Remembering Cassandra Wilson
Don’t Explain
“She rose to fame in the 1980s as the voice of the New York jazz avant-garde. Later, however, she developed a highly personal style drawing on folk and blues.2 (Neue Zürcher Zeitung) Cassandra Wilson was born on 5 December 1955 in Jackson, Mississippi. As a girl, she not only sang but also played the piano and guitar. Whilst studying communication sciences, she began performing as a singer with increasing frequency. She started out in New Orleans but moved to New York in the seventies to fulfill he musical destiny. Here’s the New York Times obituary.
Erikah Badu & The Alchemist
Echos, from the album Before the World Blows: The Abi and Alan Experiment
The collaborative studio album by the American singer Erykah Badu and record producer the Alchemist merges Badu’s use of melodic and atmospheric compositions with the Alchemist’s sampling techniques. It marks Badu’s first project in eleven years, following the mixtape But You Caint Use My Phone (2015). Badu met the Alchemist during her annual Birthday Bash in Dallas, with both having interest in working with each other beforehand. The Alchemist learned about Badu’s production approach by using her instruments into his sample-based beats. The duo recorded and produced the album in the span of over eighteen months in Dallas and Los Angeles.
Control Freaq
Agnes Obel
Live at the Nuits de Fouvièrs – ARTE Concert
Agnes Caroline Tjaarup Obel (1980) grew up in a musical family near Copenhagen and began to play the piano at an early. “The graceful, subtle and deeply introspective music of Danish singer-songwriter Agnes Obel has held listeners spellbound since the release of her remarkable debut, Philharmonics (2010). Classically trained as a pianist and inspired by artists and composers such as Joni Mitchell, Claude Debussy, PJ Harvey and Erik Satie, the Berlin-based musician has, album after album, crafted an intimate and refined chamber pop that sits somewhere between neoclassical and alternative.” (Montreux Jazz Festival)
Blue Note Records / Deutsche Grammophone
Karol G
Tiny Desk Concert
Carolina Giraldo Navarro (1991), known professionally as Karol G, is a Colombian singer and songwriter and one of the most influential reggaeton and urban pop artists. “She got her start by competing on Colombia’s version of The X Factor and landed her breakthrough hit in 2017 with her Bad Bunny collaboration, “Ahora Me Llamahas”. She has an earthy and sure voice and visible takes pleasure in interpreting songs that have their roots in popular Columbian culture. In 2023, she became the first woman to debut atop the Billboard 200 with an all-Spanish-language album, Mañana Será Bonito.
Interscope Records
Laurie Anderson with Sexmob
From the Air, from the recently released album Let X = X.
Recorded live in Umbria, Italy, during a 2023 tour by Anderson and the jazz band Sex Mob: Steve Bernstein on brass: Kenny Wollesen on drums and percussion, Douglas Wieselman on winds and guitar, Briggan Krauss on saxophone and guitar, and Tony Scherr on bass. Its cover and interior packaging featured paintings by Anderson. The album featured 23 songs, including many favorites from throughout Anderson’s career performed in new arrangements, plus one by Lou Reed and Metallica (Junior Dad).
Nonesuch Records.