Dawoud Kringle

Bedtime Stories for Musicians and Other People, Dawoud “the Renegade Sufi” Kringle’s collection of fictional short stories about musicians, will make you wonder if you first encountered Kringle’s manuscript in a dream. His stories, like memory itself, refuse to be linear.

Most biographies would list the author’s literary credentials. But that’s not why you’re here. You’re here because you need these stories to be so meaningful that they hurt. Because “The Mad Poet and the Witness” forces you to taste your own heart. Because “Chatbot” asks if love is real, and the only true answer will frighten you. Because “An American Drama” rips open the scars of American culture to reveal the blood under the facade. These tales don’t want to be understood, they want you to weep tears of joy.

As one reads these stories, one realizes they had to be written by a musician and no one else. Only someone who’s chased the white whale of truth in a musical note could weave such tales where art and metaphysics collide. His words are a rare and humbling catalyst that transforms the reader into a mirror reflecting the agony and ecstasy an artist pours into their work. Kringle has carved a path where few dare to walk, occasionally looking back and inviting us to join him. When you finish this book, you may wonder if you read the stories or if the stories read you.  

"Dawoud Kringle aka Dawoud the Renegade Sufi, is one of the more forward-thinking, globally-centric and productive music-makers on the New York scene... Dawoud has created a musical world that unites the past, present and future of sound. For him, no borders seem to exist and the most distant of inspirations, the most seemingly warring thoughts can live in perfect harmony. This is music as a healing and calming force, something the world needs now more than ever. "

- Sal Cataldi (nysmusic)