<![CDATA[Ascent Radio - Music for a Better World. - Blog]]>Sat, 07 Feb 2026 15:54:28 -0800Weebly<![CDATA[The Liberation of Matthew Paul Turner: And How Music Has Been His Refuge]]>Sat, 26 Jul 2025 00:11:54 GMThttps://www.ascent.fm/blog/the-liberation-of-matthew-paul-turner-and-how-music-has-been-his-refugeBy Jonathan Bristow
The New York Time’s best selling author and gay dad of three on Pride, coming out, and the role music has played in his remarkable journey.
Picture
Matthew Paul Turner is living every day as his whole self.

A gift that even just a few short years ago he simply could not have fathomed.

Each day, when his feet touch the ground, he finds himself overwhelmed with immense gratitude. Because the journey to arrive here has been nothing short of extraordinary.

And truly inspiring.

We were recently gifted with the opportunity to sit down with the celebrated New York Time’s best-selling author and gay dad of three to unpack his bru-tiful journey into liberation and inner-alignment - from his childhood days spent in the grips of fundamentalist religion, to becoming the celebrated writer and activist he is today -

And how music has been salvation throughout.

Music as The Safe Space

The rebellion began with Amy Grant.

And it was a slippery slope after that.
For Matthew growing up, music was a window into a whole world of love and light and energy he longed to explore.

The only issue was that the devil really loved music too.

His parents, who were deeply involved and raised Matthew in a conservative, fundamentalist, independent Baptist church (where he evidently was witness to the burning of Barbie dolls to teach kids about hell), permitted Sandi Patty in his home.

There were no drums.

But Amy Grant on the other hand…
Matthew jokes that Amy has him to thank for going quadruple platinum with Heart In Motion, as he purchased the record over and over again, sneaking it behind his parent’s back (gasp!), each time succumbing to the fear and guilt of his possession of the audio contraband.

So sequestered was he from the popular music universe around him growing up that by the time Matthew landed at Belmont University in Nashville to pursue his dream of working in the music industry, he damn near failed his music history course, having no exposure to the Beatles, Rolling Stones, or virtually any pioneering artists whose shoulders the industry was built upon.

But as he got out on his own in his young adulthood, (mostly) free from constraint to listen to the music of his choosing to his heart’s content, Matthew began to uncover his path of liberation.

Jagged Little Pill was a revelation.

In a truly rock n’ roll moment, Matthew recalls seeing Alanis on her first run in a jam-packed little venue in Nashville, where the fire department had to bring in hoses to spray the crowd down just to keep everyone from passing out!

The transcendent experience instilled in him a life-long passion for live music.

Lilith Fair in ‘96 was also transformative. 

Being his first exposure to a large gathering of LGBTQ+ peeps and progressive activists, Matthew was equally intoxicated and terrified by the atmosphere.
Reflecting back on this coming-of-age period in his life, and how (from the privacy and safety of his car) he would belt songs like “Secrets and Lies” by on Jonatha Brooke:

“Get it on the table
Secrets and lies…”

Matthew credits music as “the place where I could be gay… and not be out.”

(Yes. Take a beat with that one... Because that is an extraordinary revelation - and one that is certain to resonate with the closeted experiences of countless others, queer or not.)

Music was the safe space in which he could become beautifully free of inhibition, expressing himself fully and openly, giving no fucks about what anyone would think of him and his flamboyance and gay joy.
Unbeknownst to him at the time, “Secrets and Lies,” (and so many songs like it) were telling his story. A true self that was bottled up in him - hidden under layers of trauma, fear and religious oppression - that was longing to be known to the world. And while it was still decades before Matthew was able to understand all of this, and “get it on the table,” in plain sight for all to see, in hindsight he credits these musical havens as the sanctuaries in which his liberation began to take shape.

Music As Salvation

For many years, Matthew had resigned himself to the fact that he would never be out.

There was no way he was going to hurt the people he loves the most in this world.

Married to his best friend, Jessica, with kids, and having built a beautiful career as a celebrated writer and author of best-selling children’s books about God, how could he ever risk losing everyone and everything that mattered to him in this life?
He had come to be a fierce ally for the LGBTQ+ community. In his mind, if he was never going to be able to come out himself, the gift he could offer the queer community - and others like him - was to make it easier for everyone else. His resolve was to make the world a safer, more inclusive and loving place.

No one should have to suffer as he - and countless others - had.

His writing became the space in which he could express his message of God’s universal love, acceptance, and adoration of every beautiful person:
“So be you - fully you -
A show-stopping revue. 
Live your life in full color, 
Every tint, every hue.
Discover. Explore!
Have faith but love more.
And learn and relearn all
That God made you for.”
(From When God Made You)

However, in 2020, after years battling the debilitating fog of cognitive dissonance and misalignment with himself, Matthew found himself in a dark night of the soul.
His true self was dying to be known. ​

And the only choice was a step in faith into the unknown of his truth. 

It just had to be.

In this vulnerable and revelatory season, yet again, the music was there to carry his soul through impossibly hard moments.

The soul-elevating hope of Wilson Phillips, “Hold On” was there:
“Some day somebody's gonna make you want to turn around and say goodbye
Until then, baby, are you going to let 'em hold you down and make you cry?
Don't you know?
Don't you know, things can change
Things'll go your way
If you hold... on for one more day”

And in the moments of deep fear and trembling prior to the therapy sessions, particularly in the face of rejection from his own family (who still to this day does not accept him) was the liberating mercies of saint Brandi Carlile and “The Joke,”:

“Let 'em laugh while they can
Let 'em spin, let 'em scatter in the wind
I have been to the movies, I've seen how it ends
And the joke's on them.”

