Music of critically-acclaimed Freedom Singer play to be released on record

It's been a concert, a documentary and a critically-acclaimed play, but now the family stories and music of Freedom Singer is set to become an album.

Freedom Singer is a project headed by Khari Wendell McClelland, who made the music by drawing from the experiences of his ancestors fleeing along the Underground Railroad to Canada.

A few years ago, when McClelland sought out the story of his family, facts were hard to come by. He did, however, find several collections of rare and forgotten songs written and sung by black slaves during a grim period in North American history.

Through Freedom Singer, McClelland has interpreted the songs using many musical styles including folk, gospel, country, hip hop and soul and has brought their meaning and message to a modern audience.

During a conversation on CBC Radio One's North by Northwest with host Sheryl MacKay, McClelland said he is overwhelmed by the positive response Freedom Singer has received.

"I think initially all I was hoping for was to make a record with this music," said McClelland. "It's ended up being the thing that's come last in the series, but I'm so really excited about being able to share the album with people."

When setting out to create his music, McClelland said he never intended to exactly recreate the songs as they would have been sung at their inception. Indeed, many of the lyrics he found were written as simple verse with no musical accompaniment.

Kizzy

McClelland's great-great-great-grandmother, Kizzy, escaped to Canada in the 1850s. He said learning about the music now featured on Freedom Singer changed his entire life and gave him new appreciation for Kizzy's struggle.

"I feel like I have a right to take up space in a way that I wasn't sure about before," he said.

"I see the beauty and importance of the individuals I'm interacting with in a different way."

McClelland described Kizzy's belief in her own self-importance — the belief that she was worth enough to leave the only life she'd ever known and venture to a distant and foreign land in the pursuit of self-determination — as "mind-blowing."

Learning more about his ancestor, a person who went to great lengths to ensure future generations of her family gave McClelland a greater understanding of every person's right to respect, patience, kindness, generosity and love.

"I'm very aware of the kind of sacrifices and risks that were taken so I might be here in this moment."

"It gives me a sense of responsibility but also a sense of pride," said McClelland. "The dream of "me" preceded my physical being. People long before me were imagining a possibility like what I'm living in this moment."

The Freedom Singer album launches Feb. 2.

With files from North by Northwest