This Hong Kong Cafe Might Be the East Bay’s Most Affordable New Restaurant
Inside the Planetarium, Richmond’s New All-Ages DIY Venue Where Anything Goes
This East Bay Artist Proves ‘Opera Can Be Performed Anywhere’
Artist Tiffany Conway is Bringing the Bay to the Florence Biennale
Fijiana’s ‘Welcome to the Bay’ Sparks Questions About Our Cultural Melting Pot
How Spirituality Led Richmond's King NTG Back To Hip-Hop
Life Happened. Richmond’s Mani Draper Chose How to React.
Mexican Hibachi Is the Bay Area’s Next Great Fusion Cuisine
El Garage Returns to Its Pop-Up Roots
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"content": "\u003cp>The Target plaza off Macdonald Avenue isn’t the first place you’d think of when planning a lunch excursion in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/tag/richmond\">Richmond\u003c/a>. After all, this is the domain of better-than-replacement-level fast food (i.e., Wingstop and Panda Express), not anyone’s idea of destination dining.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So it was something of a surprise when, a few weeks ago, I stepped into the plaza’s newest restaurant, Grand Cafe, and found a packed dining room. Almost all of the diners were Chinese seniors, a demographic I’ve rarely encountered on this side of town. Everyone was bent over steaming hot bowls of claypot rice and wonton noodle soup. Somehow, it seems, I’d stumbled into a proper Hong Kong–style cafe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The kicker? Nothing on the menu was priced at more than $10.75. Several entrées, in fact, were just $7 or $8, undercutting the Panda Express next door. At a time when affordability has reached a crisis point for so many Bay Area families, Grand Cafe might just be the East Bay’s most reasonably priced new restaurant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As it turns out, the restaurant moved to Richmond this past summer after its \u003ca href=\"https://www.yelp.com/biz/grand-cafe-south-san-francisco\">original South San Francisco location\u003c/a> closed. During my first visit, I decided to try the claypot rice with spare ribs and preserved sausage ($10.75), a Cantonese classic. It came loaded with meat and tender-crisp greens, with a little dish of sweet seasoned soy sauce to pour on top, and the rice was properly crackly and crispy on the edges. It was delicious — if anything, a little less decadently oily and salty than my favorite versions, and more like something a home cook would serve.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13986262\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13986262\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-claypot-rice.jpg\" alt=\"Claypot rice and a plate of beef chow fun on cafeteria-style trays.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-claypot-rice.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-claypot-rice-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-claypot-rice-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-claypot-rice-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Both the claypot rice and the beef chow fun came with complimentary soup and hot soy milk. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The value, on the other hand, was hard to top. All dine-in customers get a free cup of hot tea or unsweetened soy milk, the latter of which I doctored up to my liking with sugar. My meal also came with a complimentary bowl of pork bone soup — savory and soothing, loaded with leafy greens. An order of dry-cooked beef chow fun (also $10.75) — a solid, generously portioned rendition — came with all of the same extras.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of the tradeoffs for Grand Cafe’s bargain-basement prices is a very DIY approach to service. The dining room — sparsely decorated, apart from a lone Bruce Lee poster in the corner — is set up somewhat cafeteria-style. Food comes out on trays; utensils, condiments and to-go containers are all laid out neatly on a shelf for you to help yourself. A large wire shelving unit along the opposite wall has enough space for a couple dozen diners to bus their trays and dishes when they’re done.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, a sign taped to the front counter reads, “No Tips Needed,” and stresses that food might take 10 to 20 minutes to come out, since every dish is cooked to order. Over a handful of visits, I never had to wait nearly that long.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13986263\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13986263\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-menu.jpg\" alt=\"Chinese restaurant menu pinned on the wall.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-menu.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-menu-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-menu-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-menu-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Part of Grand Cafe’s menu, which is posted on the wall. As of January 2026, no item was priced higher than $10.75. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Unlike a full-on traditional Hong Kong–style \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cha_chaan_teng\">cha chaan teng\u003c/a>, Grand Cafe only offers a couple of Western-style dishes — a spaghetti with meat sauce I’ve yet to try, for instance. And my sense is that the menu, with its assortment of noodle dishes, rice plates, jook and snacky dim sum, is a bit too broad for \u003ci>every\u003c/i> item to be a hit. (I’d still go to a proper dim sum house for pan-fried daikon cakes or steamed rice rolls.) And the seasoning tends to be on the mild side, which is part of the restaurant’s appeal to Chinese elders.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"color: #2b2b2b;font-weight: 400\">\u003cb>\u003cstrong>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">[aside postID='arts_13950577,arts_13974383']\u003c/span>\u003c/strong>\u003c/b>\u003c/span>The prices, of course, are hard to beat. Beef brisket noodle soup for $8.75? Pork and preserved egg porridge for less than $6? Grand Cafe might not be a destination restaurant, but if you live in the neighborhood, as I do, it’s easy to imagine it becoming a weekly lunchtime staple.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though the restaurant has already been open for seven months, it still seems to have a perpetual stream of people poking their head in for the first time, surprised they’ve never seen the place before. Partly, that’s because of Grand Cafe’s somewhat unlikely location and limited hours — it closes at 2 p.m. every day. The owners also seem to have no interest in marketing the business, politely but firmly declining my requests for an interview.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re already too busy,” the woman at the counter, who seemed like she might be the owner, told me. For now, she’s more than content to just serve the crowd of local regulars.\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>Grand Cafe is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10:30 a.m.–2 p.m., at 4250 Macdonald Ave. Ste. D.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The Target plaza off Macdonald Avenue isn’t the first place you’d think of when planning a lunch excursion in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/tag/richmond\">Richmond\u003c/a>. After all, this is the domain of better-than-replacement-level fast food (i.e., Wingstop and Panda Express), not anyone’s idea of destination dining.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So it was something of a surprise when, a few weeks ago, I stepped into the plaza’s newest restaurant, Grand Cafe, and found a packed dining room. Almost all of the diners were Chinese seniors, a demographic I’ve rarely encountered on this side of town. Everyone was bent over steaming hot bowls of claypot rice and wonton noodle soup. Somehow, it seems, I’d stumbled into a proper Hong Kong–style cafe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The kicker? Nothing on the menu was priced at more than $10.75. Several entrées, in fact, were just $7 or $8, undercutting the Panda Express next door. At a time when affordability has reached a crisis point for so many Bay Area families, Grand Cafe might just be the East Bay’s most reasonably priced new restaurant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As it turns out, the restaurant moved to Richmond this past summer after its \u003ca href=\"https://www.yelp.com/biz/grand-cafe-south-san-francisco\">original South San Francisco location\u003c/a> closed. During my first visit, I decided to try the claypot rice with spare ribs and preserved sausage ($10.75), a Cantonese classic. It came loaded with meat and tender-crisp greens, with a little dish of sweet seasoned soy sauce to pour on top, and the rice was properly crackly and crispy on the edges. It was delicious — if anything, a little less decadently oily and salty than my favorite versions, and more like something a home cook would serve.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13986262\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13986262\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-claypot-rice.jpg\" alt=\"Claypot rice and a plate of beef chow fun on cafeteria-style trays.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-claypot-rice.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-claypot-rice-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-claypot-rice-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-claypot-rice-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Both the claypot rice and the beef chow fun came with complimentary soup and hot soy milk. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The value, on the other hand, was hard to top. All dine-in customers get a free cup of hot tea or unsweetened soy milk, the latter of which I doctored up to my liking with sugar. My meal also came with a complimentary bowl of pork bone soup — savory and soothing, loaded with leafy greens. An order of dry-cooked beef chow fun (also $10.75) — a solid, generously portioned rendition — came with all of the same extras.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of the tradeoffs for Grand Cafe’s bargain-basement prices is a very DIY approach to service. The dining room — sparsely decorated, apart from a lone Bruce Lee poster in the corner — is set up somewhat cafeteria-style. Food comes out on trays; utensils, condiments and to-go containers are all laid out neatly on a shelf for you to help yourself. A large wire shelving unit along the opposite wall has enough space for a couple dozen diners to bus their trays and dishes when they’re done.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, a sign taped to the front counter reads, “No Tips Needed,” and stresses that food might take 10 to 20 minutes to come out, since every dish is cooked to order. Over a handful of visits, I never had to wait nearly that long.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13986263\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13986263\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-menu.jpg\" alt=\"Chinese restaurant menu pinned on the wall.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-menu.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-menu-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-menu-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/grand-cafe-menu-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Part of Grand Cafe’s menu, which is posted on the wall. As of January 2026, no item was priced higher than $10.75. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Unlike a full-on traditional Hong Kong–style \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cha_chaan_teng\">cha chaan teng\u003c/a>, Grand Cafe only offers a couple of Western-style dishes — a spaghetti with meat sauce I’ve yet to try, for instance. And my sense is that the menu, with its assortment of noodle dishes, rice plates, jook and snacky dim sum, is a bit too broad for \u003ci>every\u003c/i> item to be a hit. (I’d still go to a proper dim sum house for pan-fried daikon cakes or steamed rice rolls.) And the seasoning tends to be on the mild side, which is part of the restaurant’s appeal to Chinese elders.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"color: #2b2b2b;font-weight: 400\">\u003cb>\u003cstrong>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/span>\u003c/strong>\u003c/b>\u003c/span>The prices, of course, are hard to beat. Beef brisket noodle soup for $8.75? Pork and preserved egg porridge for less than $6? Grand Cafe might not be a destination restaurant, but if you live in the neighborhood, as I do, it’s easy to imagine it becoming a weekly lunchtime staple.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though the restaurant has already been open for seven months, it still seems to have a perpetual stream of people poking their head in for the first time, surprised they’ve never seen the place before. Partly, that’s because of Grand Cafe’s somewhat unlikely location and limited hours — it closes at 2 p.m. every day. The owners also seem to have no interest in marketing the business, politely but firmly declining my requests for an interview.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re already too busy,” the woman at the counter, who seemed like she might be the owner, told me. For now, she’s more than content to just serve the crowd of local regulars.\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>Grand Cafe is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10:30 a.m.–2 p.m., at 4250 Macdonald Ave. Ste. D.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>As a small crowd gathered in an industrial complex in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/tag/richmond\">Richmond\u003c/a> on Friday night, a puppeteer dressed as a molting bird gave birth to a human doll baby, followed by a brief magic show. A ska band ripped through a short set, a sideshow performer swallowed two swords and stuck fishhooks in her eyelids, and another local band \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/37196/a-portal-to-chaos-and-adventure-in-a-playground\">named after a kids’ portal to chaos\u003c/a> closed out the night.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just your average evening at Richmond’s newest DIY, all-ages, substance-free venue, \u003ca href=\"https://ragtagshows.com/\">The Planetarium\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A former karaoke lounge situated inside a maze of \u003ca href=\"https://intergalactic.rocks/\">practice spaces\u003c/a>, The Planetarium serves a city not exactly known for providing opportunities to its younger creative residents. After being open for only a few weeks, it’s already gaining a following.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Finding your people\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>At Friday’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DTls0sTkn14/\">Cosmik Debris\u003c/a> variety show, one person came for the puppets at the recommendation of someone on their local music Signal chat; another, from Berkeley, wanted to recapture the feeling they had as a teen punk in San Diego. Someone else saw a flyer while helping a friend during their KALX DJ set, and another couple was invited for a friend’s birthday. \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13985700\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-26-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13985700\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-26-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-26-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-26-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-26-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Adventure Playground performs at the Planetarium in Richmond on Jan. 16, 2026. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I knew we were doing good when I had some guy come to his second show, when we’d only had four,” said Alex Botkin, one of The Planetarium’s co-founders, who grew up half a mile down the road in El Cerrito. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The project of three longtime DIYers who met at the long-running Berkeley punk club \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/tag/924-gilman\">924 Gilman\u003c/a>, The Planetarium has hosted half a dozen events since its grand opening on Jan. 2. Currently scheduled are 32 additional shows, mostly on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, through May. Booking as Ragtag Productions, the trio caters to smaller, younger bands, touring acts, and transgressive performance art — all communities in which the founders have been involved.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I spent a lot of time traveling between weird performance art worlds in the East Bay in search of community,” said Plantearium co-founder Kirk Pearson, a New York native who moved to the Bay about 10 years ago. “I found all of these groups of people, several of which were incredibly good performers, but with absolutely no venue that was suited for them to perform. So that’s at least part of my excitement [with The Plantarium].” \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13985695\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-4-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13985695\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-4-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-4-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-4-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-4-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Risa Lenore performs a puppet show at the Planetarium in Richmond on Jan. 16, 2026. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Tickets to a Planetarium show will hover between $10 and $15 to encourage artistic discovery without a hefty price tag. “By having that openness to variety and all the bands that are having a great time, you’ll probably have a good time,” Alex said. \u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Roots in DIY\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Community begets community, and The Planetarium is proof of the East Bay’s deep DIY and punk roots. Pearson is a composer and sound designer who founded \u003ca href=\"https://dogbotic.com/\">Dogbotic\u003c/a> and previously did sound at Gilman. Botkin, a musician with the band awakebutstillinbed (who also played with Friday’s ska band, Sad Snack), books shows and ran a record label in addition to years of volunteer work at Gilman. His partner Lexi Botkin grew up going to shows and volunteering at Gilman, in addition to playing bass and selling merch for bands. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was just a show rat. I was at everything and talking to everybody, and helping out however I could,” said Lexi, a Berkeley educator who grew up in Pleasanton and San Jose. “Ever since I was a kid, my dream was to have a business where I could help foster art communities and creativity.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13985701\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-29-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13985701\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-29-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-29-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-29-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-29-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Attendees dance as Adventure Playground performs at the Planetarium in Richmond on Jan. 16, 2026. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>With a good deal on rent from their friends in \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/middleagedqueers/\">Middle-Aged Queers\u003c/a> — who purchased the building with the intention of opening a venue but lacked the time — and a lot of help from their community, The Planetarium was born. The room that would become the venue was in decent shape, with cool lighting in place and some supplies to spruce things up. It was already permitted for noise with the city of Richmond. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve gotten tremendous deals from friends and stuff from former venues, or [from] touring bands,” Alex said, pointing to the venue’s soundboard. “Once you’re involved in [DIY spaces] enough and know enough people, it’s not hard to find community support in that way.” \u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Everyone is a star\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Planetarium has already started to see a “karmic return” in the form of community interest. When asked how they’re connecting with bands and artists, Lexi was quick to note, “We’re not finding them. They’re finding \u003ci>us\u003c/i>.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a lot of venues closing right now, and every venue that opens doesn’t really fix it. It just sort of fills part of the deficit. The amount of inquiries we got puts us into almost summer with some of our shows,” Alex added. “Bands are desperate for places that they can play.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13985694\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-1-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13985694\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-1-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-1-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-1-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-1-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">From left, Planetarium founders Alex Botkin, Kirk Pearson and Lexi Botkin pose for a photo at the music venue in Richmond on Jan. 16, 2026. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Planetarium could be seen as a new generation’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/12493208/burnt-ramen-long-running-underground-venue-in-richmond-shut-down\">Burnt Ramen\u003c/a>, the Richmond DIY space that closed in 2016, and adds to popular DIY venues such as Gilman in Berkeley and Oakland’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/staygoldoakland/?hl=en\">Stay Gold Deli\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://tamarackoakland.com/calendar\">Tamarack\u003c/a>. The venue will decidedly not host any punishing “elder bar rock.” Adds Pearson: “If you are a band of 17-year-olds or 18-year-olds, you can play here.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’s still plenty of work to do at The Planetarium, from building a proper stage and soundbooth to fixing some busted flooring. The co-founders aren’t worried; “perfect is the enemy of good,” as Pearson noted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And, befitting a place that puts punk bands alongside puppet shows, it’s about more than the music. Lexi said she hopes to host events like clothing swaps and drives, DIY clothing repairs, and “study shares” where attendees tutor each other. Regardless of what may get booked at The Planetarium, all events will share a common perspective.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s no attitude in this space. There’s a bunch of fun, colorful lights; there’s already aliens on the wall. This is goofy and silly, and you have to be open to that,” Alex said. “Everyone’s just here and it’s all a level playing field. Nobody is the top dog.” \u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>Find \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/planetariumrichmond/\">details and information about upcoming shows\u003c/a> at the Planetarium on \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/planetariumrichmond/\">Instagram\u003c/a> or at \u003ca href=\"https://ragtagshows.com/index.html\">Ragtag Productions’ website\u003c/a>.