The songs were ever present, in the quiet moments, in the car, in the liminal space of embrace and acceptance, through the trauma (and miraculous grace) of divorce from his wife, Jessica (who, to this day, gorgeously remains his best friend, confidant and co-parent).

The music was salvation.

A grace and invitation into his new self and new reality before he himself could even hold or comprehend it.

And the songs were even there in parenting.
Matthew recalls the formative moment where he and his daughter were bopping Taylor Swift’s, “Calm Down:”

“You just need to take several seats and then try to restore the peace
And control your urges to scream about all the people you hate
'Cause shade never made anybody less gay.”

The song was transformative for the both of them, healing for Matthew especially as he listened to his beloved daughter invoke the lyric in her own life for her father.​

THAT. Is. The transformative power of music.

Immense Gratitude

Today, Matthew wakes up putting both feet on the ground as his whole self.

Every day.

Every day is gift.

Every day is revelation.
Every day he learns a bit more about what being his true, liberated, authentic gay-self feels like.

And the redemption that blankets his life is nothing short of extraordinary.

He is thriving.

As an author, a dad, a friend, a partner, an activist, a voice in the wilderness.

Matthew uses his platform for the causes that are near to his heart - but now he does so as all of himself. 

As an out and proud gay man.

A witness and a testimony to countless thousands who have been inspired and empowered by his courage, grace, and the faith that he (and Jessica!) embody as a tremendous story of redemption. Of beauty from ashes.
Of the good that is possible in our lives when we let go of the masks, of the patterns and systems rooted in fear and control, and embrace all that we are for the world to see.
And music is essential in his ongoing transformation.

In retrospect, Matthew is now able to see the moments singing Jonatha Brooke, “Secrets and Lies” at the top of his lungs as an early glimpse into all that has come to pass for him. “Get it on the table,” was a window, and a critical refuge for a young, scared, closeted gay soul who would become the person to pen the words,

​“So be you - fully you -
A show-stopping revue. 
Live your life in full color, 
Every tint, every hue.”
And he lives each day with immense gratitude.

Fittingly, when asked about songs that he believes have changed the world, Matthew highlights “Thank U,” by Alanis Morrissette:

(Yes, hear that little electronic keyboard intro, we know you are!...)

“Thank you India
Thank you terror
Thank you disillusionment
Thank you frailty
Thank you consequence
Thank you thank you silence…”

Alanis penned the seminal song after a transformative trip to India, that afforded her rich insight and wisdom about all of life’s experience, the good and the bad, the hard and the bliss, and the importance of gratitude in all things - which in turn shapes and forms the realities and opportunities set before us.

Having been to India himself, while working on the National Geographic documentary series, “The Story of God” (with Morgan Freeman!!), Matthew gets the journey Alanis is narrating on every level. But truly, it is the inward journey each of us must embark upon that is so resonant in his story, just as with her song.

And the bridge Alanis crafted is a perfect depiction of these depths:

“The moment I let go of it was the moment
I got more than I could handle
The moment I jumped off of it
Was the moment I touched down.”

Matthew has touched down.

He does so every day.

As his whole self.

And while this liberation is among the greatest gifts he has ever received, it is not only a gift to him - but to all of us.

Because Matthew being fully alive is exactly what the world needs.
The world needs each of us fully alive.

So here’s to YOU, reader. Beautiful you. May you take courage from Matthew’s story, from his transformation and liberation, and may you call that spirit into your own life. 

May you continue to seek in your heart and soul what it means to be “fully you, a show stopping revue.” And may you find the courage to embrace your whole self, first and foremost as the gift YOU deserve. But also for all of the ways you are made to SHINE radiantly for all to witness.

And may the music keep your spirit high in your becoming.

For More With Matthew!...

To listen to our full interview with Matthew, including his telling of all these transformative music experiences and MORE click here, look up (and follow!) the Ascent Radio Podcast on your preferred podcast provider, or download the FREE Ascent Radio App - available for both Apple and Android devices!

And if you haven’t yet, don’t forget to follow Matthew and all of his inspiring work on Instagram (@matthewpaulturner) and Facebook! (Matthew Paul Turner)

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]]><![CDATA[Kevin Coloso’s Island Vibes are Elevating Hearts and Minds]]>Tue, 23 Jul 2024 17:44:55 GMThttps://www.ascent.fm/blog/kevin-colosos-island-vibes-are-elevating-hearts-and-mindsby Jonathan Bristow
With the sweet, irresistible strums of his treasured ukulele and his spirited reggae band, the Collection of Lone Souljahs, the inspiring singer-songwriter is sharing the positive vibrations from Portland to Maui - and beyond!
Kevin Coloso is a bold one. 

The ukulele slingin’ singer-songwriter is living his dreams - and you’re invited to the party!

The supremely talented, native Hawaiian musician is inspiring audiences up and down the West coast with his reggae band, the Collection of Lone Souljahs (CoLoSo), bringing the good times, an infectious energy, and a message of hope and love with them to every stage they grace.

Inspired by the likes of Fiji, the incomparable Bob Marley, and countless other legendary musicians from his beloved Hawaiian homeland, for more than ten years Kevin and crew have been elevating hearts and minds with their unique and energetic spin on the music of his people.
Two albums in - and with a third in the works! - the journey has been transformative for Kevin. From Maui to Portland, the people he’s met and the stories he’s collected along the way have forever changed him. 

