Forum from the Archives: Fremont's Sid Sriram Fuses New Genres with Family Legacy of Traditional Indian Singing
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From KQED. From KQED in San Francisco, I'm Alexis Madrigal. And all this week, we're listening back to forums live in studio performances by great Bay Area musicians. Today, Sid Sriram, he's a famous singer in southern India where he was born in the city of Chennai. But Sriram moved to the U.S. to Fremont, California at the age of one.

His sound is the product of his family's legacy as traditional Indian musicians and a childhood in the Bay Area suburbs listening to jazz and hip-hop. He came into our studio to sing for us and to talk about his transnational life. That's all coming up next, right after this news.

Welcome to Forum. I'm Alexis Madrigal. Sid Sriram is a rising star in the musical world with the transnational sound that combines his family's Carnatic musical traditions with his own musical taste and his training at Berklee School of Music. He joins us here this morning in Studio B. Welcome, Sid. Thank you for having me.

So, we're going to jump right in with a song. We're going to try and do this fun thing where you're going to sing some of the song for us here, a cappella, in the studio, and then we're going to hear some of the recording too so people can hear how your voice gets placed into the mix. And I think you're going to do the dance first, right? Yeah, that's first. Cool. Cool, let's get into it. I have far lines older than sunshine covered in gold Still don't know how I'm getting home

♪ Ready for peace, yeah, deep in my soul ♪ ♪ Mm-hmm ♪ ♪ Vice is clean, no, I'm not letting go ♪ ♪ Hey ♪ ♪ Ooh, never ♪ ♪ Ooh ♪ ♪ Nothing's normal, we'll be never one ♪ ♪ Several moments pass and fade to camouflage ♪ ♪ Ah ♪

Wilted under the sunlight like a corsage Thinking 'bout the days they was Green lights, your green eyes, I fall back Bring back the street fights I brought there for you Green lights, your green eyes, I fall back Don't I know that you're the only one

We're here in the studio with Sid Sriram.

We just heard an amazing vocal rendition of the beginning of that song, and then we transitioned right into the recorded version. The single's out for this, right? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, but not the full album. That'll be coming out in July. You know, what is this song really about? I mean, I've heard you talk about it maybe being about kind of trying to find a home. Sure. It's about the search for home, or like the understanding of what home really is, and

You know, I was born in Chennai, grew up in Fremont. And I think because of that, being away from the place of my roots or building roots in a new place, this idea of trying to find identity, trying to find what home is and really define that has been something that's on my mind since I was very young. Yeah.

And this song was just kind of encapsulating that set of emotions and the realization ultimately that home is not necessarily a physical place, but a collection of memories, of people, of moments. And the deep, profound understanding that home is something that you can kind of carry with you. And I'm moving about a whole lot. And I've been doing that for almost like a decade now. And so, you know, the movement about the world and...

Being constantly on the move, I guess, allowed the thought process to really take shape within me. And this song is the first time I feel like I was able to really articulate that thought and emotion in a way that felt representative of the spectrum of what you were feeling. Yeah, yeah.

I mean, you know, one time I was working on a story in Chennai, and, like, every person that I was interviewing for the story, like, their family went back, like, ten generations. Yeah. In, like, one neighborhood of that city. Sure. Is that the situation from your family there, or is it more complicated than that? Well, we... If you look back, like, three generations, there's a couple villages. My dad, his village is called Parmanedi, and it's close to Tanjawut. My mom's is...

Also close by. But I think at least two generations moved to what was then Madras, then later became Chennai. Yeah. So, you know, another definition of home is kind of like where you grew up. You grew up in Fremont. I mean, what was your Fremont like? I mean, you were like 33. Yeah, exactly. So you're 33. Was your Fremont like...

in Indian Fremont? Was it a, not an Indian Fremont? Like, how involved were you with the community, which is quite large, I think? Sure. So we moved here in 91. I was a year old. My mom started her music institution in Fremont in 92. Mm-hmm.

