Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is saxophonist Mtali Banda.Songs:Mtali Banda - Ghetto SuperheroesMtali Banda - Black Boy FairyTalesMtali Banda - Open Your HeartMtali Banda - Morning MantraTalib Kweli - Where Do We GoCommon - It's Your W…

Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is songwriter Audrey Assad.Songs:Audrey Assad - BetterAudrey Assad - UnfoldingAudrey Assad - Be Thou My VisionAudrey Assad - How About YouAudrey Assad - MortalMUNA - Loose GarmentMonica Martin - Go Easy K…

Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is Ghanain-Hungarian singer Sena Dagadu.Songs:Sena Dagadu - For the Man DemSena Dagadu - Play Pa Ba BaMustapha Tettey AddySena Dagadu - Boats on the RiverSena Dagadu - You No ReadySena Dagadu - Damn Right…

Climb higher with bonus content from our Soul Ladder Music seriesThis week's guest is multi-instrumentalist Mobley.Song:Junip - In Every DirectionEnjoy music from our Soul Ladder Music series with our official playlist:spoti.fi/3VASImF+++Leave a Review!bit.ly/interfaithishEmail:interfaithish@gmail.com…

Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is multi-instrumentalist Mobley.Songs:Mobley - lordMobley - themsongJames Taylor - CopperlineMobley - Taste of GoldNina Simone - Mississippi GoddamnMobley - James CrowMobley - Nobody's FavouriteEnjoy musi…

Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is Iranian American singer and ethnomusicologist Galeet Dardashti.Songs:Galeet Dardashti - Adon HaselichotDivahn - Am Ne'emanayGaleet Dardashti - MonajatGaleet Dardashti - MelekhGaleet Dardashti - Adonai …

Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is the five-time Grammy-nominated trumpeter Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah (formerly Christian Scott).Songs:Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah - Trouble That MorninChief Xian aTunde Adjuah - Ashe Chief DonaldChief Xian a…

Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is multi-instrumentalist Huda Asfour, who is best known for her oud compositions.Songs:Huda Asfour - KouniHuda Asfour - Lastou Shaya (I am nothing)Huda Asfour - Counter Improv with Aly EissaSabreen - The …

Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is Adomaa, an R&B / jazz singer from Ghana.Songs:Adomaa - Smoke & MirrorsAdomaa - UtopiaAdomaa - Evolution of GH MusicAdomaa - Beginning AgainAdomaa - I Am Tar Samara Joy - I Miss You SoYebba - October Sk…

Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is singer/songwriter Latifah Alattas, who performs as both Moda Spira and Page CXVI.Songs:Page CXVI - Refuge of My Weary SoulPage CXVI - All Things NewModa Spira - BangPage CXVI - In the GardenAudrey Assa…

Climb higher with bonus content from our Soul Ladder Music seriesThis week's guest is Ethiopian jazz pianist Samuel Yirga.Song:Samuel Yirga & Clueso feat. Norman Sinn & Tim Neuhaus - AAND NEN (WE ARE ONE)Enjoy music from our Soul Ladder Music series with our official playlist:spoti.fi/3VASImF+++Leave a Review!bit.ly/interfaithishEmail:interfaithish…

Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is Ethiopian jazz pianist Samuel Yirga.Songs:Samuel Yirga - Abet Abet (Punt Mix)Samuel Yirga - Drop me thereMulatu Astatke - AzmariSamuel Yirga - Ambassel in Box Revisited (live at Real World Studios)Mula…

Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is Ghanaian rapper Pure Akan.Songs:Pure Akan - Wo DansefoɔPure Akan - Mensesa Me HoPure Akan feat Efya - Yete AporAB Crentsil - Obi Baa WiaseAtta Frimpong - Bepo So DuaAyisi - MOKOLEPure Akan - Bɔkɔɔ (Fea…

Our Soul Ladder Music series features musicians discussing the spiritual themes in their songs and the music that inspires them.This week's guest is Klezmer fiddle player Alicia Svigals, one of the founding members of the Klezmatics.Songs:Alicia Svigalis - Winter DanceKlezmatics - Bulgars / The KissHaris Alexiou - Mia Ine I OusiaKlezmatics - Morocc…

