Beyond the Binary

Beyond the Binary is a two-year DocSong project based in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley. The project brings trans, non-binary, and gender-expansive teaching artists and storytellers to co-create original documentary songs drawn from participants’ stories.

Through a series of workshops, participants work one-on-one and in small groups with a lead teaching artist to shape their stories into songs. Over the course of the project, six original songs will be created, recorded, and shared through public performances and digital release.

Led by teaching artist Khalid Taylor, the project centers collaboration, consent, and participant voice. Each participant maintains agency in how their story is told and shared.

Beyond the Binary responds to a moment of increasing political pressure and misinformation by creating space for trans people to tell their own stories. Rather than speaking about a community, the project supports people in speaking for themselves—through music.

The resulting songs offer audiences an opportunity to engage with real stories in a direct and human way, expanding understanding of gender, identity, and belonging.