RECENT ARTICLES

Grammy-winning singer/songwriter, Leon Bridges, has one of the best voices on the planet. But it’s not one that he throws out bombastically or haphazardly. Rather, Bridges is often reserved, measured, composed. In fact, one might want to hear him belt out a vocal run more so than the crooner seems willing. But, deep down, Bridges is a low-key fellow. To him, often an uneventful day is the best kind. Yet, when you’re one of the best singers on earth, few days are uneventful.

Bridges, who will release his forthcoming LP, Gold-Diggers Sound, on July 23 via Columbia, released the record’s first single, “Motorbike,” and corresponding music video today. The video for the romantic track was directed by the famed artist and musician, Anderson .Paak. It’s a stunner. We caught up with Bridges to ask him about the genesis of the single, video and LP. We also talked the repercussions of fame and working in the restaurant industry.

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When seen in one light, actor and musician Matt Berry could be thought of as a Shakespearean performer. His big, booming British-accented voice could easily fit atop the dialogue in Macbeth or Othello. Yet, Berry doesn’t limit himself to these traditionally prestigious roles. He is a comedian, at heart, able to give monologues that both compel and bust your sides. But even more than that, Berry is also a musician of great facility, capable of writing a stripped-down folk song as much as he is performing acid jazz.

Berry currently stars as vampire Laszlo Cravensworth in FX’s acclaimed mockumentary horror comedy What We Do in the Shadows, based on the 2014 New Zealand film of the same name. Before that he was a fixture of quirky British comedy shows, such as Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace, The Mighty Boosh, The IT Crowd, and Toast of London. But his music career goes back even further, with Berry’s debut album, Jackpot, being self-released in 1995.

Berry’s newest LP, The Blue Elephant, is out this Friday on Acid Jazz. The record is the sounds of the day drunk sun shining its swiveling golden rays down on a grinning Berry, shades atop his knowing eyes. We caught up with Berry to ask him about his relationship to music, what he loves about it most, and how his acting career connects to his love of song.

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Joshua Karpeh—better known by his stage name, Cautious Clay—has the voice of an angel. His music is blissful, caring. It’s not concerned with flash and frivolity. Rather, it’s personal and exists independently, outside trend (though admittedly it is rather popular and likely only going to become more so). In recent years, the artist has worked with some of music’s biggest names, writing for Taylor Swift and John Legend and playing live on stage with artist like John Mayer.

Cautious Clay will release his newest solo LP, Deadpan Love, on June 25. In the meantime, the crooner will drop a few singles like sonic morsels along the way. We caught up with the smooth singer to ask him how he transitioned to becoming a professional musician after working in real estate, his experience playing the flute from seven years old, and what he loves most about his job.

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Sarah Jarosz is one of the few people who is as successful as she is talented. While the two don’t often come hand-in-hand, unfortunately, Jarosz boasts both in spades. The nine-time Grammy nominated artist, who has won the award four times, has released five records, all of which imbue prowess in technical ability and artful intuition. Whether Jarosz is strumming her mandolin covering Prince or playing her own original music, she is compelling for both her stature and composure.

Jarosz, who will release her next LP, Blue Heron Suite, on Friday, wrote the album about four years ago, inspired by family vacations and family hardship. She was commissioned by the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art and FreshGrass music festival to write the LP, on which the already-accomplished artist says she used new writing techniques.

We caught up with Jarosz to ask her about her early years writing music, what it’s been like to be so well recognized for her songs, her new album, and much more.

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Famed hip-hop producer J. Period is as much a biographer as he is a musician. He has risen to fame through a love of hip-hop culture and by grinding day in and day out at his craft. But along the way, he discovered something special, a corner of the art form that he could call his own. That’s where memory and memoir helped J. Period to formulate his now-signature mixtapes.

J. Period came to music through his parents and, especially, his father. He learned from an early age to bridge song with story and he’s been hammering away at this technique ever since. To date, he has worked with The Roots, Lauryn Hill, Q-Tip, Dave Chappelle, and myriad other legendary names, all of whom respect the way J. Period blends melodies, rhythms, and recollections.

