{"id":38942,"date":"2016-03-17T13:59:32","date_gmt":"2016-03-17T18:59:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/?p=38942"},"modified":"2016-03-17T14:37:08","modified_gmt":"2016-03-17T19:37:08","slug":"chicago-street-musicians-convert-non-believers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/chicago-street-musicians-convert-non-believers\/","title":{"rendered":"Chicago street musicians convert “non- believers”"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Yingxu Jane Hao<\/a> & Satvika Khera<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

M<\/p>\n

alik Cohran has performed in Chicago his whole life.<\/p>\n

He is the son of legendary Chicago jazz musician Kelan Phil Cohran<\/a>, who is best known for his trumpet performances in the Sun Ra Arkestra<\/a> in the early \u201860s.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a person who loves music. I\u2019m fortunate enough to be someone who decided as a kid what I wanted to do,\u201d Cohran said.<\/p>\n

[vimeo 159283792 w=474]<\/p>\n

Malik Cohran and Ronald Christian play on Michigan Avenue.(Yingxu Jane Hao & Satvika Khera\/MEDILL)<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

At 13, Cohran\u00a0shared the stage with iconic jazz singer Al Jarreau<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was my first gig to play in front of him. I didn\u2019t know who he was,\u201d he recalled.<\/p>\n

After performing at a major jazz festival at the age of 18, Cohran started to play on his own. He made his debut on the streets in 1985.<\/p>\n

Cohran\u2019s music partner, Ronald Christian, started singing in church at the age of five, and was a part of singing groups all through the \u201860s, \u201870s and \u201880s. He later met Cohran, a bass player then, and they\u2019ve played together for over 30 years.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Malik1\"<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Malik Cohran plays bass in the Jackson station on the CTA Red line. (Yingxu Jane Hao\/MEDILL)<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\"m4\"<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Malik Cohran packs his stuff to switch the spot with other musician waiting alongside. (Yingxu Jane Hao\/MEDILL)<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\"m7\"<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Malik Cohran and Ronald Christian play on Michigan Avenue. (Satvika Khera & Yingxu Jane Hao\/MEDILL)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n

\u201cMusic is life,\u201d said Christian, now 66. \u201cWithout it, the world would be nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Why on the street?<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m on the street because I can make my own hours, and it\u2019s easier. I know the money gonna come,\u201c he said.<\/p>\n

That Sunday, they earned nearly $160 over a 90-minute stretch at the Tribune Tower at Michigan Avenue.<\/p>\n

Cohran and Christian paid $100 for a two-year street performer license. They also have a $10 a year performer\u2019s permit to play at CTA stations.
\n———–
\nClick<\/a> to see the rules about street performing in Chicago.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Click<\/a> to see the rules about CTA station performing in Chicago.<\/strong><\/em>
\n———–<\/p>\n

\u201cSome people look at us like we are homeless, or hungry, but it\u2019s not the case. We are just artists. We love what we do. That\u2019s what we do full-time,\u201d said Christian.<\/p>\n

Cohran calls passer-bys who mock street musicians \u201cnon-believers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI never let them affect me,\u201d he said. But it makes them feel good when they sometimes \u201cconvert non-believers\u201d with their music.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of time people come up and say \u2018you made my day.\u2019 That makes me feel good,\u201d said Christian. \u201cSometimes it\u2019s better than money.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Photo at top: Malik Cohran and Ronald Christian play on Michigan Avenue. They’ve played on the streets and CTA platforms for 30 years. (Yingxu Jane Hao & Satvika Khera\/MEDILL)<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Yingxu Jane Hao & Satvika Khera M alik Cohran has performed in Chicago his whole life. He is the son of legendary Chicago jazz musician Kelan Phil Cohran, who is best known for his trumpet performances in the Sun Ra Arkestra in the early \u201860s. \u201cI\u2019m a person who loves music. I\u2019m fortunate enough […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":283,"featured_media":38967,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194,28,585],"tags":[2525,61,2524,2504,2526],"class_list":["post-38942","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-culture","category-general-interest","category-winter-2016","tag-al-jarreau","tag-chicago","tag-jazz","tag-street-musician","tag-sun-ra-arkestra"],"yoast_head":"\nChicago street musicians convert "non- believers" - Medill Reports Chicago<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/chicago-street-musicians-convert-non-believers\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Chicago street musicians convert "non- believers" - Medill Reports Chicago\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Yingxu Jane Hao & Satvika Khera M alik Cohran has performed in Chicago his whole life. He is the son of legendary Chicago jazz musician Kelan Phil Cohran, who is best known for his trumpet performances in the Sun Ra Arkestra in the early \u201860s. \u201cI\u2019m a person who loves music. 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