Today's Song of the Day, as chosen by Gabriel Teodros, host of Early on KEXP, is "Grace Lee" by Hollis, a 2021 self-released single.
On today's Song of the Day, west coast artist/activist Hollis pays tribute to the late Grace Lee Boggs, an author, activist, and philosopher who advocated for civil rights and labor rights throughout her life.
In an Instagram post, Hollis shares: "As an young artist fortunate to come up in organizing circles in the Bay Area and Seattle, learning of Grace Lee’s work as a Chinese-American activist was a profound inspiration. Her insistence that creativity and imagination were essential to social change, that the work of artists and creators allows us to shift from a space of reaction and defensiveness to one of agency and determination, gave me fuel to be daring in my chosen path. And in recently reading her autobiography and the last book she wrote before she passed, I discovered even deeper levels of resonance, and learned how truly remarkable she was in her understated audacity as a thinker, scholar and comrade."
• Read a post written by Hollis for #StopAsianHate about Grace Lee Boggs
• Learn more about the James and Grace Lee Boggs Foundation and their efforts to turn the Boggs family home into a museum in Detroit
Finding good new music can be a full time job, so let KEXP help! In Our Headphones brings you five song recommendations every Monday, straight from KEXP’s DJs and Music Directors. Join hosts Janice Headley and Isabel Khalili on this never-ending journey of music discovery.
Host Emily Fox and KEXP’s editorial team talk with artists about the stories behind their songs and the experiences that inform their work. Through each conversation, we uncover the humanity behind the music, allowing us to hear it in a whole new way.
