Music Interviews

Music & Culture

John Prine To Release New Duets Album, 'For Better, Or Worse'

4:02pm July 15, 2016

by Jewly Hight

The sequel to 1999's album of vintage country duets, In Spite Of Ourselves, will be out Sept. 30. Hear Prine sing the opening song, "Who's Gonna Take The Garbage Out," with Iris DeMent.

Music & Culture

Alabama Shakes' Brittany Howard On Small-Town Life, Big-Time Music

3:41pm July 15, 2016

Howard was raised on her father's junkyard in the small town of Athens, Ala. "It was a really interesting way to grow up," she tells Fresh Air. Originally broadcast Jan. 28, 2016.

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An Opera Percussionist Traces Her Path 'From Juilliard to the Orchestra Pit'

3:22pm July 14, 2016

Patti Niemi has been a percussionist for the San Francisco Opera Orchestra since 1992. She speaks with Fresh Air's Sam Briger about performance anxiety, muscle memory and her memoir, Sticking it Out.

Shirley Manson of Garbage. The band's latest album is Strange Little Birds.

Music & Culture

'It Changed My Intent': Shirley Manson On Garbage And Growing Up

8:27am July 10, 2016

by NPR Staff

It's been more than 20 years since Garbage broke through, but Manson says she didn't think of herself as an artist until much more recently.

Warren G during Celebrity Blackjack in 2010.

Music & Culture

Warren G: 'It's A Cold Game'

1:05am July 08, 2016

The West Coast legend, one of the main instigators of G-funk, has seen the underside of the industry. It's not pretty, but he stays smooth.

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"I didn't know what I was going to do. It just happened," Maxwell says of recording his new song "Lost," which he tracked in one take.

Music & Culture

After 7 Years, Maxwell Is Back At It With 'blackSUMMERS'night'

6:38pm July 05, 2016

by NPR Staff

The R&B singer can work fast — he recorded two of the tracks on his new album totally off the cuff. So why did the album take so long to make? "Well, because you gotta live something," he says.

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Unknown Mortal Orchestra's song "First World Problem" is featured on this week's episode of Metropolis.

Music & Culture

Metropolis: 07/02/2016

2:49pm July 05, 2016

KCRW's Jason Bentley spins music by Andy Shauf, M83, James Blake and more on this week's episode.

A Tribute To The Late American Composer Eubie Blake

9:00am July 04, 2016

Blake's music is featured in the Broadway revival, Shuffle Along. Our tribute features live performances of his songs and interviews with pianist Dick Hyman, among others. Originally broadcast in '98.

Xenia Rubinos' latest album is Black Terry Cat.

Music & Culture

In 'Black Stars,' Xenia Rubinos Memorializes Many Lives In One

8:05am July 03, 2016

by NPR Staff

Conceived as a tribute to her late father, the song took on a new meaning for Rubinos when she considered its lyrics in light of the Black Lives Matter movement.

A day after getting a phone call from Kanye West's camp, Vincent Desiderio was in Los Angeles for the premiere of the rapper's video "Famous," which Desiderio's painting Sleep partly inspired.

A Chat With The Painter Whose Work Inspired Kanye West's 'Famous'

6:31am July 03, 2016

by NPR Staff

All Vincent Desiderio knew when he agreed to fly to Los Angeles was that West was a fan of his work. Twenty-four hours later, he found out just how deep the rapper's appreciation went.