Climb higher with bonus content from our Soul Ladder Music seriesThis week's guest is Klezmer fiddle player Alicia Svigals, one of the founding members of the Klezmatics.Song:The Mystery of Bulgarian Voices Choir - First Song on the RoadEnjoy music from our Soul Ladder Music series with our official playlist:spoti.fi/3VASImF+++Leave a Review!bit.ly…

Climb with us on this week's Soul Ladder Music!Learn more:https://www.lakestreetdive.com/Songs:Lake Street Dive "What I'm Doing here"Lake Street Dive "Godawful Things"Lake Street Dive "Sarah"Sister Rosetta Tharpe "Stretch Out"The Staples Singers "I'm Just Another Soldier"Lake Street Dive "Making Do"Lake Street Dive "Being a Woman"George Harrison "I…

Can't get enough of Zee Avi? You're in luck! In this mini-episode, Zee Avi talks about why a song about heartbreak belongs on a children's album.Climb with us on this week's Soul Ladder Music!Learn more:www.zeeavi.com/Songs:Zee Avi "Who Loves the Sun?"Soul Ladder Music Playlist:spoti.fi/3VASImF+++Leave a Review!bit.ly/interfaithishSocial:www.instag…

Climb with us on this week's Soul Ladder Music!Learn more:https://www.zeeavi.com/Songs:Zee Avi "Bitter Heart"Zee Avi "Honey Bee"Zee Avi "Anchor"Donny Hathaway "Someday We'll All Be Free"Zee Avi "Stay in the Clouds"AIR "Ce Matin-la"P. Ramlee "Getaran Jiwa"Zee Avi "The Story"Soul Ladder Music Playlist:spoti.fi/3VASImF+++Leave a Review!bit.ly/interfai…

Climb with us on this week's Soul Ladder Music!Learn more:https://www.noasmusic.com/Songs:Noa & Gil Dor "Boi Kala"Noa & Gil Dor "All of the Angels"Paul Simon "Quiet"Noa "Home Made Religion"Noa & Mira Awad "There Must Be Another Way"Noa "Ave Maria"Jeff Buckley "Hallelujah"Noa "Love Love Love"Soul Ladder Music Playlist:spoti.fi/3VASImF+++Leave a Revi…

Climb with us on this week's Soul Ladder Music!Learn more:https://www.rootsworld.com/rw/feature/hanitra99.htmlSongs:Tarika "Fomba"Tarika "Haintany"Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan "Mustt"Martin Rakotoarimanana "Antananarivo Ambohimanga"Tarika "Avelo"Tarika "Sulawesi"Bob Marley "Three Little Birds"Soul Ladder Music Playlist:spoti.fi/3VASImF+++Leave a Review!bi…

Can't get enough of Christylez? You're in luck! From the way he carries himself in a room, to his the three-piece suit he often dons, Christylez has an instantly recognizable sense of style. In this mini-episode, Jack and Christylez get into the nitty-gritty of what it means to look your best and stay true to yourself.Learn more:http://www.christyl…

Christylez Bacon calls himself a "Progressive Hip-Hop Artist". He's also a Grammy Award nominee who's as comfortable playing alongside Yo-Yo Ma as he is in the local music scene in DC. As a young person, Christylez would record over his mother’s gospel tapes to make beats. Then, faith meant less to him than the music; but as he’s grown older, he’s …

Climb with us on this week's Soul Ladder Music!Learn more:https://lnk.bio/alsarahSongs:Alsarah & The Nubatones "Men Ana"Alsarah "Your Love is Home"Alsarah & The Nubatones "Farasha"Alsarah & The Nubatones "Ya Watan"Hamza El Din "El Aanga"Alsarah & The Nubatones "Alforag"Bi Kidude "Alaminadura"Toshi Reagon and Alexis Pauline Gumbs "HELD"MESAFA "Let M…

Can't get enough of stic? You're in luck! In this mini-episode, stic and Jack trade places as stic asks Jack about the history and philosophy of the Baha'i Faith . Learn more:https://www.instagram.com/sticSoul Ladder Music Playlist:spoti.fi/3VASImF+++Leave a Review!bit.ly/interfaithishSocial:www.instagram.com/interfaithish/www.facebook.com/interfai…