That’s the power of music!

We recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Kevin on the Ascent Radio Podcast to hear the story behind his music, as well as his insights about the way music moves us - the power it holds to draw us together and break down barriers between us.

Collecting Fellow Lone Souljahs

Reggae is immersive on the island.

It’s just the way of things on Maui, where Kevin grew up. 

It’s everywhere!
So from the womb, as Kevin came up on the island, the music was with him. All around him. 

And it was in him.

The seeds for his music dream were sewn early.

As the college years came along, his curiosity for what lies beyond his beloved island home took him across the Pacific to Washington State, where he attended Washington State University. After graduating in 2010, that same curiosity beckoned him to the Portland, OR area. He needed some BIG city adventures before he could return home - plus he heard it was tax free!
He settled in across the Columbia River from Portland in Vancouver, Washington, where he connected with one of his best friends (and his mentor), Kaloku Holt. Kaloku had a band in town at the time, and he took Kevin under his wing, showing him the ropes and getting him acquainted with the blossoming roots music scene.

After playing with the band Positive Vibrations for two years, Kevin felt called to step out on his own.

The muse was coming alive in him.

As he started penning his own compositions, he began hitting up fellow musicians around him to form his own band, which became the Collection of Lone Souljahs (or Co-Lo-So, after his last name.)

And for more than ten years now, Kevin and CoLoSo have been serving up their energetic island vibes to listeners all over the Pacific Northwest - and beyond!

The Life He Has Chosen

Like every great songwriter, Kevin is a collector of stories.

Some of the band’s most inspiring tunes come straight from his own story, like the rousing “The Life That I’ve Chosen,” the title track from the band’s 2016 debut album, This Is The Life. In his own personal anthem, Kevin celebrates the courage it takes to choose yourself - to take on the risk of all the unknowns and to follow your heart into the dreams it holds for you.
Maybe not everyone will get it.

And maybe you’ll fall flat on your face.

But each of us have to look in the mirror everyday and answer for the choices we’re making - what we’re giving ourselves to and how it aligns with what truly matters to us. 

That theme of courage, and the willingness to step into the unknown, despite the risks, to find the life that is out there for each of us is a thread that ties so much of Kevin’s music together, and what makes the band’s message so compelling!
​
Another incredible story Kevin draws upon shows up in the gorgeous, Hula-inspired, “‘Olapa,” a groove from the band’s 2023 sophomore album, Fortune. A fan favorite, and for good reason, in the song, Kevin shares pieces of a story from a dear friend of his, a Kumu Hula (Hula teacher, master). After a bothersome quippy remark she received about Hula from an uninformed Zumba instructor, the friend wrote an article about the sacredness of Hula for the people of Hawaii. 
In the beautiful tribute to her reflections, Kevin croons, “Hula’s not a dance, it’s a way of life…” as he helps elevate and amplify the sanctity of Hula for his people, and shares the pride and honor that comes with being an ‘Olapa of Hawaii.

​In addition to the inspiring stories… there’s also the rally cry.
If you hit up a live show with the band, the anthem you will likely find yourself immersed in to close out their set is, “Fortune Favors the Bold Ones,” a burner that lights up the stage, and also the final track on the Fortune album.

On this one, Kevin takes the familiar idiom and builds the phrase into a rousing, inspirational tune that calls listeners to be bold ones - to “never surrender to a life that only leaves us crumbs.” 

As Kevin puts it, if you choose to “follow your dreams, with a feverish passion,” he would consider you a “bold one.”

“You are bold if you can do that.”
Thus, by his own definition, Kevin is truly a bold one.

And because of the courage and passion he has breathed into his own dreams, he has built a life beyond what he could ever have imagined - and met so many incredible people who have inspired him along the way.

The Journey Ahead

Kevin is all about the songs that make us feel.

Over the years, with all the time spent in the spotlight in front of audiences, and among the crowds at the festivals and shows he and the band have shared in, what Kevin has learned is that music truly does, in a mystical, profound way, bring us together as people.

Music moves us.
Kevin studies carefully and draws inspiration from the legends that have paved the way for himself and others in the roots reggae scene. One of his heroes is Fiji, whose bop, “Joweena (Sweet Hawaiian Girl)” Kevin has been covering since he was a teenager! What he’s learned as a student of artists like Fiji, and the legendary Bob Marley, is the way these artists convey their message by first creating music that is so incredibly beautiful, so rich, and technically on-point. They reach the masses first with transcendent music, and the experience is so compelling that it opens listeners up to then hear the heart of the artist.

It all begins with the music that makes us feel.
He points to masterworks like Marley’s Exodus as case-in-point. How an album like this is capable of moving an entire nation of people, an entire world of people, because the songs themselves - first and foremost - make people feel.

And when we get on that level together, that’s where the magic happens.

That’s where music has the power to cut across every barrier between us - including language! We can be moved and drawn together by a song that we might not even understand the words to because it makes us feel.
As a student of his craft, these are the kinds of heights Kevin aspires to as a songwriter.

But what makes it all worth it is the people.

The stories he’s collected from the thousands of people along the way, from his fans, and also from the new people he’s meeting all the time as the band continues to expand their reach. 

