In the intro you’ll hear me mention raise the concern of the Suno AI funding the Press Play fair and Pioneer Works working with Suno to host AI workshops. Suno notoriously and shamelessly data mines the intellectual and creative property of musicians, with no credit or compensation and makes generative AI “tools” which will eventually lead to the obsolescence of many forms of creative musical labor. The CEO of Suno AI infamously said people "don't enjoy" making music. Gross.

I was happy to hear that Pioneer Works will no longer be working with Suno AI, I hope in some small part to the attention many artists including Samora and I brought to the issue.

If you didn’t catch the last episode with Alsarah, it’s a great one discussing her story and identity as a Sudanese refugee and the history and current genocide in Sudan. She talked about how “refugee” is the identity of the future and offers some wisdom on how one might thing about home in these changing circumstances. She’s also funny as hell.

With the genocide still raging in the Sudan creating the largest humanitarian and displacement crisis on the planet, I was grateful to learn and hear from someone who has lived through the history that led to this moment.

This episode is filled with resources if you’re looking for ways to support, reminding us that all struggles are connected. Please follow @bsonblast, @sunduqalsudan, and hashtags #keepyoureyesonsudan #freesudan.

Enjoy this episode with Alsarah, recorded at Pioneer Works, engineered by me and produced by Z Park.

This episode is a bit of a special one, as we’re playing around with the format. In this one, my dear friend, Omar Ahmad interviews yours truly, your hostess with the mostess, in a flipped episode. For those of you who are just encountering me through the podcast, this one gives you some insight into who the heck I am, and my own music and practice is all about. We talk about my devotional, DIY and punk roots, my circuitous journey to where I am, and my focus as we navigate these apocalyptic times.

While you’re at it, you can check out the episode where I interview Omar. You’ll see that these two chatterboxes can gab profundities for hours on end, so there’s plenty to chew on here.

At this moment, you can listen to all archived episodes, but starting March 2nd you’ll only have access to the last few archived episodes, so check out the episodes with Greg Saunier of Deerhoof and Angel Bat Dawid while you still can!

This podcast is self-funded, so I’m starting introduce some incentives for your material support. The podcast started with a generous fellowship from Pioneer Works in 2025, but as we move into 2026 I am trying to find ways to make this sustainable. In addition to paying my amazing producer Z, this labor of love takes a huge amount of time and work to keep going. You can check out the perks below and decide if this is something you can do at this time!

February is the last chance to listen to all Outernational episodes for free! Starting in March, readers with any paid subscription ($5/monthly or $50/annually) can listen to / access all archived Outernational episodes. Paid subscribers can also access bonus content, including the full improvisation at Le Guess Who? from Episode 5, as well as future discounts on Elder Ones LPs and shirts. All paid subscriptions directly help the Outernational podcast to keep going!

Free subscribers will continue receiving the monthly newsletter and will be able to listen back to the 3 most recent episodes of the Outernational podcast, but will not be able to comment or post and will not receive discounts for Elder Ones merchandise.

Credits: Hosted by Amirtha Kidambi, Edited by Z Park, Music by Elder Ones “Live in Vilnius - Third Space”, Recorded at Pioneer Works, Brooklyn

We had a kaleidoscopic conversation across borders, histories and struggles, using Le Guess Who? festival in the Netherlands as a community gathering. As Saul said during his set earlier that evening, every concert is a meeting. Music transcends borders and musicians know how to organize.

Listening to this conversation again gave me much needed inspiration to persist among escalating terrors in the United States and around the world. Each of these artists is a deep thinker and organizer in their community, using their platforms in ingenious, creative and subversive trickster ways. The conversation is bursting with wisdom, from historical lessons to deeply embodied cultural memory.

Listen, Like, Follow, Subscribe and Review on Substack / Apple Podcasts /YouTube

Credits: Recorded Live at Le Guess Who? festival on November 8th, 2025 in Utrecht, Netherlands, produced by Z Park with a musical performance by the panelists and guest, Mohammad Mehrabani

It’s a bit surreal to listen back to this one which we recorded over the summer, now in this “ceasefire” period when things feel unbelievably dark and in some ways, worse that there is a veneer of a new status quo. Listening to this convo again gave me hope, but more importantly some much needed perspective and I hope it can do the same for you!

You can listen, subscribe, follow, like and share on Substack, Apple Podcasts and YouTube!

This episode was edited by Z Park, engineered by me and recorded remotely from Pioneer Works in Brooklyn, featuring the music of Lankum and One Leg One Eye.

You can listen here on Substack or on Apple Music and YouTube.

Recorded on the same day that Deerhoof announced they were ditching Spotify!

Outernational is a new podcast where I talk to musicians who are activists/organizers, using their platforms for change and making music that is socially engaged in these revolutionary times.

Subscribe, like, follow, review and share on Substack @amirthakidambi / Apple Podcasts / YouTube

Credits: Hosted by Amirtha Kidambi, Edited by Z Park, Music by Deerhoof “Immigrant Songs,” Recorded at Pioneer Works, Brooklyn

We talked about how there is no growth without discomfort and sometimes Angel is gonna make you squirm!

Outernational is a new podcast where I talk to musicians who are activists/organizers, using their platforms for change and making music that is socially engaged in these revolutionary times.

Listen on Substack @amirthakidambi /Apple Podcasts/YouTube

Credits: Hosted by Amirtha Kidambi, Recorded at Pioneer Works, Brooklyn, Edited by Z Park, Music by Angel Bat Dawid “The Black Family.”

Trailer Credits: Featuring Amirtha Kidambi, edited by Z Park, Music by Amirtha Kidambi “Proper Burial”, Recorded at Pioneer Works, Brooklyn, Clips from Episode 1, with Angel Bat Dawid and Episode 2, with Greg Saunier

Hello friends, family and comrades,

I’m excited to announce the launch of a new podcast hosted by yours truly. This is one of the many things I’ve been working on in my Working Artist Fellowship at Pioneer Works and I’m excited to finally share it with you!

Outernational is a podcast that explores the relationship between music and revolution, featuring discussions with musicians who are using their art platforms to grapple with the intersecting global crises of our times. Hosted by Amirtha Kidambi, a vocalist, improviser, composer, organizer and educator, the conversations highlight the role of music in shaping social and political consciousness and sharing stories and strategies to inspire us in our collective struggle to build solidarity. Introduced by the late composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, “Outernationalism” is a concept that defies creative, spiritual and political borders, exploring our relationships as listeners, artists and culture workers outside of global capitalism and nation-states.

You can listen to a preview of the pod and my perspective on the whole endeavor. The first episode releasing soon, features Angel Bat Dawid, talking about her work as an artist and educator in Chicago. You can also look forward to an episode with Greg Saunier of the band Deerhoof discussing our entanglements with capitalist imperialism!

The pod will be available on most platforms, other than Spotify (you’ll hear about on the episode with Greg!).

I hope these conversations can inspire us through these challenging times and give us some strategies for navigating and resisting.

Solidarity!

Amirtha