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- Date:
- 2020-10-15
- Main contributors:
- Johnny Rawls
- Summary:
- Johnny Rawls (Purvis, Mississippi) With a career spanning more than 50 years, Johnny Rawls is an internationally recognized recording artist, music producer, and songwriter who tours extensively throughout North America and overseas. The Blues Music Awards, Blues Blast Awards, Living Blues Awards, and the W. C. Handy Awards have all acknowledged Johnny with multiple awards and nominations, including Soul Blues Album of the Year and Soul Blues Artist of the Year. Living Blues Magazine described him as a “soul-blues renaissance man” when he was featured on the cover in 2002. Johnny is mentioned on two markers along the Mississippi Blues Trail: one in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, marking the Hi-Hat Club, and another in Rocklin, Maine, marking the migration of blues from Mississippi to Maine. Born in Columbia, Mississippi, in 1951, Johnny grew up in Purvis (near Hattiesburg) and Gulfport. At age fifteen, Johnny’s high school band teacher asked Rawls to join his band as a saxophone player. Well into his career, in the mid-1970s, Johnny became the band director for soul singer O.V. Wright, and toured with O.V. until his death in 1980. Wright’s band, under Johnny’s leadership, continued to perform as the Ace of Spades band for several years. Johnny then became the band director for Little Johnny Taylor and in 1985, began touring as a solo artist and made his first solo recording. Rawls has released more than fifteen albums, and to date, ten of Johnny’s albums have been nominated for Soul Blues Album of the Year, with I’m Still Around winning in 2019. Johnny tours extensively throughout the US and internationally, playing approximately 200 dates every year. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 10/15/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-25
- Main contributors:
- Jay Burgess
- Summary:
- Jay Burgess (Muscle Shoals, Alabama) Guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter Jay Burgess is part of a new generation of Muscle Shoals musicians continuing in the long tradition of the Muscle Shoals sound. Burgess is the founder and front man of the band the Pollies, known for their innovative and unique take on southern rock music. Jay got his start in a band called Sons of Roswell and toured the Southeastern U.S. before forming the Pollies. Together, they have released two albums: Where the Lies Begin on This Is American Music and Not Here on Single Lock Records. Individually, Jay has done session work, and together with the band, they have backed Browan Lollar on an EP as well as the late Chris Porter and currently serve as the backing band for Dylan LeBlanc. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 09/25/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-14
- Main contributors:
- Joshua Asante
- Summary:
- Joshua Asante (Little Rock, Arkansas) Joshua Asante is a musician, writer, and photographer. He is the lead vocalist and guitarist/keyboardist for the Little Rock, Arkansas-based indie bands Amasa Hines and Velvet Kente. Asante has also toured extensively as a solo performer, sharing what he calls “astral soul,” a blend of electronic and soul music. Onstage, Joshua sings lyrics inspired by travel through space, the paintings of Hughie Lee Smith, and the literary work of Black speculative fiction giants Henry Dumas and Octavia Butler. For his live iterations of these ideas, Asante positions himself alone surrounded by synthesizers, drum machines, guitars, and a saxophone. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 09/14/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-03
- Main contributors:
- Jimbo Hart
- Summary:
- Jimbo Hart (Nashville, Tennessee) Bassist and Alabama native Jimbo Hart has been holding down Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit's low end for over a decade, touring the world and earning a Grammy for the group’s 2017 album, The Nashville Sound. Recorded in his home studio, Jimbo articulates why geology plays a significant role in the music of Muscle Shoals, the joy he gets from recording others (like projects for Ross Adams and King Corduroy), and the importance of meaningful connection between musicians as well as a reverence for the past. As one of many musicians intertwined with the Muscle Shoals scene, Jimbo Hart has made his own name as a producer, bassist and writer. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 10/03/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-19
- Main contributors:
- Alfreda McCrary
- Summary:
- The McCrary Sisters (Nashville, Tennessee) The McCrary Sisters sing a unique style of gospel and inspirational music. Influenced by classic soul, Americana, blues and rhythm n blues, these sisters bring their joy to singing with tight soulful harmonies. The McCrary Sisters (Ann, Deborah, Regina and Alfreda) are the daughters of the late Rev. Samuel McCrary, one of the original members of the legendary gospel quartet, the Fairfield Four. The daughters were raised singing at home and at their father’s church before embarking as solo artists who performed with a wide range of major artists, including Bob Dylan, Elvis, Isaac Hayes, Stevie Wonder and more. In 2011, the Sisters officially formed their own group, the McCrary Sisters, and have since recorded or performed with notable artists Delbert McClinton, Black Keys, Martina McBride, Eric Church, Patty Griffin, Buddy Miller, Jonny Lang, Robert Randolph, the Winans, Donnie McClurkin, Rosanne Cash, Carrie Underwood, Hank Williams, Jr., Dr. John, Widespread Panic, Sheryl Crow, Maren Morris, Gregg Allman and many more. They have been featured on countless broadcasts, including BET’s Bobby Jones Gospel, TBN’s Jason Crabbe Show, PBS’s Rock My Soul w/ Fairfield Four, Lee Ann Womack, Buddy Miller, PBS’s Mountain Stage, CMT’s 2016 Fan Festival with Carrie Underwood, CMT’s 2015 Artists of the Year with Eric Church, ABC’s CMA Awards 2015 with Hank Williams, Jr., 2016’s Maren Morris special and more. Their annual Tennessee Christmas special is much beloved and widely watched. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 10/19/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-29
