It’s been 50 years since the release of Marvin Gaye’s record, 'What’s Going On.' KEXP’s Larry Mizell Jr. talks with Emily Fox about the history of the record, breaks down some lesser-known tracks, and discusses how the album’s themes of police brutality, racism, addiction, and concerns about ecological disaster are still relevant today. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
May 25, 2021•21 min•Ep 166•Transcript available on Metacast Musician and producer St. Vincent is out with her sixth solo studio album, 'Daddy’s Home.' It was inspired by the music of the 70s. KEXP’s Cheryl Waters recently caught up with St. Vincent to talk about the record, what about the 70s inspired her, the power of backup singers and the women St. Vincent shouts out in her song, "Melting Of The Sun." “Whether it was Nina Simone speaking out about civil rights or Tori Amos speaking about sexual assault and being punished for being ho...
May 20, 2021•10 min•Ep 165•Transcript available on Metacast A new tribute album is coming out in a few weeks that covers songs by The English post punk band, Gang of Four. The album features Gang of Four Covers by The Dandy Warhols, IDLES and more. This album, titled 'The Problem of Leisure,' is a celebration of Gang of Four guitarist, Andy Gill, who died February 1, 2020. It was an album Andy Gill was working on at a hospital in the final days of his life. His widow, author and activist Catherine Mayer has worked to ensure the album's release. She talks...
May 18, 2021•24 min•Ep 164•Transcript available on Metacast Reports of violence against Asian Americans have increased dramatically since the start of the pandemic, by nearly 150 percent in 2020 compared to the year before. Then 2021 saw a mass shooting in Atlanta that killed eight people, including six Asian Americans. The rise in media coverage about racism towards Asian American communities has ignited a conversation about how we, as a country, view Asian Americans. Grace Madigan reports on how Asian American musicians have ...
May 13, 2021•14 min•Ep 163•Transcript available on Metacast 'Can’t Stop Won’t Stop' was a book first published in 2005 by Jeff Chang that chronicled the early hip hop scene. It has now been rereleased with updates and a focus on a young adult audience with writing contributions by DJ, historian and professor Davey D Cook. KEXP’s Gabriel Teodros caught up with Davey D and Jeff Chang about the new edition and the power of hip hop. “This is the hidden history of America,” Chang says. “Hip hop has that sort of hidde...
May 11, 2021•55 min•Ep 162•Transcript available on Metacast 'Can’t Stop Won’t Stop' was a book first published in 2005 by Jeff Chang that chronicled the early hip hop scene. It has now been rereleased with updates and a focus on a young adult audience with writing contributions by DJ, historian and professor Davey D Cook. KEXP’s Gabriel Teodros caught up with Davey D and Jeff Chang about the new edition and the power of hip hop. “This is the hidden history of America,” Chang says. “Hip hop has that sort of hidde...
May 11, 2021•25 min•Ep 162•Transcript available on Metacast Before Seattle's Duff McKagan went on to become the bassist for Guns N’ Roses and before Seattle’s Mother Love Bone started influencing the city’s grunge sound, there was The Living. It was an early 80’s Seattle punk band made up of a teenage Duff McKagan on guitar, Greg Gilmore (of Mother Love Bone) on drums, Todd Fleischman on bass, and John Conte as the band’s frontman. Seattle’s Loosegroove Records, which is co-run by Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard, has...
May 06, 2021•8 min•Ep 161•Transcript available on Metacast London Grammar frontwoman Hannah Reid talks about how misogyny in the music industry inspired her band’s latest album, 'Californian Soil.' “I just encountered a lot of what I would call daily sexist assumptions and microaggressions,” Reid says. She also talks about nearly giving up on music, how burnout led to her developing fibromyalgia, which causes fatigue and pain all over the body, and how she manages it as a performer. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ S...
May 04, 2021•17 min•Ep 160•Transcript available on Metacast When Tune-Yards first hit the scene with their 2009 album, 'Bird-brains,' you could hear that some songs pulled sounds, melodies and rhythms from African music traditions. Their 2018 album, ‘I Can Feel You Creep Into My Private Life,’ was written after frontwoman Merill Garbus took a six-month workshop on race. You can hear the effects of that workshop on the track, “Colonizer.” With all that in mind, for Live on KEXP At Home, Larry Mizell Jr. chatted with Garbus about th...