It's a vocal Carnatic music institution. So really so much of my framework of understanding what Fremont is and was, was based on our school and the students kind of, you know,

from a very early age coming into the house and, and music always being around. So the Indian culture and my rootedness to it has always been through music and specifically through her school. And, um, even once I started, you know, public school, I went to Gomes and then Hopkins junior high and then missions as a high school. Uh,

You know, there's a large Indian community in Fremont and where I went to school, there's many Indian folks. So I feel like it was very much an Indian experience or Indian American experience. So much of what I understood of the United States growing up was that. And I'm grateful for it. I think it allowed me...

you know, to a degree, a sense of belonging, even though in pop culture and a lot of what we were taking in in terms of music and entertainment and all that didn't have people that looked like me necessarily. When I went to school, there was, you know, everywhere we looked, it was a lot of it. So there was also a sense of belonging

of living in a bubble because you go out into the world and I went to college in Boston and that's very much not what it's like, you know? Yeah. But I'm grateful for it. It really allowed me almost a cocoon, you know, culturally. And then you break out of that and then you still have that within you when you venture out into the world. Yes.

You know, you mentioned that your mother had this music school. She sang Carnatic music. Your grandfather as well was one of your teachers as a young person. For those of us whose ears are not yet tuned to the patterns of this music, teach us a little bit about how to listen to that. Because you do incorporate it in your music and we'll get to some of the music you release in India as well later in the show. So yeah, how do we listen to it?

I think, well, Carnatic music is a very nuanced form where there are these rules and parameters that you operate within, and they're quite set.

but the fun of it as a musician is finding the liberation within those parameters. So I think what I'll talk about mainly is, is the melodic construct within Carnatic music, which is the Raga construct. And there's hundreds and hundreds of Ragas. Each Raga is basically the way I define is a melodic universe. Um, and there's a, a, a scale of sorts that's ascending and descending. Um,

And if I'm getting too technical... No, no, no. This is exactly what I wanted. I mean, the immediate thing that pops up for me is kind of thinking of like the blues. Sure. So in a very similar way, you know how the blues, there is a technical, like there's scales and such, but it's really based on the feeling of it. And when it comes to life is when a musician has imbibed

not just the technique but also the ethos and the spirit of it to a point where when they're performing it they're living it right so with Carnatic music these ragas um I think the best way for me to explain it would just be to like sing one yeah yeah yeah sure this is a raga called Kalyani and um

The notes I just sang, they're called swarams, which is similar to Western like solfege. So that scale basically gives you your outer parameters of how you can operate within said raga. And then based on that, there are phrases that...

like building blocks basically that you can pull from when you're improvising or that's what the compositions are all based off of. So it's also a highly improvisational form. So when I'm taking Carnatic music and kind of breathing it into my Western contemporary music, a lot of times that's based on improvisational ideas that I'm letting kind of sit on

amongst other melodic ideas from the Western context. So you've got these, I'll call them melodic galaxies because you're moving between them. I love it. Yeah, sure. So you're improvising in the Western style or you're just like feeling into a beat and then you see like a path into the melodic galaxy of a particular raga and you just move into there? Yeah, sure. So let's say, I'll just make something up right now. So we have to go so far away.

So, you know, just like a quick phrase. Yeah. And then you can like, you can play with it pretty infinitely actually. Oh man, that's beautiful. That's so fun. We're talking with and we're listening to musician Sid Sriram.

He is singing for us. He's teaching us a little bit of Carnatic music. We're going to talk about what it's like to become a star in India. We'd love to hear from you. Do you know Sid? Maybe you went to high school with him. What's it like to hear him playing this music out in the world? The number is 866-733-6786. Perhaps you grew up listening to or singing Indian Carnatic music.

What's it like to hear it on the radio? And what's something that you love about it? You can give us a call. The number is 866-733-6786. You can email forum at kqed.org. You can find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. We're KQED Forum. I'm Alexis Madrigal. We'll be back with more with Sid Sriram right after the break. Change is always happening. It's part of life.

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They wield the power of the law to protect people's health, preserve magnificent places and wildlife, and advance clean energy to combat climate change. Earthjustice fights in court because the Earth needs a good lawyer. Learn more about how you can get involved and become a supporter at earthjustice.org. Welcome back to Forum. I'm Alexis Madrigal. We're talking with and listening to musician Sid Sriram today.

His music combines sort of musical traditions that he grew up with here in the Bay Area with the other ones he grew up with here in the Bay Area in the Indian Carnatic musical tradition. You can give us a call about his music or your relationship to it, a component of it. The number is 866-733-6786. That's 866-733-6786. The email is forum at kqed.org, or you can find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. We're KQED Forum.

