Once upon a time…my great-grand-father!

Il Etait Une Fois Mon Grand Pere

My great-grand-father, Roland Hayes, was a black American. He was the first Opera singer to be internationally recognized.  During one of his road trip tours, he met my great-grandmother, who was a Viennese aristocrat.

They had an intense love story for two years and my grandmother was the fruit of their passion.

Roland Hayes and my great-grandmother were very involved in the Civil-Rights movement. Their union was not conducive to this cause. So with a common agreement, Roland went back to Boston forever.

They exchanged letters all their lives, but never saw each other again.  My grandmother, Maya, never saw her father again.

Five years later, Roland Hayes remarried and from this union, Afrika was born, the half-sister of my grand-mother.

The generation of my father and grandmother never made contact with our family in the United States. A year and a half ago, I decided to investigate and crossed the Atlantic to go find them. It was a turning point in my life. And I finally decided to sing, which I had always dreamed of!

 

Discover Back to Roots, Sasha’s album on spotify and iTunes.

Sasha will be on stage, Thursday the 22nd of October at 8pp at the Café de la Presse in Bastille.

@Sashabacktoroots

The week of Do It