Freedom

A CONSPICUOUSLY ABSENT ROCK•STAR•POET

Article by: Näthan "Saith" Gangadean

       The first time I heard Freedom, was simultaneously the first time I walked into his band's recording session in a killer mansion/nature preserve in the outskirts of Chico, CA back in July of 2002. Accompanied by a friend of theirs who already knew their music well, I stood dumbfounded as I witnessed Freedom pouring his entire body and Soul upward, unabashed, into a microphone that hung slightly higher than you'd expect.  The song he sang was called "Sell Out." 

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"... I know a painter... selling his art

I knew a dancer... selling her time

I know a poet... selling his rhyme

You know it's a Sell Out

Selling your Soul

Yes it's a Sell Out

But you don't ever know"

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And later in the song (I believe the moment I walked into the session) He belts out "You won't see me Sell Out... Cause I already Know."

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        As a young aspiring musician with about 4 songs of my own at that point, inspired by the musicians that weren't afraid to have a powerful message, like Dylan, Lennon, Marley, and the like, I felt I had entered a space that was nurturing Music and Poetry at a higher level of purpose.  I became an instant fan, granted...  But I became something far more important than that.  I became someone who could ((Hear))...and ((Feel)) the ((Medicine)) of Freedom's music.  And it was of a variety I never heard before or since.  It's of a depth and meaningfulness that, while my entire music career has been driven to embody that, I never, and no one could ever, do it the way Freedom does.  And I mean that.

        And the amazing thing is... All these years I've known him... especially when his music needs to be heard, the world over... Freedom never sold out.  Freedom remained true to the Source whence his music flows.  And in a world that condones doing whatever one has to do to "get out there," "get noticed," "get big" (All of which Freedom could do), it shows profound integrity that Freedom would not compromise the purity of his gift to the world, for the instant gratification of this world's superficial rewards. 

       And that, my friends, is why you must understand that you haven't just stumbled onto the website of a talented musician with great music (though this is true)... You've found the Kind of music that just doesn't happen anymore.  It cannot simply be lumped together in your mind with "all other music." 

       This is ((Music)) that IS what it sings about...  Music that TAKES you into an encounter with Mystical Meaning and Medicine, across a vast array of styles, and transports you to spaces you otherwise would have no avenue towards.  I ask, as a ((fan)), and as a ((friend)) that if you listen to Freedom's music... ((Listen)) at a higher level of attention.  Because this ((Music)) deserves it.  And you owe it to yourself to take off your "earmuffs"... that is... the dumbed down version of "listening" that has been the result of the ubiquitous ear-rape that people call music today... And ((Listen)) with your ((Being)).  Then, you will know what I have said here couldn't be more ((spot-on)).

       No, he didn't sell out.  But now, for the first time ever, all his music is available in one place.  And in my view, it's a historic moment!  And every ((song)) is worth every ((penny))! (And way more).  Trust me!  Enjoy! ~NSG