Sid, I think you're going to perform some verses from a song that we played at the very top. Is it Dear Sahana? Yeah. Yeah. I'll do that right now. I felt strangely frail heart still there. Terrified I won't you let me in. It's weary for you my fears aside.

Just as quiet as the You left in the early morning I'm back again Won't you please let me in Who found your number? Don't know I should call All the different ways You make me feel Could it be that distance Made this love Disarm You make me feel There are some times That we fall from grace

Searching for infinite love. Oh, how I try to go on my own. But every path. Found your hometown. Make this space. Make this love. Make this love.

We're here in the studio with Sid Sriram. We just heard another amazing rendition of Dear Sahana and a little bit of the recorded version there so you can hear the full instrumentation.

You know, I want to talk a little bit about the ways that through your career you've tried to kind of link the kind of American music that you were encountering. I mean, you grew up, you were like a teenager in Hy-Fee's, like, peak, you know? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And you also were listening, you know, you love the local jazz station around here. Did you always try to combine these things or did you kind of keep them on separate tracks? Yeah.

Um, so I really discovered like soul music around like seven or eight. And I've talked about this a little bit, but like Stevie Wonder and Donny Hathaway, Sam Cooke, like these were like some huge tower of power, like just influences people.

especially vocally, because I think I was always searching for, like Carnatic music has a lot of vocal embellishment and there's a lot of, there's called Sangadis, but the way that we twist and turn the notes and all that. And I was always kind of searching for the equivalent of,

in in western music and when i found that in like soul music with the riffing or like even in like you're mentioning the blues like bb king was a huge influence when i found that kind of thing i was i was just immediately drawn to it how was that note bending yeah and just like the way that they could ornament a phrase um it really just like grabbed me on a spiritual level so i think like subconsciously i was always kind of trying to find the bridges and and the way that

Um, the two different worlds could intertwine with one another, but then consciously there was this identity crisis where I was like, this is Indian me, this is American me, and I'm going to keep them separate as a, as a means of just staying sane growing up and like, you know, um,

And that mindset followed me when I really started songwriting and all that in 2008, just around, where I would compose a piece and then I'd leave a section open for Indian classical improv. But it was still siloed, where this is your Indian classical section and then everything else is a different aesthetic. Through the process of making...

The current album that's going to be coming out, that's when I really think I was able to, in effect, you know, just like completely tear that barrier down and let it become this kaleidoscopic kind of like depending on what way you shine the light on it, you're going to get something different from it. And it didn't become like, here's this and here's that. It was all one stream.

with all the different influences really swimming together and within one another. What do you think unlocked that? Was that just, you know, growing into yourself as a person? So like around 2016, I started doing this like six to eight months in Chennai. So I, where I would live there for like half the year, a little bit more than that. And at that point,

My relationship with the country I was born in became more of my own rather than one that was through the lens of my parents or relatives. You know, growing up, a lot of us that...

moved here or like grew up here that are Indian art, our connection to India is very much like go there for two months in the summer by the end of summer, dying to come back and be with the friends over here. You know, like, um, especially growing up with like no internet and stuff when I was really young, we easy to get bored or whatever. Um, but when I was able to really make my relationship grow my own roots over there, build a life there and, um,

you know, see it for, for what it was for me, uh, that allowed a certain level of embracing of identity and culture that was so profound that I didn't really think could happen. Once that really clicked, uh, I, I lost the desire to try to be like, this is this aspect of me and this is this aspect of me. I'm never gonna, it really like, and it was a, a process, you know, it didn't happen immediately, but over those two to three years, um,

the walls kind of like by themselves, it just dismantled. So then when I went into making this record,

I was already in a space where I wasn't thinking in that way anymore. Just like subconsciously, it's always been there that this is all one thing. But consciously, that was gone out of my brain. So I was able to create from a space of true freedom, which is what I think allowed it. I love that. Let's bring in Marilyn in El Cerrito. Welcome, Marilyn. Hi. I listen to your program every day, but I'm a first-time caller. Hey, welcome. And...

