Fourth of July Musings
Happy Fourth of July and welcome to the new blog!
As an immigrant (and a refugee), this particular holiday has been deeply meaningful to me since we'd first come to the U.S..
For one, despite all of the turmoil and chaos in recent times, I'm beyond words grateful to live in a place where I can be a part of evenings like last Friday night. That night, we'd joined our friends Jeanseburg & Drew Torres Trio at our Bronx staple Jimmy Ryan's to raise money (along with our partner Elfenworks) for a charity called Hardcore Animal Rescue, as suggested to us by our friend Davey.
And from the outside, it might have appeared like a fairly ordinary show on a Friday night.
But in the midst of it all, particularly while performing "Deeper" (a song about universal love and inclusion, as captured below by Benito Loria), it hit me that this was a special kind of moment to savor. This weekend was the anniversary of the day my family had fled to this country from war in Chechnya. Now, several years later, here we are: in a place where we are free to gather with friends and family, to celebrate sounds and art, and to raise money for something meaningful to us.
THAT'S what America is all about to me. What it has and will always be about. I can't express just how grateful I am for that. Please support the artists (and charity) below and check out the video that was captured by our friend.
Drew Torres Trio