#nick zamora

I produced an EP that dropped today called “Bayou City Comeback Chorus”.

‘Bayou City Comeback Chorus’ is a social justice album and short film featuring the voices and musicianship of many different artists from and around the Houston area. The music is influenced by psychedelic funk, gospel, and jazz. It was written with the intent to connect and inspire.

In early 2020, singer/producer Kam Franklin hosted a public jam to connect local artists and audition vocalists and musicians for the initial version of the project (a live record featuring a choir made up of marginalized voices from around the community). She did this not knowing it would be her final public event and opportunity to do so due to Covid-19 shutting everything down. This documentary covers the year following the initial jam session, the struggle to record the album in quarantine, interviews with some of the singers and contributors to the record, and the final result of all that hard work, despite the many obstacles.

The album features appearances from Dende, Uncle Tino, Sugar Joiko, Lilly Aviana, Z'maji, Nick Connors, Ryan Ramirez. It was mastered by Chris Longwood (Khruangbin) and mixed by Raymond Auzenne (Mannie Fresh), and edited by Nick Zamora (The Suffers). All songs were written, arranged and produced by Kam Franklin (The Suffers/Azraq). This project was partially funded by the Houston Arts Alliance.

I had the absolute honor of producing these songs for some  of my favorite up and coming singers around the Houston area. All of them are incredible solo performers in their own right, and I am grateful to them for allowing me to share their voices in a whole new way.

Working on this EP has brought me a level of creative joy and release that cannot fully be described. Initially, I just wanted a way to share these songs to the masses in hope that they might bring someone else comfort. The initial idea for “Be The Light” was written after the death of Atatiana Jefferson. Her death haunted me for months, and writing this song served as a therapy for me. 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. And while it may have been easy for me to focus the entire project on trauma, I refused to do that. I instead chose to focus the remaining 3 songs (‘Stronger Together’, ‘Bring It On’, and ‘We Can All Be Free’) on the EP around healing, possible solutions to fixing the problems we collectively endure as a society, and pathways to personal freedom and unity. We as people deserve healing, and it starts by claiming it. 

Songs:

Be The Light featuring Nick Connors:

Stronger Together featuring Dende

Bring It On featuring Z’Maji

We Can All Be Free featuring Sugar Joiko and Lilly Aviana

Album Credits listed below

Vocalists:

Sugar Joiko - Vocals, keys, synths

Z’Maji Glamouratti - Vocals

Ryan Ramirez - Vocals

Uncle Tino - Vocals/ Talk Box

Lilly Aviana - Vocals

Dende - Vocals

Nick Connors - Vocals

Kam Franklin - Vocals

Musicians: 

Sugar Joiko - Keys and synths

Juliet Terrill - Bass

Nick Zamora - Drums

Jon Durbin - Trumpet

Michael Razo - Trombone

Jose “Chapy” Luna - Percussion

Kevin Bernier -Guitar

Kam Franklin - synths

Recorded by 

Ryan Chavez, Joi Keeling, Kam Franklin,

Juliet Terrill, Andrew Sanchez, Ryan Ramirez, and Jacob Rodriguez

Edited by Nick Zamora

Mixed by Raymond Auzenne

Mastered by Chris Longwood

All songs written, arranged, and produced by Kam Franklin

Album Cover Art Photo by Troy Montes