A new six-part podcast launched June 15 revisits the 1996 Tibetan Freedom Concert organized by Beastie Boys member Adam Yauch and activist Erin Potts.
Freedom Needs a Soundtrack blends archival recordings with interviews from artists, organizers, and Tibetan voices. It explores how the San Francisco event and later editions in New York, Washington D.C., and internationally drew more than 325,000 attendees.
Produced by Adonde Media in partnership with KALW Public Radio, the series highlights Potts' journey from music fan to co-founder of the Milarepa Fund with Yauch in 1994. Proceeds from the ad-free release will support Students for a Free Tibet and the Tibet Action Institute.
Potts said the concerts showed how music could build solidarity. She added that the point is to let the story move listeners toward action for Tibet or their own communities.
Deyden Tethong noted the series arrives 30 years later to reconnect people with ongoing work and introduce it to new generations.
