2025 Annual Convening Speakers

Deon Jones is a performance artist with one of the most important of his generation. After surviving police violence during the 2020 protests, he collaborated with Jon Batiste on a searing rendition of “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” that set the tone for a body of work that has been courageous and profound in musical expression. Deon’s performances have electrified sold-out concert halls at major cultural institutions including MASS MoCA and captivated audiences at The New Museum, PACE Gallery, Frieze Art Fair & Art Basel. He has been hailed by Rolling Stone Magazine as “transformative,” by the Boston Globe as a “a performer with clarifying power,” and was named one of the most influential Black Americans in the country on EBONY Magazine's POWER 100 list. Most recently, Deon reached millions as a standout contestant on Season 26 of NBC’s The Voice. 

Beyond the stage, Deon stands as a resolute catalyst for justice. In 2023, he made history by winning a landmark federal case against the LAPD for excessive force, a victory that echoed across the nation and affirmed the power of truth and resilience to confront systems built to silence.