This week we’re talking to stic.man, titan of the y2k underground hip-hop scene and one half of the legendary duo dead prez. You might know stic for his raw lyricism, tacking what he calls the “isms.” More recently, though, he’s remixed his music into another genre - “fit-hop” - inspired not by the systems that tear people apart, but the mechanisms…

Can't get enough of Y-Love? You're in luck! We've got one more track to discuss, May May Ali's "Life's a Test." Join us as Y-Love explains that this is not just any one-hit wonder, but a testament to God's omniscience and inter-faith connections.Learn more:yitz.io/aboutSongs:May May Ali "Life's a Test"Soul Ladder Music Playlist:spoti.fi/3VASImF+++L…

Judaism guided Yitz Jordan to Hip-Hop. A convert originally from Baltimore, he discovered rapping was a useful - if unorthodox - studying technique while at a yeshiva in Jerusalem. Not one to fit easily into any box, Y-Love (as he is now known) also came out as gay. 25 years into his career, Y-Love looks forward to ushering in a new generation of J…

When metalhead Eric Harper was 15-years-old, his parents announced that the family would be moving to Portugal. Accustomed to his life in the U.S., Eric took the news harshly. But Eric's new experience abroad introduced him to a lifelong passion: classical guitar. “[There’s] a pattern of God always having my back and moving me to places I don’t wan…

When is making music about community survival? For Ladino singer Sarah Aroeste, her role is as much as a cultural preservationist. Although she was raised in suburban New Jersey, Sarah's family heritage goes back to the town of Monastir in Macedonia, where 98% of the Jewish population were killed during the Holocaust, and beyond that to the Iberian…

Spirit called Nailah Porter to leave her life as a DC lawyer to follow her passion as a singer in Los Angeles. But pursuing her dream wasn't an easy road. Nailah channels these hard-won life lessons, as well as family stories from back home in North Carolina, into songs that are healing medicine. In this episode, Jack and Nailah discuss how her mus…

Like any skilled hip hop artist, Ofosu Jones-Quartey (who performs as Born I) knows the power of remixing multiple seemingly disparate influences and ideas into something cohesive and exciting. Perhaps this sense of balance comes from his lifelong training in Buddhist meditation. A practitioner from an early age, Ofosu learned from watching his mot…

Because there are too many good stories and music to share in our main episode, let's take it to the next level with this podcast extra!For a teenage Omar, Icelandic experimental music icon Bjork was a revelation on how to be fearless as an artist.Learn more:https://www.omarsmusic.com/Songs:Bjork "Army of Me"Soul Ladder Music Playlist:https://spoti…

Omar Pitras Waqar draws as much from DC-area punks like Minor Threat as he does iconic qawwali singers like Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Crossing geographies of space and time, Omar’s music is eclectic and divine, and has evolved through various forms and projects. Reflecting on the power to create on his own terms, he says “I can be as magical as I wann…

Departing from some of the themes of violence and materialism that dominate pop music, the rap group Native Deen focuses on the spiritual teachings of Islam. Native Deen’s influence casts a wide net, inspiring audiences in the US, Europe, the Middle East, and beyond. In this episode, one of Native Deen's co-founders, Joshua Salaam, shares his love …

Because there are too many good stories and music to share in our main episode, let's take it to the next level with this podcast extra!Do'a tells how a bold email led to her collaborating with one of her musical idols.Learn more:https://doasings.com/Songs:Shai Maestro "Angelo"Soul Ladder Music Playlist:https://spoti.fi/3VASImF+++Leave a Review! bi…

Do’a inhabits multiplicities. A PhD student of mathematics at the University of Maryland, she is also a former artist-in-residence at Strathmore Arts Center. Her influences range from Bossa Nova to Albanian folk music, and she sings in a variety of languages, including Spanish and Portuguese. It’s worth noting Do’a spoke neither of these languages …

