TRACKList

My dad witnessed racism and segregation in the Jim Crow South during his early-1960s Air Force service. In 1989, he wrote the song “Color of Your Soul,” calling out people who claimed to follow the Christian faith while making racist comments and mistreating others.

Nearly four decades later, his message still feels painfully current.

A recent viral video known as 'Laguna Beach Karen' showed a woman making racist remarks to a small group preparing a marriage proposal at Crescent Bay Point Park in Laguna Beach.

This is a park I visit and photograph often, so I’m using my music to stand with my Laguna neighbors who won’t tolerate this behavior or let it define our town.

Our millions of annual visitors, along with our residents, workers, and business owners, come from many backgrounds. Together, we make Laguna Beach, California a special place to be. A tradition of welcoming everyone has helped shape Laguna’s identity over the past century, and I want my music to help carry this forward.

My EP, Colors, opens with its title track, a reimagined version of my dad’s 1989 song speaking directly to ‘Laguna Beach Karen’ from this week’s viral video. Its new arrangement is inspired by the romantic Latin lo-fi music I hear often walking the public trails beside Laguna’s most opulent ocean-view wedding and event venues.

“Harmony II” is a reimagined version of a song I released earlier this year. The idea for this song came to me in 2008 while sitting in downtown Indianapolis, when I realized the pitches of unrelated city sounds, from sirens to clinking café cups and toddlers crying, had fallen into musical sync. This new arrangement celebrates the mariachi bands I love hearing during marriage proposals at Crescent Bay Point Park. (Local tip: Live music requires a permit. Always check with the City of Laguna Beach before arranging it!)

“Wild Things” is one of my newest songs. If you’ve ever spotted a wild bird, bug, or animal and felt it was a sign from a loved one or something beyond, this song might resonate with you.

“Vertical” is the very first song I ever wrote, at age 19, while in college. One day after class, I was home practicing the eight-or-so guitar chords I knew. I kept strumming the same sequence and suddenly a fully produced song arrived in my mind. Nearly three decades later, I’ve finally brought it to life the way I heard it that day during my guitar practice.

This album is released on October 12, 2026, as political debate continues over whether to observe Columbus Day or Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

The strong response to the racist incident at Laguna Beach’s Crescent Bay Point Park reminds us why telling the fuller history of the Americas matters. How we teach and remember the devastating harm colonization caused Indigenous communities helps shape who feels respected and included in the United States today.

Standing as an ally is a privilege and a responsibility. Instead of answering hate with more hate, I encourage others to challenge racism through education and respect, in person and online.

Photography by Jules Flesner

“There is color in our flowers
When they’re blooming in the spring
The sea gives life, their season starts anew
With their colors they survive
And in their brilliance they all thrive
It could be the very same for me and you”