He wouldn’t trade this experience for anything in the world.
The people and relationships he’s made have been utterly transformative in his life. They have made him who he is today and shaped the loving and open-arms approach he takes to life. ​​​

This journey - and all of the remarkable stories and lessons Kevin and the band have collected along the way - is the inspiration behind their third album, which is currently in the works!

And, obviously, we can’t wait to hear how Kevin and crew craft the story of their remarkable journey!

It’s sure to be inspiring -

Coming from a bold one.

For More With Kevin...

To hear our interview with Kevin in its entirety on the Ascent Radio Podcast - including clips of CoLoSo music and his thoughts on all the songs we’ve highlighted from his story - click here to locate the podcast on your preferred provider, or listen directly in the Ascent Radio app - available for free(!) in both the Apple and Google Play stores.
Also make sure to tune in to Ascent Radio with us over the summer as we feature parts of the podcast with Kevin and all of the incredible songs he’s highlighted for us as a part of our Good Trouble summer playlist.

​If you haven’t already, follow Kevin and CoLoSo on Facebook (ColosoBand) and Instagram (@colosoband) to keep up with the band on their tours, for show announcements, and info on new music releases! Make sure to give their records a spin on your preferred streaming platform. And more than anything, make sure you get out to one of their stellar live shows! (That’s where the magic truly happens.)

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]]><![CDATA[The Brilliance of Tash  Haynes: Her Legacy, Juneteenth, and the Music that Inspires Her]]>Fri, 14 Jun 2024 18:36:59 GMThttps://www.ascent.fm/blog/the-brilliance-of-tash-haynes-her-legacy-juneteenth-and-the-music-that-inspires-herBy Jonathan Bristow
A glimpse into the extraordinary story behind the award-winning Seattle photographer, blogger, creator and influencer, how she and her family celebrate Juneteenth, and the empowering music that defines her.
Tash Haynes is in the business of inspiring people.

Like a radiant light -

She is brilliant.

From the outside, it may appear that her gorgeous work as a groundbreaking photographer, creator and influencer is in travel, clothing and lifestyle - which is true…

But it’s so much more than that.

For Tash, her platform is about roadmaps.

Illuminating a path.

Giving people a vision for a life that they might not be able to imagine or see for themselves. 

From a remarkably young age, she began developing a vision for herself, deciding on the kind of life she intended to have, and became the hero of her own story - overcoming the most overwhelming odds and working incredibly hard every step of the way to get where she is today.
Recently awarded “Best of 2024” as a Lifestyle Influencer by South Sound Magazine, the amazing Tash shares her story on her platforms to elevate and uplift her people.

Her hope is for others to see themselves in a part of her.

Whether it’s her gorgeous family, the story of her upbringing, the stunning photography that she and her husband Ike create together, how she stands in her ardent faith or in the boldness of her womanhood as a proud Black, Haitian-American professional, Tash does what she does and shares what she shares of herself in hopes that others might grab hold of their own story and make it whatever they want it to be.

Our recent interview with her on the Ascent Radio Podcast was utterly transformative, as she gave us a glimpse into her heart and her story, what Juneteenth means to her and her family (and how they celebrate), as well as all of the beautifully inspiring music that has shaped her on her journey!

Telling Her Own Story: Her First Camera

Like any other millennial with a pulse, the timeless vibes of Toto’s “Africa” take Tash back to the warm days of childhood. ​
She recalls fondly Saturday mornings cleaning to the gospel stylings of the great Mahalia Jackson, and still to this day gets instant chills whenever she hears, “Optimistic,” by Sounds of Blackness. In soul-stirring fashion, it reminds her of who she is, the people who came before her, and the path she gets to lay ahead of herself. 

But childhood was complex for Tash.

While she has known her mother all of her life, Tash was raised and aged out of foster care. And as a result, she grew up with the mindset of an orphan, struggling to find any space in which she felt a sense of belonging. 

She was on her own.
From a very young age, Tash developed a deep fondness for photo albums. She was endlessly drawn to them, spending hours upon hours carefully thumbing through the family photo albums in the living room of her home.

But there were no pictures of her.

Tash realized in those formative years that there was no one responsible for capturing her story. And with dreams and imagination for herself one day being a mother, and a deep desire for her children to be able to look back over her childhood and see the snapshots of her life, she came to terms with the fact that if her story was going to be told, it was all up to her.

She would need to take her own pictures.

When she was twelve years old, she received the Christmas gift that would change her life: her first camera. This precious gift, which came to her from Treehouse, the beautiful Seattle nonprofit dedicated to youth in foster care, gave her wings to soar. It set a trajectory for her life that would allow for her to rise to the heights she’s ascended to today. 

But family photographs weren’t the only space in which Tash didn’t feel like she belonged growing up.

Destiny’s Child and the Music that Spoke for Her

Tash’s first concert was a banger: Janet Jackson’s, “That’s The Way Love Goes,” tour in ‘96!

All hail Queen Janet!

Or Ms. Jackson, if you’re nasty…
But Tash was a young Black girl growing up in the Pacific Northwest in the 90s… and the music on the airwaves in her neighborhood just didn’t represent her. 

Like, at all.

It wasn’t by people who looked like her.

And it wasn’t by artists telling stories that she could relate to.

While she holds a fondness and a true appreciation for the music from the radio of her youth - with artists like the Cranberries, Joan Osborne, Alanis Morrissette, Jewel, Sarah McLachlan and Dave Matthews - the music from the grungy Northwest of her youth just wasn’t for her. Wasn’t about her. 
It didn’t represent her.

