In the 70s, the Z-boys made Venice Beach famous for its quintessential lifestyle with skating and surfing. Now the hip-hop band Luminaries has increased the spotlight on the Westside as a hub of conscious and spiritual living on their full-length album "One." One features guest performers including kirtan artist C.C. White on "Surrender," I, Star [...]
From the moment I hit play on Hindi Zahra's new album Handmade I was transported to other lands. Although Hindi is a Franco-Moroccan singer, her music and production occasionally have undertones from the South Pacific of the 1950s. I was taken back to my youth watching reruns of the television show M*A*S*H with my father, [...]
When Krishna played his flute in the fields of India, the Gopis and Gopas lost themselves dancing and singing in ecstatic bliss. Fast-forward to a Trevor Hall concert in 2011 and you’ll find the audience reacting in a similar manner. It’s no wonder because when listening deeply to Hall’s newest album titled Everything, Everytime, Everywhere, [...]
Are you ready for a fresh spin on familiar mantras and melodies? This is what Donna DeLory has delivered with Remixes. This release is filled with versions of her mantras by a variety of DJs who deliver new flavor to classic favorites. Mac Quayle, Rara Avis, Eastern Sun, Desert Dwellers, Atom Smith, Dave Dale, and [...]
Music Cares Serves Those Who Sing For Their Supper Elton John and Cheryl Crow Photo: Lester Cohen/WireImage.com (c) 2010; Courtesy of: The Recording Academy(r) It’s a typical sunny day in southern California, unseasonably – yet expectedly – warm. The sky is clear, the trees are blooming. I’m on my way to live my [...]
When I first took up the practice of Yoga, I was spending a lot of time with a guitar in my hands. It was fifteen years ago and my band at the time, based in Boulder, Colorado, had just been signed. We were starting to tour with our first album and every night that we [...]
Stay Strong For the past seven years, David Newman (also known as Durga Das) has been traveling the world with his wife Mira and other band members (including beloved LA-based musician Philippo Franchini) sharing the art of kirtan (call-and-response devotional singing) live and with albums like Lotus Feet and his newest, titled To Be Home. [...]
The opening notes of Magic and Grace set the tone for an experience that is both meditative and expansive with Jeff Andrews’ hammer dulcimer dancing with Adrienne Woods’ cello. The magic continues throughout Philippo Franchini’s compositions on the gifted musician’s newest album. Magic and Grace reveals the artist’s exploration of Nada Yoga – the practice [...]
Asking Questions About Devotion, Service And Finding Home With Aimee Schoof, Founder Of Amayoga My first time walking into a homeless shelter in the infamous Skid Row, near downtown Los Angeles, I felt uneasy. I felt the furthest from home I’d ever been, even though for many people, this shelter was home – at least [...]
If you ask a yogi or yogini what keeps him or her coming back to the mat, the answer usually boils down to, “It works.” The question now gaining prominence is not, “Does it work?” but rather, “How does it work?” Dr. Susan Smalley, Founder and Director of UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center (MARC), and [...]