Ursula Rucker & Tim Motzer

Legendary Philly Poet Ursula Rucker continues the stories with longtime collaborator and world renowned guitarist Tim Motzer for their Begin Anew Tour and return to Europe in 2024.

“From the moment that Ursula Rucker and Tim Motzer first unified their singular magical words-and-music efforts on the historic stages of Philly’s Tower Theater, opening for the legendarily conscious Nina Simone, all bets have been thrown off the table. Whether appearing within the intimate confines of a duet setting or something broader (but no less intrinsic and interpersonal), the divine cacophonous wordsmith and the clamorous textural guitarist have created tactile, co-joined waves of nuance and noise, of beauty, sex, strife and solace. Alone they are epic. Together, Rucker and Motzer are crucial, an emotional, intergalactic soulful soundscape too rare and too righteous to miss.”

Ursula Rucker and Tim Motzer have been working together for a long time, since 1998— from Sylk 130 days in Philadelphia, and then starting a duet relationship in 2000 that went on to become a long-term friendship and co-artist-ship of...recording, touring all over the world together starting in 2001 that brought them to legendary festivals (like rocking Miles Davis Hall at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland, Montreal International Jazz Festival, The Big Chill Festival in England, The Mosaic Fest in Singapore, The Belgrade Jazz Festival in Serbia) and countless renowned music/art/theatre venues doing their experiential LIVE concerts (workshops, symposiums, classes as well) for 20+ years....collaborating with wonderful musicians/artists/people...across many genres, practices and places.

“We’ve created our own live thing that’s very special. We’re serious about what we do. It’s transformative for us and continues to be that way. We continue to share this special energy along with the multi-levels of poetry and music in all genres sharing it with the world. The beauty of Story, in this live thing, is a big part of what it is all about. Rocking the space, activating everyone, sharing these song poems...these stories. I want people to feel. We create a real vibe and experience when we do what we do LIVE...and we love to share it. We feel, we move, and we ruminate in/on all kinds of word/sound expression.”

With the Begin Anew Tour Europe ’24, Ursula Rucker and Tim Motzer bring an electrifying sonic gumbo, a collision of all genres, including new works, house music, hip hop, electronic, plus classic tracks from Ursula’s records as well songs from the many collaborations over the years with artists such as such as 4Hero, The Roots, King Britt, and most recently Hannes Bieger, Charles Webster, amongst others.

Ursula Rucker
Mother, Poet, Singer, recording artist, activist, teacher Ursula Rucker is a certified veteran of the global music and poetry scene. A skilled writer and dynamic performer, Rucker’s rich and textured voice is one of the world’s great, living instruments. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Rucker began to share her poetic gifts in her 20s, performing at open mics in the city before two standout recorded performances announced to the world that Rucker was an emerging force to be reckoned with.

Tim Motzer
Tim is a technicolor multi-layered guitarist, a sonic pioneer—widely known for his distinct textural acoustic-electro guitar voice utilizing live looping, bowing, electronics, and prepared techniques. He has collaborated with numerous musical luminaries including David Sylvian, Burnt Friedman, Jaki Liebezeit (CAN), poet Ursula Rucker, King Britt, Jamaaladeen Tacuma, Vernon Reid, David Torn, Pat Mastelotto (King Crimson), and Percy Jones (Brand X, Eno), among others. Tim is multi-instrumentalist, producer, recording engineer, composer for dance and film, improviser, visual artist, and runs his own label: 1k Recordings—with over 65 releases of his solo and collaborative work.