Thank you. Thank you. I love your program. I'm calling because I wanted to say that I'm a painter, and I spend a lot of time at a residency outside of Delhi, India, and I did my paintings every day to ragas. And I love the way your guest is combining his own personal painting

feelings and the karate to the ragas it's really wonderful thank you yeah thank you Marilyn really appreciate that that call let's get to a second on Roku say go to Rishi in Berkeley welcome

Hey, I just wanted to say, I thought the music was lovely and beautiful, and that's my first time hearing it, so it was actually quite amazing. I'm Indian American, and one thing that I've noticed is that, especially my parents, and kind of a similar thing that your guest was just saying, Sid was just saying, you know, they're very unemotional in their speech, like when they're talking, and the one outlet for emotion feels like it's music or dance, and so that was kind of the thing I wanted to share. Yeah.

Yeah, totally. I mean, was that how it worked for you? Like, was this a line of connection to your parents outside of, you know, spoken word?

Sure. I think there's definitely, especially with my mom, she's a musician, comes from generation, but my father as well is very kind of deeply involved and has always been in what I do. He's not a musician at all. He doesn't really have a musical bone in his body. Sorry, Dad. He'll be the first one to say it. But I think as a unit, music and the arts and dance has always been at the very core of what we do, and it's allowed a certain level of

connection that is definitely non-verbal and there's like sixth sense almost like understanding one another through that perspective it's something very powerful so yeah definitely because your sister too is also involved in the arts she's a dancer yes and so this has been like the whole well at least

your mom, you, and your sister could, like, perform together. Yeah, so growing up when we were quite young, we used to all sing together, actually. And I just saw a picture at our home in Fremont. I took a picture of it on my phone. But it was me, my mom, my sister, my mom in the center, and performing on stage. And we used to do that a lot. It was definitely, like I said, such an elemental part of our lives. My sister, she's a movement artist, a dancer, and an academic. And...

you know, growing up, we would perform together. She would dance and I would provide vocal support. And it allowed us like this, again, this deep synergy where we didn't have to really say much. We just understood what the other was going to do. She's a couple of years older than me. So she's also been a source of a lot of not only inspiration, but just like our conversations, the knowledge that she just brings to life and the arts as well, um, has allowed me this perspective of like deep trust and, um,

Yeah, she's incredible. Yeah. You know, while we're on the topic of family, we have a great question from Anu in Cupertino. Welcome, Anu.

Hey Anu, can you hear me? Yeah, go ahead, you're on. Yeah, yeah. Thank you Alexis. Yeah, Sid, we listen to you all the time. I have a 14-year-old son. We are Indian-American who learns Carnatic music, lives in the Bay Area. So my question for you is for kids who don't speak the native language, right, even though they learn the song in Carnatic music, what suggestions or recommendations would you give on how they can, you know, improve their language skills without feeling pressured or something like that? Sure.

Sure. I think specifically in the context of music, things that have helped me is spending the time to understand the lyric, even if it's in a language that one doesn't understand in a conversational way. Really taking the time to understand and break it down. Word by word, yeah. Yeah. And there's a really deep kind of connection that is formed when that happens. That's one. And then phonetically taking the time to...

on, you know, just spend time with the words and, and figure out the proper pronunciation of the words. Because once that happens, there's a certain connection that happens that is, uh, you know, it can't, it can't be replicated in any other way. The kind of tying together of melody and lyric, especially in Carnatic music is, is really beautiful. And it can be a mechanism to then want to, um, just dive into the languages even more. I think if it's

started off as like a creative pursuit and and through the music that can open up passageways to really just have the desire as a teenager to want to understand the language more strengthen one's relationship with it so on hey anna thank you so much for that question um i do want to play another piece of your music um maybe you can intro it a little bit um it is a song that you did with uh

AR Raman, right? And it was kind of the one that launched you. So maybe set us up and then we'll listen to it. Sure. So my debut in Indian cinema was in 2012 with a song called Arie. Then I had another one or a couple that came out a couple years after that. But this one that we're going to play now is called Talipo Ga De Tintamo, which is my mother tongue. And it came out on January 1st, 2016. And

And I really couldn't have been prepared for what happened after because once that song released, it just really blew up not only the piece itself, but my name and my likeness kind of really was catapulted at that point. So this is that song, Thalli Pogaade. All right, let's listen. The sky is changing The earth is falling The path is increasing The mind is saying something The eyes are looking

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

Oh

All right, we were listening. This was Sid Sriram's breakout hit in India. It's in Tamil. It was in Kaliwood, right? That's the... Yeah, I will say, and I think this is more something that people are trying to move, and I've kind of like used the terms...

