Mexican American singer Linda Ronstadt was born in Arizona with a German surname, but she embraced and found refuge, never mind immense international success, by embracing her Mexican identity. Her grandfather was born in the town of Banámichi in Sonora, Mexico, and it is an international trip to this ancestral home that drives the on-the-road documentary known as “Linda and the Mockingbirds,” interspersed with performances and personal stories that tie into national stories of gentrification, immigration and identity. Ronstadt plays herself, obviously, but “The Mockingbirds” refer to the multi-generational community center, performance academy and band based in San Pablo known as Los Cenzontles (“The Mockingbirds” in Nahuatl) that she asked to join her on this pre-pandemic journey of self-discovery and community building.
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