- Main contributors:
- Kamalakiran Vinjamuri
- Summary:
- Kamalakiran Vinjamuri (Washington, D.C.) Kamalakiran Vinjamuri started learning the Indian carnatic violin tradition from his grandfather, Sri. Parthasarathy Iyengar. He then received training from Smt. Malladi Vijayalakshmi. His father, Sri. Subhash Vinjamuri, started teaching him the violin at the age of seven and followed with a tutelage from Sangeethakalanidhi A. Kanyakumari. Kamalakiran has won several prizes in different music competitions, both in India as well as in the U.S. In December 2010 and 2013, Kamalakiran received the Best Performer Award from Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha, Chennai. Kamalakiran was also awarded the Lalgudi G. Jayaraman Award for Best Violinist in the 2014 Gokulashtami Series in Krishna Gana Sabha. Kamalakiran has been performing in major venues in India and the US since 2009, including the Kennedy Center. In the 2014 Spirit of Youth series, and the 2016 and 2017 Music Seasons, Kamalakiran was selected as Best Violinist in the prestigious Music Academy in Chennai. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 09/29/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-01
- Main contributors:
- Kumera Zekarias
- Summary:
- Kumera Zekarias (Washington, D.C.) Kumera Zekarias is a multilingual singer-songwriter, producer, and the band leader of Kino Musica, a five-piece group based in Washington, D.C. Originally from Austin, Texas, Kumera’s diverse and reflective music is rooted in the soulful expression of blues and the bilingual traditions of the southwestern United States. Kumera founded Kino Musica in 2014 to explore his own East African musical heritage. Recently he conducted ethnomusicological research at the Library of Congress, exploring the relationship between music from the Horn of Africa, the Sahel, and Afro-Colombian music from the Pacific coast, culminating in a concert at the 2019 Library of Congress Archive Challenge. He recorded an EP in Bogota, Colombia in late 2018 titled Biyya Chonta. Kumera has also worked as an educator in the Washington, D.C., area for twelve years, designing inclusive programs focused on supporting immigrant youth and their families. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 10/01/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-13
- Main contributors:
- Kuki Tuaiasosopo
- Summary:
- Kuki Tuaiasosopo (American Samoa) Kuki Tuaiasosopo is an ethnomusicologist, musician, vocalist, and church choir leader. He received his Masters of Music from the University of Hawaii in Manoa, where he completed a thesis on the sacred music of the Congregational Church of Jesus in Samoa. He is Chairman of the Fine Arts Department at American Samoa Community College, where he teaches Music, Drama, and Speech. He is a member of the ICTM Study Group for the Music and Dances of Oceania, ICTM Regional Liaison for American Samoa, and a Music Researcher for 20th Century Fox Movies. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 10/13/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-06
- Main contributors:
- Marcella Simien
- Summary:
- Marcella Simien (Memphis, Tennessee) Born into one of the first Creole families to settle in St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, Marcella René Simien took her South Louisiana heritage to Memphis, Tennessee, where she is based. Daughter of two-time Grammy Award-winning zydeco artist Terrance Simien, Marcella grew up immersed in sound and performance. A graduate of the prestigious Memphis College of Art, Simien is now the front woman for her band, Marcella and Her Lovers. Her music is a hybrid of classic Memphis soul and New Orleans funk performed with the help of Creole accordion. As one of only 500 artists in America nominated for a prestigious USA Artists Fellowship, in 2016 Marcella and Her Lovers were also featured on the nationally syndicated radio program Beale Street Caravan. She has been a featured performer on the Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise alongside greats such as Marcia Ball, Allen Toussaint, and Irma Thomas. She sang lead vocals on a track off her father’s album Dockside Sessions, which won a Grammy for Best Regional Roots Album of the Year (2014). Simien’s first full-length album, Got You Found, with Marcella and Her Lovers, was engineered and co-produced at American Recording Studio by Pete Matthews and Toby Vest. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 10/06/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-14
- Main contributors:
- Melissa Carper
- Summary:
- Melissa Carper (Bastrop, Texas) Melissa Carper grew up playing bass and singing in her family’s country band. She went on to study upright bass at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln before performing a repertoire of old-time country, Western swing, and bluegrass with multiple groups across the South, including the Austin, Texas-based band, The Carper Family, which won Best Country Album in 2011 at the Independent Music Awards and again in 2013 with their album, Old-Fashioned Gal. In 2013, the group also made an appearance on Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion (this was the second time Melissa had been featured on A Prairie Home Companion). Carper has spent many years moving back and forth between her home base in Arkansas and now Texas, where she continues to perform with the Buffalo Gals Band, whose debut album, Brand New Old Time Songs, made it to Number 2 on the European Americana charts in 2018. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 09/14/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-02
- Main contributors:
- Miera Kim
- Summary:
