Chris Zurich (b. 1987) is an American singer and songwriter. His music is a blend of folk and electronica while his voice is reminiscent of Sam Cooke. His album Black Ink contains original songs, and he plays many cover songs on his social media. Zurich performs regularly in the New York City subways. As well, he has appeared on the X-Factor as a finalist and provided back-up vocals on Kanye West’s album Life of Pablo. Nowadays, sometimes, he is to be found in Los Angeles.
Zurich is not a Friend, but he attended and later taught at Quaker elementary schools. At the schools, he says, he learned about equality, peace and the environment. He adds that he saw that Quaker worship was open for anyone to lead it.
I was charmed by Chris Zurich’s soulful, expressive voice and his deeply felt songs. He is one of those performers who should be better known!
A quote: “I have only good things to say about Quakerism… It’s about treating everyone with the same respect… So I always found that cool and something I could get behind. I wouldn’t say I think about it on a daily basis right now in my New York existence, but it’s definitely embedded in who I am. I try to leave people and situations better than I found them. That’s a very Quaker way of going about life”.
And two links, one to his “Destinations” video and one to his “A Change is Gonna Come” busk in the Times Square subway station:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rJDGrCbsbU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLv8sL3sL7Y&t=87s
Gary Sandman
December 2022