Music

Music & Culture

Daniel Rodriguez Talks About His New Album, 'Sojourn Of A Burning Sun'

7:57am August 30, 2020

NPR's Debbie Elliott asks former Elephant Revival band member Daniel Rodriguez about his new solo album — two years after Elephant Revival's final performance and breakup.

Music & Culture

Arlo McKinley On Heartbreak And Hope In His New Album, 'Die Midwestern'

7:57am August 29, 2020

NPR's Scott Simon talks with Arlo McKinley, the last artist John Prine signed to his label Oh Boy Records, about his newest album, Die Midwestern.

The rapper Drakeo the Ruler titled his latest album after the prison phone service provider GTL, whose lines he used to record it, leaving a trail to follow the money through a controversial industry.

Music & Culture

Prison Telecom Business Indicted By Rap Album Recorded In Jail

3:55pm August 28, 2020

by Frannie Kelley

The rapper Drakeo the Ruler titled his latest album after the prison phone service provider GTL, whose lines he used to record it, leaving a trail to follow the money through a controversial industry.

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Music & Culture

3 Jazz Greats Reflect On Charlie Parker's Enduring Influence

1:36pm August 28, 2020

by Terry Gross

Fresh Air listens back to archival interviews with Max Roach and trumpeter Red Rodney, two musicians who played with Parker; and alto saxophonist Jackie McLean, who considered Parker a mentor.

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Music & Culture

Charlie Parker, Born 100 Years Ago, Made Jazz Complexities Sound Deceptively Easy

1:35pm August 28, 2020

by Kevin Whitehead

More blues singer than Broadway, the Bird helped introduce bebop to jazz — and along the way redefined jazz velocity with his scrappy sound and pithy melodic figures.

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"Charlie Parker With Strings" album cover

Music & Culture

Bird Lives! A Charlie Parker Centennial, With Strings Attached

10:04am August 28, 2020

Charlie Parker with Strings was the most commercially successful project of his all-too-brief career. We'll examine the backstory and hear rare selections from the collaboration.

Music & Culture

'Star Trek' Actor William Shatner To Release Blues Album

9:48am August 28, 2020

Shatner will be collaborating with a bevy of guests on his new album, titled The Blues. Among guest artists are Canned Heat, Brad Paisley, Sonny Landreth, Pat Travers, Albert Lee, and more.

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Ruston Kelly's never been one to shy from harsh realism and ugly truth. Within Shape & Destroy's sparse settings, he embraces a heart-on-sleeve sentimentalism.

Music & Culture

Ruston Kelly's Redemption, In A Constant State Of 'Shape & Destroy'

7:00am August 28, 2020

by Lyndsey McKenna

The Nashville singer-songwriter offers a path forward in which the process of recovery continues with resolve.

Music & Culture

Charles 'Yardbird' Parker At 100: Remembering The Legendary Jazz Musician

5:06am August 28, 2020

by Tom Vitale

Jazz legend Charles "Yardbird" Parker, would have turned 100 on August 29. His career spanned less than 20 years, but he created a legacy that continues to be a strong influence on musicians today.

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"This record is really about hopefulness. It's about resilience, it's about joy," says Katy Perry. "To me, it's not just about noise, it's about me walking through real hell."

Music & Culture

Katy Perry On Expanding And Reframing Herself On 'Smile'

9:28am August 27, 2020

The pop music power house drops her new album, Smile, on Friday, and she's given birth to her first child. Perry talks about the loss of certainty and rebuilding her confidence while making Smile.

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