But, you know, like, the use of the wood, like Bollywood, Hollywood, it always felt like... I used to feel this when I was younger, and then I've seen it as, like, a trend more recently, where it felt like we were trying to pull from Hollywood, you know, or just, like, not mimic necessarily, but emulate, perhaps, the West, where now, like...

it feels like it's just called Indian cinema or like Tamil cinema or Telugu. Yeah. Which is kind of what I prefer. But yeah, it's, it's, it's in Tamil is this film. And it was, yeah, it was a great experience doing it. I mean, what's it like for you listening to the song now? So we've performed it a lot in the last like decade or not decade, but like since it came out, like I've performed on stage a whole bunch. I haven't listened to that particular recording. I want to say in like,

four years or something like that. It's been a while. So it was definitely a trip listening back. Took me right back to recording it with what they are. So it feels like a blast from the past is what it felt like. I mean, do you... How do I ask this question? Do you like both kinds of music? Or is this kind of like... This is your commercial work almost and then the stuff that you're making...

you know, right now for this new album is something else. Like, what's the relationship for you between those two types of musical releases? No, I don't really like...

segment them in that way because I deeply love those songs and especially working with AR who's a hero of mine since I was like super young those pieces are very creatively gratifying and there's a lot that I was able to take from it but so I'm a playback singer over there so basically I go into the studio a song is composed lyrics are written and the situation the film is set

And my job over there is to really breathe life into it based on what the composer needs from me. So there is a layer of separation for sure. But,

though I am, the songs are deeply embedded in my spirit and I give my heart to them. Um, they're not my story. Uh, with this album, especially it feels like a direct manifestation of all the aspects of who I am deeply personal. When I write my music, the songs are very introspective and kind of diving into exist existential questions that I have. And, you know, so the, the level of vulnerability that comes, um,

from the music that I write myself is quite different from the songs that I sing for film. But what I also realize is like that's within myself. Once these songs are out and in the world, what people take from it could be super vulnerable. And, you know, so I try to keep not my judgment. I try to keep my self out.

of just like the, not conversation, but the thought process, like once the song is out in the world. But I feel deeply connected to both. This, my own music just feels like it's more representative of who I am. Yeah, of just your thinking. Yeah, yeah.

We're talking with and listening to the musician Sid Sriram, Fremont's finest. Stay tuned for more. You can give us a call. The number is 866-733-6786. Or you can email us at forum at kqed.org. We're going to hear some more music and we're going to get to more calls and comments right after the break.

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Welcome back to Forum. I'm Alexis Madrigal. We're joined in Studio B by musician Sid Sriram this morning. Amazing music blending Carnatic traditional Indian classical music and a whole variety of Western traditions. Listener Aaron writes in to say, this is an amazing show today. My son died last year in July at 18 years old, and I found some solace in music.

I found that sound can be so calming and healing. The right notes can calm and soothe almost anything. I had to write in to say that Sid's voice is so soothing. I can imagine just sitting, listening to him, and feeling the sound waves move through my body to help me heal. Amazing. Just amazing. Please say thank you to him, and I can't wait to explore his music. That's beautiful. Thank you so much.

We're going to play Blue Space from your Tiny Desk concert. So this was a live performance that Sid did in D.C. at NPR. I mean, maybe tell us a little bit before, because we're going to listen to it for a while. Tell us a little bit about what this song is for you or what it represents. Yeah, I feel like it's really two things. One, it's a song that I've been listening to for a long time.

Ego death is at kind of like the very core of one of the components of it. And the other thing is through that ego death is the asserting of one's place in the world or the universe. You know, once you take the ego out of it, you see things a little bit more clearly. And at that point, you can really like...

Plant your feet. You know, so I think it's those two things. And it ends with healing too. Yeah. Yeah. For sure. Okay. Let's listen in. This is Blue Spaces, right? Yeah. By Sid Sreeram. Sreeram.

Blue spaces.

