Music In The Grove: One On One With Plunky & Oneness

The popular “Music In The Grove” concert series will return to Richard Bland College on Saturday, April 20. Gifted cover band Drew Dunbar & The Loyal Skeptics will be first to grace the stage, followed by legendary funk ensemble, Plunky & Oneness. Admission to the concert is free, but you will need to pack a lawn chair. There will also be a nice helping of local favorite food trucks on-site.

We got a chance to speak with Plunky & Oneness band leader James “Plunky” Branch about his band’s longevity and what he has in store for this year’s “Music In The Grove.”

Q: What’s the inspiration behind your band’s name?

A: Plunky & Oneness refers to an observation and belief that I have that African music in the diaspora—which includes Afrobeats, jazz, and soul music—all constitute one body of music. The music I play comes with several different genre names, but they all have certain similarities. They all have improvisation, high energy and polyrhythms.

Q: How do you and your band complement each other during performances?

A: In several ways—all of my musicians are very accomplished because we’ve been doing it for a long time. I’ve been performing music in Richmond for 50 years. My brother—who plays the bass—has been with me 40 of those years. Two of my bandmates are musicians I taught at Virginia Union University and they’re almost 50. My singers have been with me for about 30 years. I’m the elder of the group and the youngest person in the group is my son who plays electronic percussion. The range of ages and musical experiences adds to the quality of the music. They share my philosophy of rhythm, improvisation and the use of energy. Quite frankly, the aesthetics we have are based on an African principle, “the value of the music is measured by the positive effect on the community.” We relate to our music not just for the virtuosity of our performance, but based on what we can share with the community and the positive impact we can have uplifting it.

Q: How do you approach your performances? How about “Music In The Grove” in particular?

A: I often say my job is to do my best and to give my all, whatever the venue—whether it’s 10 people or 10,000. The setting of the “Music In The Grove” concert is so phenomenally and aesthetically pleasing. I’m based in Richmond and while I’ve performed in the Petersburg area a few times, it’s not my normal stomping grounds. So it presents the challenge of whether or not people will come out for Plunky & Oneness. But last year, we had a phenomenally large crowd—it was very gratifying. So this year, the challenge is meeting the expectations of what we’re expected to be.

Q: What can attendees expect from the band this year?

A: This time, we will be performing a couple of brand new tunes because we have a new album that just came out in January—it’s called Love Is Everywhere. We will perform two or three songs from that album, as well as old favorites.

NOTE: This interview has been edited for brevity.