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Samora Pinderhughes believes that music can and must change the world, and he crafts his songs to reach the tender spots we all share. The Berkeley-raised composer, pianist, vocalist, filmmaker and multidisciplinary artist is known for both his consummate, conservatory-trained musicianship and the striking intimacy and radical honesty of his lyrics. He can turn the spotlight inward, like on his haunting 2024 album Venus Smiles Not In the House of Tears, or plumb the depths of America’s carceral system. A protégé of MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship-winning actor, playwright and activist Anna Deavere Smith, he collaborates with artists such as Herbie Hancock, Glenn Ligon, Sara Bareilles, Simone Leigh, Daveed Diggs, Kyle Abraham, Lalah Hathaway and Common. Working in the tradition of Black surrealists throughout the African Diaspora, Pinderhughes seeks to bend words, sounds and images toward the cause of revolution. With his supple, achingly vulnerable vocals, jazz-steeped piano and innovative approach to designing songs, he’s carved out a singular path by incorporating a myriad of hidden voices. Presented in partnership with MoAD and SFJAZZ, this afternoon offers Pinderhughes’ latest dispatches from the frontlines of human connection.

Setting the stage for Pinderhughes’ revelations is the soul-steeped Oakland-based hip hop jazz collective SOL Development. Pushing back against despair and working through grief, the four teachers and freedom fighters of Sound of Light Development blend imaginative musicianship, virtuoso vocalists and a master emcee to illuminate today’s cultural and political climate. The band offers music that allows the listener to feel empowered in finding their own activism and healing, embracing Nina Simone’s belief that an artist’s duty is to reflect the times.

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