​That is, until she would find her way to TLC… and Aaliyah… and - especially for her - Beyonce and Destiny’s Child.

It was a revelation.

For the first time, Tash was hearing songs made by young, Black women, for young, Black women, to amplify young, Black women.

For the first time, Tash was feeling empowered by music written by her peers. As if they were growing up together. And it gave her a voice. A space. A place where she belonged. A place where she could believe.

And the courage to claim for herself the life that was rightfully hers to have.
It gave her light to shine.

To this day, Beyonce remains a beacon for Tash.

Her beloved albums, from Lemonade and Homecoming, to Renaissance and Cowboy Carter, play like a soundtrack over Tash’s life. 

Like Bey made them for her. 

(Because, she did, actually.) 

Beyonce’s records are anthems for Tash - and Black women everywhere - to own and to play over and over. 
Anthems to speak over one another.

All the time.

​And, for Tash, these Queen Bey anthems have helped inform and empower the legacy that she and Ike are building - the inheritance they will pass along to their daughters.

Juneteenth and Legacy

“We’re the heroes of today. The things we’re doing now are the things people are going to talk about later… It’s super important for us to show up and do our part.” - Tash Haynes.
That legacy is everything when it comes to the way Tash and her family celebrate Juneteenth.

The holiday is sacred to them as it highlights the journey of their people.

The resilience of the Black community.

In her own words, Tash says:

“Juneteenth is about remembering, in Black communities, when there is a segment of us that are still enslaved or under duress, we come back. We come back and get you. That’s how we operate - we don’t leave people behind.”

(Damn, tho…)

Each year her family celebrates by retelling the story. Remembering the soldiers who made the effort to get to Galveston and let the remaining enslaved folks know they’re free. 

Discussing what freedom means.
Discussing liberation. 

How blessed they are to live the life that they live. ​​

And how so many of the things they get to do and experience in their lives are not just for them; they’re also for those who came before them who didn’t get to. Ike and Tash stress with the girls, “...this is why it’s so important for us to live such full and liberated, free lives - on purpose.”

They’re standing on the shoulders of heroes.
That’s their legacy.

Their heritage.

That’s their celebration…

And with the celebration comes the food!

Tash and the fam also celebrate Juneteenth eating the foods Black folks weren’t allowed to have, like trifle cake and red juices. They also enjoy collard greens, black eyed peas and the soul foods people attach with Black culture…

But even the food comes with the history: 

Black folks came up on collard greens and black eyed peas because these were “...the scraps, all the things the enslaved folks got because the good parts of food were not available to them.” (Tash)
What Tash celebrates about her ancestors is that they were able to, “take the scraps and turn them into something so wholesome, something so good and so filling.”

They turned them into soul food.

Juneteenth and Songs of Black Liberation

Soul food and Juneteenth are about liberation. 

And on her platform, Tash highlights for others the importance and significance of these sacred traditions as a part of her Juneteenth celebration. She elevates the heroes, identifies who they are and shares their stories. She gives voice as to why it’s so imperative for her and her loved ones to “show up, strong and bold.”
She casts vision, and empowers others to see that they are still participating in the story of liberation today. They’re laying a foundation for the future.

That same spirit is also found in the music Tash most closely identifies with the ongoing struggle for freedom, justice, and equality. For her, it’s about songs like “Glory” by Common and John Legend, from the motion picture, “Selma.”

Highlighting the legacy of Dr. King passed down, Common raps:

“Selma's now for every man, woman and child
Even Jesus got his crown in front of a crowd
They marched with the torch, we gon' run with it now
Never look back, we done gone hundreds of miles
From dark roads he rose, to become a hero
Facin' the league of justice, his power was the people…”

The story is ongoing.
Tash has picked up the torch for her people today, and is carrying the story forward, shining her own light, with her daughters alongside.

Another favorite rally cry for Tash that embodies the spirit is, “Turntables” by Janelle Monae. Similar to Common and John legend, in the rousing, modern-era Civil Rights protest anthem, Janelle dives into the history of the community, exploring Black power and what Black folks have overcome, while also proclaiming what they will no longer stand for.

Enough is enough, and Janelle has given everybody fair warning:

“The tables ‘bout to turn.”
Alongside these rally cries, Tash and the fam also celebrate their legacy equally with fun and joyful bops like, “Best Life,” by Cardi B and Chance the Rapper:

“You see the whip pullin' up, it's like "skrrt"
Dreams pullin' up, I'm like "skrrt"
I'm livin' my best life
It's my birthday, at least that's what I'm dressed like…”

Black joy is essential to everything Tash is and celebrates, and the spaces she is creating for her people online. And so for her, the unabashed elevation of Black success and playful spirit Chance and Cardi bring to the history here is everything, empowering in its own crucial way: showing where Black people were, where they are now, and where they can go.

And finally, on that Juneteenth, Black celebration vibe, Tash also points to the song, “Pretty Brown Skin,” by Alton Kiing:
“Pretty brown skin
Pretty light skin
Pretty dark skin
I see African written in you DNA
Hello choco melanin
From the motherland
With your black skin
Never should you want it any other way.”

In the same way Tash reflects on the impact Beyonce’s music has made on her story coming up, songs like this take her back to herself as “that little black girl who was looking on the radio for a song that was about me.”

Growing up, she just didn’t have these songs. 

She didn’t get these messages.

Her joy is inexpressible seeing her daughters “...embrace this music, and love it and scream it and shout it and find their confidence in it...”