- Miera Kim (Iowa City, Iowa) Classical violinist Miera Kim is based in Iowa City, Iowa, where she runs the Red Cedar Chamber Music group alongside her husband. Red Cedar Chamber Music brings innovative and entertaining concert projects and residency programs to broad and diverse audiences. Miera has extensive orchestral and chamber music experience. She was named a member of the core ensemble and Executive Director of Red Cedar Chamber Music in 2016. Her extensive orchestral experience is reflected in her work as a professional violinist since the age of 16 with Orchestra Iowa. Miera has appeared frequently with the Quad-Cities Symphony String Quartet and the Maia Quartet. She studied with Jascha Brodsky at the Curtis Institute, Allen Ohmes at the University of Iowa and Doris Preucil at the Preucil School of Music. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 10/02/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-15
- Main contributors:
- Monty Lane Allen
- Summary:
- Monty Lane Allen (Nashville, Tennessee) Monty Lane Allen, a multi-talented artist from South Carolina, is based in Nashville, Tennessee and is a well-known guitarist in the modern country music scene. After the release of his debut album Great Big World in 2008, several of his music videos aired on CMT and GAC and the song “Falling Water” eventually earned him a Telly Award for Best Music Video. Apart from his solo career, Monty Lane has toured as a member of Alan Jackson's backing group, The Strayhorns, for many years. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 10/15/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-26
- Main contributors:
- Natasha O'Neill
- Summary:
- Natasha O’Neill (Indianapolis, Indiana) Natasha O’Neill is one third of the Indianapolis, Indiana-based outfit Wife Patrol. Alongside bandmates Nicole (bass/vocals) and Greg (guitar/vocals), Natasha, who plays drums and sings vocals, defines their sound as “sifting through ‘90s grunge and alt-rock, ‘80s pop and new wave, and ‘70s punk.” Formed in 2015, the band self-released their 2016 EP, Electric Blizzard. Following the release of that record, they embarked on a tour of the Midwest, including shows at LadyFest Cincinnati (2017) and the MidWay Music Festival (2017, 2019) in Bloomington, Indiana. Wife Patrol released their debut full-length album, Too Prickly For this World, in 2020. The band recorded and mixed the eleven-track album with their producer, P. David Hazel (The Lemonheads, Extra Blue Kind) throughout 2019, and the output is a punk/pop/metal mashup with vocal harmonies throughout. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 09/26/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-14
- Main contributors:
- Nesby Phips
- Summary:
- Nesby Phips (New Orleans, Louisiana) The grand-nephew of Mahalia Jackson, New Orleans-native Courtney Nero, better known by his stage name, Nesby Phips, is a multi-instrumentalist, rapper, and producer who is known for his soulful approach to production. He has produced songs for Wiz Khalifa, Lil Wayne, Curren$y, Juvenile, and countless more, and due to his incorporation of many different genres of music-making into his production, co-headlined a sold-out performance at New Orleans’ famed jazz venue Preservation Hall, marking one of the first shows at the Hall headlined by a New Orleans rap artist. Nesby Phips has also worked as a cultural liaison for many writers, filmmakers, and journalists documenting New Orleans music and culture, including ESPN, Converse, VICE, Complex, VIBE, The New York Times, and more. His 2017 album, Black Man 4 Sale, was co-produced by Atlanta/LA-based producer, DJ Fu. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 09/14/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-30
- Main contributors:
- Oscar Rios Pohirieth
- Summary:
- Oscar Rios Pohirieth (Lincoln, Nebraska) A first-generation Mexican immigrant who came to Nebraska at a young age, Oscar Rios Pohirieth is a performer of traditional musics of Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru, and Chile. He performs often on the panpipes, quena, and charango and is also a teacher who helps his students better understand Andean music and culture through song. As a Nebraska Arts Council artist, Pohirieth teaches students and community members through storytelling and songs sung in both Spanish and Quechua. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 09/30/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-12-23
- Main contributors:
- Hofstadter, Douglas, Shanahan, James, Monaghan, Elaine, Baron, Violet
- Summary:
- Dr. Douglas Hofstadter has researched, written, discovered and created many things - his expertise runs from cognitive science to literature, to language, and to art. His 1979 book Goedel, Escher, Bach became a classic in the popular understanding of the workings of our brain. Professor Hofstadter has since written many things - some playful inquiries, some piercing meditations, some all at once. Since 1977, he has held a professorship at IU that started in computer science and has spanned many departments. Dean Shanahan, Professor Elaine Monaghan and Producer Violet Baron sat down with Professor Hofstadter to hear his take on his writings, and on using musings on language to take on life.
- Date:
- 2020-11-29
- Main contributors:
- Haskell, Lexi, Monaghan, Elaine, Baron, Violet
- Summary:
- When IDS reporter Lexi Haskell came back to campus after a summer of strict quarantine with her family, she knew there was some level of risk. But when she caught COVID and quarantined in her dorm, she got to thinking: am I just another dumb college kid who got infected, or is there something more going on here? This question was at the heart of her popular column for the IDS this fall, and it got a lot of buzz around IU and beyond it. Elaine Monaghan and Violet Baron speak with Lexi about the column, her experience, and her feelings now that she’s on the other side.
- Date:
- 2020-10-27
- Main contributors:
- Shanks, Bob, Shanahan, James
- Summary:
- IU alumnus Bob Shanks made his name as a New York television producer, helping to launch shows like “Good Morning America” and “20/20.” He passed away this month, and in his honor we bring you a conversation from 2016, when Shanks returned to the Media School to accept a Distinguished Alumni Award. Host Jim Shanahan talked with Shanks about his path to New York from Lebanon, Indiana. We hear how he parlayed proximity into a seat at the table, moving from waiting on executives to calling the shots at some of New York’s most well-known shows. This is Part 1 of a 2-part series.
