Destiny Muhammad: 'AlgoRiddims'

The Sunday Music Drop is a weekly radio series hosted by the KQED weekend news team. In each segment, we feature a song from a local musician or band with an upcoming show and hear about what inspires their music.

This audio segment was produced by Bianca Taylor. Taylor also produced a story about Destiny for KQED’s California Report Magazine series, California Composers.

Oakland-based composer and musician Destiny Muhammad dreamed about playing the harp as a child after watching the character Harpo Marx play the instrument on an episode of I Love Lucy. She purchased her first harp in 1992 for $400.

“For the first 30 days, I’m just running my fingers across the strings, not even sure how to even hold it,” said Muhammad. “And I said, ‘I guess I better get a teacher.'”

Her instructor taught her the fundamentals of playing the harp through songs like “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star,”  “Hot Cross Buns,” and “Go Tell Aunt Rhody.” Muhammad credits these lessons as helping her become a better musician.

She says that while her musical path wasn’t always clear, she had faith that opportunities would present themselves.

“I started [taking lessons] at 30,” said Muhammad. “I am 61, stepping into my 62nd year on the planet. I’m as excited now as I was when I got my first harp.”

She has received numerous accolades throughout her career, including becoming governor of the board for the San Francisco Chapter of the Recording Academy and a California Arts Council Legacy Fellow.

She composes original scores for her group, the Destiny Muhammad trio. The trio includes Arthur Chico Lopez on upright bass and Leon Joyce Jr. on drums and percussion.

If you’d like to hear them live, they will be performing a tribute to Native American Jazz Musician Jim Pepper at SFJazz on Nov. 16. They will also be performing a holiday concert at San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral on Dec. 20.