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>As a small crowd gathered in an industrial complex in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/tag/richmond\">Richmond\u003c/a> on Friday night, a puppeteer dressed as a molting bird gave birth to a human doll baby, followed by a brief magic show. A ska band ripped through a short set, a sideshow performer swallowed two swords and stuck fishhooks in her eyelids, and another local band \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/37196/a-portal-to-chaos-and-adventure-in-a-playground\">named after a kids’ portal to chaos\u003c/a> closed out the night.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just your average evening at Richmond’s newest DIY, all-ages, substance-free venue, \u003ca href=\"https://ragtagshows.com/\">The Planetarium\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A former karaoke lounge situated inside a maze of \u003ca href=\"https://intergalactic.rocks/\">practice spaces\u003c/a>, The Planetarium serves a city not exactly known for providing opportunities to its younger creative residents. After being open for only a few weeks, it’s already gaining a following.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Finding your people\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>At Friday’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DTls0sTkn14/\">Cosmik Debris\u003c/a> variety show, one person came for the puppets at the recommendation of someone on their local music Signal chat; another, from Berkeley, wanted to recapture the feeling they had as a teen punk in San Diego. Someone else saw a flyer while helping a friend during their KALX DJ set, and another couple was invited for a friend’s birthday. \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13985700\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-26-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13985700\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-26-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-26-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-26-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-26-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Adventure Playground performs at the Planetarium in Richmond on Jan. 16, 2026. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I knew we were doing good when I had some guy come to his second show, when we’d only had four,” said Alex Botkin, one of The Planetarium’s co-founders, who grew up half a mile down the road in El Cerrito. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The project of three longtime DIYers who met at the long-running Berkeley punk club \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/tag/924-gilman\">924 Gilman\u003c/a>, The Planetarium has hosted half a dozen events since its grand opening on Jan. 2. Currently scheduled are 32 additional shows, mostly on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, through May. Booking as Ragtag Productions, the trio caters to smaller, younger bands, touring acts, and transgressive performance art — all communities in which the founders have been involved.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I spent a lot of time traveling between weird performance art worlds in the East Bay in search of community,” said Plantearium co-founder Kirk Pearson, a New York native who moved to the Bay about 10 years ago. “I found all of these groups of people, several of which were incredibly good performers, but with absolutely no venue that was suited for them to perform. So that’s at least part of my excitement [with The Plantarium].” \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13985695\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-4-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13985695\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-4-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-4-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-4-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-4-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Risa Lenore performs a puppet show at the Planetarium in Richmond on Jan. 16, 2026. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Tickets to a Planetarium show will hover between $10 and $15 to encourage artistic discovery without a hefty price tag. “By having that openness to variety and all the bands that are having a great time, you’ll probably have a good time,” Alex said. \u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Roots in DIY\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Community begets community, and The Planetarium is proof of the East Bay’s deep DIY and punk roots. Pearson is a composer and sound designer who founded \u003ca href=\"https://dogbotic.com/\">Dogbotic\u003c/a> and previously did sound at Gilman. Botkin, a musician with the band awakebutstillinbed (who also played with Friday’s ska band, Sad Snack), books shows and ran a record label in addition to years of volunteer work at Gilman. His partner Lexi Botkin grew up going to shows and volunteering at Gilman, in addition to playing bass and selling merch for bands. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was just a show rat. I was at everything and talking to everybody, and helping out however I could,” said Lexi, a Berkeley educator who grew up in Pleasanton and San Jose. “Ever since I was a kid, my dream was to have a business where I could help foster art communities and creativity.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13985701\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-29-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13985701\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-29-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-29-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-29-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-29-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Attendees dance as Adventure Playground performs at the Planetarium in Richmond on Jan. 16, 2026. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>With a good deal on rent from their friends in \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/middleagedqueers/\">Middle-Aged Queers\u003c/a> — who purchased the building with the intention of opening a venue but lacked the time — and a lot of help from their community, The Planetarium was born. The room that would become the venue was in decent shape, with cool lighting in place and some supplies to spruce things up. It was already permitted for noise with the city of Richmond. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve gotten tremendous deals from friends and stuff from former venues, or [from] touring bands,” Alex said, pointing to the venue’s soundboard. “Once you’re involved in [DIY spaces] enough and know enough people, it’s not hard to find community support in that way.” \u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Everyone is a star\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Planetarium has already started to see a “karmic return” in the form of community interest. When asked how they’re connecting with bands and artists, Lexi was quick to note, “We’re not finding them. They’re finding \u003ci>us\u003c/i>.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a lot of venues closing right now, and every venue that opens doesn’t really fix it. It just sort of fills part of the deficit. The amount of inquiries we got puts us into almost summer with some of our shows,” Alex added. “Bands are desperate for places that they can play.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13985694\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-1-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13985694\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-1-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-1-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-1-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/20260116_PLANETARIUMRICHMOND_GC-1-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">From left, Planetarium founders Alex Botkin, Kirk Pearson and Lexi Botkin pose for a photo at the music venue in Richmond on Jan. 16, 2026. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Planetarium could be seen as a new generation’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/12493208/burnt-ramen-long-running-underground-venue-in-richmond-shut-down\">Burnt Ramen\u003c/a>, the Richmond DIY space that closed in 2016, and adds to popular DIY venues such as Gilman in Berkeley and Oakland’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/staygoldoakland/?hl=en\">Stay Gold Deli\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://tamarackoakland.com/calendar\">Tamarack\u003c/a>. The venue will decidedly not host any punishing “elder bar rock.” Adds Pearson: “If you are a band of 17-year-olds or 18-year-olds, you can play here.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’s still plenty of work to do at The Planetarium, from building a proper stage and soundbooth to fixing some busted flooring. The co-founders aren’t worried; “perfect is the enemy of good,” as Pearson noted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And, befitting a place that puts punk bands alongside puppet shows, it’s about more than the music. Lexi said she hopes to host events like clothing swaps and drives, DIY clothing repairs, and “study shares” where attendees tutor each other. Regardless of what may get booked at The Planetarium, all events will share a common perspective.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s no attitude in this space. There’s a bunch of fun, colorful lights; there’s already aliens on the wall. This is goofy and silly, and you have to be open to that,” Alex said. “Everyone’s just here and it’s all a level playing field. Nobody is the top dog.” \u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>Find \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/planetariumrichmond/\">details and information about upcoming shows\u003c/a> at the Planetarium on \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/planetariumrichmond/\">Instagram\u003c/a> or at \u003ca href=\"https://ragtagshows.com/index.html\">Ragtag Productions’ website\u003c/a>.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "khaysie-opera-singer-hip-hop-richmond",
"title": "This East Bay Artist Proves ‘Opera Can Be Performed Anywhere’",
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"headTitle": "This East Bay Artist Proves ‘Opera Can Be Performed Anywhere’ | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13983887\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_1554-scaled-e1763498850777.jpeg\" alt=\"A man in sunglasses, a white vest and black shirt stands with his hands in front of him as he poses for a photo.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1930\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13983887\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_1554-scaled-e1763498850777.jpeg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_1554-scaled-e1763498850777-160x161.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_1554-scaled-e1763498850777-768x772.jpeg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_1554-scaled-e1763498850777-1528x1536.jpeg 1528w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Richmond tenor Khaysie wants to make opera more accessible — starting with where it’s performed. \u003ccite>(Cassandra Sanidad)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As famed streamer and influencer \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVkTeXBuweY\">IShowSpeed\u003c/a> stood atop the roof of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13979306/hyphy-burger-grand-opening-west-oakland-guapdad\">Hyphy Burger\u003c/a> in September, millions of fans from around the world tuned in. Hundreds more stood on the streets of West Oakland below. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And in the midst of people screaming, cars swinging and tires screeching, someone started singing opera. A tenor, to be exact. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DPDWuMBDkcK/\">I tried to get his attention\u003c/a>,” says Richmond vocalist and musician \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/thekhaysie/\">Khaysie\u003c/a>, who was hoping to grab some of IShowSpeed’s limelight. “But there were just a lot of people present.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13979306']He momentarily gave up, driving home to Richmond before tuning back into IShowSpeed’s live stream and realizing the influencer had made another stop, at the Guitar Center in Emeryville.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Again Khaysie pulled up, attempting to showcase his talents. Again he was overlooked. But this time, now after midnight, he joined the fleet of 50-plus cars following IShowSpeed’s tour bus to the South Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the wee hours of the morning, outside of a robotics company in Palo Alto, Khaysie saw a window of opportunity when IShowSpeed exited his tour bus — and the cameras were pointed in his direction.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13983888\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1707px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13983888\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-scaled.jpeg\" alt=\"A man on one knee, holding a microphone while singing on stage. \" width=\"1707\" height=\"2560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-scaled.jpeg 1707w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-160x240.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-768x1152.jpeg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-1024x1536.jpeg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-1365x2048.jpeg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1707px) 100vw, 1707px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Khaysie says he was attracted to opera once he realized how could tap into his emotions while performing. \u003ccite>(Ramon - Duality Visualz)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“That’s when I sang the classic ‘Ave Maria,’” he says, understating how he dominated the airwaves by belting notes from the opera staple. “And that’s why (IShowSpeed) reacted. He was like, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DPEdRk8EXMu/\">‘What the hell\u003c/a>?!’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because IShowSpeed’s following is so massive, that brief glimpse of attention opened doors for the 32-year-old artist, who’s pursued music since he was 10. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the weeks since, Khaysie has been interviewed on\u003cem> \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DPk3eKjgOr1/\">99.7 NOW FM\u003c/a>\u003c/em> and\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DPkPWziEgUi/?img_index=1\">\u003cem> La Kaliente 1370 AM\u003c/em>,\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@sanfranciscolives/video/7555300748553211167\">hosted the dumpling eating contest\u003c/a> at this year’s San Francisco Moon Festival.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13983779']This coming weekend, Khaysie will perform in San Francisco at the \u003ca href=\"https://fridapeople.com/\">Frida People collective’s\u003c/a> fall \u003ca href=\"https://www.eventbrite.com/e/gathering-light-tending-the-inner-flame-hosted-by-frida-people-collective-tickets-1874341880019?aff=oddtdtcreator&utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQMMjU2MjgxMDQwNTU4AAGnD2mYdcG-jYMR83AMpcNKO3ElQHwNkkXZjS69g2c-UVGrfVHqmNFZYdum9ng_aem_5s96l-qSqkx5sSbsJ26yBg\">“Gathering Light” event\u003c/a>, an in-person and livestreamed performance with a focus on the healing power of art.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frida People founder \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/missanaqu/\">Ana Quiñonez \u003c/a>and Oakland journalist \u003ca href=\"https://www.kalw.org/people/kristal-raheem?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQMMjU2MjgxMDQwNTU4AAGnDtGKBo-Vwtht1DJw2crrpWzkr6Xr1_TGoSfXLEsQjNXGs73z-tp4j6IByGM_aem_A5GftaEd-QqdfMD5yQR0gw\">Kristal Raheem\u003c/a> will co-host the event and lead a discussion about tending to one’s “inner flame.” The evening also features performances by San Francisco rapper and singer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kaly_incognegreaux/\">Kaly Jay\u003c/a>, East Oakland R&B artist \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kenyatta2saucey/\">Kenyatta \u003c/a>and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Khaysie is approaching Friday’s show the same way he approaches other gigs; opting for street clothes instead of the expected black suit and tie of an opera singer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I want people to think that opera can be performed anywhere,” he says. “You don’t have to look a certain way… When people hear my voice they’re gonna be like, ‘What the heck?'”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2t0FVrJCNXM\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Khaysie also plans to give audience members a sample of a hip-hopera he’s been working on. Without going too deep into detail, Khaysie says his work differs from MTV’s 2001 \u003cem>Carmen: A Hip Hopera \u003c/em>(with Beyoncé and Mos Def), as well as theatrical treatments of hip-hop like R. Kelly’s \u003cem>Trapped In The Closet\u003c/em> saga and the award-winning musical \u003cem>Hamilton\u003c/em>. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead of a corny remix of \u003cem>The Marriage of Figaro\u003c/em> sped up to sound contemporary, Khaysie says he’s creating something that’s “authentically hip-hop” with sincere storytelling and entertaining instrumentation; a piece that conveys the range of emotions he’s seen other opera singers display.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At age 16, Khaysie, who came up with through the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youngmusiciansco.org/\">Young Musicians Coral Orchestra\u003c/a>, got a taste of opera’s power when famed tenor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kennedy-center.org/artists/d/da-dn/rodrick-dixon/\">Rodrick Dixon\u003c/a> visited UC Berkeley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In front of the audience, Dixon asked Khaysie to present a piece. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And when I finished my operatic song,” he recalls, “he asked me, why do I want to sing opera?'” Khaysie replied that the art form allows him to fully express himself and tap into his emotions. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dixon countered, “So why didn’t you do that?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Caught off guard, Khaysie stepped back as Dixon took to the stage and gave a short performance of his own. “When I looked into his eyes,” recalls Khaysie, “I could see the raw emotion that he sang in each and every note. His voice was so powerful that it shook my body.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Khaysie’s tears flowed as Dixon asked if he truly wanted to commit to the craft. “At that point I was sold,” says Khaysie, who went on to obtain a vocal performance degree with a focus on opera from the \u003ca href=\"https://www.michigandaily.com/uncategorized/chris-sanchez/\">University of Michigan\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since graduating nearly 10 years ago, he’s experienced the roller coaster that comes with being an artist of any sort: periodic lulls, followed by reminders of the fire inside. “Each time that I try to run away from music,” he says, “music always found me.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He’s explored different types of music, composing R&B, soul, reggaeton and dembow songs. He’s also performed on traditional concert stages with \u003ca href=\"https://www.westedgeopera.org/\">West Edge Opera\u003c/a>, the \u003ca href=\"https://music.berkeley.edu/performance-ensembles/uc-berkeley-chamber-chorus\">UC Berkeley Chamber Chorus\u003c/a> and the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLSpiwMub2k\">Golden Gate Symphony Orchestra & Chorus \u003c/a>at the Palace of Fine Arts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Working as an a elementary school teacher in Richmond, Khaysie practices mindfulness with his students throughout the day, and attributes his recent success to healing his own inner child and getting reacquainted with his faith in God.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A churchgoer as a kid in the East Bay, he strayed after college but recently found his way back. With that came renewed confidence. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, he affirms, “I’m going to use music to serve a bigger purpose, to inspire people and to use my voice for positive impact.”\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Khaysie performs as part of Frida People collective’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.eventbrite.com/e/gathering-light-tending-the-inner-flame-hosted-by-frida-people-collective-tickets-1874341880019\">‘Gathering Light’ event\u003c/a> on Friday, Nov. 22, at KALW (220 Montgomery St., San Francisco). \u003ca href=\"https://www.eventbrite.com/e/gathering-light-tending-the-inner-flame-hosted-by-frida-people-collective-tickets-1874341880019\">Check here for tickets and more information\u003c/a>. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"subhead": "Richmond opera singer Khaysie is hellbent on making the genre more accessible. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13983887\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_1554-scaled-e1763498850777.jpeg\" alt=\"A man in sunglasses, a white vest and black shirt stands with his hands in front of him as he poses for a photo.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1930\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13983887\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_1554-scaled-e1763498850777.jpeg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_1554-scaled-e1763498850777-160x161.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_1554-scaled-e1763498850777-768x772.jpeg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_1554-scaled-e1763498850777-1528x1536.jpeg 1528w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Richmond tenor Khaysie wants to make opera more accessible — starting with where it’s performed. \u003ccite>(Cassandra Sanidad)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As famed streamer and influencer \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVkTeXBuweY\">IShowSpeed\u003c/a> stood atop the roof of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13979306/hyphy-burger-grand-opening-west-oakland-guapdad\">Hyphy Burger\u003c/a> in September, millions of fans from around the world tuned in. Hundreds more stood on the streets of West Oakland below. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And in the midst of people screaming, cars swinging and tires screeching, someone started singing opera. A tenor, to be exact. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DPDWuMBDkcK/\">I tried to get his attention\u003c/a>,” says Richmond vocalist and musician \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/thekhaysie/\">Khaysie\u003c/a>, who was hoping to grab some of IShowSpeed’s limelight. “But there were just a lot of people present.