- Date:
- 2020-11-15
- Main contributors:
- Shanks, Bob, Shanahan, James
- Summary:
- IU alumnus Bob Shanks passed away last month, and in his honor we bring you Part 2 to a conversation from 2016, when Shanks returned to the Media School to accept a Distinguished Alumni Award. Host Jim Shanahan talked with Shanks about his triumphs and tragedies in the pressure-cooker comedy scene in New York, and what it was like to produce the classic prank show "Candid Camera." We also hear about the decision to pause entertainment during national emergencies like the Kennedy assassination, and when the show must go on. This is the second in a two-part series.
- Date:
- 2020-10-15
- Main contributors:
- Gilman, Lynn, Adams, Lauren, Monaghan, Elaine
- Summary:
- With the world changing by the minute, mental health support is more important than ever... but the way counseling happens is changing too. Elaine Monaghan and Violet Baron talk to the Center for Human Growth's Director Lynn Gilman and Co-Assistant Director Lauren Adams about its unique model as a counseling center fully staffed by graduate students. They also talk about how the counseling center is navigating the pandemic, and what might carry over even once we return to "normal."
- Date:
- 2020-02-07
- Main contributors:
- Spence, Kat
- Summary:
- The Sample: Surviving an Indiana winter is tough enough but it can seem especially brutal when all the greenery on campus is gone. In this episode of The Sample, take a visit to the Jordan Hall Greenhouse as producer Kat Spence explores what this staple of IU has to offer during the cold Hoosier winter.
- Date:
- 2020-02-28
- Main contributors:
- Groobert, Dave, Donald, Adara, Bainbridge, Abigail, Monaghan, Elaine
- Summary:
- The Bateman Case Study Competition is a public relations competition for students nationwide to gain experience in public relations. IU has its own class devoted to this competition in which 4 students and a faculty advisor work together to implement a campaign for the chosen client. This year's client: The 2020 US Census. In this week's episode you'll hear from faculty advisor Dave Groobert and students Adara Donald and Abigail Bainbridge about what it's like to work on this case study and what exactly the US Census is.
- Date:
- 2020-03-06
- Main contributors:
- Holt, Linnea, Almanza, Natalie, Ashby, Eric
- Summary:
- The Sample: This week, Tiny Dorm Concert directors Linnea Holt, Natalie Almanza, and Eric Ashby chat about the start of the brand, all the work that goes into their videos, and the skills they've learned along the way. Check out one of TDC's nearly 20 videos at www.youtube.com/channel/UCda2MNtPEquk1KRZ4ZlZ6Fg Special thanks to Matixando for letting us record their warmup and pre-show conversation--stay tuned for their Tiny Dorm Concert!
- Date:
- 2020-01-24
- Main contributors:
- Spence, Kat, Fan, Kelly, Lee, Elise
- Summary:
- The Sample: Lunar New Year is a time to gather with friends and family to wish each other well in the new year. This week, producer Kat Spence sat down with students Kelly Fan and Elise Lee at the Asian Culture Center to find out more about the traditions surrounding this holiday as well as what the holiday means to them and their families.
- Date:
- 2020-02-21
- Main contributors:
- Abegunde, Maria Hamilton
- Summary:
- The Sample: In celebration of Black History Month, Through the Gates' shorts, The Sample, sat down with Maria Hamilton Abegunde to discuss how the intersections of past and present, trauma and healing, influence the ways we, "witness and testify to lived experiences..." Among a wide array of accomplishments and experiences, Dr. Abegunde is an award-winning poet, the founding director of The Graduate Mentoring Center, and a visiting faculty member in the Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies. She is a memory keeper, and author of one collection of poetry and two poetry chapbooks.
- Date:
- 2020-03-12
- Main contributors:
- Monaghan, Elaine, James, Tom
- Summary:
- In this episode, host Elaine Monaghan sits down with Indiana University professor of psychology Tom James. James is one of the founders of "Advocates and Allies for Equity", which runs auxiliary to the Center of Excellence for Women and Technology. Advocates and Allies focuses their work on educating themselves, and other men, about gender equity through workshops dedicated to removing unconscious bias and promoting awareness of gender discrimination. James' background in psychology gives him unique insight into these biases, and he discusses how, even beyond gender discrimination, we all carry these biases with us and how we can work to be better.
- Date:
- 2020-10-09
- Main contributors:
- Weinman, Michael, shanahan, James, monaghan, Elaine
- Summary:
- As we head into the election in a rapidly changing country, we can see the ways that liberal politics are giving way to more radical policies around the world. Dean Shanahan and Professor of Practice Elaine Monaghan speak with Michael Weinman, Professor of Philosophy at Bard College Berlin, about his new coedited volume, “The Emergence of Illiberalism: Understanding a Global Phenomenon.” The trio discuss how we can understand trends away from liberal policies and politics, and what we might expect to replace them.
- Date:
- 2020-11-05
- Main contributors:
- Shanahan, James, Yan, Harry, Torres-Lugo, Christopher
- Summary:
- The 2020 election will likely be on our minds for some time. But how did we get here? Dean Shanahan speaks with Harry Yan and Christopher Torres-Lugo, two graduate students who are researching election interference. Yan and Lugo work at IU’s Observatory on Social Media, known familiarly as OSoMe, or “awesome.” The three discuss detecting bots, online election narratives, how the field is becoming more polarized— and what we might learn from it all.