Because there are too many good stories and music to share in our main episode, let's take it to the next level with this podcast extra!Osa and Jack reflect on sharing hip hop with their children.Learn more:https://www.osathehealer.com/Soul Ladder Music Playlist:https://spoti.fi/3VASImF+++Leave a Review! bit.ly/interfaithishSocial:www.instagram.com…

Nigerian-American rapper Osa the Healer believes in the “present tense mentality” — a term that describes the ongoing process of improving, healing, and learning something new. “I haven’t arrived, I’m not done,” he says. It means asking, who am I? Where do I come from? What do I leave for others? As a father of three, Osa finds that these questions…

Because there are too many good stories and music to share in our main episode, let's take it to the next level with this podcast extra!Jocelyn shares why she connects with Frank Sinatra's romantic "How Deep is the Ocean".Learn more:http://www.jocelynmackenzie.com/Songs:Frank Sinatra "How Deep is the Ocean"Soul Ladder Music Playlist:https://spoti.f…

Jocelyn Mackenzie doubles as a musician who tours with the likes of Ani DiFranco, and a professional psychic medium. For Jocelyn, neither of these aspects of her life are disparate; one informs the other. Take the prescient lyric “listen up, the whole world is in flux of a fever,” delivered to Jocelyn from above, six years before the pandemic. In t…

Because there are too many good stories and music to share in our main episode, let's take it to the next level with this podcast extra!Ayanna shares the story of how she went from meeting Stevie Wonder as a child (and trying to get one over on him) to having him as a musical mentor and collaborator.Learn more:https://ayannagregory.com/Soul Ladder …

Once during a performance, Ayanna Gregory forgot the words to her music. The singer faltered — but not for long. In the midst of her error, the grace of the audience and the stillness of the moment awakened her to the meditative power of music. In this episode, Ayanna talks to Jack about moments like this one, when music is a spirit that guides, gr…

Because there are too many good stories and music to share in our main episode, let's take it to the next level with this podcast extra!Gabriel shares about the devastating fire that cost him his home and his beloved record collection, how he started to rebuild, and why Gil Scott Heron has been one of his top artists to listen to during the pandemi…

For Seattle rapper and DJ, Gabriel Teodros, a morning ritual is sacred. Waking up, getting ready, and getting out the house to commune with others is that stuff that keeps him alive. Music is a way to contain the spirituality of everyday connection. ““At my best, I’m just listening,” Teodros says, “I feel like that’s all artists’ jobs basically, to…

As we close this chapter of our show, we hear messages from listeners and past guests, enjoy clips from favorite episodes, and look ahead to what's coming next!+++Leave a Review!bit.ly/interfaithishSocial:www.instagram.com/interfaithish/www.facebook.com/interfaithish/twitter.com/interfaithishEmail:interfaithish@gmail.com…

In this two part episode, we listen to organizers on both sides of the abortion debate to understand what the decision to overturn Roe v Wade means to the them and where they see our country going from here.In part one, I talk with Anna Lulis, digital engagement strategist at Students for Life of America, about why she feels abortion should be abol…

DC is still a predominantly Black city and religion in Black communities is more than just Protestant Christianity. What are the local groups that make up the religious diversity of the nation's capital? How do they play a role in the shifting make up of the city as gentrification and revitalization continue to change the face of "Chocolate City"? …

This week, we take a tour of the Latter-day Saints Temple in Kensington, Maryland. Originally complete in the 1974, the temple is the site of ceremonies typically closed to anyone who isn't a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But - after extensive renovations and a two-year delay due to the pandemic - this spring the temple…

For our 100th episode, we pull out all the stops to celebrate this year's unique intersection of spring holidays:Sarah Ventre pulls cards for Passover.Cassandra Lawrence shares tears of joy at Easter.Dalraj Singh Gill tells the dramatic story of Vaisakhi.Fazia Deen balances service and personal growth during Ramadan.Nanabah Foguth reflects on indig…

With anxiety about nuclear war looming large in the minds of people around the world, we discuss the moral and ethical questions at play when it comes to developing nuclear programs, and the case for disarmament. Joining me are Negar Mortazavi, an Iranian-American journalist and political analyst who is also the host of The Iran Podcast; and Alicia…