In this session, we will explore the ways in which collectives of artists and avant-garde thinkers and dreamers have refused to submit to the rhythms of an oppressive system which both exploits cultural workers and commodifies the music and the artist alike. We will traverse the worlds of the savant Black Jazz and Strata East labels, as well as the feminist label Olivia. The pulse of improvisation and experimentation will be the thread that we unweave to see how new ways of being can indeed transpire.