- Date:
- 2020-09-16
- Main contributors:
- Banai, Hussein, Shanahan, James
- Summary:
- In our first episode of Season 6, The Media School's Dean Jim Shanahan sits down with Hussein Banai, assistant professor at the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies. Banai's new book, "Hidden Liberalism Burdened Visions of Progress in Modern Iran," describes the ways that liberal political ideals appear in the country, and what their influence might mean for Iran's future. The two discuss the book, modern Iran's political sphere, and how it may affect international relations in the future.
- Date:
- 2020-11-02
- Main contributors:
- Andre Johnson
- Summary:
- Andre Johnson (Washington, D.C.) Andre “Whiteboy” Johnson is a singer and guitarist based in Washington, D.C. Johnson is the lead guitarist and founding member of D.C. go-go band Rare Essence. In 1976, Johnson co-founded Rare Essence with friends in elementary school. Originally the Young Dynamos, they later changed their name and expanded their lineup, becoming one of the city’s premiere go-go institutions, putting on marathon shows that ran until 5 a.m. and performing regularly six to seven nights a week. Since the 1980s, the band has released dozens of studio albums, mixtape albums, live albums, compilations, and singles. They have performed with Run DMC, Wale, DJ Kool, LL Cool J, Doug E. Fresh, Biz Markie, Ice Cube, Heavy D and the Boyz, Wu Tang Clan, Redman and Method Man, French Montana, Scarface, TLC, Eric B and Rakim, YoYo, Shabba Ranks, The Roots, Erykah Badu, Thievery Corporation, KRS-1, and go-go icons Chuck Brown, Trouble Funk, The Junk Yard Band, and EU. Interviewed by Tamar Sella, 11/02/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-22
- Main contributors:
- Doris "Lady D" Fields
- Summary:
- Doris "Lady D" Fields (Beckley, West Virginia) Doris Fields, aka “Lady D,” is a singer, bandleader, actress and visual artist based in Beckley, West Virginia. Known as West Virginia’s First Lady of Soul, Lady D has opened for the O’Jays at Charleston’s FestivALL (2007), as well as performed for The HistoryMakers: An Evening With Henry Louis Gates, Jr. in Charleston (2010). Along with her band MI$$ION, she performed her original song “Go Higher,” chosen as the best Obama Inaugural Song, at the Obama for Change Inaugural Ball in 2009. Lady D received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the All Black Schools Sports & Academic Hall of Fame (2014) and has won the DC Blues Society Blues Challenge (2017). As an actress, Lady D has toured with her one-woman show The Lady and the Empress, a musical stage play based on the life and music of Bessie Smith. She has also acted with West Virginia productions of Honey in the Rock, Hatfields, McCoys and various other shows. Interviewed by Tamar Sella, 10/22/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-09
- Main contributors:
- Jesús "Chuy" Guzmán
- Summary:
- Jesús "Chuy" Guzmán (Los Angeles, California) Originally from San Luis Río Colorado, Sonora, México, Jesús (Chuy) Guzmán is the musical director of the acclaimed Los Angeles-based Mariachi Los Camperos. Born in 1964 and passionate about playing violin since age six, Jesús, known by the nickname “Chuy,” moved to Los Angeles in the mid-1980s determined to be part of Los Camperos, a mariachi group he had admired since he was a little boy. Former Los Camperos musical director Nati Cano invited Chuy to join the group in 1988 and has been the musical director of the group since 1992. Los Camperos’ abundant accolades, including multiple Grammy awards and nominations and highly praised performances on premier concert stages such as Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and the Getty Center, can easily obscure the fact that its leaders come from humble roots, deep within a mariachi tradition shaped by family and community. In 2018, they provided the musical accompaniment for the New York debut of the world’s first mariachi opera, Cruzar la Cara de la Luna (“To Cross the Face of the Moon”) by the New York City Opera. In 2019, Smithsonian Folkways released De Ayer para Siempre. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 09/09/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-18
- Main contributors:
- John Moschioni
- Summary:
- John Moschioni (Houston, Texas) Born in the United States Air Force in 1954, John Moschioni spent seventeen years growing up in the military. He lived in various places in the United States and Germany. He is a self-taught musician and comments that culturally, he identified with blues, soul, and R&B music. John Moschioni, “Texas Johnny Boy,” has been playing blues for over forty years. He knows how to command a stage and his specialty is “old-school” R&B and traditional blues. He plays in live settings and is a one-man band. Besides primarily being a lead singer and frontman, he also plays diatonic and chromatic harmonica, flute, and saxophone. He makes half of his living playing music, doing art of all sorts, and buying/selling antique documents on eBay. [Texas Johnny Boy, an authentic Houston bluesician often playing with guitar player Milton Hopkins, passed away on November 27, 2020, after a short battle with cancer. “His relentless passion of da blues filled his life with enough music to bluesify the heavens into eternity,” his baby brother (ninth of ten) says. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 09/18/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-31
- Main contributors:
- Montanette "Mooody" Miller
- Summary:
- Montanette “Mooody” Miller (Washington, D.C.) Montanette “Mooody” Miller is a singer based in Washington, D.C. In addition to her solo musical projects, she is a singer in the go-go band Suttle Squad. Forming as Suttle Thoughts in 1994, the band later became known as Suttle, Suttle Squad, or Squad Suttle. Suttle has opened for national recording artists such as The Isley Brothers, Jay Holiday, and Anthony David. The band has held weekly performances every Friday night at the Historical Takoma Station, one of the longest running Friday night happy hours for any go-go band. The Squad has also performed for local events and community rallies such as the Safeway Barbecue Battle, the Howard Theater, A Tribute to the Legendary Father of Go-Go, Chuck Brown, MPD Beat the Streets Annual Event, Six Annual Chuck Brown Day Virtual Party, and Bethesda Blues & Jazz. In addition to performing locally, Suttle Squad has toured as far as Cancun, Puerto Rico, Dallas, and Miami. Interviewed by Tamar Sella, 10/31/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-25