But it’s for her, too. 

“I get to align with them. To share the moment, 
To share the music with them; embracing it and
Calling it forth for myself.” (Tash)

That is liberation.

That is the power of music.

The Civil Rights Trail: Songs and Storytelling

Because of the profound impact music has had on her life and story, it has also become an integral piece in Tash’s storytelling on her platforms. In so many of the projects she works on she has to communicate a certain message, feeling, or idea. And she may not always have the words!
But there’s so much power in a song.

Music is the one thing we can all connect on, drawing us together across political, religious and racial lines that often separate us.

It’s communal.

And, it’s educational.

Which is why music played such a pivotal role in Tash’s Civil Rights Trail project in 2022.

In collaboration with Alaska Airlines for Black History Month, Tash and family spent six days exploring historic sites and pivotal landmarks across the Civil Rights Trail. 
She took people into the various locations - such as the Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis and the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma - chronicling her experience on a road trip across the American South.​

In between stops, she was teaching in her Instagram stories, drawing upon the power of music from the Civil Rights era in the 50s and 60s and across the decades, to help tell the stories and convey the emotion she was experiencing. 

The music created the perfect soundtrack.

Many of the stories were right there in the lyrics, the songs themselves functioning like paid actors accompanying her commentary, helping set the tone, the feeling, and all the emotion that was coursing through her.

On one particular drive, from Birmingham to Selma, they were driving Sundown roads. And as “Freedom Highway” by the Staple Singers played, Tash marveled at what folks did to organize back then. No social media, no cell phones, and yet, able to mobilize people by the thousands to show up in cities all across the American south.

An absolute miracle.
From Sam Cooke’s, “A Change Is Gonna Come,” and Stevie Wonder’s “Living for the City,” to Biggie’s “Juicy” and even Ella Fitzgerald’s “The Muffin Man,” (her daughter Courage was determined to find him!) Tash and her family took in one life-changing moment after another, feeling so incredibly inspired and empowered by the people who had come before them and everything they accomplished.

Standing upon the Edmund Pettus Bridge, Tash had a sobering revelation: she was 39 at that moment, the same age as Dr. King when he was assassinated: 

“This man, who was 39 years old, who had four children that were very young, believed so much in this thing that he was trying to make happen that he was willing to risk his very short life for it.” (Tash)

In her mind, as it is for many of us, she’d just always thought of him as being so old.​
Yet here she was, standing in his footsteps, realizing the man had his whole life ahead. That he should even still be alive to this day.

How Will We Show Up?

Life is full of choices. 

For Tash, it all comes down to deciding how we want to show up in the world, setting our minds on that vision, and making the necessary choices on the daily - no matter how many people don’t see us, no matter who discounts us, no matter how high the cards are stacked against us - to be the person we want to be.

To fight for the kind of world we want to live in.

To gaze backwards at the shoulders upon which we stand, and sideways toward the hands we hold today, and to step boldly forward upon the path that lies ahead toward the life we will make together.

Selma is now.
Her abiding faith, hard work and dedication have instilled a conviction deep within that any and all of us can be who we are made to be. 

And she is living proof.

With a shout out to Chance and Cardi B, and to honor the sacrifices made by those who have gone before her,

She’s living her best life.

A boss.

A creator. 

Photographer. 

Influencer.

Fierce, independent, proud, professional Black woman.
And a momma raising up three beautiful young ladies who see her, on the daily - and in the pictures she has taken of herself since the day she saw and believed and claimed her future as a young girl herself - telling her story for the world:

It’s Tash Haynes.

I’m that girl.

I belong. 

I level up.

Like my people before me, I take the scraps of life and turn them into soul food for the masses. 

This is my legacy. 

And I’m here so that you may believe. So that you might hope into existence the life that you deserve. 

The best life for you and yours.

For More With Tash...

To hear our interview with Tash in its entirety on the Ascent Radio Podcast - including clips of the music and her thoughts on all the songs we’ve highlighted from her story (and more!) - click here to locate the podcast on your preferred provider, or listen directly in the Ascent Radio app - available for free(!) in both the Apple and Google Play stores.
Also make sure to tune in to Ascent Radio with us over the Juneteenth holiday as we feature parts of the podcast with Tash, all of the incredible songs she has highlighted for us, as well as hundreds of other tunes by Black artists - celebrating Black Lives, Black Excellence, Black Joy, and the ongoing struggle for freedom, justice and equality in America.

If you haven’t already, make sure to follow Tash on Facebook (Tash Haynes) and Instagram (@itstashhaynes), and check out her website itstashhaynes.com as well! Also make sure to follow the stunning photography she and her husband Ike do over at Ike & Tash on Facebook (Ike and Tash) as well as Instagram (@ikeandtash), and also check out their website, ikeandtash.com!

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]]><![CDATA[No More - In Support of Palestine]]>Thu, 13 Jun 2024 21:24:27 GMThttps://www.ascent.fm/blog/no-more-in-support-of-palestineBy Jonathan Bristow
"I know we've come a long way,
We're changing day to day, but tell me
Where do the children play?" - Yusuf Cat Stevens
No more, no more, no more! 😭

No more death.

No more destruction.

No more babies dying.

No more genocide.

No more occupation.

No more war crimes. 

No more funding.

No more weapons.
We join the millions across the world crying out: No more. ✊

The millions crying out: #Ceasefire

The millions crying out: #FreePalestine 🇵🇸

Until there is no more death, no more destruction, no more genocide and no more occupation, we'll keep spinning tunes from our No More playlist in regular rotation.