Apr 29, 2021•11 min•Ep 159•Transcript available on Metacast It’s been one week since former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of all three charges for the killing of George Floyd. Larry Mizell Jr. was DJing live on KEXP the moment the verdict came down last Tuesday. Here’s his essay reflecting on the day, the death of George Floyd and many other Black lives, through music. Read Larry's essay here . Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Apr 27, 2021•8 min•Ep 158•Transcript available on Metacast Sharon Van Etten has just released 'epic Ten,' a double album celebrating the tenth anniversary of her 2010 release, 'epic.' The release features both the original record and an LP of covers by Fiona Apple, Big Red Machine, IDLES, Courtney Barnett with Vagabon, Lucinda Williams, and more. KEXP’s Cheryl Waters talks with Sharon Van Etten about ‘epic Ten' and has her break down some of the covers on the record. You can read the full interview here . Support the show: https://www...
Apr 22, 2021•24 min•Ep 157•Transcript available on Metacast Japanese Breakfast frontwoman Michelle Zauner discusses her new memoir, 'Crying in H Mart.' In the book, she beautifully illustrates how she has dealt with the grief of losing her mother by cooking Korean food, and how her understanding of her mother has evolved since her death. She also discusses the complicated nature of being mixed race, and how she's found a sense of belonging through her artistic practices. “Part of being mixed race and losing your parent that sort of connects you to ...
Apr 20, 2021•26 min•Ep 156•Transcript available on Metacast We're taking a week off from posting podcasts and other online content, but you can always find a live DJ streaming on KEXP.org, the KEXP App, or 90.3 FM in Seattle. New episodes will return to your Sound & Vision feed on Tuesday, April 20th! Until then, visit old episodes or explore our other podcasts, Song of the Day, Live on KEXP, and The Weekly Mix. And if you haven't had the chance yet, there's still time to take the KEXP Podcast Survey . Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ Se...
Apr 12, 2021•55 sec•Transcript available on Metacast If you want to understand the impact of major labels on the music industry, look no further than a recent article in Wired titled, “ Big Music Needs to Be Broken Up to Save the Industry .” It covers how corporate power has taken over streaming, recording, ticketing and music venues. Author Ron Knox breaks down the history behind the music economy and its impacts, as well as possible solutions. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy infor...
Apr 08, 2021•17 min•Ep 155•Transcript available on Metacast Emily Fox discusses Brandi Carlile’s new memoir, ‘Broken Horses,’ with KEXP volunteer and mega Brandi Carlile fan, Bee Egan. They discuss themes from the book, like the power of Brandi's vulnerability, how she came into her identity through music and performance, and her chills-inducing 2019 Grammys performance, as well as Bee's personal connection to the artist. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Apr 06, 2021•19 min•Ep 154•Transcript available on Metacast Spotify recently launched a website and initiative called Loud & Clear . It’s Spotify’s attempt at being transparent about how artists are paid and the economics of streaming. The Union of Musicians and Allied workers have been calling for greater transparency at Spotify along with a request to stop court battles that lower royalty rates for songwriters, and to pay artists one cent per stream. Zack Nestel-Patt of UMAW breaks down how artists are paid through Spotify, ...
Apr 01, 2021•12 min•Ep 153•Transcript available on Metacast As we wrap up Women's History Month, Emily Fox and KEXP DJs Morgan Chosnyk and Eva Walker break down the stories and songs behind the top three most played women artists on KEXP during March: Arlo Parks, Japanese Breakfast and Noname. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mar 30, 2021•21 min•Ep 152•Transcript available on Metacast KEXP recently celebrated Transit Operator Appreciation Day. There’s one transit operator in particular that has touched the life of KEXP’s Larry Mizell, Jr. It’s Reggie “Smiley” Wilson. He’s hilarious and humble, he sings on the job, cracks jokes, shares words of wisdom and always drives with a colorful sign that says “Smile.” “The best thing to do with a smile is give it away,” Wilson says. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/...
Mar 25, 2021•18 min•Ep 151•Transcript available on Metacast March 20th marked the one-year anniversary of Bandcamp Fridays. Once a month, Bandcamp has been waiving its 15% share on digital music and 10% share on artist merch to help support artists during the pandemic. Josh Kim, COO of Bandcamp, talks about the impact of holding Bandcamp Friday every month for the past year. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Mar 23, 2021•14 min•Ep 150•Transcript available on Metacast SoundCloud is rolling out a new payment method for artists on its platform on April 1st called “fan-powered royalties.” Instead of artists being paid according to their share of overall streams on the platform, listeners’ ad revenue and subscription fees will go directly to the artists they listen to. SoundCloud’s Head of Rights Administration and Strategy, Michael Pelczynski, breaks down how the new “fan-powered royalties” model will work. Support the show: h...
