With a little help from her friends
Kam Franklin, like so many musicians over the last few years, found herself inspired by tragedy.
The lead singer for Houston band The Suffers says the death of Atatiana Jefferson, a Black woman shot in her home by a Fort Worth police officer, sent her into a depression. That officer was charged with murder and will stand trial this year. The death of Breonna Taylor and the murder of George Floyd, Franklin says, “made it worse.”
“I needed an outlet to release what I was feeling,” Franklin says. “I wanted people to know what it felt like to be a Black person, terrified to sleep at night because of what the police might do.”
Franklin wrote “Be the Light,” a deceptively soothing rumination on what she was feeling.
“How am I supposed to be the light when I can’t even breathe at night?” the song asks.
That moment of clarity led to “Bayou City Comeback Chorus,” a project Franklin has dubbed a “social justice album” that features an array of Houston musicians, including Dende, Uncle Tino, Sugar Joiko, Z’maji and Nick Connors. The four songs, all written and produced by Franklin, draw from funk, gospel and jazz.
Franklin hosted a public jam session in 2020 at the House of Blues Foundation Room to flesh out the project, audition vocalists and connect local artists. She purposely invited more women, she says, because local jams are typically dominated by men. Franklin also saw it as an opportunity to give marginalized artists a platform for their artistry.
But what was supposed to become a monthly event turned
out to be Franklin’s last public performance before COVID-19 shut everything down. Franklin was intent on seeing the project through, and in July 2020, she asked the musicians and singers to record their parts safely from home. They all worked remotely for several months.
“It made everything 1,000 times harder,” Franklin says. “The entire process, from day one to the final master, took just under 430 days.”
A 50-minute documentary, available on YouTube, captures that initial jam session at HOB, the challenges of recording in quarantine and features interviews with several of the musicians. It was partially funded by the Houston Arts Alliance.
Rapper and musician Uncle Tino says Franklin approached him via email with minimal details. It was enough for him to immediately sign on. He sings and plays talk box on “Stronger Together” and describes the entire experience as “a sonic beam of light.”
“She wanted to create a project about healing and leading with love throughout the hate, hopelessness and trauma,” Tino says. It was truly a unique experience. Having to adapt to remote work really pushes you to actually do more, in a weird way. And it really sounds like we were all in the same room.”
Indeed, every moment of “Bayou City Comeback Chorus” has a warm, inviting vibe, thanks to expert mixing from Raymond Auzenne and Franklin’s crisp production. Vocalist Connors, just 20 years old, is sublime on “Be the Light.” There’s a bit of Sly and the Family Stone in “Stronger Together” and “Bring It On.” Hopeful closer “We Can All Be Free” spotlights Sugar Joiko, who contributed vocals, keys and synths; and singer Lilly Aviana.
“All of them are incredible solo performers in their own right,” Franklin says of her collaborators. “I am grateful to them for allowing me to share their voices in a whole new* way.”
And though it may have been born of frustration and grief, “Bayou City Comeback Chorus” ultimately offers a much brighter message.
“It may have been easy for me to focus the entire project on trauma, but I refused to do that. I instead chose to focus around healing, possible solutions to fixing the problems we collectively endure as a society, as well as pathways to personal freedom and unity. We as people deserve healing, and it starts by claiming it,” Franklin says. “I hope it inspires them to get off their (butt) and see how we can all come together to make this world a better place.”