Wed, Mar 8
Morgan Parker
It’s great when a book’s title can succinctly summarize its thematic idea, as is the case with Morgan Parker’s new book of poetry, There Are More Beautiful Things Than Beyoncé. See her read from the intelligent and vulnerable tome that takes on issues of racism, sexism, and media consumption from a black woman’s pop-culture-infused perspective. Fred Wildlife Refuge, Free

Wed, Mar 8
Porter Ray: Watercolor Release Show
Seattle rapper Porter Ray exudes a bravado that's charming, boarding on cocky. After getting signed to Sub Pop in the summer of 2014 by Shabazz Palaces' Ishmael Butler, he's finally ready to drop his Sub Pop debut LP, Watercolors. Porter Ray's personality bleeds color across a canvas of 14 tracks of smooth ganja haze hip-hop peppered with touches that make the listener feel like they're casually hanging out with the MC in the Central District (from samples of dice game conversations to voicemails from his mom). A host of guest artists—including some fellow Black Constellation members (Shabazz Palaces, Stas Thee Boss)—help fill the edges of the sonic scene. See Porter Ray unveil Watercolor at a record release show featuring Jarv Dee, Cam the Mac, Bruce Leroy, and a DJ set by Broc. Barboza, $10

Mar 9–24 
A Tribe Called Yes
Most improv shows don’t being with a DJ scratching records to set a mood, but there’s plenty that’s atypical about Jet City Improv’s new hip-hop themed show, A Tribe Called Yes. Each night, the cast creates a fresh comedic improvised play about the world of rising rappers, feuding MCs, and fame. It’s not just the songs’ rhymes, everything here is freestyled. Jet City Improv, $12-18

Sat, Mar 11
Sound Off! 2017 Finals
After weeks of battle of the bands action, MoPop's annual Sound Off! competition is ready to crown the best under-21 musical act in the Pacific Northwest. The four finalists span the sonic landscape. Jason McCue makes weird, warbly solo alternative folk. Falon Sierra crafts her own exuberant electronic R&B. Torpoise is a one-man EDM band in the same vein as Sound Off! alum Manatee Commune (but with way more live saxophone playing). The Good Weird, the only full band that made the finals, play the type of melodic alternative rock that could easily feel at home on a Warped Tour stage. They all hope to take home the top prize—a spot on the Bumbershoot lineup—and add their name to the list of past champions like Sol, Brothers From Another, and the Lonely Forest.. MoPop, $14

Thru Sept 10 
Kraft Duntz: Fun. No Fun.
The lower level of Henry Art Gallery transforms into an exploratory world of form and space when Seattle collective Kraft Duntz (woodworker Dan Webb, architect David Lipe, sculptor Matt Sellars) teams with artist Dawn Cerny for Fun. No. Fun. A hodgepodge of colorful furniture, oblique sculpture, and overturned oddities conveys themes of polarity (purity/impurity, togetherness/ aloneness...). Henry Art Gallery, $10