UnderWater, UnderGround
Artist Residency
UnderWater, UnderGround: Final Musical Performance!
What happens when artists are given the opportunity to conduct research on the Lake Champlain Basin and share their findings? Magic happens, that's what. The mesmerizing original song, "Freedom Seekers", written and performed live by the phenomenal Vermont singer-songwriter Stephanie Wilson with backup by KeruBo Webster and a special cameo by Clemmons Family Farm's new Creative Placemaking Site Manager, Will Thompson. Who knew that history and geology could sound so good?
This song, along with a set of other original songs by Stephanie Wilson and KeruBo Webster, were performed on Sunday, November 30 from 2 pm - 4 pm at Charlotte Central School for the final event of our 2025 UnderWater, UnderGround artist-in-residence program! Each artist also gave a series of artist talks and community workshops about their creative process to research three fascinating stories about the Lake Champlain Basin area that lie just beneath the surface of general public knowledge. Their research and creative work focused on the prehistoric Beluga whale that swam in the Charlotte area 11,500 years ago, the Underground Railroad that operated in Ferrisburgh, and the surrounding area, and the freedom seekers who settled in Hinesburg.
About the Artists
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Stephanie Wilson is a Vermont multidisciplinary artist who brings together her talents as a singer, songwriter, dancer, and lyricist, rooted in performance and personal storytelling. Originally from Vermont's Northeast Kingdom, a region noted for its homogeneity, Wilson found a greater sense of belonging and cultural connection in Winooski, where she says she's surrounded by a richer tapestry of languages, backgrounds, and perspectives. Stephanie’s artistry often explores themes of generational pain and healing, sometimes delving into cycles of trauma, secrecy, and lineage—with a longing to break harmful patterns and embrace generational strength. |
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KeruBo is a Vermont singer-songwriter, cultural worker, and community advocate whose work lives at the intersection of music, healing, and heritage. Drawing from her Kisii roots and the rich traditions of African oral storytelling, she uses song both as a vessel of memory and a tool for transformation. Her lyrics—whether original or drawn from traditional folk songs—are layered with meaning, deliberately open to interpretation. This allows each listener to bring their own story into the music. Rather than offering a single, fixed message, Kerubo’s songs invite reflection, dialogue, and connection. It is this openness that extends the lifespan of her work across generations and geographies, allowing a single song to evolve with each new voice that carries it. Kerubo works across Vermont and globally to support immigrants, refugees, and marginalized communities through trauma-informed programming, cultural preservation, and creative expression. Whether leading a circle of women in a healing song, co-creating curricula for schools, or performing on stage, her work centers resilience, community, and belonging. She believes that storytelling, like healing, is not always tidy—but it is always necessary. And that sometimes, the songs we sing hold what words cannot say. KeruBo's website: kerubomusic.com |
Clemmons Family Farm is pleased to announce that Stephanie Wilson and KeruBo were our Fall 2025 artists-in-residence for our "UnderWater, UnderGround: Creatives Historize Charlotte, Vermont’s Sea Change” program. The two artists were selected for the third round of this program, following Winosha Steele and William Ransom's residencies in Fall 2023- Winter 2024, and AJ Justice and Julio Desmont's residencies in Spring-Summer 2025. The two singer-songwriters were selected based on the criteria of artistic excellence, commitment to the spirit and purpose of the residency, and availability and flexibility to fully engage in the residency.
During the residency program, which ran between May and December 2025, each artist received $4750 in artist fees; logistical support; transportation assistance, and occasional lodging and work space on the historic Clemmons Farm in Charlotte, Vermont. This support facilitated the artists’ research and creative work to develop multi-media art about Lake Champlain Basin’s ecological, geological, and cultural histories and to engage with visitors to the Farm and with surrounding communities. One of the subjects of the artists’ research was the 11,500-year-old skeleton of a Beluga whale, which was discovered in 1849, ten feet underground and just two miles south of what is now known as the Clemmons Farm.
Stephanie Wilson and KeruBo also researched the history of the Underground Railroad in the Lake Champlain Basin area. Their creative outputs included works-in-progress artist talks and presentations. UnderWater, UnderGround co-creation community art workshops and a musical performance that were free and open to the public in October and November 2025.
Clemmons Family Farm’s UnderWater, UnderGround artist-in-residence program is funded in part by an agreement awarded by the Great Lakes Fishery Commission (GLFC) to the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission (NEIWPCC) in partnership with the Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP), and by grants from the Vermont Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.