Blue spaces coming down on me Blue spaces Blue spaces coming down on me The ways we steal Flocks of velvet on our fingers Moments sacred and unreal Before there was light, there was a sound

Slowly we're making our way back Beautiful watching the waves stack Space is bigger than the waves gap Can you ever understand There are no saints And there is no key It doesn't matter the petals they scatter But never to rub the culture Rubbing me is rubbing culture Rubbing us is rubbing culture Why you trying to rub the culture All the ways we steal

Oh, man. We're listening to Sid Sriram's Tiny Desk performance of the song Blue Spaces. It is just so powerful. I mean, those synth washes, those piano stabs.

The canonic variations, the striations, the voice, the whole thing is so... I mean, I've obviously listened to this song many times in the last 48 hours. It's so interesting, so good. Do you want to reflect on anything that you hear in it this time, like hearing this specific performance that you did out there? Yeah, I mean, the whole process of making this album was just a real exercise in collaboration. And when I was a bit younger, I used to think, like, oh, I want to do everything, like play all the instruments and...

make all the decisions and be super precious about all that stuff. And this was the first time in my life really where I was amidst just a group of people where we were all passing ideas around. And it was true collaboration at its finest without ego involved. And I think when I listen to this right now,

And it's been like a, you know, I listened to it quite a bit once it came out, but it's been like, let's say a week. You're like, hey, that was pretty good. But what I hear the most is just like the interaction between the different layers and how we were really listening to each other. Um, especially with the song being about like, you know, like the ego death that I was talking about, the healing that comes from that, um, this idea that, uh,

We're like a family, like a unit that really we lean on each other a lot, especially on and off stage. And in this, I could just hear the different components coming in and out so subtly and with restraint, and we were all just in there with each other. That's the first thing that really jumped out at me listening back to it. I mean, when those guys come in on the harmonies, oh, man. Yeah, they killed it. So nice. And then the drummer, just perfectly articulate. It was awesome. Let's bring in...

Barty in Pinoa, welcome. Hi, can you hear me okay? Yeah, I can. Go ahead.

Okay. Hi. Yeah, I'm Indian American, and I grew up with Indian classical music in my home. My dad is a tabla player, so the world of tabla is its own rabbit hole that one could dive into. But I just wanted to say to Sid that you're brilliant in what you're doing, and really it's reminiscent, at least to me, of something that the Beatles were doing, right? And its introduction of Indian classical music to the world or to the West, which is

bringing language as a bridge to get some familiarity with some styles of music that normally maybe one would not listen to because there might be a language distance. Maybe it's not typically sung in English. And so you're really, in my opinion, you're really kind of carrying the baton of the kind of work that the Beatles did, and I think it's brilliant, and I thank you.

That means a whole lot. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. I mean, how did you, I mean, you know, I'm assuming you've heard those Beatles tracks that incorporate, you know, traditional instruments from India. How did you interpret that as a kid? Were you like, oh, that's cool? Or were you kind of like, oh, the Beatles kind of stole my thing? No, no, I loved it. My dad put me onto the Beatles when I was quite young. He bought a CD of the Magical Mystery Tour album. And that kind of like spirit exists very deeply in that album. Like,

a bunch of songs or even just like the feeling of it, you know? And I think that's what... I love that album just off rip and I was quite young. I didn't understand all the production decisions and stuff, but something about it just really resonated with me. And I think like thinking back on it, especially after The Last Caller's comment, I think it made its way into my thought of what is...

A way to sing in English but still bring in this aesthetic or this deep-rootedness from another culture. How can they live? So it's not just like ahs, but really taking a word and treating it a certain way. And I do it in Sahana a lot where it's... Let me just pull a specific line. There are some times we fall, we fall from grace. Oh, how I try to...

There's like a couple times, basically. Yeah. Where it happens where there'll be like...

a specific Indian run or a classical run, if you may, but with an English-like lyric. And that, I think, subconsciously would have come from listening to some of the stuff that the Beatles did where... Like, there's, like, specific things that they did where you could tell they were pulling from Indian melodic kind of constructs, but with the English language. So, yeah, I always loved it. Yeah, for sure. Let's...

Let's go to Ruby in San Jose. Welcome, Ruby. Oh, hi. Thanks for taking my call. Yeah, I was listening to your program, and I just love that music so much because I remember I used to go to Mountain View, and I used to buy the CDs. And I think you are doing a pioneer work transitioning the Indian music into American music.

and in the English language, which gives me a chance to understand the language better.

