For Brandie Blaze, the sound of creative growth, resilience, and glamor all have a specific sound: Click click, bling bling.
It’s the refrain — and title — of a song the Boston rapper wrote for Hoops, a new play currently running at the Strand Theatre through August 10. Hoops, which was produced by Company One Theatre, explores the cultural weight of hoop earrings in communities of color. Gleaning inspiration from Nicole Acosta’s The HOOPS Project, Hoops rotates through skits and intimate vignettes to demonstrate how 5,000 years of history and heritage come full circle every time someone snaps on the accessory.
As a multitasking cast member, composer, and emcee, Blaze is the glue between Hoops‘ storytelling and immersive sound. Her critical role in the production might be the accomplishment that cements Blaze as a bona fide multi-hyphenate. Even her four-word chorus of “click click, bling bling,” conveys multitudes: The sound of suiting up mixed with the echo of tradition. Beyond Hoops, her three original songs for the performance will appear on her upcoming mixtape Susan Lucci, due out in the beginning of August.
“As the composer, my job was to interpret what was needed in each musical scene to amplify the stories told, but to also keeping the production moving forward and entertaining,” Blaze tells Vanyaland. Taking cues from playwright Eliana Pipes, director Tonasia Jones, and sound director Anna Drummond, she curated an original soundtrack to enhance the production, even incorporating old favorites like her self-affirming earthquake “Model.”
“They were able to express exactly what these scenes needed musically and I was able to run with,” Blaze adds. “The songs started coming together during the workshop phase of the production and were completed in early June — they were like ‘we need an R&B song about losing a hoop’ and I said ‘no problem!'”
Her past experience as a dual songwriter and cast member in the 2022 production “Come To Pass” also informed the songwriting process, helping her interweave music and dialog. And while Blaze had the least amount of theater experience on the cast — even if you count childhood acting lessons — you wouldn’t know it from her solid stage presence.
Before the show, she ushers guests into the theater by DJing her self-curated playlist of Boston music that ranges from Gang Starr and The Almighty RSO to YaMainRegret and Red Shaydez. Towards the end of the production, she seals Hoops with “So Free,” a cut from her 2023 record Broken Rainbows that radiates tenderness and self-love. In between, she’s a near-constant force among the cast, who alternate characters in many scenes.
Blaze calls working on the Hoops team one of the best experiences of her career — even if it’s been one of the most demanding experiences, too.
“I would say this is much more intensive than doing a [music] show,” Blaze reflects. “There’s choreography, remembering your lines and blocking. It’s a lot of work! But, working with Company One has been incredibly fulfilling. I feel like I’ve really grown more as a performer. And now my mom can finally say those acting classes she paid for when I was a kid are finally paying off!”