Album release

Told through cello, electronics, film and live dance, We Were Fridays explores forbidden love, fractured lines, and complex legacies and tell the story of how we became...Fridays.

We Were Fridays follows a story that began in the Griot tradition of West Africa, travels to South Carolina by way of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, then north by way of the Great Migration, and then continues through Vietnam and Japan. Through deep investigation and collaboration, the team led by Zeigler explores the music of the Gullah community of the Low Country of South Carolina, a community which to this day has preserved more of their West African linguistic and cultural heritage than any other African American community in the United States. Gullah music has influenced spirituals, gospel, ragtime, rhythm and blues, soul, hip hop and jazz. We Were Fridays extends this reach into the world of instrumental cello music. Told through cello, electronics, film and live dance, We Were Fridays explores forbidden love, fractured lines, and complex legacies and tell the story of how we became...Fridays.

Created by Jeffrey Zeigler

Music by Etienne Charles, Hannah Ishizaki, Jeffrey Zeigler and Tamar-kali

Choreography by Reggie ‘Regg Roc’ Gray

Program Book Design by sister sylvester

Commissioned and Produced by VisionIntoArt

Developed in collaboration with National Sawdust and the Penn Center

Percussion on “Such and Such”: Etienne Charles

Recorded at National Sawdust May 5 & 6, 2025 and Audio Confidential January 12, April 13 & 29, 2026

Produced by Jeffrey Zeigler

Recording Engineer: Marc Urselli

Mastered by Charles Mueller at Oktaven

Out September 18th, 2026 on all streaming platforms.

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