Details

Vocalist Martha Redbone, celebrated for her distinctive blend of folk, blues, and gospel, is joined by American Patchwork Quartet – comprised of vocalist Falu Shah, guitarist and vocalist Clay Ross, drummer Clarence Penn, and bassist Yasushi Nakamura – for This Land is Our Land, an evening of musical storytelling that celebrates the rich cultural tapestry of America. Redbone’s appearance marks the first time an Indigenous artist has performed on the Gaillard Center stage, further underscoring the group’s dedication to issues of social justice, connecting cultures, and celebrating the human spirit.

Martha Redbone is a Native & African-American vocalist/songwriter/composer/educator. She is known for her unique gumbo of folk, blues, and gospel from her childhood in Harlan County, Kentucky infused with the eclectic grit of pre-gentrified Brooklyn. Inheriting the powerful vocal range of her gospel-singing African American father and the resilient spirit of her mother’s Southeastern Cherokee/Choctaw culture, Redbone broadens the boundaries of American Roots music. With songs and storytelling that share her life experience as a Native and Black woman and mother in the new millennium, Redbone gives voice to issues of social justice, bridging traditions from past to present, connecting cultures, and celebrating the human spirit.

American Patchwork Quartet (APQ), led by multi-Grammy award-winning guitarist/vocalist Clay Ross, binds timeless American folk songs with jazz sophistication, country twang, West African hypnotics, and East Asian ornamentation. APQ’s sound is a masterful confluence of tradition and innovation, transcending culture, politics, and ideology.

A southern-born roots music aficionado, Ross is also the founder of the world-renowned Gullah group Ranky Tanky. In APQ, Ross intertwines with other Grammy-winning artists: Falguni Shah, an eleventh-generation Hindustani classical vocalist, Moto Fukushima, a Grammy-nominated bassist, and Clarence Penn, a drumming protégée of Ellis Marsalis whose fibers were honed by African American church traditions.