American singer-songwriter and multi-talented musician Kishi Bashi (aka Kaoru Ishibashi) has announced his headlining tour across North America for 2020. Starting in Birmingham, Ala., on April 8 and wrapping up in Chattanooga, Tenn., on May 5, Kishi Bashi’s tour takes him all across the continent to not only perform songs off his acclaimed new album Omoiyari, but also to spread a message of hope during some of America’s darkest times.
Being the child of immigrants from Japan, Ishibashi grew up hearing the horror stories of how the Japanese people were treated post-World War II, and with the divide, hate and white supremacy becoming more and more prominent in the past few years in America, it reminded him of the world in which his parents lived—history repeating itself.
However, instead of sitting back and contributing to all the angry Facebook posts and political Twitter wars, Ishibashi became motivated by all the madness and decided to create something joyful and compassionate.
In a statement, Ishibashi said, “I had trouble finding an English title for the piece. Omoiyari is a Japanese word. It doesn’t necessarily translate as empathy, but it refers to the idea of creating compassion towards other people by thinking about them. I think America is going through some really big changes right now, and having Omoiyari for one another is really the key to staying positive about where we are headed.”
Ishibashi adds, “I didn’t want this project to be about history, but rather the importance of history, and the lessons we can learn.”
Find Kishi Bashi’s tour dates below, beneath his 2012 Daytrotter session. Tickets are available here.
Kishi Bashi Tour Dates:
April
08 – Birmingham, Ala. @ Saturn
09 – Savannah, Ga. @ Victory North
10 – Athens, Ga. @ Georgia Theatre
11 – Knoxville, Tenn. @ The Concourse
12 – Asheville, N.C. @ The Grey Eagle
13 – Norfolk, Va. @ The NorVa
15 – Burlington, Vt. @ Higher Ground
16 – Jersey City, N.J. @ White Eagle
17 – Montreal, Que. @ Theatre Fairmount
18 – Toronto, Ont. @ Mod Club Theatre
20 – Detroit, Mich. @ Garden Theater
21 – Holland, Mich. @ Hope College
22 – Cincinnati, Ohio @ 20th Century Theatre
23 – Columbia, Mo. @ The Blue Note
24 – Lawrence, Kan. @ Granada Theater
25 – Omaha, Neb. @ The Waiting Room
27 – Boulder, Colo. @ Fox Theatre
29 – Phoenix, Ariz. @ The Crescent Ballroom
30 – Tucson, Ariz. @ Rialto Theatre
May
01 – Santa Fe, N.M. @ Meow Wolf
03 – Oklahoma City, Okla. @ Tower Theatre
04 – Memphis, Tenn. @ Hi Tone
05 – Chattanooga, Tenn. @ Songbirds South