Music is critical in the fight.
We believe conscious radio has the power to help make a difference, to change hearts and minds. And so we'll continue our work centering songs and artists that cry out for justice, for love, and for all murder, hate and oppression to cease. 

We stand with Palestine. 🍉

We call for a #ceasefire in Gaza.

But in our anger, our outrage, let us not return hate with hate. 🙏
As we stand together, may we continue to call for the release of hostages. To hold close beloved Israeli families devastated by the terrorist attack on Oct. 7th, alongside the hundreds of thousands of beloved Palestinians and their families ravaged, murdered, displaced and utterly decimated by the ongoing genocide in Gaza and occupied Palestine.

No hate.

Only love. 💜

Only cries for justice.

We stand together. One love. One life. One humanity. 🫶

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The Many Adventures of Zax Vandal

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]]><![CDATA[The Many Adventures of Zax Vandal]]>Mon, 03 Jun 2024 21:18:21 GMThttps://www.ascent.fm/blog/the-many-adventures-of-zax-vandalBy Jonathan Bristow
Vince Meneses - the veteran Filipino singer-songwriter from Portland, OR, who performs under the moniker Zax Vandal - is finding new life, vitality and inspiration with age. On a journey that began with his fathers love of Englebert Humperdink, a coming of age in the underground crusty punk rock scene, and a transformative season with Billy Joel’s “The Stranger” coming into fatherhood, the eclectic musician is now stepping back into his music as a solo performer, after the pandemic and the heartbreaking dissolution of his band.
Vince Meneses feels very lucky. 

Despite life’s many hardships and challenges, in some form or another since his youth, he has been able to keep his rock ‘n’ roll dream alive. 

And that’s been no easy task.

Ever bright and optimistic, even after an intensely difficult season of life, Vince is getting back out there. Recently playing shows again as Zax Vandal, he is rebuilding a band and brand  around himself, though this time around, as a solo artist. And whether it’s the gray hairs that come with age, or the actual wisdom gained from the myriad of hardships he has navigated becoming a seasoned adult, the gifted singer-songwriter is finding a new audience gravitating toward him and his heartfelt tunes.

A Zax Vandal renaissance.

Cassette Tapes and a Bass Guitar

The musical journey began for Vince with his Filipino father’s love of Englebert Humperdink bops. A lover of disco and karaoke, Vince recalls his dad’s diverse vibes ranging everywhere from the Beach Boys to UB40 to Shaggy. 

But even more than those musical roots, it was his parents’ consistent encouragement of his music that Vince credits as carrying him in his pursuits over the years. The opportunities to study music, as Vince did in his undergraduate work at Marylhurst University, and perform as he has over the years were something that his dad never had where he was from. 

His father fought very hard and gave everything so that Vince could have what he has.

Coming up, his first cassettes were Neil Diamond’s “Greatest Hits” and the Beach Boys’ “Endless Summer,” before discovering the majesty that was Tower Records, a revelation in his world, where he would walk away with the first Presidents of the United States of America album and a couple Weird Al records.
But the real rock ‘n’ roll magic happened for him the day he traded his skateboard to his sisters’ punk-rocker boyfriend for a bass guitar.

That was it for him.

He would never be the same.

Playing every day, day-in, day-out, music would become a safe haven, a refuge and outlet for Vince during his often tumultuous teenage years. 
That same punk-rock boyfriend of his sisters’ took Vince to his first Warped Tour, at which he was equally mesmerized and intoxicated by the crowd’s response and energy as he was with any of the bands he saw on stage.

It was transcendent.

And he wanted that. 

The energy. 

The atmosphere. 

He wanted to play for the crowds.

Crusty Punk Rock and First Gigs

Linking up with buddies in high school, forming his first band and obsessively attending every possible show they could make together, Vince would find salvation in the PDX crusty punk rock scene of the early 00s. 

While he never got as far in his anarchy dreams as growing his own vegetable garden in an abandoned building, the close knit community and the visceral nature of the music - the heavy, melodic guitars and guttural vocals - resonated deeply with the angry teen coming of age. Though his high school band would only ever land three gigs in those formative years, hanging out at all the house shows - where several bands would play and share members between them (some of the musicians playing all night long!) - made an indelible imprint on Vince’s soul. 

In a very real way, the music and the community very well may have saved his life.
Once in college, Vince set aside the treasured bass and picked up an acoustic, beginning to write new material for himself as a solo artist. With a sound that blended the ethos and energy of his crusty punk rock, inevitably combined with those Englebert Humperdink and Beach Boys vibes that resided deep in his spirit, Vince began to truly find himself as a musician for the first time. 

As luck would have it, he would land his first solo gig when a friend of his had to back out of a show and they needed someone to fill in!
Gigs kept coming, and it was a good thing too, because the money he began making as an emerging saloon-scene musician around Portland was the way he fed himself during college.

As Vince continued to hone in his sound, develop his craft as a songwriter, and gig consistently throughout Portland, this early solo period would culminate for him with a string of dates at legendary Old Town punk venue The Satyricon (the longest-running punk rock venue in the Western United States) before it’s closure in 2010, gracing the same stage upon which it is said that Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love first met, and where Dave Grohl played his first Foo Fighters set.

Billy Joel and the Zax Vandal Era

According to Vince, every young man finds his way to “The Stranger” by Billy Joel.

