We are Austin music, repeats Jonathan Chaka Mahone.
He states those words emphatically in reference to not only his own musical endeavors, but the unappreciated depth of Black talent in the Texas capital. Putting the Black and brown face on music is what they should be doing, he continues. Get out of the way. Stop acting like we re still in the Willie Nelson and Stevie Ray Vaughan days. The symbol of [Austin] music is still a guitar. That day is over!
His passion transcends virtual confines necessitated by the coronavirus pandemic. After 11-plus years of hustling alongside his wife, Ghislaine Qi Dada Jean, the hyperactive social justice advocate earned the right to voice his opinion in unadulterated terms. The two unite as Riders Against the Storm, a hip-hop duo focused on uplifting its community in lieu of promoting dysfunction for album sales.