Images of Uvalde, Harvey aftermath and beyond inspire music to spur reflection in ‘Witness’

Photojournalist Tamir Kalifa has covered numerous stories over his career – many of them tragic, such as the devastation left by Hurricane Harvey or the aftermath for victims of mass shootings in El Paso in 2019 and Robb Elementary in Uvalde in 2022.

But along with the images he captured to share these stories, Kalifa also penned lyrics and music inspired by the events in a project he calls “Witness.”

“Throughout all of my experiences in all of these places, the theme that kept emerging was that when people are pushed to their limits and to their extremes, they can reveal an extraordinary resilience,” Kalifa said.

“Music has always been an important method for me to process some of what I’ve experienced and some of what I’ve witnessed. And starting in 2018, I started writing music about it and trying to make sense of it while also trying to appreciate some of the people I’ve met along the way.”

The project sets Kalifa’s photographs to music, spanning the length of Kalifa’s career – including coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2018 Kīlauea volcano eruption in Hawaii, and more.

» RELATED: This Texan’s photos of Uvalde families earned him an award he says will allow him to make it a ‘lifelong’ project

Each song is inspired by a specific story, and Kalifa says writing the lyrics prompted him to see the threads that could be linked between them.

“Sometimes when I was thinking of, when I writing one piece, say about Uvalde, I was actually thinking about something in Hurricane Harvey and vice versa,” Kalifa said. “And so it’s really been an experience that has combined all of these different elements and different experiences.

But I’ve tried to make the music as accessible as can be because I wanted to create a space where people didn’t feel like they had to look past some of these issues that are very heavy and create a place that actually invites them to reflect and spend time with it.”

Kalifa says the idea for the project is rooted in his days playing in Austin bands, at a time where he also began taking on more photojournalism projects.

“And I wanted to do something that combined all of these things. I just didn’t quite know how,” Kalifa said. “I’ve long felt that the whole can be greater than the sum of its parts. And so by combining music and photography, I can try to present an experience that I hope is more powerful than the two of them independently.”

“Witness” is performed by Kalifa backed with an ensemble of musicians, along with one special vocalist. Jazmin Cazares accompanies Kalifa on a number of songs including “Jackie’s Rock” – a memorial to her younger sister, Jackie Cazares, one of the victims of the Robb Elementary school shooting.

“Just to participate in a project like this that memorializes my sister in such a different and unique way… I’m just very, very honored and very grateful to keep sharing my sister’s story,” Cazares said.

Kalifa says he hopes “Witness” can take on a life of its own – bringing journalism closer to audiences in both large venues and smaller community spaces.

“One thing that I’ve truly learned amidst all of this is that we have so much more in common than what divides us,” Kalifa said. “And I hope that music and art can be a path to explore that.”

“Witness” debuts Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, at the Long Center in Austin.

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