It’s a thing of destiny. 

For Vince, “The Stranger” is a symbol of transition. 

A musical transition for him, to be sure. 

But more than that, it symbolizes Vince’s transition from young-adult into parenthood, with the birth of his first son.

It symbolizes growing up.

A deconstruction and remaking of self.

Which naturally, for Vince, was an invitation for a reinvention of the music as well.

In 2011, now a young father and married to his first wife, Vince debuted the Zax Vandal moniker for the first time, an homage to his daredevil nickname from the 5th grade and his childhood aspirations of becoming a stuntman.
The band began as a duo with his wife, initially accompanying him on the drums before eventually moving over to bass as they grew into a four-piece ensemble, complete with a cello and Vince’s best friend taking over on the drums.
Continuing to gig around town and developing their reputation and tight-knit sound around Vince’s compositions, Zax Vandal continued to ascend in the Portland scene during the 2010s, building a loyal following and playing everywhere from Pioneer Square to the renowned Kink Live Lounge.

The band was tight. 

The band was rising.

The band was family.

But as we all know, family can become… complicated.

Over time, the relationship between Vince and his wife began to unravel, and eventually ended in a painful divorce. And as their relationship unraveled, naturally, the band began to come apart as well. 

The performances during the final months of the band were especially painful and awkward as the songs Vince was performing with his family were literally songs about their family falling apart. They were standing six feet apart on stage, performing through the pain with songs about the pain.
After the divorce went final, Vince would continue Zax Vandal as a duo for a time with his drummer, and after the onset of the pandemic in 2020 would even complete the recording and production of the band’s self-titled Zax Vandal album, which he released independently in 2021. 

But in the strangest bit of irony, in the midst of the pandemic, the completion of the album seemed to mark the bitter end of Zax Vandal.

Gray Hairs and New Beginnings

Healing is a beautiful thing. 

And when we allow for healing to work its long process in us and through us, it’s remarkable how, oftentimes, we find ourselves with new opportunities. 

New beginnings. 

Which is exactly what has unfolded for Vince recently. 

Now happily remarried, a father of three, and having spent significant time away from Portland (and the music scene all together) for a season of life, to Vince’s amusement, Zax Vandal is unexpectedly rising from the ashes as new opportunities are finding their way to him.

Healing can be magnetic like that.

The return began with a desire to give back to the music community.

Vince was awarded a grant to join a cohort with Open Signal Community Media, his desire being to take the learning and skills he was developing in videography and broadcasting to develop a platform that would showcase local talent, becoming an amplifier for emerging voices and helping the community discover new and important art.

This work with Open Signal resulted in Vince’s own local cable access show, the Zax Vandal Show, which he affectionately describes as the Filipino Wayne’s World! 

All of Vince’s production endeavors were intended to be his pivot away from his own work and music, focusing on helping others with their projects. 

But lo and behold…
The more projects that have come along, and the more connections Vince has made in these new endeavors, the more his new community has recognized Vince’s special talent and the importance of his vision, urging him to pick Zax Vandal back up and include his own art as an integral part of his efforts to elevate others in town.

What a beautiful gift it is when our calling is recognized and impressed upon us by others, especially when we’re not looking for it!
Zax Vandal is back. 

And as Vince finds his way into more projects and new connections across the city, an exciting new chapter for the gifted singer-songwriter is unfolding.

The Emerging Scene and Hope for a Better Tomorrow

Vince has found himself re-energized and revitalized by the young bands and musicians he’s getting to know and playing alongside right now. Especially refreshed and inspired by the growing representation of young Filipinos and other AAPI and BIPOC artists, as well as the deeply seeded activism of the next bands up, he’s encouraged by the kind of dedication and integrity these new young artists bring to the causes and communities they represent. Having recently played a show to raise funds for Palestinians suffering under the genocide in Gaza, he’s filled with hope as he’s finding young, passionate players who know their stuff, who take time to educate themselves about what’s happening in the world, and who claim their places and spaces boldly in the scene - perhaps with more vigor than what he can recall of himself and players from his own generation back in the day.
For Vince, the music has always come down to two things:

Do I believe you?

And are you accountable?

This is the litmus test. 

If either aren’t true, he’s hitting skip, just like the rest of us are.
But he’s excited by the young performers he’s meeting who seem to share a similar ethos to himself in this way. And as he is re-emerging into the scene, a little old and wiser, these two questions are the barometer by which he evaluates his own craft.
​
It would seem considering the many who are finding their way to the new incarnation of Zax Vandal, whether joyfully re-discovering Vince anew or for the first time, that he is most certainly meeting his own criteria. 

Whether it’s the gray hairs giving him more street cred, or the vibrant energy radiating from a man who’s been through hell and back and has lived to tell, the star is rising again for Zax Vandal - and we await with great anticipation to see just how far his bright light will shine.

For More with Vince...

To hear our recent interview with Vince in its entirety on the Ascent Radio Podcast - including pieces of his own music and his thoughts on all the songs we’ve highlighted from his story! - click here to locate the podcast on your preferred provider, or listen directly in the Ascent Radio app - available for free in both the Apple and Google Play stores!
And if you’re like us, anxiously awaiting the release of NEW Zax Vandal music - coming soon! - as well as dates for his upcoming shows, make sure to follow Vince on both Facebook (Zax Vandal) and Instagram (@zaxvandal)! 

​Also don't miss out on new episodes of the Zax Vandal Show over on the YouTube channel!

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