- Main contributors:
- Thanu Yakupitiyage
- Summary:
- Thanu Yakupitiyage (New York City, New York) Thanushka (Thanu) Yakupitiyage is a Sri Lankan born, Thailand raised activist, cultural organizer, and DJ under the artist moniker “Ushka.” She deejays from the perspective of a dancer, blending a wide range of club music from soca to dancehall, hip hop to South Asian rhythms, Baltimore/Jersey club to baile funk, vogue cuts to kuduro, azonto to Afrobeat and more. Ushka is also a political and cultural organizer. She has performed at venues such as the Brooklyn Museum, MoMA PS1, American Museum of Natural History, Rubin Museum, and has put out mixes and done live shows with Discwoman, The Fader, and Boiler Room. She was the NYU Asian/Pacific/American Institute 2018-19 artist-in-residence and was selected to be one of fifty-two artists to produce new work for The Shed Open Call in 2019. Interviewed by Tamar Sella, 09/25/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-15
- Main contributors:
- Danielle "Sug" Johnson
- Summary:
- Danielle “Sug” Johnson (Wilmington, Delaware) Danielle “Sug” Johnson is a singer and bandleader based in Wilmington, Delaware. She is the frontwoman of the Wilmington based funk-soul-blues band Hoochi Coochi. With Hoochi Coochi, Johnson has performed locally at venues ranging from the Gild Hall show, The Rusty Rudder in Dewey Beach, and the Delaware Music Festival. Beyond Delaware, the band has toured in venues and festivals across the Mid-Atlantic Region. Hoochi Coochi has also produced music videos which have received critical acclaim, including the song “Walkin,’” which features Wilmington Black-owned businesses, and addresses the Black Lives Matter Movement in relation to legacies of Black liberation struggles. Johnson is also a published writer, photographer, and guitar player. Interviewed by Tamar Sella, 09/15/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-25
- Main contributors:
- John Santos
- Summary:
- John Santos (Oakland, California) Born in San Francisco, CA, John Santos was raised in the Puerto Rican and Cape Verdean traditions of his family, surrounded by music. The fertile musical environment of the San Francisco Bay Area shaped his career in a unique way. His studies of Afro-Latin music have included several trips to New York, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Brazil, and Colombia. He is known for his innovative use of traditional forms and instruments in combination with contemporary music and has earned much respect and recognition as a prolific performer, composer, teacher, writer, radio programmer, and record/event producer whose career has spanned four decades. John has performed and/or recorded with acknowledged multi-generational masters such as Cachao, Dizzy Gillespie, Tito Puente, Bebo Valdés, Eddie Palmieri, and Jerry Gonzalez, to name a few. John is widely respected as one of the top writers, teachers, and historians in the field and was a member of the Latin Jazz Advisory Committee of the Smithsonian Institution. He is currently part of the faculty at the California Jazz Conservatory (Berkeley, CA), San Francisco State University, Jazz Camp West (since 1986), and the College of San Mateo (CA). His fourteenth recording, Art of the Descarga, was just released (June 2020) on the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings label. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 09/25/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-09
- Main contributors:
- John Dell
- Summary:
- John Dell (Austin, Texas) Guitarist and singer for El Tule, John Dell grew up in Monterrey, Mexico, and moved to Austin, Texas, where he founded the group in 2004. Playing original music, having fun, and making people dance, El Tule has been honing its unique sound, combining influences of cumbia, merengue, salsa, reggae and Latin jam in Austin, TX. Their original music is about history, art, and culture, often focusing on legends and tales of the mystical. The sound that El Tule brings to each performance naturally transcends all cultural and social backgrounds. Their high-energy live show has brought them to festivals and venues across the country, including SXSW, Tropical Heatwave, Viva Big Bend!, First Night Austin, Old Settlers Music Festival, Pachanga Fest, Pecan Street Festival, Austin Reggae Festival, Xemumba World Music Fest, Texas Salsa Fiesta, Festival De Cumbia En La Capital, and Austin City Limits Music Festival 2015 in front of an estimated 70,000 people. El Tule released its latest single Mil Mascaras on Cinco de Mayo, 2020. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 09/09/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-25
- Main contributors:
- Jon Dee Graham
- Summary:
- Jon Dee Graham (Austin, Texas) Jon Dee Graham was born in 1959 in the Texas Panhandle and grew up on the Texas/Mexico border. For over forty years, he has been a working musician with eleven albums and an artist specializing in bears, having sold over 300 paintings and drawings. He lives with his wife, son, two dogs, and two cats south of the river in Austin, TX. He plays regularly at the Continental with his rock band when he is not touring solo with his guitar—which he does 150 days out of the year—or with his band. His live shows and his Americana/rock music feed off of live audiences’ rapport. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 09/25/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-14
- Main contributors:
- Kalyn Heffernan
- Summary:
- Kalyn Heffernan (Denver, Colorado) Combining humor, playfulness, radical political perspectives, compassion, and undeniable musical chops, Wheelchair Sports Camp is Denver's biggest smallest band. Fronted by the wheelchair-using, rap-heavy, beat-making, freedom-fighting producer, educator, and foul-mouthed rebel rouser Kalyn, the band is a combination of live and electronic instruments with a more noisy, jazzy, and experimental combination for the traditional hip hop group. Raised by the DIY (Do It Yourself) spirit of experimental independence, the band has stretched itself into theatre, performance art, public television, politics, prison tours, permanent installations, and more to come. Kalyn led Denver's first disabled and queer artist campaign for the mayor’s seat in 2019. The tiny, happy mayor has long been advocating for herself and other marginalized communities through music, direct action, education, and art. Commonly known for fighting for access to human rights and calling out those in power who protect capital interests over the future, Kalyn makes herself heard with a very loud, distinct, and high-pitched sense of humor. The band unknowingly started the summer of 1997, when Kalyn moved back from California to her hometown. The band tours the States and beyond from their home in Denver. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 10/14/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-08
- Main contributors:
- Kai Lyons
- Summary:
- Kai Lyons (San Francisco, California) Kai Lyons is a twenty-five-year-old jazz guitarist. Growing up in the Excelsior District of San Francisco, he was surrounded by music and community from an early age. He completed his studies at Ruth Asawa School of the Arts in 2012 as the first to graduate from the acclaimed Classical Guitar Program. From 2012-2014, on full scholarship, Kai attended the prestigious jazz program at William Paterson University in New Jersey. He studied with Vincent Herring, Gene Bertoncini, Harold Mabern, Rich Perry, and Hal Galper. Kai received a Bachelor of Arts in Music from San Francisco State University, where he studied with Andrew Speight, Michael Zisman, and Hafez Modirzadeh. Ever since returning to the Bay Area in 2015, he has freelanced extensively and also traveled frequently to New York City, New Orleans, and the Caribbean on music trips. Besides working with his own trio, Kai has performed with Mike Clark and Donald Harrison of Herbie Hancock’s Original Headhunters, Louis Romero, award-winning organist Wil Blades, Larry Vuckovich, Sueños, and Illy Bogart. He plays Cuban music and bossa nova music as well and is passionate about music playing. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 09/08/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-01
- Main contributors:
- Karen Celia Heil
- Summary:
- Karen Celia Heil (San Francisco, California) Karen Celia Heil, a longtime resident of San Francisco, has a thriving practice playing and teaching American old-time music on fiddle and guitar and performing locally, nationally, and internationally with bands such as the Bucking Mules, KC & the Moonshine Band, Plaid Strangers, and many other luminaries of old-time music. She has won awards for her playing at Clifftop with the Bucking Mules (First, First, Second and Fourth) and for her fiddling (Second), as well as at the Santa Barbara Fiddler's Festival (First and First). Karen is a skillful, fun, and enthusiastic teacher and teaches at camps and festivals, holds classes locally, and teaches private lessons. Her performing experience includes being cast in an award-winning production of the musical Fire On the Mountain (2015) and the Kate Weare Dance Company production and recording of Brightlands (2011). A natural live wire, she brings lots of spark and current to her teaching practice and to old-time music at large. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 9/1/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-30
- Main contributors:
- Ken Allen
- Summary:
- Ken Allen (Reno, Nevada) Ken Allen, DJ and founder of Amplified Entertainment has pushed the limits of nightlife entertainment throughout northern Nevada. Many will tell you that Amplified has grown to be one of the most versatile entertainment companies to date, reaching many genres: country, EDM, Latin, hip hop, top 40, pop, and reggae. With Ken Allen leading the way for over eighteen years, Amplified has reached places that were once thought to be unreachable. Self-taught, Allen is a sought-after DJ for his ability to mix any genres of music together. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 09/30/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-18
- Main contributors:
- Kevin Locke
- Summary:
- Kevin Locke (Wakpala, South Dakota) Kevin Locke (Tokaheya Inajin in Lakota, translated as “First to Rise”) is a world famous visionary Hoop Dancer, preeminent player of the Indigenous Northern Plains flute, traditional storyteller, cultural ambassador, recording artist, and educator. Kevin is Lakota and Anishinaabe. With nearly forty years of performing to hundreds of thousands of people in over ninety countries, Kevin’s concerts and presentations at performing art centers, festivals, schools, universities, conferences, state and national parks, monuments and historic sites, powwows, and reservations number in the hundreds annually. Eighty percent of Kevin’s presentations are performed through the educational system and shared with children of all ages in schools, community centers, and festivals internationally. As a folk artist, he uses his talents to teach others about his specific tribal background. His special joy is working with children on the reservations to ensure the survival and growth of indigenous culture. Kevin’s goal is to empower today’s youth in culture and “raise awareness of the Oneness we share as human beings.” His belief in the unity of humankind is expressed dramatically in the traditional Hoop Dance, which illustrates “the roles and responsibilities that all human beings have within the hoops (circles) of life.” Kevin Locke dedicates his life’s work to Baha’u’llah. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 09/18/2020