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>He momentarily gave up, driving home to Richmond before tuning back into IShowSpeed’s live stream and realizing the influencer had made another stop, at the Guitar Center in Emeryville.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Again Khaysie pulled up, attempting to showcase his talents. Again he was overlooked. But this time, now after midnight, he joined the fleet of 50-plus cars following IShowSpeed’s tour bus to the South Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the wee hours of the morning, outside of a robotics company in Palo Alto, Khaysie saw a window of opportunity when IShowSpeed exited his tour bus — and the cameras were pointed in his direction.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13983888\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1707px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13983888\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-scaled.jpeg\" alt=\"A man on one knee, holding a microphone while singing on stage. \" width=\"1707\" height=\"2560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-scaled.jpeg 1707w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-160x240.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-768x1152.jpeg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-1024x1536.jpeg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/11/IMG_0342-1365x2048.jpeg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1707px) 100vw, 1707px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Khaysie says he was attracted to opera once he realized how could tap into his emotions while performing. \u003ccite>(Ramon - Duality Visualz)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“That’s when I sang the classic ‘Ave Maria,’” he says, understating how he dominated the airwaves by belting notes from the opera staple. “And that’s why (IShowSpeed) reacted. He was like, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DPEdRk8EXMu/\">‘What the hell\u003c/a>?!’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because IShowSpeed’s following is so massive, that brief glimpse of attention opened doors for the 32-year-old artist, who’s pursued music since he was 10. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the weeks since, Khaysie has been interviewed on\u003cem> \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DPk3eKjgOr1/\">99.7 NOW FM\u003c/a>\u003c/em> and\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DPkPWziEgUi/?img_index=1\">\u003cem> La Kaliente 1370 AM\u003c/em>,\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@sanfranciscolives/video/7555300748553211167\">hosted the dumpling eating contest\u003c/a> at this year’s San Francisco Moon Festival.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>This coming weekend, Khaysie will perform in San Francisco at the \u003ca href=\"https://fridapeople.com/\">Frida People collective’s\u003c/a> fall \u003ca href=\"https://www.eventbrite.com/e/gathering-light-tending-the-inner-flame-hosted-by-frida-people-collective-tickets-1874341880019?aff=oddtdtcreator&utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQMMjU2MjgxMDQwNTU4AAGnD2mYdcG-jYMR83AMpcNKO3ElQHwNkkXZjS69g2c-UVGrfVHqmNFZYdum9ng_aem_5s96l-qSqkx5sSbsJ26yBg\">“Gathering Light” event\u003c/a>, an in-person and livestreamed performance with a focus on the healing power of art.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frida People founder \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/missanaqu/\">Ana Quiñonez \u003c/a>and Oakland journalist \u003ca href=\"https://www.kalw.org/people/kristal-raheem?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQMMjU2MjgxMDQwNTU4AAGnDtGKBo-Vwtht1DJw2crrpWzkr6Xr1_TGoSfXLEsQjNXGs73z-tp4j6IByGM_aem_A5GftaEd-QqdfMD5yQR0gw\">Kristal Raheem\u003c/a> will co-host the event and lead a discussion about tending to one’s “inner flame.” The evening also features performances by San Francisco rapper and singer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kaly_incognegreaux/\">Kaly Jay\u003c/a>, East Oakland R&B artist \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kenyatta2saucey/\">Kenyatta \u003c/a>and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Khaysie is approaching Friday’s show the same way he approaches other gigs; opting for street clothes instead of the expected black suit and tie of an opera singer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I want people to think that opera can be performed anywhere,” he says. “You don’t have to look a certain way… When people hear my voice they’re gonna be like, ‘What the heck?'”\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/2t0FVrJCNXM'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/2t0FVrJCNXM'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Khaysie also plans to give audience members a sample of a hip-hopera he’s been working on. Without going too deep into detail, Khaysie says his work differs from MTV’s 2001 \u003cem>Carmen: A Hip Hopera \u003c/em>(with Beyoncé and Mos Def), as well as theatrical treatments of hip-hop like R. Kelly’s \u003cem>Trapped In The Closet\u003c/em> saga and the award-winning musical \u003cem>Hamilton\u003c/em>. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead of a corny remix of \u003cem>The Marriage of Figaro\u003c/em> sped up to sound contemporary, Khaysie says he’s creating something that’s “authentically hip-hop” with sincere storytelling and entertaining instrumentation; a piece that conveys the range of emotions he’s seen other opera singers display.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At age 16, Khaysie, who came up with through the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youngmusiciansco.org/\">Young Musicians Coral Orchestra\u003c/a>, got a taste of opera’s power when famed tenor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kennedy-center.org/artists/d/da-dn/rodrick-dixon/\">Rodrick Dixon\u003c/a> visited UC Berkeley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In front of the audience, Dixon asked Khaysie to present a piece. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And when I finished my operatic song,” he recalls, “he asked me, why do I want to sing opera?'” Khaysie replied that the art form allows him to fully express himself and tap into his emotions. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dixon countered, “So why didn’t you do that?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Caught off guard, Khaysie stepped back as Dixon took to the stage and gave a short performance of his own. “When I looked into his eyes,” recalls Khaysie, “I could see the raw emotion that he sang in each and every note. His voice was so powerful that it shook my body.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Khaysie’s tears flowed as Dixon asked if he truly wanted to commit to the craft. “At that point I was sold,” says Khaysie, who went on to obtain a vocal performance degree with a focus on opera from the \u003ca href=\"https://www.michigandaily.com/uncategorized/chris-sanchez/\">University of Michigan\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since graduating nearly 10 years ago, he’s experienced the roller coaster that comes with being an artist of any sort: periodic lulls, followed by reminders of the fire inside. “Each time that I try to run away from music,” he says, “music always found me.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He’s explored different types of music, composing R&B, soul, reggaeton and dembow songs. He’s also performed on traditional concert stages with \u003ca href=\"https://www.westedgeopera.org/\">West Edge Opera\u003c/a>, the \u003ca href=\"https://music.berkeley.edu/performance-ensembles/uc-berkeley-chamber-chorus\">UC Berkeley Chamber Chorus\u003c/a> and the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLSpiwMub2k\">Golden Gate Symphony Orchestra & Chorus \u003c/a>at the Palace of Fine Arts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Working as an a elementary school teacher in Richmond, Khaysie practices mindfulness with his students throughout the day, and attributes his recent success to healing his own inner child and getting reacquainted with his faith in God.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A churchgoer as a kid in the East Bay, he strayed after college but recently found his way back. With that came renewed confidence. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, he affirms, “I’m going to use music to serve a bigger purpose, to inspire people and to use my voice for positive impact.”\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Khaysie performs as part of Frida People collective’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.eventbrite.com/e/gathering-light-tending-the-inner-flame-hosted-by-frida-people-collective-tickets-1874341880019\">‘Gathering Light’ event\u003c/a> on Friday, Nov. 22, at KALW (220 Montgomery St., San Francisco). \u003ca href=\"https://www.eventbrite.com/e/gathering-light-tending-the-inner-flame-hosted-by-frida-people-collective-tickets-1874341880019\">Check here for tickets and more information\u003c/a>. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "tiffany-conway-artist-florence-biennale",
"title": "Artist Tiffany Conway is Bringing the Bay to the Florence Biennale",
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"headTitle": "Artist Tiffany Conway is Bringing the Bay to the Florence Biennale | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981736\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1707px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981736\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"An African American woman wearing a black top, blue jeans and glasses, sitting in a studio with white walls surrounded by colorful paintings.\" width=\"1707\" height=\"2560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-scaled.jpg 1707w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-160x240.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-1365x2048.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1707px) 100vw, 1707px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Artist Tiffany Conway, raised all around the Bay Area, will represent the region next month at the high-profile Florence Biennale in Italy. \u003ccite>( Bryon Malik)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>When Bay Area artist \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/tiffanyconwayart/\">Tiffany Conway\u003c/a> got an email in May of this year suggesting she apply to the Florence Biennale, she didn’t think it was real.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Founded in 1997, the prestigious art exhibition has been a major platform for renowned artists of all sorts, while bolstering the careers of emerging creatives.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now — after properly vetting the invitation, applying and being accepted — Conway will show her work at this year’s event in mid-October.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is a major opportunity,” says Conway during a recent call.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981742\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981742\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-3.jpg\" alt=\"A colorful portrait of an African American woman with a cone-shaped afro adorned with flowers.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"2030\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-3.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-3-160x162.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-3-768x780.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-3-1513x1536.jpg 1513w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tiffany Conway, ‘Crowned,’ 2023. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the artist)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Ahead of the trip to Italy, Conway will host a \u003ca href=\"https://www.thefactorybar.net/events/2025/9/20/rejoice-pop-up-art-show-amp-live-painting-with-tiffany-conway\">pop-up show at The Factory Bar in Richmond\u003c/a> this Saturday, Sept. 27, and also show her work as a part of the Musuem of the African Diaspora’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.nexus-sfbay.com/schedule\">Nexus: SF/Bay Area Black Art Week\u003c/a> on Oct. 4 and 5.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With all she has brewing, Conway is especially excited for the trip to Europe. She’ll be one of 600 artists from all over the world, and the only Black woman from the U.S., showing art that aligns with this year’s theme of “Light and Darkness.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The concept, says Conway, is open to interpretation. Which is ideal, as her work doesn’t exactly embrace darkness — at least not at first glance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981743\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981743\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1.jpg\" alt=\"A colorful painting of four women on a black background. \" width=\"2000\" height=\"2560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1-160x205.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1-768x983.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1-1200x1536.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1-1600x2048.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tiffany Conway, ‘Girls Dem,’ 2023. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the artist)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Conway’s oil-based paintings are full of electric blues and pastel pinks that accent her brown-skinned characters. She often places her subjects in natural landscapes, and adorns them with floral designs. “You can look at my work and see that it’s very colorful,” she says, “and that is to imply a sense of joy.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But, she clarifies, those bright colors come from darkness, literally and figuratively.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When she’s painting, Conway does a color test to ensure her colors are balanced. “I usually do that by taking a picture of the painting, and then changing the filter to black and white or gray scale,” she explains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13981636']Balancing the bliss of illumination with the heft of the shadows is a theme that’s ingrained in Conway’s art before paint even touches the canvas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I work with the idea of transmuting grief to joy,” says the Richmond-based painter. It’s her way of cultivating her own world, based on “the memory and history of the Black experience, primarily the Black American experience,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The goal of my work is to express and get to a place of joy. And I do that by using the Black body as a vehicle, and also using color as a form of language.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981744\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981744\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-5.jpg\" alt=\"A woman in a yellow dress shirt, green and orange colored tie and blue jeans, stands in a room surrounded by her paintings. \" width=\"2000\" height=\"1991\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-5.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-5-160x159.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-5-768x765.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-5-1536x1529.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tiffany Conway, a self-taught visual artist from the Bay Area, paints images of Black folks, utilizing floral patterns and bright colors. \u003ccite>(Patanisha Alia Williams)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Conway has been painting for over 15 years. Aside from a few classes at Academy of Art University, and a couple of community college courses in the East Bay, she’s largely self-taught. “My style,” she says, “was kind of cultivated over the years, and I really locked in about five years ago at the beginning of the pandemic.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the past few years Conway’s work has been part of a traveling art fair, which introduced her artwork to the people connected to the Florence Biennale.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Honored to be part of the forthcoming exhibition, Conway is clear that external validation isn’t a necessity, but it does give her some reassurance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For me,” says Conway, “it is really just confirmation that I’m on the right path.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981745\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1905px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981745\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A portrait painting of an African American man in a blue shirt with a few flowers scattered throughout his hair. \" width=\"1905\" height=\"2560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-scaled.jpg 1905w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-160x215.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-768x1032.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-1143x1536.jpg 1143w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-1524x2048.jpg 1524w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1905px) 100vw, 1905px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tiffany Conway, ‘Vermillion,’ 2022. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the artist)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>She reflects on the number of artists who’ve stepped away from their craft due to social pressures and financial burdens, adding that she, too, has thought about hanging up the paint brush. “So, having this opportunity come to me in this crazy time that we’re living in,” she says, “it just really feels like… this is meant to be, and this is the correct path for me.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Conway will be in Florence from Oct. 18–26, and is looking forward to expanding her global reach, connecting with gallerists and curators from the across the map and showing the world what she’s made of.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It gives me the opportunity to shine brighter,” says Conway.\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Tiffany Conway hosts a pop-up event at \u003ca href=\"https://www.thefactorybar.net/events/2025/9/20/rejoice-pop-up-art-show-amp-live-painting-with-tiffany-conway\">The Factory Bar in Richmond\u003c/a> on Saturday, Sept. 27, and shows her work as a part of the Musuem of the African Diaspora’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.nexus-sfbay.com/schedule\">Nexus: SF/Bay Area Black Art Week\u003c/a> on Saturday, Oct. 4 and Sunday, Oct. 5. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "With her colorful paintings, Tiffany Conway has a unique way of balancing light and darkness.",
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"title": "Artist Tiffany Conway is Bringing the Bay to the Florence Biennale | KQED",
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"headline": "Artist Tiffany Conway is Bringing the Bay to the Florence Biennale",
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"subhead": "Here's how a Richmond-based painter landed in one of the world's most prestigious art shows.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981736\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1707px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981736\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"An African American woman wearing a black top, blue jeans and glasses, sitting in a studio with white walls surrounded by colorful paintings.\" width=\"1707\" height=\"2560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-scaled.jpg 1707w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-160x240.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-2-1365x2048.jpg 1365w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1707px) 100vw, 1707px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Artist Tiffany Conway, raised all around the Bay Area, will represent the region next month at the high-profile Florence Biennale in Italy. \u003ccite>( Bryon Malik)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>When Bay Area artist \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/tiffanyconwayart/\">Tiffany Conway\u003c/a> got an email in May of this year suggesting she apply to the Florence Biennale, she didn’t think it was real.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Founded in 1997, the prestigious art exhibition has been a major platform for renowned artists of all sorts, while bolstering the careers of emerging creatives.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now — after properly vetting the invitation, applying and being accepted — Conway will show her work at this year’s event in mid-October.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is a major opportunity,” says Conway during a recent call.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981742\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981742\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-3.jpg\" alt=\"A colorful portrait of an African American woman with a cone-shaped afro adorned with flowers.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"2030\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-3.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-3-160x162.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-3-768x780.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-3-1513x1536.jpg 1513w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tiffany Conway, ‘Crowned,’ 2023. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the artist)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Ahead of the trip to Italy, Conway will host a \u003ca href=\"https://www.thefactorybar.net/events/2025/9/20/rejoice-pop-up-art-show-amp-live-painting-with-tiffany-conway\">pop-up show at The Factory Bar in Richmond\u003c/a> this Saturday, Sept. 27, and also show her work as a part of the Musuem of the African Diaspora’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.nexus-sfbay.com/schedule\">Nexus: SF/Bay Area Black Art Week\u003c/a> on Oct. 4 and 5.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With all she has brewing, Conway is especially excited for the trip to Europe. She’ll be one of 600 artists from all over the world, and the only Black woman from the U.S., showing art that aligns with this year’s theme of “Light and Darkness.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The concept, says Conway, is open to interpretation. Which is ideal, as her work doesn’t exactly embrace darkness — at least not at first glance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981743\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981743\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1.jpg\" alt=\"A colorful painting of four women on a black background. \" width=\"2000\" height=\"2560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1-160x205.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1-768x983.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1-1200x1536.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-1-1600x2048.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tiffany Conway, ‘Girls Dem,’ 2023. