On a drive home from Kansas City in 2017, Vanika Spencer and Sapna Bhakta found themselves discussing just how much talent St. Louis has. It sparked an idea: Upon their return home, the two would start a concert series—Cocoa and Cumin—aimed to showcase that talent, specifically artists of color. On November 30, Anita Jackson will perform in the duo’s last concert of the year, at Onyx Dagger Tattoo & Piercing Shop.
“When we used to go out and see shows all the time, we never saw POC artists,” Bhakta says, “Like, ‘Where is everybody?’ So, we said, ‘You know what? Let’s have a space just for them.’”
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At first, they booked musicians who were friends of friends. Two years later, artists sign up to perform through an open call. Held once a month for the past year (every other month the year prior), the shows are most often hosted in Spencer’s and Bhakta’s apartments and once at the St. Louis Central Library, with addresses sent to attendees via Instagram direct message. Before shows, Spencer makes the snacks (cocoa-inspired) and Bhakta makes the cocktails (cumin always an ingredient), and when the time comes living rooms fill up with as many as 30 to 35 people.
“I feel that the whole base of our concert series is to make it super personal, super intimate, and as comfortable as possible for people to experience the artist,” Spencer says. For the artist, a post-show Q&A provides an opportunity to go deeper than the music. “For our artists to not have to just sing but to answer questions with ‘This is the reason I wrote this song. This is the reason why I sing this song. This is what comes out of the song,’” Bhakta says. “That’s when we were like, ‘This is really good. This is what we wanted out of the concert series—for the audience and the artists to connect in a way that is beautiful.’”
St. Louis transplants, the 29-year-olds met through a mutual friend. Spencer, originally from Dallas, joined her brother living in St. Louis, persuaded by the city’s arts scene. Bhakta, a Toronto native, says “with us being transplants, I think we are trying to figure out where we are in the community.” Cocoa and Cumin helps fulfill that: “We’re here, and we provide this, and we want you to come to it. We want you to love us, because we love you back.”
Spencer is the liaison for musical guests, when she’s not working at Webster University as Assistant Director for the Department of First Year Experience and Undergraduate Persistence. Bhakta, Creative Lead for DTC Relationship Marketing for New Balance Athletics, Inc., handles the series’ social media and outreach. It sounds like a lot, so why do they make the time for it? “It’s fun,” they nearly say in unison. “It’s not a job at all,” adds Spencer. And while that’s true, Cocoa and Cumin’s inception is rooted in a sense of responsibility. “I know I wouldn’t be here today without the black women mentors that I’ve had. If I can help another artist or black or brown person have this opportunity, I want to provide that for them,” Spencer says. “When we come up, we come up together.”
