ReCurrent Season 2: How the Getty Podcast Keeps the Past Alive Through Art and Memory
The acclaimed podcast ReCurrent, produced by the Getty and hosted by cultural storyteller Jaime Roque, returns for a powerful second season. This time, it dives even deeper into the world of creativity, heritage, and human connection — exploring how the memories of yesterday shape the identities of today.
ReCurrent is not just a podcast — it’s a bridge between generations. With each episode, listeners are transported into the archives, neighborhoods, and creative spaces that hold the stories of artists, musicians, photographers, and visionaries who use art as a vessel for memory.
In ReCurrent: Stories About What We Gain by Keeping the Past Present, Roque journeys into the intersections of culture and community, revealing how storytelling sustains belonging in a fragmented world.
The Power of Creative Inheritance
Every episode in Season 2 begins with something tangible — a camera, a record, a photograph — objects passed down through hands and time, carrying with them the weight of history.
Roque explains:
“Made in the wild, in the streets, archives, and neighborhoods where Getty stories are found, ReCurrent shows how cultural heritage keeps us close while making room for who we’re becoming.”
That message resonates deeply in today’s world, where cultural continuity can feel fragile. The show invites us to reflect on how art and memory keep us rooted — even as the world evolves.
Season Highlights: Exploring the Episodes That Bring History to Life
Season 2 of ReCurrent presents a collection of vivid, emotionally charged stories that span continents, generations, and artistic disciplines. Each episode offers a lens into how creativity is both an act of remembrance and resistance.
Below are some of the key highlights from the new season:
1. The Virgin Mary in the Americas: A Reimagining of Faith and Identity
The season opens with “The Virgin Mary in the Americas”, a powerful exploration of how the Virgin of Guadalupe — one of the most recognized icons in the Western Hemisphere — has been reinterpreted across borders and generations.
Through interviews with artists, theologians, and cultural historians, the episode delves into:
How the Virgin of Guadalupe became a symbol of both faith and resistance.
The evolution of her image in artistic movements across Latin America.
The ongoing dialogue between religion, identity, and self-expression.
This story sets the tone for the season — showing that the past is not static but constantly reshaped through the eyes of those who inherit it.
2. The Dual Worlds of George Rodríguez: A Photographer’s Legacy
One of the most poignant episodes focuses on the late George Rodríguez, a photographer who captured both Hollywood glamour and Chicano activism during the turbulent decades of the 1960s and 1970s.
Listeners journey through Rodríguez’s archives, hearing stories behind iconic photographs — from red-carpet moments to scenes of social protest. His work serves as a reminder that photography is not just documentation; it’s memory in motion.
Key insights include:
The contrast between celebrity culture and grassroots movements.
Rodríguez’s ability to humanize both worlds through his lens.
The enduring influence of his images on Latinx identity and cultural pride.
3. Las Fotos: The Power of Mentorship in Art
In “Las Fotos,” the podcast turns its lens toward the next generation — following the mentorship of María Magdalena Campos-Pons, a celebrated artist guiding young photographers to find their visual voice.
This episode celebrates intergenerational creativity, revealing how mentorship is itself a form of cultural preservation. Campos-Pons and her mentees discuss how storytelling through photography allows communities to reclaim narratives often silenced or forgotten.
“When we share stories,” one mentee says, “we’re not just remembering — we’re rebuilding.”
4. Thelonious Monk’s Forgotten Concert: East Palo Alto Revisited
Few know that jazz legend Thelonious Monk once performed in East Palo Alto, a performance almost lost to time. This episode reconstructs that night — a vibrant celebration of jazz, community, and resilience — using rare archival recordings and eyewitness accounts.
The story offers a window into:
The power of community-organized art in marginalized spaces.
Monk’s influence on generations of musicians.
The role of music as a form of cultural continuity and healing.
5. Dootone Records Before Motown: The Unsung Pioneers of Sound
Long before Motown became synonymous with soul, there was Dootone Records — a small Los Angeles label that laid the groundwork for the sound that would define a generation.
This episode uncovers:
The hidden history of Black-owned record labels in mid-century America.
How Dootone fostered a new sound of optimism and resistance.
The forgotten artists who helped shape modern R&B and soul.
It’s a fascinating exploration of how cultural innovation can arise from the margins — and how those stories deserve to be remembered.
6. The Art of Activism: Los Angeles in the 1980s
In its closing episode, ReCurrent explores how the political turbulence of 1980s Los Angeles gave birth to a new wave of artistic resistance.
From murals that challenged injustice to performance art that demanded visibility, the episode paints a vivid portrait of a city where art became activism — and where memory became a weapon of change.
Themes explored include:
The intersection of art, identity, and protest.
The resilience of communities in the face of political neglect.
The role of the artist as historian, activist, and truth-teller.
The Meaning Behind “ReCurrent”
The name ReCurrent captures the podcast’s essence — stories that recur across generations, reshaped by each retelling.
Every episode reminds listeners that history is not confined to museums or archives; it’s alive in the songs we sing, the photos we take, and the traditions we preserve.
Roque’s storytelling emphasizes that remembering the past is not about nostalgia — it’s about belonging. Through sound, voice, and atmosphere, ReCurrent invites us to slow down, listen, and recognize how memory connects us all.
Cultural Memory as Resistance
In today’s hyperconnected, algorithm-driven media landscape, ReCurrent offers something rare: depth. Each story reveals how culture becomes an act of defiance — against erasure, against forgetting, against the silence imposed by history.
Listeners are reminded that preserving heritage is not passive. It’s an active, living process — one that requires community, conversation, and creativity.
“To remember is to resist,” Roque says in the season finale. “When we honor what came before us, we give meaning to what comes next.”
Why ReCurrent Matters Now
Season 2 arrives at a time when conversations around cultural identity, belonging, and heritage are more urgent than ever. In a globalized world where cultural lines blur and traditions risk being commodified, ReCurrent’s stories feel both timeless and timely.
The podcast offers lessons that transcend art:
Memory sustains identity.
Art bridges generations.
Storytelling is preservation.
Through the voices of artists, mentors, and historians, ReCurrent calls on us all to participate in remembering — not as an act of looking back, but as a means of moving forward together.
Where to Listen
ReCurrent Season 2 is available weekly across major platforms:
Getty website
Apple Podcasts
Spotify
Amazon Music
BBC Sounds
Each episode immerses listeners in powerful storytelling accompanied by music, soundscapes, and real voices that breathe life into the past.
Conclusion: The Past Is Never Truly Gone
ReCurrent’s second season is more than a podcast — it’s a cultural movement. Through art, music, and personal storytelling, it demonstrates that history isn’t something we leave behind — it’s something we carry with us, in the images, sounds, and stories that shape who we are.
By keeping the past alive, ReCurrent reminds us that remembering is a radical act — one that connects us to our ancestors, our communities, and ourselves.
