San Francisco Chronicle DATEBOOK Section
by Andrew Gilbert September 1, 2023
“..features rising artists and Bay Area performers with strong local followings, like Berkeley’s Destani Wolf. Her career has taken her around the world, from her early years fronting the Latin soul band O-Maya to her Southern California sojourn collaborating with the likes of Los Angeles R&B singer-songwriter Shuggie Otis, British soul singer Alice Russell and Brooklyn rapper Talib Kweli.
In the years before the pandemic, Wolf performed internationally as the ringmaster of the Cirque du Soleil show “Bazzar,” which was built around her lustrous voice. These days she’s spending much of her time collaborating with Bobby McFerrin in his a cappella quintet Motion (which performs every Monday afternoon at Freight & Salvage). But she’s also been writing and releasing her own fervently uplifting soul songs.
In a gratifying moment of paying forward the break she received from Trager, Wolf recommended MeloDious, which landed the Oakland trio of teenage siblings Sunday’s second set on the Chef de Cuisine Stage, where there are several other acts to watch out for.
“When I was first coming up, Jeff really believed in me and set me up with my first regular gig at Iron Horse Cocktails on Maiden Lane in San Francisco,” she said. “I was going to S.F. State, trying new tunes, singing jazz and blues. He would bring all kinds of cats through, guys from Santana’s band, to listen to me.”’