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the artist)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Conway’s oil-based paintings are full of electric blues and pastel pinks that accent her brown-skinned characters. She often places her subjects in natural landscapes, and adorns them with floral designs. “You can look at my work and see that it’s very colorful,” she says, “and that is to imply a sense of joy.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But, she clarifies, those bright colors come from darkness, literally and figuratively.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When she’s painting, Conway does a color test to ensure her colors are balanced. “I usually do that by taking a picture of the painting, and then changing the filter to black and white or gray scale,” she explains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Balancing the bliss of illumination with the heft of the shadows is a theme that’s ingrained in Conway’s art before paint even touches the canvas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I work with the idea of transmuting grief to joy,” says the Richmond-based painter. It’s her way of cultivating her own world, based on “the memory and history of the Black experience, primarily the Black American experience,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The goal of my work is to express and get to a place of joy. And I do that by using the Black body as a vehicle, and also using color as a form of language.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981744\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981744\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-5.jpg\" alt=\"A woman in a yellow dress shirt, green and orange colored tie and blue jeans, stands in a room surrounded by her paintings. \" width=\"2000\" height=\"1991\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-5.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-5-160x159.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-5-768x765.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-5-1536x1529.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tiffany Conway, a self-taught visual artist from the Bay Area, paints images of Black folks, utilizing floral patterns and bright colors. \u003ccite>(Patanisha Alia Williams)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Conway has been painting for over 15 years. Aside from a few classes at Academy of Art University, and a couple of community college courses in the East Bay, she’s largely self-taught. “My style,” she says, “was kind of cultivated over the years, and I really locked in about five years ago at the beginning of the pandemic.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the past few years Conway’s work has been part of a traveling art fair, which introduced her artwork to the people connected to the Florence Biennale.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Honored to be part of the forthcoming exhibition, Conway is clear that external validation isn’t a necessity, but it does give her some reassurance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For me,” says Conway, “it is really just confirmation that I’m on the right path.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981745\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1905px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981745\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A portrait painting of an African American man in a blue shirt with a few flowers scattered throughout his hair. \" width=\"1905\" height=\"2560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-scaled.jpg 1905w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-160x215.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-768x1032.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-1143x1536.jpg 1143w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Tiffany-Conway-4-1524x2048.jpg 1524w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1905px) 100vw, 1905px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tiffany Conway, ‘Vermillion,’ 2022. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of the artist)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>She reflects on the number of artists who’ve stepped away from their craft due to social pressures and financial burdens, adding that she, too, has thought about hanging up the paint brush. “So, having this opportunity come to me in this crazy time that we’re living in,” she says, “it just really feels like… this is meant to be, and this is the correct path for me.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Conway will be in Florence from Oct. 18–26, and is looking forward to expanding her global reach, connecting with gallerists and curators from the across the map and showing the world what she’s made of.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It gives me the opportunity to shine brighter,” says Conway.\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Tiffany Conway hosts a pop-up event at \u003ca href=\"https://www.thefactorybar.net/events/2025/9/20/rejoice-pop-up-art-show-amp-live-painting-with-tiffany-conway\">The Factory Bar in Richmond\u003c/a> on Saturday, Sept. 27, and shows her work as a part of the Musuem of the African Diaspora’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.nexus-sfbay.com/schedule\">Nexus: SF/Bay Area Black Art Week\u003c/a> on Saturday, Oct. 4 and Sunday, Oct. 5. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "fijiana-welcome-to-the-bay-indo-fijian-rap-video",
"title": "Fijiana’s ‘Welcome to the Bay’ Sparks Questions About Our Cultural Melting Pot",
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"headTitle": "Fijiana’s ‘Welcome to the Bay’ Sparks Questions About Our Cultural Melting Pot | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>Where else but the Bay Area can you find some authentic Indo-Fijian slap?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13911398/rightnowish-pallavi-aka-fijiana-rapper-hindi-sexuality\">Richmond rapper Fijiana\u003c/a> dropped “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqLdpgeM1ac\">Welcome to The Bay\u003c/a>,” a track pairing that distinct Bay Area flavor with sounds from the Indian diaspora, including traditional flutes like the shehnai and the bansuri.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over 808 kicks and persistent hi-hats, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/iamfijiana/\">Fijiana\u003c/a> raps about “going 80 on the 80” from Richmond to Oakland alongside references to dharma and bindis. She even raps a few bars in Fiji Hindi.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the video for “Welcome to the Bay,” Fijiana stops by immigrant-owned markets in Richmond before pulling up on the homies at Lake Merritt. Later, she hangs out the window of a BMW doing donuts near the historic 16th Street Station in West Oakland, a Fijian flag proudly waving from the vehicle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981077\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13981077\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14%E2%80%AFAM-2000x1363.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1363\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14 AM-2000x1363.png 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14 AM-160x109.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14 AM-768x523.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14 AM-1536x1047.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14 AM-2048x1395.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Fijiana’s ’Welcome to the Bay’ video features artists, landmarks and local community members. It’s an ode to Fijiana’s Bay Area circles. \u003ccite>(Heaathh/Erik Saevi)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It feels so good that people are connecting to this piece,” Fijiana tells me, reflecting on the video’s overwhelming response. “I almost, like, can’t even believe it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Directed by \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/heath.visuals/\">Heaathh\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/eriksaevi/\">Erik Saevi\u003c/a> (with creative direction from Fijiana and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/riya.xx/\">Riya Saloni\u003c/a>), “Welcome to the Bay” keeps racking up tens of thousands of views on \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqLdpgeM1ac\">YouTube\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DOJdE_uCZrp/\">Instagram\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@iamfijiana/video/7545176804068314423?lang=en\">TikTok\u003c/a>, earning praise locally and abroad. And at the same time, it’s added to the longstanding conversation about hip-hop, cross-cultural connections and appropriation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The song’s success has also offered a glimpse into what goes into making a viral hit. There’s been a genuine wave of support for “Welcome to the Bay,” notably from other Bay Area artists like Keak Da Sneak, IamSu! and Capolow. Yet Fijiana and her team’s savvy social media work has also added to the hype: She posted a \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DOOVChYEcWc/\">doctored meme\u003c/a> that makes it look as if \u003ca href=\"https://www.twitch.tv/kaicenat\">famed streamer Kai Cenat\u003c/a> reacted to the song. (The clip is actually of him listening to a\u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/egpSUBiBPy8?si=Iotj6wm5KVIJto17&t=159\"> Jackboys track\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqLdpgeM1ac\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Like anything that gets a lot of attention online, the comment section adds another layer to the story.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One commenter, also Indo-Fijian, was close to tears, thinking about how “Welcome to the Bay” is helping spread the Fiji Hindi language to all corners of the world. “That really hit me,” says Fijiana, “because it made me very aware that what I’m doing for my people is so important.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yet the multiculturalism of the Bay is not without its tension. More than one commenter took Fijiana to task, accusing her of appropriating Black culture.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fijiana says she understands that Black people are tired of others constantly taking from their creations. She noted in the comments (and in our interview) that at the start of the video she wears a shirt explicitly stating, “\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DOUACZUkhu7/\">Bay Area Culture Is Black Culture\u003c/a>.” [aside postid='arts_13980855']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The song is reflective of her life experience, which includes a mixture of cultural influences, she says. With that, she acknowledges that some people may never accept a Fijian woman of South Asian descent who was raised in close proximity to Richmond’s Black community. She’s learned to be OK with that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Being an immigrant in this country,” she says, “we do grow up in these spaces. I’m actually more around American things than I am of my cultural things.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fijiana has faced criticism in the past, albeit it was from the other side of the metaphorical cultural aisle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13911398/rightnowish-pallavi-aka-fijiana-rapper-hindi-sexuality\">In an interview with me in 2022\u003c/a>, she acknowledged some people of the Indian diaspora were perturbed about the sexuality in her video for “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zl97qCiK7Bs\">Sanskari Hoe\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even then she discussed growing up in a predominantly Black and Latino community — and the delicate balance she has to strike between her heritage and surrounding influences.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981082\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1542px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981082\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana.JuliaFairbrother.HeathPhotography.ErikSaevi.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1542\" height=\"1546\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana.JuliaFairbrother.HeathPhotography.ErikSaevi.jpg 1542w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana.JuliaFairbrother.HeathPhotography.ErikSaevi-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana.JuliaFairbrother.HeathPhotography.ErikSaevi-768x770.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana.JuliaFairbrother.HeathPhotography.ErikSaevi-1532x1536.jpg 1532w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1542px) 100vw, 1542px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Richmond rapper Fijiana wears a ‘Numbers’ jersey from the Organic Midnight brand by San Francisco rapper Larry June, and poses on a Harley Davidson motorcycle at Oakland’s Lake Merritt in a scene from ‘Welcome to the Bay.’ \u003ccite>(Heath Photography)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In her latest video, her attempt to effectively depict this cultural intersection pushed Fijiana to call in a second videographer by the name of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/oadayday/?hl=en\">Oaday Day\u003c/a> for a few final, important touches.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We wanted to tell the story of what the Bay Area means to us, what it means to an Indo-Fijian girl, what is means to an immigrant girl in this community,” she says. “And we wanted to showcase some of our elders in the community and how dope they are.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The video features Richmond’s Palm Market, Aliyah Jewelry and Apna Foods. At one point, a clerk counts money as Fijiana posts up on the counter. In another, Fijiana lays on bags of rice while she recites her bars. The shots of community extend flawlessly to include other Bay Area artists, as images of rapper \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/7namez/\">7Namez\u003c/a>, producer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kontrabandbeatz/\">Kontraband Beatz,\u003c/a> model \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kier.aaa/\">Kiera\u003c/a>, photographer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/been.milky/\">Been Milky\u003c/a> and others fill the screen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981262\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13981262\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-2000x3018.jpg\" alt=\"A woman in a blue top and high heels squats as she's photographed in a candid pose. \" width=\"2000\" height=\"3018\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-2000x3018.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-160x241.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-768x1159.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-1018x1536.jpg 1018w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-1357x2048.jpg 1357w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-scaled.jpg 1697w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Behind the scenes at Fijiana’s “Welcome to The Bay” video shoot. \u003ccite>(Been Milky)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“This video is so special, because it was \u003cem>so\u003c/em> community,” Fijiana says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In response to a scene in the video where a friend applies oil to Fijiana’s hair, one viewer, a Black woman, wrote, “It’s the Amla oil for me,” showing that certain personal items can have cross-cultural significance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“As a Desi person,” Fijiana says, “Amla oil is an important part of the culture.” Having your hair oiled weekly is a custom, she says: “Our elders do it for us, and our sisters.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the video, the woman oiling Fijiana’s hair is \u003ca href=\"https://www.backstage.com/u/raven-mapanao/\">Raven Mapanao\u003c/a>, a model, actress and close friend of Fijiana’s. The clip is symbolic, Fijiana explains, as last year while Fijiana was in the hospital Mapanao would regularly visit and oil her hair.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13911398'] For six months a life-threatening autoimmune disease caused the rapper intense mobility issues and concerns of organ failure. “I fought through it, somehow I made it,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While her hair gets oiled and the BMW gets sideways behind her in the video, Fijiana wears a tan knee pad and beige hand bandage, representative of the scars of last year. The scene is a celebration of the fact that she \u003cem>can\u003c/em> move.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s something about going through something like that,” she says, “as unfortunate as it is, I really think it brought me closer to myself, my art and my intention in a way that I don’t think I’ve ever felt.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She cracks up while thinking about the song’s producer, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/yoshubmusic/\">a guy named Shub\u003c/a> who she met on YouTube. “He’s just some person, chillin’ at his house in India,” she says with a laugh, thinking about the song’s sudden success. “He’s also probably trippin’, like ‘What’s going on?’ This is poppin’ for both of us.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With additional singles on the way ahead of a forthcoming album, Fijiana says there’s more where “Welcome to The Bay” came from.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Through each song, through each single, through each visual,” she says, “I’m trying to let people come into this world of Fijiana.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Where else but the Bay Area can you find some authentic Indo-Fijian slap?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13911398/rightnowish-pallavi-aka-fijiana-rapper-hindi-sexuality\">Richmond rapper Fijiana\u003c/a> dropped “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqLdpgeM1ac\">Welcome to The Bay\u003c/a>,” a track pairing that distinct Bay Area flavor with sounds from the Indian diaspora, including traditional flutes like the shehnai and the bansuri.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over 808 kicks and persistent hi-hats, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/iamfijiana/\">Fijiana\u003c/a> raps about “going 80 on the 80” from Richmond to Oakland alongside references to dharma and bindis. She even raps a few bars in Fiji Hindi.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the video for “Welcome to the Bay,” Fijiana stops by immigrant-owned markets in Richmond before pulling up on the homies at Lake Merritt. Later, she hangs out the window of a BMW doing donuts near the historic 16th Street Station in West Oakland, a Fijian flag proudly waving from the vehicle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981077\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13981077\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14%E2%80%AFAM-2000x1363.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1363\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14 AM-2000x1363.png 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14 AM-160x109.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14 AM-768x523.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14 AM-1536x1047.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-04-at-10.10.14 AM-2048x1395.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Fijiana’s ’Welcome to the Bay’ video features artists, landmarks and local community members. It’s an ode to Fijiana’s Bay Area circles. \u003ccite>(Heaathh/Erik Saevi)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It feels so good that people are connecting to this piece,” Fijiana tells me, reflecting on the video’s overwhelming response. “I almost, like, can’t even believe it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Directed by \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/heath.visuals/\">Heaathh\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/eriksaevi/\">Erik Saevi\u003c/a> (with creative direction from Fijiana and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/riya.xx/\">Riya Saloni\u003c/a>), “Welcome to the Bay” keeps racking up tens of thousands of views on \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqLdpgeM1ac\">YouTube\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DOJdE_uCZrp/\">Instagram\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@iamfijiana/video/7545176804068314423?lang=en\">TikTok\u003c/a>, earning praise locally and abroad. And at the same time, it’s added to the longstanding conversation about hip-hop, cross-cultural connections and appropriation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The song’s success has also offered a glimpse into what goes into making a viral hit. There’s been a genuine wave of support for “Welcome to the Bay,” notably from other Bay Area artists like Keak Da Sneak, IamSu! and Capolow. Yet Fijiana and her team’s savvy social media work has also added to the hype: She posted a \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DOOVChYEcWc/\">doctored meme\u003c/a> that makes it look as if \u003ca href=\"https://www.twitch.tv/kaicenat\">famed streamer Kai Cenat\u003c/a> reacted to the song. (The clip is actually of him listening to a\u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/egpSUBiBPy8?si=Iotj6wm5KVIJto17&t=159\"> Jackboys track\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/qqLdpgeM1ac'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/qqLdpgeM1ac'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Like anything that gets a lot of attention online, the comment section adds another layer to the story.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One commenter, also Indo-Fijian, was close to tears, thinking about how “Welcome to the Bay” is helping spread the Fiji Hindi language to all corners of the world. “That really hit me,” says Fijiana, “because it made me very aware that what I’m doing for my people is so important.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yet the multiculturalism of the Bay is not without its tension. More than one commenter took Fijiana to task, accusing her of appropriating Black culture.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fijiana says she understands that Black people are tired of others constantly taking from their creations. She noted in the comments (and in our interview) that at the start of the video she wears a shirt explicitly stating, “\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DOUACZUkhu7/\">Bay Area Culture Is Black Culture\u003c/a>.” \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The song is reflective of her life experience, which includes a mixture of cultural influences, she says. With that, she acknowledges that some people may never accept a Fijian woman of South Asian descent who was raised in close proximity to Richmond’s Black community. She’s learned to be OK with that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Being an immigrant in this country,” she says, “we do grow up in these spaces. I’m actually more around American things than I am of my cultural things.