Something to sing about

Young Chang

Lila Downs knew that unless she really had something to sing about,

she couldn’t be a singer and be happy.

She had trained vocally since her teens, but the 34-year-old wondered

if the art would stimulate her intellectually.

And then she found her calling.

When the Mexican American performer was in her mid-20s, she went from

being confused to appreciative of being multiethnic. She studied

anthropology as a student at the University of Minnesota to the point

where it changed her perspective on life.

“I came back being a little more subversive, I guess, in what I wanted

to say,” said Downs, who will perform today at the Irvine Barclay Theatre

as part of the Philharmonic Society and the Barclay’s World Stages

series. “I also had more to say.”

Today, after creating three soulful albums mixing everything from

blues and jazz to the Mayan and Zapotec languages, the Mexico City

resident says her goal is to make music that makes the world a little

less cold.

“I truly hope that people can like each other a little bit more,” said

Downs, who is also a featured act at Los Angeles’ Conga Room for Cinco de

Mayo. “I hope that we can smile at one another and see our differences

and love them.”

It took Downs half her life to love her very own differences.

She spent much of her early years in Mexico with her grandmother -- a

wonderful, warm lady who couldn’t read or write but spoke endlessly of

beautiful legends involving ghosts and spiritual matters, Downs said.

Downs’ mother was a business woman and was often away on trips. She

was Mixtec Indian, had spent some years singing during a time when female

singers were considered inappropriate and later ran a car parts store in

Tlaxiaco, Oaxaca.

But Downs spent most of her childhood with her Scottish American

father, who died when she was 16. He was a cinematographer and painter

who met Downs’ mother in Mexico while making a documentary about teal

birds. He eventually also taught at the University of Minnesota.

When he died, Downs found herself suddenly and heavily involved with

her mother.

“I was faced with a very Indian mother who was quite different from

me. Suddenly, we were stuck together,” Downs said.

On top of being confused by her dual ethnicity, the performer also

found herself confused and embarrassed in general because she was a teen.

“When you’re an adolescent, you’re so ashamed of yourself in the first

place,” Downs said.

But living closely with her mother changed things. Downs grew to stop

being ashamed of her thick Indian accent when speaking Spanish and also

started seeking her respect and emotional support.

She also returned, both physically and symbolically, to her homeland

of Oaxaca, where her umbilical cord was buried beneath a maguey plant

after birth. Tradition has it that one is bound to where the umbilical

cord is.

“I learned to appreciate that side of my family from then on,” Downs

said. “Now that [my mom] sees I’m working to build respect for our Indian

ancestors and the Indian migrant workers, she’s very proud.”

Downs’ latest album, “Border,” addresses and pays tribute to Mexican

migrants who died trying to cross the border, as well as those who made

it across.

“I am very privileged because I can see the different perspectives in

this phenomenon,” said Downs, whose other albums are “Tree of Life” and

“La Sandunga.” “I think, in the U.S., we need to learn the work of all

migrant laborers.”

Her husband, Paul Cohen, saxophonist and musical director of Downs’

band, agreed with his wife about their goal as musicians.

“The goals are both artistic and also social,” he said. “I’m very

happy making the most beautiful music that we can make and apart from

that, hopefully the music that we make has a spiritual message that can

take a little bit away from people’s misery in this world.”

FYI

* What: Lila Downs performs

* When: 8 p.m. today

* Where: Irvine Barclay Theatre, 4242 Campus Drive, Irvine

* Cost: $24, $28

* Call: (949) 854-4646