And because I just loved the rhythm and the melody of the songs, but I didn't understand the language. And I think this is a great work by you. You're doing a pioneer work over here. Anyway, that's all I have to say. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. We also, we have a surprise for us and you. We've got Usha in Fremont. Welcome.

Oh, hi. Good morning. This is Usha Iyer, Nick's Durante. How are you?

I'm doing fine, Karna. Actually, I'm so thrilled you're back home here, even though you're born in India and this is your home, definitely. And I'm so, I would say one thing, though, jazz became more popular through you, for me, you know, and I really welcome that. And your voice is

is fantastic and I hear all your music and Usha was it good from when he was a little kid like do you remember him performing oh my god you're adorable you were adorable he was adorable and he looked nice he sang

His mom was so well-disciplined teacher. My son went for learning, too. All those things are for fun, but they didn't become anything like what he is. But Sid is so fantastic. You know, I think I am so proud of him for being for a small town. Not small town. I shouldn't say Fremont. It's a small town.

amazing that I'm so happy that I could at least talk to him through radio right now Usha you're making me so happy we're just we're just beaming in here right now she's one of the yeah we've known them for so long it's so good to hear your voice auntie thank you oh thank you come by sometime bye bye good day all the bye thank you Usha we so appreciate that um cheers uh

Sid, we gotta have you, you have some other new music. Again, the album's gonna be out this summer. There's some singles out, though, that you can go check out. Blue Space is right now. So, Dear Sahana and Do the Dancer out right now. Okay, okay. And then we're gonna put another one out late this month, and the album comes out in July. That's beautiful. Yeah. So why don't you do another one of your new pieces for us, acapella, here in the studio. So this song is called Should've Been There. Should've Been There. And it's unreleased. It's unreleased.

Like eternal waves In eternal wind I think I saw the edge Should've been there I flew too close to the sun Wings burnt Don't know where to go I think I saw the edge Should've been there

Bells ring and the deaf still cry. Felt first and we start to question why. Silhouette coming somewhere inside. There seems to be parts of a tie. Unto leave, unto leave. Like eternal wave, an eternal wind. Take us out of here. Why?

Should've been there Should've been there Come alive

Amazing. Sid Sriram singing. Should have been there. Should have been there. Should have been there. Should have been there. Yeah. Another comment for you. And it's fascinating. These comments are coming. Kate writes him to say, I find Sid music to be so healing and life affirming at this time in my life. My sister-in-law died in April and her memorial is this weekend. And his music is helping me through this acceptance of her passing.

Sid's music is a beautiful example of what the Bay Area can deliver in terms of cultural synthesis. Artists are always there for us, showing us the way to experience the world and be in the world with love and joy. Is it often that people say to you, like, man, your music helps me heal from something? Or is it just our listeners are picking up on that this morning? It's... Yeah. Yeah. You know, I've...

Since I started performing quite young, I was like three when I first started at UC Berkeley, actually. But we would have like, since my mom had the school, different people coming through the house and I would sing songs. And one memory early on was just this older woman, a mom of one of my mom's adult students. So she must have been like 60, 65 or so. And she came to visit. They were having chai. My mom had me sing a song.

And I viscerally remember just like she started tearing up and I must've been maybe like eight or nine years old around there. And that was just like this profound experience for me. Cause up until that point, it was more of this, like, I loved the attention. I'm on stage. Yeah. And, and people would always, you know, be very, uh,

just like kind of dazzled or whatever. But this was the first time where I was like, Oh, this has a, an impact on someone like molecularly where it causes this kind of the deep reaction. So yeah, it's something I've always heard. It's something I don't take lightly at all. Um, it never gets, uh,

It's always a trip to hear that. You know, it's just a responsibility, I guess, and a deep, deep honor and just blessing. We're thinking about you, Aaron, thinking about you, Kate. We've been talking with and listening to musician Sid Sriram. His forthcoming album is Siddharth Coming this summer, right? Yes, that's right. Man, thank you so much for this morning. Thank you for having me. This has been so beautiful. We so appreciate it.

This is a long, long time. We're going to go out on it. I'm Alexis Madrigal. I hope you enjoyed this forum from the archive. Stay tuned for another one of our favorite past episodes with host Mina Kim.

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