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fijiana has faced criticism in the past, albeit it was from the other side of the metaphorical cultural aisle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13911398/rightnowish-pallavi-aka-fijiana-rapper-hindi-sexuality\">In an interview with me in 2022\u003c/a>, she acknowledged some people of the Indian diaspora were perturbed about the sexuality in her video for “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zl97qCiK7Bs\">Sanskari Hoe\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even then she discussed growing up in a predominantly Black and Latino community — and the delicate balance she has to strike between her heritage and surrounding influences.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981082\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1542px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13981082\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana.JuliaFairbrother.HeathPhotography.ErikSaevi.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1542\" height=\"1546\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana.JuliaFairbrother.HeathPhotography.ErikSaevi.jpg 1542w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana.JuliaFairbrother.HeathPhotography.ErikSaevi-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana.JuliaFairbrother.HeathPhotography.ErikSaevi-768x770.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana.JuliaFairbrother.HeathPhotography.ErikSaevi-1532x1536.jpg 1532w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1542px) 100vw, 1542px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Richmond rapper Fijiana wears a ‘Numbers’ jersey from the Organic Midnight brand by San Francisco rapper Larry June, and poses on a Harley Davidson motorcycle at Oakland’s Lake Merritt in a scene from ‘Welcome to the Bay.’ \u003ccite>(Heath Photography)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In her latest video, her attempt to effectively depict this cultural intersection pushed Fijiana to call in a second videographer by the name of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/oadayday/?hl=en\">Oaday Day\u003c/a> for a few final, important touches.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We wanted to tell the story of what the Bay Area means to us, what it means to an Indo-Fijian girl, what is means to an immigrant girl in this community,” she says. “And we wanted to showcase some of our elders in the community and how dope they are.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The video features Richmond’s Palm Market, Aliyah Jewelry and Apna Foods. At one point, a clerk counts money as Fijiana posts up on the counter. In another, Fijiana lays on bags of rice while she recites her bars. The shots of community extend flawlessly to include other Bay Area artists, as images of rapper \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/7namez/\">7Namez\u003c/a>, producer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kontrabandbeatz/\">Kontraband Beatz,\u003c/a> model \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kier.aaa/\">Kiera\u003c/a>, photographer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/been.milky/\">Been Milky\u003c/a> and others fill the screen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13981262\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13981262\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-2000x3018.jpg\" alt=\"A woman in a blue top and high heels squats as she's photographed in a candid pose. \" width=\"2000\" height=\"3018\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-2000x3018.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-160x241.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-768x1159.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-1018x1536.jpg 1018w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-1357x2048.jpg 1357w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Fijiana-Pose-scaled.jpg 1697w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Behind the scenes at Fijiana’s “Welcome to The Bay” video shoot. \u003ccite>(Been Milky)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“This video is so special, because it was \u003cem>so\u003c/em> community,” Fijiana says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In response to a scene in the video where a friend applies oil to Fijiana’s hair, one viewer, a Black woman, wrote, “It’s the Amla oil for me,” showing that certain personal items can have cross-cultural significance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“As a Desi person,” Fijiana says, “Amla oil is an important part of the culture.” Having your hair oiled weekly is a custom, she says: “Our elders do it for us, and our sisters.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the video, the woman oiling Fijiana’s hair is \u003ca href=\"https://www.backstage.com/u/raven-mapanao/\">Raven Mapanao\u003c/a>, a model, actress and close friend of Fijiana’s. The clip is symbolic, Fijiana explains, as last year while Fijiana was in the hospital Mapanao would regularly visit and oil her hair.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp> For six months a life-threatening autoimmune disease caused the rapper intense mobility issues and concerns of organ failure. “I fought through it, somehow I made it,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While her hair gets oiled and the BMW gets sideways behind her in the video, Fijiana wears a tan knee pad and beige hand bandage, representative of the scars of last year. The scene is a celebration of the fact that she \u003cem>can\u003c/em> move.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s something about going through something like that,” she says, “as unfortunate as it is, I really think it brought me closer to myself, my art and my intention in a way that I don’t think I’ve ever felt.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She cracks up while thinking about the song’s producer, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/yoshubmusic/\">a guy named Shub\u003c/a> who she met on YouTube. “He’s just some person, chillin’ at his house in India,” she says with a laugh, thinking about the song’s sudden success. “He’s also probably trippin’, like ‘What’s going on?’ This is poppin’ for both of us.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With additional singles on the way ahead of a forthcoming album, Fijiana says there’s more where “Welcome to The Bay” came from.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>Spirituality and religion aren’t readily mentioned when discussing Bay Area hip-hop, but they’ve been present since the start.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the ’80s, Too Short rapped that his city “couldn’t be saved by John The Pope.” The decade after, Richie Rich suggested that “if you’re scared, go to church.” The Jacka quoted the Quran in his early 2000s lyrics, Kamaiyah praised God in her uptempo party songs in the 2010s, and three years ago, Rexx Life Raj dropped an album called \u003cem>The Blue Hour\u003c/em> about his path to spiritual enlightenment after the passing of his parents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s just that the Bay’s belief in a higher power is often shrouded by heavy bass lines and lyrical game.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13972539']The music of Richmond artist King NTG is more directly devoted to the Lord. His latest album \u003cem>Salvation\u003c/em> dropped March 16, a nod to the Bible scripture John 3:16.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyrically uplifting without being preachy or condescending, \u003cem>Salvation\u003c/em> retains the mobb and hyphy energy of Bay Area rap, complete with wisdom-filled-wordplay. And it’s clearly made with God at the center of it all.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Took out all the curse words, so I ain’t curing it / Entering my new reign, fully immersed in it,” King NTG raps on the track “No Industry Friends” — as a summation of this project and a window into where he is artistically.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13973399\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1707px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-13973399 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A side profile of a man in glasses overlooking the ocean.\" width=\"1707\" height=\"2560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-scaled.jpg 1707w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-800x1200.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-1020x1530.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-160x240.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-1920x2880.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1707px) 100vw, 1707px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">King NTG shares his testimony on his latest album ‘Salvation’ in hopes to reach those who need some inspiration. \u003ccite>(NOBL)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Throughout the album, King NTG, formerly known as Nio The Gift, tells how he found his personal salvation. After experiencing a taste of rap stardom at a young age, living the fast life came to a slow end. He soon learned to focus on family, mentorship and God, and came back to hip-hop to share his blessings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2006, just after \u003ca href=\"https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/china-nixes-jay-z-concert-over-vulgar-language-1.626571\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">China’s Ministry of Culture banned Jay-Z\u003c/a> from performing in the country, a young Nio The Gift got the green light to perform and distribute his music \u003ca href=\"https://www.xxlmag.com/the-break-presents-nio-tha-gift/?utm_source=tsmclip&utm_medium=referral\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">in the Chinese providence of Guangzhou\u003c/a>; the first independent hip-hop artist from the U.S. to do so.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13972732']“I got back from China,” King NTG tells me during a recent phone call, “and I hit the ground running … people started to find out what I had done internationally before I was even local.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He dropped a series of projects, including his 2009 album \u003cem>H.I.P.H.O.P. (Here I Present a Hero of Poverty)\u003c/em> and the 2010 album \u003cem>Super Hero\u003c/em>. He worked with rising West Coast rappers of the era, including \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmjBXy3C3YE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fresno’s Fashawn\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://soundcloud.com/thethizzler/erk-tha-jerk-x-symba-x-nio-tha-gift-magic-spell-prod-smka-thizzlercom?in=gabe-rein/sets/true-lyf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Richmond’s Erk Tha Jerk, Antioch’s Symba\u003c/a> and Oakland’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8zIAC3yDVI\">Mistah F.A.B.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was the young gun on the scene,” he recalls of his early 20s. “I was getting so much love from everybody who was out there.” And then life started to catch up with him. “I was still kind of one-foot-in, one-foot-out of good and bad decisions in my life,” he reflects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roCrwaDzaDA\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After the birth of his first son, King NTG was still trying to figure out life, let alone a music career. “And, you know,” he says with an exhale, “that was when things started to kind of slow down and take a turn.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Violence and murder in his hometown of Richmond \u003ca href=\"https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/cities/us/ca/richmond/murder-homicide-rate-statistics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">spiked in 2007 and 2009\u003c/a>, and rapping was a way out. He began feeling the pressure to succeed as a hip-hop artist. His name was ringing bells, but funding a rap career is expensive business.\u003ci>\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The studio time costs, beats cost, you got to print up CDs,” he says. “When you find out that music and pursuing your dreams comes with a cost, you start hustling a little bit harder.” He even titled his 2012 album \u003cem>The Hustler’s Spirit\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But as Nio the Gift, he realized that no matter how hard he hustled, it wasn’t working. So he backed away from rapping and, discouraged and depressed, returned to the proverbial drawing board.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I wanted to come back evolved, I wanted to grow,” he says of his personal reassessment. “Nio tha Gift is one person, but \u003cem>who am I\u003c/em>?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13973400\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-13973400 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A close-up of a man's tattooed hands, clasped together. \" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">King NTG has “God is real” tattooed on his right hand and “Real is God” on his left. \u003ccite>(NOBL)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He got married and expanded his family, started coaching youth basketball and began mentoring young men in group homes. “I could identify with their struggle,” he attests. “I could identify with what it felt like to take chances, to be exposed to violence, to participate in violence, to grow from those things, learn from those things. And, you know, I turned my life completely around.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the new song “Not For Sale” (featuring \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/champgreen/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Champ Green\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/imdbledsoe/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">D. Bledsoe\u003c/a>), King NTG raps, “Neon in my aura, treating life like mi amor/ era of my second prime, like I’m Deion and Shedeur.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s one of a few instances where he references the transition he’s made, and what he’s doing with his newfound perspective.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqjxRplc70s\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The clearest examples are the songs “Living My Truth” (Part 1 and Part 2), as well as “Flowers,” in which he discusses dealing with pistols, broken romantic relationships and emerging from the shadow of his brother, former NBA player \u003ca href=\"https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/goodedr01.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Drew Gooden\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over production from Ekzakt, F1rst Class, The Mekanix and Vidal Garcia, the album features vocalists \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/two14rr/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Two14\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/semioddo/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Yung Semi\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/gabbyrose_music/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Gabby Rose\u003c/a>. There’s verses from \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/manidraper/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Mani Draper\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/firstnameian/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ian Kelly\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/tcarriermusic/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">T. Carriér,\u003c/a> and even some bars from \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/thejankgod/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">B*Janky\u003c/a> of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/officialtrunkboiz/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Trunk Boiz\u003c/a> on the hyphy era retrospective “You Had To Be There.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In “One Life,” featuring \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/4rax_of_themekanix/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">4 rAx of The Mekanix\u003c/a>, King NTG speaks about a constant theme in his work: being a super hero.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My gift has always been to be light in darkness,” he says. “To instill hope in people that seemed hopeless, and to inspire.” Noting that his mission is just to reach one person, he dreams aloud and says, “Imagine God greeting me with ‘Job well done.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13973310\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13973310\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A silhouette image of a man standing with his arms spread, overlooking a big body of water on a sunny day.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">King NTG’s latest album ‘Salvation’ is out now. \u003ccite>(NOBL)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Between the album’s 15 songs are three interludes that feature \u003ca href=\"https://tyroncarter.com/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pastor Tyron Carter\u003c/a>, a childhood friend of King NTG. The two were born a month apart — they grew up in the same city, went to the same school, played on the same basketball team and had the same struggles, but took two different paths in life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In high school, the friends separated as King NTG moved. While Carter went to college, King NTG pursued a rap career funded by the streets. The two reconnected as adults when Carter invited King NTG to be a witness for his wedding. (Years later, King NTG would invite Carter to be the officiant at his own wedding.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Through this reconnection King NTG was reintroduced to the word of God. Inviting the pastor to participate in the album was less about repaying a personal debt and more about the listener: “If the people can’t make it to church, I want church to come to the people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In talking with King NTG, and listening to \u003cem>Salvation\u003c/em>, one thing becomes clear: his spiritual path isn’t a solo sojourn, but something he’s done with the support of others, and he’s taken that momentum to reach the next generation of those who need inspiration.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Spirituality and religion aren’t readily mentioned when discussing Bay Area hip-hop, but they’ve been present since the start.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the ’80s, Too Short rapped that his city “couldn’t be saved by John The Pope.” The decade after, Richie Rich suggested that “if you’re scared, go to church.” The Jacka quoted the Quran in his early 2000s lyrics, Kamaiyah praised God in her uptempo party songs in the 2010s, and three years ago, Rexx Life Raj dropped an album called \u003cem>The Blue Hour\u003c/em> about his path to spiritual enlightenment after the passing of his parents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s just that the Bay’s belief in a higher power is often shrouded by heavy bass lines and lyrical game.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The music of Richmond artist King NTG is more directly devoted to the Lord. His latest album \u003cem>Salvation\u003c/em> dropped March 16, a nod to the Bible scripture John 3:16.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyrically uplifting without being preachy or condescending, \u003cem>Salvation\u003c/em> retains the mobb and hyphy energy of Bay Area rap, complete with wisdom-filled-wordplay. And it’s clearly made with God at the center of it all.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Took out all the curse words, so I ain’t curing it / Entering my new reign, fully immersed in it,” King NTG raps on the track “No Industry Friends” — as a summation of this project and a window into where he is artistically.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13973399\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1707px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-13973399 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A side profile of a man in glasses overlooking the ocean.\" width=\"1707\" height=\"2560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-scaled.jpg 1707w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-800x1200.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-1020x1530.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-160x240.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/xYg8hmfB-1920x2880.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1707px) 100vw, 1707px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">King NTG shares his testimony on his latest album ‘Salvation’ in hopes to reach those who need some inspiration. \u003ccite>(NOBL)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Throughout the album, King NTG, formerly known as Nio The Gift, tells how he found his personal salvation. After experiencing a taste of rap stardom at a young age, living the fast life came to a slow end. He soon learned to focus on family, mentorship and God, and came back to hip-hop to share his blessings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2006, just after \u003ca href=\"https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/china-nixes-jay-z-concert-over-vulgar-language-1.626571\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">China’s Ministry of Culture banned Jay-Z\u003c/a> from performing in the country, a young Nio The Gift got the green light to perform and distribute his music \u003ca href=\"https://www.xxlmag.com/the-break-presents-nio-tha-gift/?utm_source=tsmclip&utm_medium=referral\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">in the Chinese providence of Guangzhou\u003c/a>; the first independent hip-hop artist from the U.S. to do so.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“I got back from China,” King NTG tells me during a recent phone call, “and I hit the ground running … people started to find out what I had done internationally before I was even local.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He dropped a series of projects, including his 2009 album \u003cem>H.I.P.H.O.P. (Here I Present a Hero of Poverty)\u003c/em> and the 2010 album \u003cem>Super Hero\u003c/em>. He worked with rising West Coast rappers of the era, including \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmjBXy3C3YE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fresno’s Fashawn\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://soundcloud.com/thethizzler/erk-tha-jerk-x-symba-x-nio-tha-gift-magic-spell-prod-smka-thizzlercom?in=gabe-rein/sets/true-lyf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Richmond’s Erk Tha Jerk, Antioch’s Symba\u003c/a> and Oakland’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8zIAC3yDVI\">Mistah F.A.B.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was the young gun on the scene,” he recalls of his early 20s. “I was getting so much love from everybody who was out there.” And then life started to catch up with him. “I was still kind of one-foot-in, one-foot-out of good and bad decisions in my life,” he reflects.