Musician Adrian Quesada, known for his work with Black Pumas, now finds himself in the Oscar spotlight with Like a Bird, nominated for Best Original Song. His involvement in Sing Sing goes beyond music—it amplifies voices, representation, and the power of second chances.
As a child, Adrian Quesada dreamed of success at the MTV Video Music Awards, but now, he is on an even bigger stage—with an Oscar nomination.
The American musician with Mexican roots hopes the presence at the Academy Awards of someone from the Texas border town of Laredo will help serve as an inspiration for other people from minority communities.
"Representation, I think, in the arts, is a big thing," Quesada told AFP in Los Angeles as he promoted his powerful track Like a Bird from the prison drama Sing Sing—a nominee for the Best Original Song prize.
"If I'm a young kid watching MTV or watching movies or watching TV, when you actually see people that look like you out there, people that you know come from your culture, it inspires the next generation."
The Black Pumas guitarist co-wrote and performed Like a Bird, which closes the film, with singer Abraham Alexander.
The nomination is one of three for Sing Sing, which tells the true story of Divine G (Colman Domingo), a wrongfully convicted inmate who finds an outlet in a prison theater group.
Former prisoners who participated in the real-life theater program performed in the film, which was directed by Greg Kwedar.
Domingo is nominated for Best Actor, and the script is vying for Best Adapted Screenplay honors.
Quesada and Alexander did not have their sights set on Hollywood's glitzy awards season when they signed up for the film, and Quesada admits that it has been "surreal" to be caught up in Tinseltown's annual jamboree.
"It's still something that is hard to process," he said. "I still sometimes wake up and can't believe that."
Quesada is no stranger to plaudits, earning multiple Grammy nominations during his long career and winning one golden gramophone for his work with Austin-based Latin funk outfit Grupo Fantasma.
But he admits a nod from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is something special.
"The Academy Awards just seemed like such a different world," he said.
True Story
Like a Bird will face some stiff competition at the Oscars on March 2.
Other nominees are El Mal and Mi Camino from the narco musical Emilia Perez; Never Too Late from the documentary Elton John: Never Too Late; and The Journey from The Six Triple Eight by veteran composer Diane Warren, who has never won in the category despite being nominated 15 previous times.
Inspired by the plot of Sing Sing, the song encapsulates the longing for freedom of someone who cannot follow his dreams.
For Quesada, who says he firmly believes in second chances and rehabilitation through the arts, taking part in the project was an invitation he found impossible to refuse.
The importance of seeing prisoners as more than their crimes has been highlighted by their role in helping to quell the huge wildfires that tore through Los Angeles last month, with inmate crews working alongside firefighters.
"You have prisoners... fighting fires for people and then having to go back to prison... fighting these fires for homes that they can't even afford," said Quesada.
"I think this film really brings to light a lot of humanity."
Taking part in Sing Sing was not without obstacles, especially when it came to finding time when both he and Alexander were available.
"It was like we were never even in the same room to do it," he laughed.
"He came into my studio, but I was out of town, and then he left, and I came back."
Winning an Oscar would be "a great honor," admits the guitarist.
But he says it would be one shared by everyone who worked on Sing Sing.
"We believe in our song, but I think we're part of a big picture here, which is the film's message," he told AFP.
With AFP
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