Tune in to Sunday evening’s Treasure Chest for some Creole Gumbo, Cajun-style!
AARP’s Prime Time Radio Black History Month Special documentary traces how the Louisiana Creole music known as zydeco found a new home 2,000 miles from its birthplace. Independent producers Richard Ziglar and Barry Yeoman interviewed the people who migrated from Louisiana to California starting in World War II to escape the racial discrimination prevalent in the South and find jobs in the shipping and defense industries. Once in California, they worked hard to keep their culture alive, especially their musical traditions.
The musicians and dancers who underwent this migration tell their stories of rebuilding their lives and their community. And they talk about how younger musicians are transmitting zydeco to the next generation-in the hopes that Creole traditions will continue to thrive in California.
We hope you enjoy AARP’s Prime Time Radio Black History Month Special: Zydeco Nation, this week on Prime Time Radio. .