While the landscape of San Francisco continues to evolve, the Bay Area remains home to countless amazing artists. Thanks to this incredibly rich music scene, these days if you find yourself at a Sofar show in SF, you might see a harpist, spoken word artist, and an Indie Rock band all sharing the bill. Every genre, every instrument— the community has a deep musical history and we’re thrilled to share some of our local favorites.
1. Afterthought
From the second his performance starts, you feel at home. Afterthought, the Bay Area-based rapper, producer, and community activist welcomes you in with the help of his incredible band. In his most recent Sofar Listening Room Session, he brings the full family: an eight-piece band complete with trombones and saxophones. Together they elevate his performance and bring his message to life with a truly celebratory feel. So much joy, warmth, and community flowing from his music.
2. Speakeasē
With over 40 shows on the books, Speakeasē has cemented themselves within our community. The neo-soul, funky project always makes an unforgettable addition to our shows. They absolutely brought it for our 2017 Halloween show, both in costumes and in sound. The rich vocals draped over a silky chord progression and clean drums— it’s a jazzy little number and just a sample of why we can’t get enough of this band.
3. Christian Kuria
There’s always a magic to seeing a young artist and knowing they are bound for great things. What a joy to watch that journey unfold. That’s what we’ve experienced with Christian Kuria. You can see the potential in his performance video from 2017. A gorgeous and captivating voice. Now, just five years later he’s touring the world and sharing his art with over 1.5 million monthly listeners on Spotify.
4. Ruby Ibarra
We caught up with rapper, Ruby Ibarra, a couple summers ago when we partnered with Stella Artois for some incredible performances. A mainstay in the community, Ibarra dropped her first project back in 2012 and instantly made a name for herself. The Filipino artist has wonderful writing and brings such a great energy to our shows. Check out that Stella session for a little taste!
5. Rexx Life Raj
Another Bay Area legend, the ascending Hip-Hop artist has been making splash after splash after splash. He brings a fresh feel to the west coast rap sound, bringing a kind of timeless production to his work. In his session with us, he performed Level Up, showcasing a dynamic delivery alongside two bandmates, no one afraid to have some fun. A prolific artist, with seven albums in the bag already, and has released singles in 2022 featuring Wale, Fireboy DML, and Larry June. Lucky for us, a lot to enjoy and even more to look forward to.
Words by Max Himelhoch
Photo credit: Speakeasē performing Sofar San Francisco, photo by Jon Bauer
