Uploaded September 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Lifelong San Francisco Bay Area Latin jazz percussionist, producer, and Machete record label founder John Santos recalls his Puerto Rican and Cape Verdean family roots and his path into a career of music. He philosophizes on the power of a recording and the value of album notes that place the music in a meaning-giving cultural and social context.
Videography by Mariana Núñez Lozado, Lillian Schneyer, Yijo Shen, Cara Taylor, and Charlie Weber Produced by Daniel E. Sheehy, Charlie Weber
Story by Los Herederos
Edited by Los Herederos
Project coordination by Logan E. Clark
Captioning by Francisco A. Philibert, Alphi Productions
Photos by Michael G. Stewart, Tom Erlich, C. Daniel Dawson, Tony Portillo, David Belove, and S. A. Cohner
Album design by Jeremy Sutton, Rick Rawlins, Tyler Askew, Tony Portillo, Ericka Hamburg, Juan Raymat, and Ronald Clyne, courtesy of John Santos, Machete Records, and Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
Este Proyecto recibió apoyo federal del Fondo de Iniciativas Latinas, administrado por el Museo Nacional del Latino Estadounidense.
This project received federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the National Museum of the American Latino.
Stream John Santos here:
Smithsonian Folkways: https://folkways.si.edu/search?query=john%20santos
Bandcamp: thejohnsantossextet.bandcamp.com/album/art-of-the-descarga
Smithsonian Folkways: https://folkways.si.edu
Facebook: facebook.com/smithsonianfolkwaysrecordings
Twitter: https://x.com/SmithsonianFolk
Instagram: instagram.com/smithsonianfolkways
Support our work, become a Friend of Folkways:
https://folkways.si.edu/friends-of-folkways
The content and comments posted here are subject to the Smithsonian Institution copyright and privacy policy (www.si.edu/copyright). Smithsonian reserves the right in its sole discretion to remove any content at any time.
Lifelong San Francisco Bay Area Latin jazz percussionist, producer, and Machete record label founder John Santos recalls his Puerto Rican and Cape Verdean family roots and his path into a career of music. He philosophizes on the power of a recording and the value of album notes that place the music in a meaning-giving cultural and social context.
Videography by Mariana Núñez Lozado, Lillian Schneyer, Yijo Shen, Cara Taylor, and Charlie Weber Produced by Daniel E. Sheehy, Charlie Weber
Story by Los Herederos
Edited by Los Herederos
Project coordination by Logan E. Clark
Captioning by Francisco A. Philibert, Alphi Productions
Photos by Michael G. Stewart, Tom Erlich, C. Daniel Dawson, Tony Portillo, David Belove, and S. A. Cohner
Album design by Jeremy Sutton, Rick Rawlins, Tyler Askew, Tony Portillo, Ericka Hamburg, Juan Raymat, and Ronald Clyne, courtesy of John Santos, Machete Records, and Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
Este Proyecto recibió apoyo federal del Fondo de Iniciativas Latinas, administrado por el Museo Nacional del Latino Estadounidense.
This project received federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the National Museum of the American Latino.
Stream John Santos here:
Smithsonian Folkways: https://folkways.si.edu/search?query=john%20santos
Bandcamp: thejohnsantossextet.bandcamp.com/album/art-of-the-descarga
Smithsonian Folkways: https://folkways.si.edu
Facebook: facebook.com/smithsonianfolkwaysrecordings
Twitter: https://x.com/SmithsonianFolk
Instagram: instagram.com/smithsonianfolkways
Support our work, become a Friend of Folkways:
https://folkways.si.edu/friends-of-folkways
The content and comments posted here are subject to the Smithsonian Institution copyright and privacy policy (www.si.edu/copyright). Smithsonian reserves the right in its sole discretion to remove any content at any time.