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/roCrwaDzaDA'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/roCrwaDzaDA'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>After the birth of his first son, King NTG was still trying to figure out life, let alone a music career. “And, you know,” he says with an exhale, “that was when things started to kind of slow down and take a turn.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Violence and murder in his hometown of Richmond \u003ca href=\"https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/cities/us/ca/richmond/murder-homicide-rate-statistics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">spiked in 2007 and 2009\u003c/a>, and rapping was a way out. He began feeling the pressure to succeed as a hip-hop artist. His name was ringing bells, but funding a rap career is expensive business.\u003ci>\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The studio time costs, beats cost, you got to print up CDs,” he says. “When you find out that music and pursuing your dreams comes with a cost, you start hustling a little bit harder.” He even titled his 2012 album \u003cem>The Hustler’s Spirit\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But as Nio the Gift, he realized that no matter how hard he hustled, it wasn’t working. So he backed away from rapping and, discouraged and depressed, returned to the proverbial drawing board.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I wanted to come back evolved, I wanted to grow,” he says of his personal reassessment. “Nio tha Gift is one person, but \u003cem>who am I\u003c/em>?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13973400\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-13973400 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A close-up of a man's tattooed hands, clasped together. \" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tHDKr6vm-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">King NTG has “God is real” tattooed on his right hand and “Real is God” on his left. \u003ccite>(NOBL)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He got married and expanded his family, started coaching youth basketball and began mentoring young men in group homes. “I could identify with their struggle,” he attests. “I could identify with what it felt like to take chances, to be exposed to violence, to participate in violence, to grow from those things, learn from those things. And, you know, I turned my life completely around.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the new song “Not For Sale” (featuring \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/champgreen/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Champ Green\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/imdbledsoe/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">D. Bledsoe\u003c/a>), King NTG raps, “Neon in my aura, treating life like mi amor/ era of my second prime, like I’m Deion and Shedeur.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s one of a few instances where he references the transition he’s made, and what he’s doing with his newfound perspective.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/lqjxRplc70s'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/lqjxRplc70s'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>The clearest examples are the songs “Living My Truth” (Part 1 and Part 2), as well as “Flowers,” in which he discusses dealing with pistols, broken romantic relationships and emerging from the shadow of his brother, former NBA player \u003ca href=\"https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/goodedr01.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Drew Gooden\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over production from Ekzakt, F1rst Class, The Mekanix and Vidal Garcia, the album features vocalists \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/two14rr/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Two14\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/semioddo/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Yung Semi\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/gabbyrose_music/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Gabby Rose\u003c/a>. There’s verses from \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/manidraper/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Mani Draper\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/firstnameian/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ian Kelly\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/tcarriermusic/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">T. Carriér,\u003c/a> and even some bars from \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/thejankgod/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">B*Janky\u003c/a> of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/officialtrunkboiz/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Trunk Boiz\u003c/a> on the hyphy era retrospective “You Had To Be There.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In “One Life,” featuring \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/4rax_of_themekanix/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">4 rAx of The Mekanix\u003c/a>, King NTG speaks about a constant theme in his work: being a super hero.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My gift has always been to be light in darkness,” he says. “To instill hope in people that seemed hopeless, and to inspire.” Noting that his mission is just to reach one person, he dreams aloud and says, “Imagine God greeting me with ‘Job well done.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13973310\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13973310\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A silhouette image of a man standing with his arms spread, overlooking a big body of water on a sunny day.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/DSCF7231Ivan_-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">King NTG’s latest album ‘Salvation’ is out now. \u003ccite>(NOBL)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Between the album’s 15 songs are three interludes that feature \u003ca href=\"https://tyroncarter.com/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pastor Tyron Carter\u003c/a>, a childhood friend of King NTG. The two were born a month apart — they grew up in the same city, went to the same school, played on the same basketball team and had the same struggles, but took two different paths in life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In high school, the friends separated as King NTG moved. While Carter went to college, King NTG pursued a rap career funded by the streets. The two reconnected as adults when Carter invited King NTG to be a witness for his wedding. (Years later, King NTG would invite Carter to be the officiant at his own wedding.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Through this reconnection King NTG was reintroduced to the word of God. Inviting the pastor to participate in the album was less about repaying a personal debt and more about the listener: “If the people can’t make it to church, I want church to come to the people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In talking with King NTG, and listening to \u003cem>Salvation\u003c/em>, one thing becomes clear: his spiritual path isn’t a solo sojourn, but something he’s done with the support of others, and he’s taken that momentum to reach the next generation of those who need inspiration.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Life Happened. Richmond’s Mani Draper Chose How to React.",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/manidraper/\">Mani Draper\u003c/a>, a rapper, DJ and producer from Richmond, is the embodiment of that old saying, “You can’t control what happens to you, but you can control how you react.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On his late 2024 project \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/05W3z5ghO4Z8ceGLXyhPR6\">\u003ci>Winning Formxla\u003c/i>\u003c/a> (produced by \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/stevenanderson_art/\">Steven King\u003c/a>), the lyricist poetically illustrates his urge to make it as a rapper in the Bay Area while navigating all that life throws at him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the song “\u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/track/5llrSHYS6oFoFDzt0C62tB?si=bbdb9991f99e415d\">Stones Throw\u003c/a>,” he raps, “In spite of everything I lost and what its cost / I can say its been a good year.” The drums on the track fade, giving room to clearly hear his final adlib: “I love you dad.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUeDryZbQgQ\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Draper’s father passed away last May, leaving the artist in a state of mourning. Ever since, Draper has been on a mission to use his pain to build, not destroy. And despite the death of his father, his own health conditions and a case of possible artistic infringement, Draper has held tight to how he’s chosen to react.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last month he returned with another album, \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/2tn7HHSseYxNjd3RMLCmBF\">\u003cem>blxckmxrket\u003c/em>\u003c/a>. Produced by \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/heirmaxjordan?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">Heirmax Jordan\u003c/a>, the album is a byproduct of the mourning process, Draper says — the celebration that comes after the tears.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On standout track “Winner Is…,” there’s a cold beat switch halfway through the song, during which Draper recites a mini-mantra, “Keep going, tell them to meet you at the top / Plot big, lock in, give it to God.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the track transitions, Draper, a member of the East Bay-based Grand Nationxl crew, addresses an elephant that’s been in the room since late last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13972658\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1707px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Man in green hat and white football jersey poses for a photo.\" width=\"1707\" height=\"2560\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13972658\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-scaled.jpg 1707w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-800x1200.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-1020x1530.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-160x240.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-1920x2880.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1707px) 100vw, 1707px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mani Draper pauses for a photo while on the set of a recent video shoot. \u003ccite>(Jonel Seon)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Kenny came and took the name, swear for God he did / Beat the block with a Ginger Ale, only God know where the body is,” raps Draper.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In November, Kendrick Lamar dropped an album titled \u003cem>GNX\u003c/em>, inspired by the Buick Grand National automobile. For the past half-decade, Draper’s been a part of a collective named after that same vehicle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When the album dropped Draper says the crew had mixed emotions. Personally, he felt “a cloud of disappointment for a few days in the region.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He was getting calls and texts, but no one was saying anything publicly. “Like, dog, you make a post about everything else,” he says. “You could totally just make a post about that. Why the fuck are you on my phone?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But after a call his from his mother, he found a more constructive response. “The biggest rapper in the world is aligned with the shit that we on,” Draper says, happy to be sharing the same sentiment. “No matter how big you are, no matter how rich you are, where we come from, it don’t get no more lit than a GN.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OHNGAfWKOs&\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dispelling any notions of appropriation by Lamar or Los Angeles-based artists, Draper elaborates on his “die-hard” love for L.A., noting deep family connections and annual trips to the Garment District for school shopping.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The soundtrack to those trips, Draper reflects, were CDs he’d purchase from the Slauson swap meet. “You’re slapping that shit all the way back to the Bay,” he remembers, “and you didn’t even know it was \u003cem>Bullets Ain’t Got No Name\u003c/em>,” referring to the 2008 mixtape from the late Nipsey Hussle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately, the experience of seeing Lamar’s rise and the use of the “Grand National” title encouraged Draper to be even more proud of the work he’s working on. And make no mistakes, \u003cem>he’s been working\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13967973']For years, Draper’s been behind the scenes, producing, writing and collaborating with the likes of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/msjanehandcock/\">Jane Handcock\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/iamsu/\">IamSu\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kvnalln/\">Kevin “Erk Tha Jerk” Allen\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It don’t get more talented than those three,” says Draper. He sees being in their proximity as a blessing, pushing him to expand his individual artistry and work as a collective. “Stay close to them, and be willing to step in the service role to help them to maximize their dreams,” Draper explains of his collaborative approach. “And then we just gon’ mob.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As team-oriented as he is, he’s clearly stepping into his own light. On his recent projects he’s rapping it into existence — with a mix of reflection.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3H8bQDW1mk\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Them keloids humbled you, now you know you not Spawn,” Draper raps on one track. “Face behind my beard / couldn’t hide the keloids, can’t forget the one on my ear,” he raps on another. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I ask how he got comfortable with rapping about his keloids, which are visible on his face.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’ve had two surgeries at this point,” he tells me. Before one of them, a plastic surgery operation, he was advised that while it could potentially eradicate the growth, it came with the risk of having them come back bigger.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The surgery worked, initially. But oddly, it was the fact that the keloids were momentarily removed that changed him the most.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13957988']In 2017, Draper took a trip to Amsterdam. While there he hit it off with a barista. When he returned to Europe a year later, after having the keloids removed, she didn’t recognize him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“She’s like, ‘What did you do?’” Draper recalls being confused: “I’m like, ‘Huh?’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The barista told him that the keloids are “the things that make you \u003cem>you\u003c/em>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was the first time he realized he had a beauty mark as opposed to a deficiency. “It fucked me up,” Draper says. “I never considered it as the thing — like, I can’t be mistaken for \u003cem>nobody\u003c/em>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That experience, coupled with working directly with little kids during his day job as an educator, made him choose to work on being more comfortable in his own skin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Speaking in basketball metaphors, Draper tells me that as an artist, he had to learn how to dribble with his off-hand. “It’s that Kobe shit,” he says. “Work on your weaknesses — be obsessed with your weaknesses, and then eventually that can become your strengths.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Through that commitment he’s not only grown as an artist, but as a human, and the artistic community around him has benefited because of it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And especially over the past year, that dedication to growing and the results thereof constitute possibly no better way to honor the legacy of a deceased parent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m so dialed in on behalf of \u003cem>us\u003c/em>,” says Draper. “And I’m gonna make us proud every time.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/manidraper/\">Mani Draper\u003c/a>, a rapper, DJ and producer from Richmond, is the embodiment of that old saying, “You can’t control what happens to you, but you can control how you react.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On his late 2024 project \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/05W3z5ghO4Z8ceGLXyhPR6\">\u003ci>Winning Formxla\u003c/i>\u003c/a> (produced by \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/stevenanderson_art/\">Steven King\u003c/a>), the lyricist poetically illustrates his urge to make it as a rapper in the Bay Area while navigating all that life throws at him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the song “\u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/track/5llrSHYS6oFoFDzt0C62tB?si=bbdb9991f99e415d\">Stones Throw\u003c/a>,” he raps, “In spite of everything I lost and what its cost / I can say its been a good year.” The drums on the track fade, giving room to clearly hear his final adlib: “I love you dad.”\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/CUeDryZbQgQ'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/CUeDryZbQgQ'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Draper’s father passed away last May, leaving the artist in a state of mourning. Ever since, Draper has been on a mission to use his pain to build, not destroy. And despite the death of his father, his own health conditions and a case of possible artistic infringement, Draper has held tight to how he’s chosen to react.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last month he returned with another album, \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/2tn7HHSseYxNjd3RMLCmBF\">\u003cem>blxckmxrket\u003c/em>\u003c/a>. Produced by \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/heirmaxjordan?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">Heirmax Jordan\u003c/a>, the album is a byproduct of the mourning process, Draper says — the celebration that comes after the tears.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On standout track “Winner Is…,” there’s a cold beat switch halfway through the song, during which Draper recites a mini-mantra, “Keep going, tell them to meet you at the top / Plot big, lock in, give it to God.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the track transitions, Draper, a member of the East Bay-based Grand Nationxl crew, addresses an elephant that’s been in the room since late last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13972658\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1707px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Man in green hat and white football jersey poses for a photo.\" width=\"1707\" height=\"2560\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13972658\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-scaled.jpg 1707w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-800x1200.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-1020x1530.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-160x240.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/dscf0291-1920x2880.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1707px) 100vw, 1707px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mani Draper pauses for a photo while on the set of a recent video shoot. \u003ccite>(Jonel Seon)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Kenny came and took the name, swear for God he did / Beat the block with a Ginger Ale, only God know where the body is,” raps Draper.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In November, Kendrick Lamar dropped an album titled \u003cem>GNX\u003c/em>, inspired by the Buick Grand National automobile. For the past half-decade, Draper’s been a part of a collective named after that same vehicle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When the album dropped Draper says the crew had mixed emotions. Personally, he felt “a cloud of disappointment for a few days in the region.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He was getting calls and texts, but no one was saying anything publicly. “Like, dog, you make a post about everything else,” he says. “You could totally just make a post about that. Why the fuck are you on my phone?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But after a call his from his mother, he found a more constructive response. “The biggest rapper in the world is aligned with the shit that we on,” Draper says, happy to be sharing the same sentiment. “No matter how big you are, no matter how rich you are, where we come from, it don’t get no more lit than a GN.”\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/4OHNGAfWKOs'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/4OHNGAfWKOs'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Dispelling any notions of appropriation by Lamar or Los Angeles-based artists, Draper elaborates on his “die-hard” love for L.A., noting deep family connections and annual trips to the Garment District for school shopping.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The soundtrack to those trips, Draper reflects, were CDs he’d purchase from the Slauson swap meet. “You’re slapping that shit all the way back to the Bay,” he remembers, “and you didn’t even know it was \u003cem>Bullets Ain’t Got No Name\u003c/em>,” referring to the 2008 mixtape from the late Nipsey Hussle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately, the experience of seeing Lamar’s rise and the use of the “Grand National” title encouraged Draper to be even more proud of the work he’s working on. And make no mistakes, \u003cem>he’s been working\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>For years, Draper’s been behind the scenes, producing, writing and collaborating with the likes of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/msjanehandcock/\">Jane Handcock\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/iamsu/\">IamSu\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kvnalln/\">Kevin “Erk Tha Jerk” Allen\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It don’t get more talented than those three,” says Draper. He sees being in their proximity as a blessing, pushing him to expand his individual artistry and work as a collective. “Stay close to them, and be willing to step in the service role to help them to maximize their dreams,” Draper explains of his collaborative approach. “And then we just gon’ mob.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As team-oriented as he is, he’s clearly stepping into his own light. On his recent projects he’s rapping it into existence — with a mix of reflection.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/q3H8bQDW1mk'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/q3H8bQDW1mk'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>“Them keloids humbled you, now you know you not Spawn,” Draper raps on one track. “Face behind my beard / couldn’t hide the keloids, can’t forget the one on my ear,” he raps on another. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I ask how he got comfortable with rapping about his keloids, which are visible on his face.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’ve had two surgeries at this point,” he tells me. Before one of them, a plastic surgery operation, he was advised that while it could potentially eradicate the growth, it came with the risk of having them come back bigger.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The surgery worked, initially. But oddly, it was the fact that the keloids were momentarily removed that changed him the most.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>In 2017, Draper took a trip to Amsterdam. While there he hit it off with a barista. When he returned to Europe a year later, after having the keloids removed, she didn’t recognize him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“She’s like, ‘What did you do?’” Draper recalls being confused: “I’m like, ‘Huh?’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The barista told him that the keloids are “the things that make you \u003cem>you\u003c/em>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was the first time he realized he had a beauty mark as opposed to a deficiency. “It fucked me up,” Draper says. “I never considered it as the thing — like, I can’t be mistaken for \u003cem>nobody\u003c/em>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That experience, coupled with working directly with little kids during his day job as an educator, made him choose to work on being more comfortable in his own skin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Speaking in basketball metaphors, Draper tells me that as an artist, he had to learn how to dribble with his off-hand. “It’s that Kobe shit,” he says. “Work on your weaknesses — be obsessed with your weaknesses, and then eventually that can become your strengths.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Through that commitment he’s not only grown as an artist, but as a human, and the artistic community around him has benefited because of it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And especially over the past year, that dedication to growing and the results thereof constitute possibly no better way to honor the legacy of a deceased parent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m so dialed in on behalf of \u003cem>us\u003c/em>,” says Draper. “And I’m gonna make us proud every time.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "mexican-hibachi-fusion-burrito-benihana-bay-area-pinole",
