We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful James Woodert. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with James below.

Alright, James thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

The mission of the Global Music Exchange Nonprofit is to foster cultural understanding and collaboration through the universal language of music. We aim to connect musicians from diverse backgrounds, promote cross-cultural musical education, and create opportunities for artistic exchange and collaboration. Through our programs and initiatives, we strive to celebrate the richness and diversity of global musical traditions, empower musicians to share their unique voices, and inspire a more harmonious and interconnected world.

James, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is James Woodert. I am a singer for a Washington DC based GoGo Band “FutureBandDC”. As an ambassador of GoGo music, I wanted to create opportunities for GoGo music to reach new audiences. With that in mind, I created the nonprofit. I felt the best way for the sound of GoGo music to be infectious, I had to do more than just play and do shows. I wanted to create a platform to do workshops and masterclasses that taught GoGo music to students and local musicians in international spaces.

To date, the biggest moment we had happened just this year. With the help of EventsDC and 202Creates, we were able to take GoGo to Cuba during the Havana International Jazz Festival. This was such a major platform. We were able to film a documentary capturing how the people of Cuba embraced the DC culture and sound. It was an amazing.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Through this journey, there were many challenges to overcome. The main one was identifying resources to make this happen.

With the expertise of the Co Founder, Merari Chollette, Business Consultant, Kellie Brown, and Non Profit consultant, Leslie Jefferson, The Global Music Exchange was created. With this 501c3 now operational in both DC and Maryland, we were able apply for sponsorship.

In the final hours before the festival, we were finally able to get the funding needed to make this happen.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

Cofounder, Merari Chollette, also has an established travel agency, Dreaming In Cuban. I met her at a Travel Agency meet up. Once she told me she fostered programming in Cuba, I immediately said “I Want To Go To Cuba!!!” And just like that, she took me to Havana, Cuba in 2020.

While there, I had the opportunity to meet local musicians, sit in on rehearsals and studio sessions, and meet with many amazing creatives. It was a great opportunity to connect with the people of Cuba.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.futurebanddc.com
• Instagram: @futurebanddc
• Facebook: @futurebanddc
• Twitter: @futurebanddc
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/1FPiowE81no?si=NpgGCUAvLpOwU69Z

Image Credits
Freddy Sandoval (IG @fredoseye)