Mar 18, 2021•5 min•Ep 149•Transcript available on Metacast Musicians have been making millions of dollars in recent weeks for auctioning off their music in the form of an NFT (Non-Fungible Token). Grimes made nearly $6 million in 20 minutes doing it, EDM artist 3lau has made more than $11 million and Kings of Leon just released a full album as an NFT. Chase Danzig joins this episode to fill us in on how NFTs work. He runs a YouTube channel called “The Bitcoin Express," and recently released a video titled, “How NFT Will Take Over the M...
Mar 16, 2021•17 min•Ep 148•Transcript available on Metacast Sound & Vision’s mini-series, Apparently, explores the intersection of parenthood and being a musician. For this next artist, he’s also struggled with addiction on top of it all. Pearl Nelson, also known as Pearl Dragon of the band Champagne Champagne, talks about idolizing Kurt Cobain and Jimi Hendrix, falling into addiction on tour, and his path to recovery. He also discusses finally being in a place where he’s ready to tour again with clarity and confidence in his s...
Mar 11, 2021•14 min•Ep 147•Transcript available on Metacast Sound & Vision’s mini-series, Apparently, explores the stories of musicians and performers who are juggling parenthood with their art. Today we meet Reese Umbaugh, who’s known on the drag stage as Cookie Couture. Cookie made headlines in 2019 for "Drag Queen Story Hour" at the Des Moines Public Library. Off the stage, Umbaugh mentors youth and has fostered 16 kids in the past decade. He is now the father of four adopted boys. KEXP is a listener-funded nonprofit, and we need your ...
Mar 09, 2021•14 min•Ep 146•Transcript available on Metacast Sound & Vision is launching a new mini-series called Apparently where two new mothers, KEXP DJ Evie Stokes and KEXP Drive Time Producer Rachel Stevens introduce us to folks who are juggling being musicians and parents. Today we hear from Grace Love about her journey of becoming a solo artist and a single mother at the same time. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Mar 04, 2021•12 min•Ep 145•Transcript available on Metacast Bam Bam was a Black woman-fronted grunge band in Seattle in the early 80s—before grunge was a defined genre. Larry Mizell Jr. tells the story of Bam Bam and the life of frontwoman Tina Bell. He also explores why we’ve never heard of this group before and why their story has been erased from Seattle music history. Then, KEXP Audioasis DJ and The Black Tones frontwoman Eva Walker leads a panel of fellow Black musicians to react to Bam Bam’s music and story and discuss the landsca...
Mar 02, 2021•58 min•Ep 144•Transcript available on Metacast Adrian Younge is a multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer who has just released an album and a podcast for Black History Month. The album is called 'The American Negro' and the podcast is called 'Invisible Blackness.' The first track of the album, "Revisionist History," gets at the mission statement throughout the project: revising history to represent the real narratives around Black lives in America. Adrian Younge spoke to Sound & Vision about the stories of Black America not ...
Feb 26, 2021•14 min•Ep 143•Transcript available on Metacast Femi and Made Kuti are the descendants of Fela Kuti—the pioneer of Afrobeat. They are carrying on the family tradition and have put out a double album together as father and son. They talk about their work, their family's music legacy and the issues of corruption and historical impacts of colonialism still felt in their home of Nigeria today. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Feb 25, 2021•24 min•Ep 142•Transcript available on Metacast February is Black History Month, but here at KEXP we're celebrating what we are calling 'Black History is Now.' Instead of relying on the music of legacy acts like those involved with Motown or the Golden Era of Hip-Hop, we are celebrating the artists who are making music and art today. KEXP’s web team got together, and each wrote an essay on Black artists they are gravitating to now. They wrote about it for this month's edition of KEXP's “In Our Headphones” column. Today&rsquo...
Feb 23, 2021•25 min•Ep 141•Transcript available on Metacast London-based TV Priest recently released their debut record, 'Uppers,' through Sub Pop. Vocalist Charlie Drinkwater discusses the album's reflections on social media, misinformation, pandemics, gentrification and fatherhood. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Feb 18, 2021•20 min•Ep 140•Transcript available on Metacast Langhorne Slim didn’t set out to write a record. He hadn’t written music in a year. At the end of 2019 he entered a program to tackle his issues with prescription drug abuse. Shortly after he came out of that program, a tornado struck his neighborhood in Nashville, then COVID-19 hit the nation. Trying to make sense of it all, Langhorne slim finally wrote a song. He was given the advice to write without any expectations and music started to flow again. The result is his latest album, ...
Feb 16, 2021•20 min•Ep 139•Transcript available on Metacast 