"title": "Mexican Hibachi Is the Bay Area’s Next Great Fusion Cuisine",
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"content": "\u003cp>[dropcap]W[/dropcap]hen you walk into \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mexihibachi/\">MexiHibachi\u003c/a>, a new \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/tag/mexican-food\">Mexican\u003c/a>-Japanese fusion restaurant in Pinole, the first thing you notice is the giant mural on the wall: a stylized image of a samurai — full armor, katana held upright — facing off against an Aztec warrior.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s just the first of many cultural collisions that grab the diner’s attention. There’s the endless loop of Karol G reggaeton music videos juxtaposed with traditional Japanese decor elements like red paper lanterns. There’s the name of the restaurant, “MexiHibachi,” painted in bold letters in the tricolor of the Mexican flag across the body of a flying dragon. And there are the smells — a potent mix of garlic butter, taco sauce and teriyaki that’s meant to get your mouth watering.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is, after all, a restaurant that specializes in Benihana-style Japanese hibachi with a Mexican twist: big plates of steak and shrimp served over fried rice or garlic noodles, everything cooked on a flat-top grill — and also stuffed, sometimes, into a burrito or a quesadilla, and drizzled with the kind of creamy orange hot sauce you might find at your favorite taqueria.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That unique combination of flavors and cross-cultural influences has made MexiHibachi one of the hottest new restaurants in Contra Costa County since it opened in January.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13971776\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13971776\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed.jpg\" alt=\"A restaurant employee brings two plates of food out to customers.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">MexiHibachi employee Jocelyn Valadez brings out customers’ orders. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The brainchild of chef Francisco Arce and his wife Silvia Cortes, the business started during the pandemic-spurred economic downturn of 2022, when Arce’s day job as a union painter had slowed to a standstill. With medical bills piling up for their young daughter, who needed eye surgery, the couple decided to supplement their income by starting a home-based catering operation. At first they mostly sold quesabirria, but at that point \u003ci>everyone \u003c/i>was doing quesabirria. Meanwhile, Arce had picked up tens of thousands of followers on his \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@chefblackstone\">TikTok cooking channel\u003c/a>, where, among other recipes, he showed off the Benihana-style hibachi skills he’d learned working at a teppanyaki restaurant in Alameda. “Everyone was like, ‘Where can I get my hands on a plate?’” Cortes recalls.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So they decided to give it a shot. The first MexiHibachi pop-ups featured a portable flat-top grill that they set up in a 10-by-10-foot tent in front of their house in Richmond. Eventually, as word got out, they started booking big backyard quinceañera and anniversary parties, where Arce entertained guests by \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@mexihibachi/video/7219617566027779370\">flipping shrimp directly into their mouths\u003c/a> and casually lighting up the grill so the whole thing burst into flames.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At one of those pop-ups, MexiHibachi caught the attention of their current business partner, Juan Nuñez, a local entrepreneur and tattoo artist. He set Arce and Cortes up in their first brick-and-mortar kitchen space, a little takeout shop attached to Nuñez’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/juannuneztattoo/?hl=en\">tattoo shop\u003c/a> on San Pablo Avenue in Richmond. Business was brisk, and before long, they’d outgrown that kitchen as well. With Nuñez’s help, they found their current space, in a Pinole strip mall, last April and renovated the space themselves. (Nuñez, with his tattoo art background, did all the murals.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13971460\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13971460\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29.jpg\" alt=\"A man and woman pose for a portrait seated inside a restaurant, in front of a mural of a samurai fighting an Aztec warrior.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Silvia Cortes (left) and Francisco Arce, owners of MexiHibachi, pose for a photo at their newly-opened teppanyaki restaurant. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>On a surface level, MexiHibachi’s take on teppanyaki doesn’t look \u003ci>so \u003c/i>different from what you might find at a regular old Benihana. Its staple dishes are the combo plates — your choice of proteins (steak, shrimp, chicken, salmon or scallops) served over a bed of garlicky, buttery fried rice; spicy udon noodles; or, my favorite, an excellent, extra-savory version of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13900855/garlic-noodles-sf-bay-area-iconic-foods-thanh-long-smellys\">garlic noodles\u003c/a>. But then in addition to your standard hibachi shop “yum yum” sauce (a creamy, slightly tangy aioli) and ginger soy sauce, customers also have the option to drench their meal in MexiHibachi’s fiery housemade diablo sauce (again, something akin to a taqueria \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13958466/la-vics-orange-sauce-la-victoria-taqueria-late-night-san-jose\">orange sauce\u003c/a>). Even more fusion-minded customers have the option to pack the whole meal inside the confines of a cheesy quesadilla or a burrito — with or without the addition of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13913985/hot-cheeto-burrito-taqueria-el-mezcal-richard-montanez-san-pablo\">Hot Cheetos\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the coming weeks, Arce plans to introduce more new dishes that play with the restaurant’s Mexican and Japanese influences. There will be a Baja-style fried fish taco, topped with both the red diablo sauce and the white yum yum sauce, for a subtle Japanese touch. They’ll also serve a version of spicy Mexican caldo de siete mares that has elements of an Asian seafood noodle soup.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13971784\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13971784\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed.jpg\" alt=\"A burrito cut in half to reveal steak, Hot Cheetos and fried rice on the inside.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1296\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-800x518.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-1020x661.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-160x104.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-768x498.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-1536x995.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-1920x1244.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A steak hibachi wrap with Hot Cheetos, one of the restaurant’s Mexican-Japanese fusion dishes. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Arce and Cortes didn’t invent the “Benihana-but-make-it-Mexican” food genre, but the trend seems to be fairly new, picking up steam in the early 2020s. A handful of other \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/losgallosxezbachi/\">restaurants\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/hibachiteppanyaki90/\">food trucks\u003c/a> with similar menus opened in the Bay Area in the past couple of years. There are even more of them in Southern California, where at least one popular chain — \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mexihanashibachigrill/?hl=en\">Mexihanas\u003c/a> — has been around since 2020.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"color: #2b2b2b;font-weight: 400\">[aside postID='arts_13900855,arts_13913985,arts_13963832']\u003c/span>\u003c/span>One might assume that the trend stems from some deep, abiding love that Mexican Americans have for Benihana and its offshoots, but Cortes says that hasn’t been her experience. While some of MexiHibachi’s younger Mexican American customers might have eaten at a Japanese teppanyaki spot like Benihana at some point, most of the older Latino customers have no idea what to make of the restaurant the first time they come. At first, she says, “we were being compared to Panda Express.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of our clientele at the beginning were more African American than anything,” Cortes recalls. But as word about MexiHibachi spread, Latino customers started to familiarize themselves with the pleasures of a steak-and-shrimp combo plate and griddle-top garlic fried rice. “Now they know what hibachi is.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13971461\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13971461\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47.jpg\" alt=\"Stir-fried udon with shrimp, beef and broccoli.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The New York steak, chicken and shrimp spicy stir-fry udon plate. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Given that most Mexican American diners don’t have a long history with Japanese teppanyaki, the origin of the Mexican hibachi trend is probably even more obvious and mundane: As Nuñez notes, if you walk into any Benihana-style restaurant in the Bay Area these days, the vast majority of the chefs doing the fancy tricks on the grill will be Latino. (Arce himself learned his craft at one of those spots, after all.) It only makes sense, then, that some of those cooks would eventually open their own hibachi businesses and put their cultural stamp on the cuisine. It’s the same reason we’ve seen an infusion of ambitious Mexican-owned \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/hakashisushibar/?hl=en\">sushi restaurants\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13917556/davids-pastas-pizzas-richmond-red-sauce-italian-tortas\">red-sauce pasta joints\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Of course even more than the food itself, Benihanas are famous for their \u003ca href=\"https://www.eater.com/23737639/benihana-be-the-chef-onion-volcano-shrimp-tails-performance-anxiety\">bag of tricks\u003c/a> — the juggling of spatulas, the shrimp tails flipped into the chef’s hat, the eggs that magically multiply underneath a bowl. And, as it turns out, MexiHibachi’s kitchen crew all trained in this dinner-and-a-show approach to teppanyaki; they’re fully conversant in the language of \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/shorts/kDxl_eiYycM\">flaming onion volcanos\u003c/a>. Arce has been honing his repertoire of crowd-pleasing stunts for years — one of his most popular moves, he says, is when he makes the steaks dance on the plancha to the tune of “I Like to Move It.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13971777\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13971777\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed.jpg\" alt=\"A chef in a black baseball cap lights his grill on fire.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Chef Arce sets the grill aflame. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For now, Cortes says, only customers who book MexiHibachi for private catering events will get a whole show with their meal. Their current space in Pinole isn’t big enough for the chefs to do tableside grilling, and the kitchen is set up, conventionally, in the back. A big chunk of the restaurant’s business is just takeout orders.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But,” Cortes says, “it’s definitely our goal and dream to open a fancy restaurant like that, like a Benihana, in the future.” There’s no precedent for that kind of grand, showy Mexican fusion teppanyaki restaurant in the Bay Area, and even L.A.’s more established Mexican hibachi scene mostly consists of food trucks and small takeout shops. But Arce and Cortes don’t think the idea is all that far-fetched — not when their business has already grown so much in the span of just a couple of years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I definitely see it happening,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mexihibachi/\">\u003ci>MexiHibachi\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> is open Wednesday to Thursday noon–9 p.m., Friday to Saturday noon–10 p.m. and Sunday noon–8 p.m. at 1578 Fitzgerald Dr. in Pinole.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "A new Pinole restaurant packs Benihana-style teppanyaki into a burrito, with a hit of diablo sauce.",
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"title": "Mexican Hibachi Is the Bay Area’s Next Great Fusion Cuisine | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class=\"utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__dropcapShortcode__dropcap\">W\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>hen you walk into \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mexihibachi/\">MexiHibachi\u003c/a>, a new \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/tag/mexican-food\">Mexican\u003c/a>-Japanese fusion restaurant in Pinole, the first thing you notice is the giant mural on the wall: a stylized image of a samurai — full armor, katana held upright — facing off against an Aztec warrior.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s just the first of many cultural collisions that grab the diner’s attention. There’s the endless loop of Karol G reggaeton music videos juxtaposed with traditional Japanese decor elements like red paper lanterns. There’s the name of the restaurant, “MexiHibachi,” painted in bold letters in the tricolor of the Mexican flag across the body of a flying dragon. And there are the smells — a potent mix of garlic butter, taco sauce and teriyaki that’s meant to get your mouth watering.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is, after all, a restaurant that specializes in Benihana-style Japanese hibachi with a Mexican twist: big plates of steak and shrimp served over fried rice or garlic noodles, everything cooked on a flat-top grill — and also stuffed, sometimes, into a burrito or a quesadilla, and drizzled with the kind of creamy orange hot sauce you might find at your favorite taqueria.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That unique combination of flavors and cross-cultural influences has made MexiHibachi one of the hottest new restaurants in Contra Costa County since it opened in January.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13971776\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13971776\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed.jpg\" alt=\"A restaurant employee brings two plates of food out to customers.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-20_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">MexiHibachi employee Jocelyn Valadez brings out customers’ orders. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The brainchild of chef Francisco Arce and his wife Silvia Cortes, the business started during the pandemic-spurred economic downturn of 2022, when Arce’s day job as a union painter had slowed to a standstill. With medical bills piling up for their young daughter, who needed eye surgery, the couple decided to supplement their income by starting a home-based catering operation. At first they mostly sold quesabirria, but at that point \u003ci>everyone \u003c/i>was doing quesabirria. Meanwhile, Arce had picked up tens of thousands of followers on his \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@chefblackstone\">TikTok cooking channel\u003c/a>, where, among other recipes, he showed off the Benihana-style hibachi skills he’d learned working at a teppanyaki restaurant in Alameda. “Everyone was like, ‘Where can I get my hands on a plate?’” Cortes recalls.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So they decided to give it a shot. The first MexiHibachi pop-ups featured a portable flat-top grill that they set up in a 10-by-10-foot tent in front of their house in Richmond. Eventually, as word got out, they started booking big backyard quinceañera and anniversary parties, where Arce entertained guests by \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@mexihibachi/video/7219617566027779370\">flipping shrimp directly into their mouths\u003c/a> and casually lighting up the grill so the whole thing burst into flames.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At one of those pop-ups, MexiHibachi caught the attention of their current business partner, Juan Nuñez, a local entrepreneur and tattoo artist. He set Arce and Cortes up in their first brick-and-mortar kitchen space, a little takeout shop attached to Nuñez’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/juannuneztattoo/?hl=en\">tattoo shop\u003c/a> on San Pablo Avenue in Richmond. Business was brisk, and before long, they’d outgrown that kitchen as well. With Nuñez’s help, they found their current space, in a Pinole strip mall, last April and renovated the space themselves. (Nuñez, with his tattoo art background, did all the murals.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13971460\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13971460\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29.jpg\" alt=\"A man and woman pose for a portrait seated inside a restaurant, in front of a mural of a samurai fighting an Aztec warrior.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-29-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Silvia Cortes (left) and Francisco Arce, owners of MexiHibachi, pose for a photo at their newly-opened teppanyaki restaurant. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>On a surface level, MexiHibachi’s take on teppanyaki doesn’t look \u003ci>so \u003c/i>different from what you might find at a regular old Benihana. Its staple dishes are the combo plates — your choice of proteins (steak, shrimp, chicken, salmon or scallops) served over a bed of garlicky, buttery fried rice; spicy udon noodles; or, my favorite, an excellent, extra-savory version of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13900855/garlic-noodles-sf-bay-area-iconic-foods-thanh-long-smellys\">garlic noodles\u003c/a>. But then in addition to your standard hibachi shop “yum yum” sauce (a creamy, slightly tangy aioli) and ginger soy sauce, customers also have the option to drench their meal in MexiHibachi’s fiery housemade diablo sauce (again, something akin to a taqueria \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13958466/la-vics-orange-sauce-la-victoria-taqueria-late-night-san-jose\">orange sauce\u003c/a>). Even more fusion-minded customers have the option to pack the whole meal inside the confines of a cheesy quesadilla or a burrito — with or without the addition of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13913985/hot-cheeto-burrito-taqueria-el-mezcal-richard-montanez-san-pablo\">Hot Cheetos\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the coming weeks, Arce plans to introduce more new dishes that play with the restaurant’s Mexican and Japanese influences. There will be a Baja-style fried fish taco, topped with both the red diablo sauce and the white yum yum sauce, for a subtle Japanese touch. They’ll also serve a version of spicy Mexican caldo de siete mares that has elements of an Asian seafood noodle soup.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13971784\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13971784\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed.jpg\" alt=\"A burrito cut in half to reveal steak, Hot Cheetos and fried rice on the inside.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1296\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-800x518.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-1020x661.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-160x104.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-768x498.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-1536x995.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-48_qed-1920x1244.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A steak hibachi wrap with Hot Cheetos, one of the restaurant’s Mexican-Japanese fusion dishes. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Arce and Cortes didn’t invent the “Benihana-but-make-it-Mexican” food genre, but the trend seems to be fairly new, picking up steam in the early 2020s. A handful of other \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/losgallosxezbachi/\">restaurants\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/hibachiteppanyaki90/\">food trucks\u003c/a> with similar menus opened in the Bay Area in the past couple of years. There are even more of them in Southern California, where at least one popular chain — \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mexihanashibachigrill/?hl=en\">Mexihanas\u003c/a> — has been around since 2020.