By D. Kevin McNeir
Special to the AFRO
kmcneir@afro.com
Go-Go music, which now serves as the official music of Washington, D.C., has come a long way since its emergence as an underground musical genre nearly 50 years ago.
And in November 2024, following decades of efforts led by advocates to secure a brick-and-mortar venue to celebrate the music and educate the public on its history, the Go-Go Museum and Café opened its doors in D.C.’s Anacostia community.
However, the museum is now at a crossroads, according to its founder and CEO, Ron Moten. The museum has suffered from financial setbacks and a shift in funding priorities from major businesses who, over the last several months, have withdrawn their support.
But Moten, a diehard, fifth-generation Washingtonian, said he’s determined to keep the doors open and the music playing.
“I’ve been an advocate for preserving our history, music and culture for the last 30 years, as well as the co-founder of Don’t Mute DC,” he said, speaking on the movement and cultural collective that began in 2019 to protest the silencing of go-go music.
Moten noted that the Don’t Mute DC initiative not only fostered conversations about gentrification and the need for greater equity for the city’s long-term residents, but it also led to go-go becoming D.C.’s official music and the establishment of the Go-Go Museum and Café.
And while he acknowledged that the museum is surviving, it should be thriving.
“We’ve been making it because we have some amazing volunteers who have stepped forward so we can continue to offer programming – a lot of which is free,” he said. “But the cost of maintaining this facility has risen far more than we could have imagined. Our Pepco bill, for example, was $500 a month when we had our soft opening last fall. Now, it’s $1,400. We’re making something that is hard look easy. But it isn’t easy, and we can’t sustain things the way we’re going now.”
Moten added that after the election of the 47th president, attitudes changed – in many cases, for the worst.
“We had a lot of promises and commitments for financial support, but after Trump reentered the White House, a lot of our sponsors and contributors backed out.
“Many Black institutions like ours are suffering now,” he said. “In fact, I hear that unless the Anacostia Museum receives the federal funds that were approved and then canceled, they may have to close their doors. We’ve lost a few grants as well, but thankfully not all of them.”
Museum to launch its fundraising campaign on October 4th
On Saturday, Oct. 4, the museum will kick off its annual fundraising campaign with a juke-joint themed gathering, from 2 to 6 p.m., that will feature food, dancing and music provided by local favorite Raheem DeVaughn and a Blues artist from Memphis, Tenn.
The goal for the campaign, Moten said, is $500,000. And plans to better sustain the museum are already in motion.
“Go-Go music will mark its 50th anniversary in 2026 and we’re going to kick off the celebration in grand fashion on Jan. 6, 2026 at the Lincoln Theater in D.C.,” he said. “Sure, funds that come from major grants or from the region’s leading businesses and philanthropists go a long way in helping us provide free programming to D.C. youth and paying the bills. But a lot of smaller donations can also make a difference.”
Moten emphasized that it was community support that counted as the first financial contributions he received during the early stages of the museum’s development.
“The first $19,000 we received did not come from big corporations, it came from the D.C. community,” he said. “We know that people like good music – diverse music – and the museum brings people together – people from all over the world.”
“Because of the tidal wave unleashed by the White House, individuals and businesses have been discouraged from supporting Black institutions like ours,” Moten said. “I tell folks that if they just came to the museum and bought some food and merchandise, that would help significantly. People need to understand how much they can help by doing and giving just a little.”