- Date:
- 2020-09-22
- Main contributors:
- Kenny Endo
- Summary:
- Kenny Endo (Honolulu, Hawaii) Kenny Endo is a vanguard of the taiko genre, continually paving new paths for this Japanese style of drumming. A performer, composer, and teacher of taiko with numerous awards and accolades, Kenny Endo is a consummate artist, blending Japanese taiko with rhythms from around the world into original melodies and improvisation. Originally trained as a jazz musician in the Asian American cultural renaissance of 1970s California, in 1980, Endo embarked on a decade-long odyssey in his ancestral Japan, studying and performing with the masters of classical drumming, traditional Tokyo festival music, and ensemble drumming. In the greater musical world, “Kenny Endo” has become synonymous with “taiko.” He is arguably one of the most versatile musicians in the genre, crossing easily between the classical Japanese style and his own neo-traditional, globally-inspired variety. Endo has performed to critical acclaim with numerous musicians, comfortable collaborating with artists of all genres. He continues to tread new ground for this ancient instrument, inspiring all with his creativity, technique, and infectious groove; has recorded numerous CDs of original taiko compositions; and has traveled across Asia, Africa, Europe, Oceania, the former Soviet Union, Australia, and the Americas in his effort to share taiko with the world. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 09/22/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-26
- Main contributors:
- Karen A. Smith
- Summary:
- Karen A. Smith (Oakland, California) Karen A. Smith is a vocalist, sound healer, dancer, and eternal student of music and dance from around the world. She adores and sings music from a wide variety of genres in a wide variety of settings, including, but not limited to, Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian Yoruba chants and songs, Sanskrit mantras, Hawaiian oli and mele, Haitian Creole songs, R&B, and inspirational music. She studies and performs with numerous cultural organizations in the Bay Area including Arenas Dance Company, Na Lei Hulu I Ka Weiku, Brasarte, Cuba Caribe, Alafia Dance Ensemble, Las Que Son Son, and many others. She conducts sacred sound and movement workshops in local spiritual communities. When she is not singing or dancing, she is teaching, making jewelry, or baking delicious pies. A New York native of Jamaican, American-Indian, and African ancestry, Karen feels honored and grateful for the opportunity to share her vocal gifts as a part of the Loco Bloco Ensemble. Interviewed by Raquel Paraíso, 10/26/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-19
- Main contributors:
- Gaelynn Lea
- Summary:
- Gaelynn Lea (Duluth, Minnesota) Musician Gaelynn Lea won NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Contest in 2016, and not long after she hit the road with her husband Paul. So far she has toured in forty-five states and nine countries, performing original songs and traditional fiddle tunes. Gaelynn Lea has appeared in several major festivals over the years, including SXSW, the Winnipeg Folk Festival, and the Reykjavik Arts Festival. She has also opened for well-known bands such as Wilco, the Decemberists, LOW, the Jayhawks, and the industrial rock supergroup Pigface. In addition to performing and recording, Gaelynn also does speaking engagements about Disability Rights and accessibility in the arts. She uses her music as a platform to advocate for disabled people and to promote positive social change. In recent years, she has shared her perspective on PBS News Hour, The Moth Radio Hour, The Science of Happiness Podcast, and through two widely-viewed TEDx Talks. Gaelynn Lea is currently working on a memoir about her touring adventures and disability advocacy. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 10/19/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-10-07
- Main contributors:
- Germán Marcano
- Summary:
- Germán Marcano (Miami, Florida) Venezuelan cellist Germán Marcano lives in Miami, Florida, with his wife. Marcano has had many roles over the years, including as principal cello with the Simón Bolívar Symphony. He was also a regular guest soloist and conductor with Venezuela’s main orchestras. Marcano has held teaching positions at the Simón Bolívar Conservatory (El Sistema), Emil Friedman School, the Simón Bolívar University, and the Mozarteum School in Caracas. He has given masterclasses at Grand Valley State, Andrews University, the San Diego Youth Orchestra, the University of Iowa, Louisiana State University and the Madison Cello Institute in Wisconsin, Colombia, and Ecuador. He has premiered works from renowned Latin American composers. Among his publications we can count editions of important Venezuelan cello works and three commercial recordings, two of them devoted to folk Venezuelan music. Marcano holds degrees from the University of Surrey and the Guildhall School of Music (England), and a master’s and DMA from the UW-Madison. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 10/07/2020.
- Date:
- 2020-09-29
- Main contributors:
- Gerardo Meza
- Summary:
- Gerardo Meza (Lincoln, Nebraska) Gerardo Meza is a first-generation Mexican American, the son of immigrants who settled in Lincoln, Nebraska, in 1960. He has been creating art since childhood and has worked professionally as an artist for most of his adult life. As a songwriter and musician, he has performed with his band the Mezcal Brothers for the past twenty-two years as the primary songwriter, lead singer, and rhythm guitarist. In 2016, the Mezcal Brothers were inducted into the Nebraska Music Hall of Fame. He has toured extensively in the U.S. as well as parts of Europe since 2000 with the Mezcal Brothers. For the past ten years, Gerardo Meza has taught art at Lincoln Public Schools’ Arts & Humanities Focus Program High School. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs, 09/29/2020.