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"color: #2b2b2b;font-weight: 400\">\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/span>\u003c/span>One might assume that the trend stems from some deep, abiding love that Mexican Americans have for Benihana and its offshoots, but Cortes says that hasn’t been her experience. While some of MexiHibachi’s younger Mexican American customers might have eaten at a Japanese teppanyaki spot like Benihana at some point, most of the older Latino customers have no idea what to make of the restaurant the first time they come. At first, she says, “we were being compared to Panda Express.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of our clientele at the beginning were more African American than anything,” Cortes recalls. But as word about MexiHibachi spread, Latino customers started to familiarize themselves with the pleasures of a steak-and-shrimp combo plate and griddle-top garlic fried rice. “Now they know what hibachi is.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13971461\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13971461\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47.jpg\" alt=\"Stir-fried udon with shrimp, beef and broccoli.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-47-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The New York steak, chicken and shrimp spicy stir-fry udon plate. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Given that most Mexican American diners don’t have a long history with Japanese teppanyaki, the origin of the Mexican hibachi trend is probably even more obvious and mundane: As Nuñez notes, if you walk into any Benihana-style restaurant in the Bay Area these days, the vast majority of the chefs doing the fancy tricks on the grill will be Latino. (Arce himself learned his craft at one of those spots, after all.) It only makes sense, then, that some of those cooks would eventually open their own hibachi businesses and put their cultural stamp on the cuisine. It’s the same reason we’ve seen an infusion of ambitious Mexican-owned \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/hakashisushibar/?hl=en\">sushi restaurants\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13917556/davids-pastas-pizzas-richmond-red-sauce-italian-tortas\">red-sauce pasta joints\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Of course even more than the food itself, Benihanas are famous for their \u003ca href=\"https://www.eater.com/23737639/benihana-be-the-chef-onion-volcano-shrimp-tails-performance-anxiety\">bag of tricks\u003c/a> — the juggling of spatulas, the shrimp tails flipped into the chef’s hat, the eggs that magically multiply underneath a bowl. And, as it turns out, MexiHibachi’s kitchen crew all trained in this dinner-and-a-show approach to teppanyaki; they’re fully conversant in the language of \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/shorts/kDxl_eiYycM\">flaming onion volcanos\u003c/a>. Arce has been honing his repertoire of crowd-pleasing stunts for years — one of his most popular moves, he says, is when he makes the steaks dance on the plancha to the tune of “I Like to Move It.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13971777\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13971777\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed.jpg\" alt=\"A chef in a black baseball cap lights his grill on fire.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/20250205_MexiHibachi_GC-25_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Chef Arce sets the grill aflame. \u003ccite>(Gina Castro/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For now, Cortes says, only customers who book MexiHibachi for private catering events will get a whole show with their meal. Their current space in Pinole isn’t big enough for the chefs to do tableside grilling, and the kitchen is set up, conventionally, in the back. A big chunk of the restaurant’s business is just takeout orders.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But,” Cortes says, “it’s definitely our goal and dream to open a fancy restaurant like that, like a Benihana, in the future.” There’s no precedent for that kind of grand, showy Mexican fusion teppanyaki restaurant in the Bay Area, and even L.A.’s more established Mexican hibachi scene mostly consists of food trucks and small takeout shops. But Arce and Cortes don’t think the idea is all that far-fetched — not when their business has already grown so much in the span of just a couple of years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I definitely see it happening,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mexihibachi/\">\u003ci>MexiHibachi\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> is open Wednesday to Thursday noon–9 p.m., Friday to Saturday noon–10 p.m. and Sunday noon–8 p.m. at 1578 Fitzgerald Dr. in Pinole.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>These days, it feels like nearly every taco truck and taqueria in the Bay Area is slinging quesabirria — those glistening-red, consomé-soaked tacos with their crispy edges and long pulls of stretchy cheese. But before all that, there was El Garage. In the halcyon pre-pandemic days of 2019, the Richmond pop-up was the \u003ca href=\"https://sf.eater.com/2019/11/21/20937687/el-garage-quesabirria-birria-taco-richmond-instagram\">first quesabirria purveyor to truly blow up\u003c/a> in the Bay, and its success helped bring these Tijuana-by-way-of-L.A. beef birria tacos into the mainstream, paving the way for them to become a fixture of our region’s Mexican American food scene.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then, in August, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DA7LNKbyL_6/?hl=en\">El Garage quietly closed\u003c/a> — or at least its brick-and-mortar restaurant in Richmond did, ending a four-year run.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Viviana Montano, who runs the business along with her parents and sisters, says El Garage isn’t going anywhere. Instead, the family will focus once again on pop-ups and catering. They’ve already set up one twice-a-month gig at the \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/dokkaebier_oakland/?hl=en\">Dokkaebier\u003c/a> taproom in Oakland, and they have several other pop-ups in the works — including a possible regular collaboration with Berkeley Bowl.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13967250\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13967250\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior.jpg\" alt=\"Exterior of El Garage taqueria on a sunny day.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1374\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-800x550.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-1020x701.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-768x528.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-1536x1055.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-1920x1319.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The brick-and-mortar restaurant in Richmond never got much foot traffic. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>According to Montano, closing the restaurant was one the hardest decisions her family has had to make, but it also seemed inevitable for the better part of a year. “We just weren’t bringing enough people in,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fans of the taqueria might be familiar with the basic outlines of \u003ca href=\"https://sf.eater.com/2019/11/21/20937687/el-garage-quesabirria-birria-taco-richmond-instagram\">El Garage’s story\u003c/a>: It started as a modest driveway operation in a residential neighborhood, went viral on \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/el_gaaarage/?hl=en\">Instagram\u003c/a> to the point of routinely attracting hour-long lines and eventually, with much fanfare, \u003ca href=\"https://sf.eater.com/2020/7/9/21319032/quesabirria-tacos-el-garage-richmond\">opened a 5,000-square-foot restaurant\u003c/a> a few blocks away from the Richmond BART station. For many Bay Area food lovers, El Garage’s quesabirria wasn’t \u003ci>just\u003c/i> their introduction to a new taco style. It was one the best tacos they’d ever eaten, period.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the brick-and-mortar restaurant just never caught on, even as the Montanos expanded their menu to include other crowdpleasers, like pozole and shrimp taquitos. Part of the problem was that there aren’t really any other notable restaurants or attractions in that particular stretch of Richmond, so foot traffic was minimal. Even at the height of El Garage’s popularity, almost all of the business at the restaurant came from takeout and catering. And even when a handful of dine-in customers did sit down for a meal, the dining room still looked empty and sad because it was so big. It became a sort of self-fulfilling feedback loop.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13967251\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13967251\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos.jpg\" alt=\"Shrimp taquitos in a takeout container.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The restaurant introduced new dishes, like this take on shrimp taquitos. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Most of our orders every day would just be DoorDash or UberEats. The restaurant was functioning as a ghost kitchen, essentially,” Montano says. In the end, paying rent for such a giant space just wasn’t sustainable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13963832,arts_13895488']Now that the restaurant is closed, the Montanos are fully focused on doing pop-ups and events — in a sense, going back to their roots as a renegade driveway taco stand. The one regular pop-up they’ve already set up — at Dokkaebier’s Jack London Square taproom — will take place every other Saturday. (The next one is on Oct. 26.) And Montano says she’s also in talks with a restaurant in San Francisco’s Mission District about the possibility of setting up another recurring pop-up there.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Perhaps most exciting, Montano says El Garage is currently in the process of scheduling its first pop-up at the cafe at \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/berkeleybowl/\">Berkeley Bowl West\u003c/a>, probably for sometime in November. If all goes well, that, too, might turn into a regular, long-term gig for as many as two or three days a week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13967253\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13967253\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up.jpg\" alt=\"A cook makes tacos on a flat-top grill set up inside a tent.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"2000\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-1020x1020.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-1920x1920.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">El Garage’s original pop-up (circa 2019) took place inside a tent that was set up in the Montanos’ driveway. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In the future, Montano says, El Garage would be open to exploring the possibility of opening a smaller restaurant in a better, more central location. But for now, the family feels much more comfortable with the pop-up model — and they’re confident that their food is good enough, and has big enough of a following, that customers will seek them out.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a less stressful situation than having that 5,000-square-foot restaurant,” Montano says.\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/el_gaaarage/?hl=en\">\u003ci>El Garage\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> currently pops up on every second and fourth Saturday of the month at \u003c/i>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/dokkaebier_oakland/?hl=en\">\u003ci>Dokkaebier\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> (420 3rd St.) in Oakland, 2–7:30 p.m. — the next one will be on Saturday, Oct. 26.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13967254\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13967254\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup.jpg\" alt=\"Closeup of a quesabirria taco, with charred edges on the outside of the tortilla.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Close-up of the cheesy, well-charred goodness. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "The quesabirria sensation’s Richmond brick-and-mortar just never really took off.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>These days, it feels like nearly every taco truck and taqueria in the Bay Area is slinging quesabirria — those glistening-red, consomé-soaked tacos with their crispy edges and long pulls of stretchy cheese. But before all that, there was El Garage. In the halcyon pre-pandemic days of 2019, the Richmond pop-up was the \u003ca href=\"https://sf.eater.com/2019/11/21/20937687/el-garage-quesabirria-birria-taco-richmond-instagram\">first quesabirria purveyor to truly blow up\u003c/a> in the Bay, and its success helped bring these Tijuana-by-way-of-L.A. beef birria tacos into the mainstream, paving the way for them to become a fixture of our region’s Mexican American food scene.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then, in August, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DA7LNKbyL_6/?hl=en\">El Garage quietly closed\u003c/a> — or at least its brick-and-mortar restaurant in Richmond did, ending a four-year run.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Viviana Montano, who runs the business along with her parents and sisters, says El Garage isn’t going anywhere. Instead, the family will focus once again on pop-ups and catering. They’ve already set up one twice-a-month gig at the \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/dokkaebier_oakland/?hl=en\">Dokkaebier\u003c/a> taproom in Oakland, and they have several other pop-ups in the works — including a possible regular collaboration with Berkeley Bowl.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13967250\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13967250\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior.jpg\" alt=\"Exterior of El Garage taqueria on a sunny day.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1374\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-800x550.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-1020x701.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-768x528.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-1536x1055.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-exterior-1920x1319.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The brick-and-mortar restaurant in Richmond never got much foot traffic. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>According to Montano, closing the restaurant was one the hardest decisions her family has had to make, but it also seemed inevitable for the better part of a year. “We just weren’t bringing enough people in,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fans of the taqueria might be familiar with the basic outlines of \u003ca href=\"https://sf.eater.com/2019/11/21/20937687/el-garage-quesabirria-birria-taco-richmond-instagram\">El Garage’s story\u003c/a>: It started as a modest driveway operation in a residential neighborhood, went viral on \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/el_gaaarage/?hl=en\">Instagram\u003c/a> to the point of routinely attracting hour-long lines and eventually, with much fanfare, \u003ca href=\"https://sf.eater.com/2020/7/9/21319032/quesabirria-tacos-el-garage-richmond\">opened a 5,000-square-foot restaurant\u003c/a> a few blocks away from the Richmond BART station. For many Bay Area food lovers, El Garage’s quesabirria wasn’t \u003ci>just\u003c/i> their introduction to a new taco style. It was one the best tacos they’d ever eaten, period.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the brick-and-mortar restaurant just never caught on, even as the Montanos expanded their menu to include other crowdpleasers, like pozole and shrimp taquitos. Part of the problem was that there aren’t really any other notable restaurants or attractions in that particular stretch of Richmond, so foot traffic was minimal. Even at the height of El Garage’s popularity, almost all of the business at the restaurant came from takeout and catering. And even when a handful of dine-in customers did sit down for a meal, the dining room still looked empty and sad because it was so big. It became a sort of self-fulfilling feedback loop.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13967251\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13967251\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos.jpg\" alt=\"Shrimp taquitos in a takeout container.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-shrimp-taquitos-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The restaurant introduced new dishes, like this take on shrimp taquitos. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Most of our orders every day would just be DoorDash or UberEats. The restaurant was functioning as a ghost kitchen, essentially,” Montano says. In the end, paying rent for such a giant space just wasn’t sustainable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Now that the restaurant is closed, the Montanos are fully focused on doing pop-ups and events — in a sense, going back to their roots as a renegade driveway taco stand. The one regular pop-up they’ve already set up — at Dokkaebier’s Jack London Square taproom — will take place every other Saturday. (The next one is on Oct. 26.) And Montano says she’s also in talks with a restaurant in San Francisco’s Mission District about the possibility of setting up another recurring pop-up there.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Perhaps most exciting, Montano says El Garage is currently in the process of scheduling its first pop-up at the cafe at \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/berkeleybowl/\">Berkeley Bowl West\u003c/a>, probably for sometime in November. If all goes well, that, too, might turn into a regular, long-term gig for as many as two or three days a week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13967253\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13967253\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up.jpg\" alt=\"A cook makes tacos on a flat-top grill set up inside a tent.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"2000\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-1020x1020.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-original-pop-up-1920x1920.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">El Garage’s original pop-up (circa 2019) took place inside a tent that was set up in the Montanos’ driveway. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In the future, Montano says, El Garage would be open to exploring the possibility of opening a smaller restaurant in a better, more central location. But for now, the family feels much more comfortable with the pop-up model — and they’re confident that their food is good enough, and has big enough of a following, that customers will seek them out.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a less stressful situation than having that 5,000-square-foot restaurant,” Montano says.\u003c/p>\n\u003chr>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/el_gaaarage/?hl=en\">\u003ci>El Garage\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> currently pops up on every second and fourth Saturday of the month at \u003c/i>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/dokkaebier_oakland/?hl=en\">\u003ci>Dokkaebier\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> (420 3rd St.) in Oakland, 2–7:30 p.m. — the next one will be on Saturday, Oct. 26.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13967254\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13967254\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup.jpg\" alt=\"Closeup of a quesabirria taco, with charred edges on the outside of the tortilla.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/el-garage-quesabirria-closeup-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Close-up of the cheesy, well-charred goodness. \u003ccite>(Luke Tsai/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
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"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
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"tagline": "Politics from a personal perspective",
"info": "Political Breakdown is a new series that explores the political intersection of California and the nation. Each week hosts Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos are joined with a new special guest to unpack politics -- with personality — and offer an insider’s glimpse at how politics happens.",
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"possible": {
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"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
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"radiolab": {
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"reveal": {
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"info": "Created by The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX, Reveal is public radios first one-hour weekly radio show and podcast dedicated to investigative reporting. Credible, fact based and without a partisan agenda, Reveal combines the power and artistry of driveway moment storytelling with data-rich reporting on critically important issues. The result is stories that inform and inspire, arming our listeners with information to right injustices, hold the powerful accountable and improve lives.Reveal is hosted by Al Letson and showcases the award-winning work of CIR and newsrooms large and small across the nation. In a radio and podcast market crowded with choices, Reveal focuses on important and often surprising stories that illuminate the world for our listeners.",
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},
"rightnowish": {
"id": "rightnowish",
"title": "Rightnowish",
"tagline": "Art is where you find it",
"info": "Rightnowish digs into life in the Bay Area right now… ish. Journalist Pendarvis Harshaw takes us to galleries painted on the sides of liquor stores in West Oakland. We'll dance in warehouses in the Bayview, make smoothies with kids in South Berkeley, and listen to classical music in a 1984 Cutlass Supreme in Richmond. Every week, Pen talks to movers and shakers about how the Bay Area shapes what they create, and how they shape the place we call home.",
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},
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"info": "Science Friday is a weekly science talk show, broadcast live over public radio stations nationwide. Each week, the show focuses on science topics that are in the news and tries to bring an educated, balanced discussion to bear on the scientific issues at hand. Panels of expert guests join host Ira Flatow, a veteran science journalist, to discuss science and to take questions from listeners during the call-in portion of the program.",
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