiple websites and print media, including a global blogging site with more than 35,000 contributors and an average of 1.1 million unique monthly visitors. An entrepreneur at heart, Billy loves working with individuals, professional organizations, businesses, and nonprofits who champion social causes that connect people to the world of the arts. Described as having the ability to “nuance any niche,” Billy enjoys being the father of two musicians, advocating for all things aesthetic, and championing social justice issues through the power of fine arts.
Board of Directors
Romisha Gray
Board President
Database Specialist
Goodwill-Easter Seals Minnesota
Romisha has been working with various non-profit organizations for over 12 years, currently working as the Database Specialist for Goodwill-Easter Seals and the Scheduling Manager for The Barbara Schneider Foundation an organization that provides crisis intervention training. Romisha currently specializes in database management and assists with budgeting for her organizations. Romisha was born in Louisiana, raised in Minneapolis and currently lives in Little Canada, MN. During her spare time, Romisha likes to create wilderness adventures, finding peace and beauty in the world around her.
Zach Bagaason
Board Development
Professional Musician and Educator
Zach is a musician, producer, and educator in the Twin Cities. Through youth work in the Beacons program, Zach developed a small studio and workshop called “Beats & Rhymes” that continues to teach hands-on experience in songwriting and production in various Beacons afterschool sites. This lead to contracting with more organizations, such as KKC, Intermedia Arts, HOPE Community, & Pillsbury United Communities, doing similar work with youth, young adults, and senior citizens. Since 2009, he’s been an adjunct instructor at McNally Smith College of Music teaching Hip-Hop production. Zach continues to create in his spare time, and by joining the KKC board, seeks to help provide more access to quality learning opportunities for young artists.
Marney Thomas
Secretary
Catalyst
Rapid Results Institute
Marney joined the board in 2019 after being a long time supporter of all things KKC! Marney considers herself a youth worker at heart, despite moving on from the field to pursue her passion for public policy and social justice. Marney is a recent graduate from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs and the former Director of Partnerships and Community Engagement for YouthLink. In addition to trying to keep up with her two small children and being in awe of experiencing our world through their eyes, Marney enjoys a good game of Bocce ball!
Christina Jacobson
Christina Jacobson - Board Member
Christina is the Director of Equity and Human Resources for Simpson Housing Services. Prior to working for Simpson, Christina worked for several years as an Employment Attorney in Chicago. After moving to Minnesota, Christina joined the KKC Board in 2020. Christina looks forward to more active volunteer opportunities in the future, including engaging in programming with the youth.