Now, the artist is beginning to tell his own story, with his release, Story to Tell, an album that J. Period is releasing in three parts. The first installment boasts tracks with Black Thought, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and writer Jemel Hill. But J. Period has plans for more releases in the coming months. We caught up with the artist to ask him about his love of music, his love of story, and his new album, which is out today.

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Comedian, Erica Rhodes, cares about the things she says. Growing up, her mother cared obsessively about grammar. Her father was witty, sharp, and made people laugh. Early on, Rhodes realized the power communication can have between people—whether that meant bursts of laughter or depth of a conversation. Today, Rhodes, who has appeared in shows like New Girl and Modern Family, brings that same level of care to her standup comedy. Sometimes she even takes it directly to sentence parsing and grammatical choices with jokes that dig into the difference between “lay” and “lie,” for instance.

Rhodes, whose new special, La Vie en Rhodes, premiered on Amazon Prime and other outlets this past Tuesday, brings this deep care and consideration for communication to her work. The funny thing about the new special, though, aside from the multitude of Rhodes’ jokes, is that her audience is in their cars, socially distanced. Removed are the sweeping claps, replaced with honking cars. We caught up with the comedian to ask her about her first great laugh, who in her family is funny, what she loves about language, and much more.

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American roots singer/songwriter, Rhiannon Giddens, has, together with the help of her musical and romantic partner, Francesco Turrisi, written and recorded a new album during the COVID-19 pandemic that she and Turrisi have released today. The album, They’re Calling Me Home, features haunting vocals that harken to centuries past. It features banjo, guitar, flute, fiddle, and other instruments. It also features components less familiar that Giddens and Turrisi have explored throughout their decades as nuanced, precise players like Scottish or Gaelic songs. Giddens, who grew up in Greensboro, North Carolina, later studied at Oberlin College’s Oberlin Conservatory for music in Ohio. Since, she’s been recognized by prestigious prizes and earned a Grammy for her work with the roots group, The Carolina Chocolate Drops.

We caught up with Giddens to ask her about her experience becoming a musician later in life (she only started playing instruments in her 20s) and writing an album with T Bone Burnett in her late 30s. We also asked her about her relationship with Turrisi, how it got started and how it manifested to now two fantastic LPs.

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In a way, longtime comedian Eddie Griffin is the King of the Colloquial. Listening to the man talk or watching his new comedy special, Laughin’ Through Your Mask, which came our last week, one gets the sense that Griffin cares deeply about the (his?) idea of common sense. Griffin, who grew up first in Kansas City, Missouri, and later moved to Compton, California, has seen a lot. He’s also starred in movies like Undercover Brother and played roles in Armageddon and A Star is Born. Over the course of his life, he’s lived in dangerous areas and mansions. Doing so, one picks up on a through line to the world at large and Griffin does his best to express what he sees and what he knows of this thread.

But all that isn’t to say that it’s not brusque, at times. It’s easy to think that many in today’s culture might be put off by what Griffin has to say. But Griffin makes fun of everyone, from people who look and act like him to people who look and act quite differently. Everything is fair game because, as Griffin says below, the point of comedy is to induce laughter. Plain and simple. We caught up with the comedian to ask him how he came to the world of joke telling, what inspired his new special and tour during the COVID-19 pandemic, and what he loves most about entertaining.

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For anyone who has encountered the singer/songwriter, Valerie June, one feeling is abundantly clear. She is a treasure. With an elastic, spirited singing voice, June offers the proverbial light to any and all who will listen. The immense value she offers, too, is borne from her uniqueness—which is no easy thing to maintain. The world, as we know, often works to strip people from what makes them special (read: different). But June has looked that practice in its eye and rejected it. To that we say, thank goodness! This week, June will release her latest LP, The Moon and Stars: Prescriptions For Dreamers. The album is rich and showcases June’s penchant for positivity and imagination. We caught up with the artist to ask her how she first fell in love with music, how she maintains her spirit, and what she thinks will happen to herself after she dies.

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