WNXP Podcasts

Celebrating the music of Sly Stone, who passed away at the age of 82 earlier this week. For someone who wants to dive into his story further, there is an documentary titled Sly Live (aka the Burden of Black Genius) on Hulu and Disney Plus. Directed by Questlove and produced by Joseph Patel, Patel joins for Soulphonic Sounds to talk about the documentary and the legacy Sly Stone left on music.

French electronic duo Justice plays a late night set at Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival this year. Acclaim for their most recent LP Hyperdrama, including hit collaborations with Tame Impala, has grown their audience. So has their legendary live stage production.

This week for What Where When-sday, we discuss a performance from AfricaNashville happening at The Blue Room this Friday. The group's stated mission includes aspiring to train the upcoming generation of dancers & drummers within the Nashville community and helping African music find its rightful place in Music City. We spoke with Windship Boyd, who co-founded AfricaNashville with the saxophonist, Jeff Coffin, about the organization and this week's show. 

In the sea of musicians in Nashville, it's hard to stand out. It's even more of a challenge to carve your own path in a folk and Americana scene that seems to grow by the minute. Yet chrysalis has done just that. As their name suggests, their artistry is ever-growing and ever-changing. Grounded in folk sensibilities, their sound blends indie production with traditional instrumentation. They describe themselves “as a patchwork amalgamation of genres and sounds,” drawing inspiration from Joni Mitchell to Indigo De Souza.Watch chrysalis perform “do you?,” “too early” and “how much longer?” live at WNXP's Sonic Cathedral here. 

Alaina Moore and Patrick Riley, a married couple that started their musical project Tennis 15 years ago writing songs on a sailboat, have just released what they're calling their final record, Face Down In The Garden. They've also embarked on their final tour, which stops in Nashville June 7. We caught up with them at the Kilby Block Party festival in Utah in May.

This week for What Where When-sday, we discuss the 3rd annual Jorts Fest hosted this year on both Friday and Saturday. This community gathering features 40 bands including big name touring acts Laura Jane Grace, Bass Drum of Death and Illuminati Hotties, plus lots of locals like Nordista Freeze and Dad Hats. Co-founder of Jorts Fest Joe Halby dropped by WNXP to chat about what attendees might expect on the 6th and/or 7th.

This week for What Where When-sday, we discuss Music Neighbors' Celebrate Music City happening at New Heights Brewery on Sunday from 12-6 p.m. The free, all ages community festival will highlight Nashville's Latin music scene featuring artists ranging from Jazz, to Soul to Rock.

Kobe Miyake was in his dorm room in Belmont when he heard someone playing Led Zeppelin down the hall. It was a guitar player from Annapolis, Maryland named Jake Robuck. The two formed a bond and founded the band BEAN. WNXP's Nashville Artist of the Month. The band is now using more contemporary influences and techniques to create a whole new vibe in Nashville's music scene.

Aussies Psychedelic Porn Crumpets from Perth have returned to the U.S. in support of their new album, Carpe Diem, Moonman, and the five-piece band also alluded to another full-length to be released later this year. Hear the riffy rockers On The Record with WNXP describing the modes of writing and recording, plus the often grueling nature of touring, in addition to each band member's favorite song to play live right now.

This week for What Where When-sday, we discuss a live music tribute to Tony Hawk's Pro Skater happening at the Basement East this Friday. For people of a certain age, I'm including myself in this, video game soundtracks– like Hawk's skateboarding series–  played a big part in music discovery. I discussed the lasting cultural impact with Brandon Bruce, CEO of Mellow Rebel and the music director of the event.

OZ Arts Nashville's Brave New Works Lab is happening Thursday (May 15) through Saturday (May 17). A celebration of local innovation and creativity with short-form performances by Nashville artists. One of the works that will be shown is Welcome to Paradise — A trippy multimedia-music experience by Landry Butler and Inglewood Social Club. Butler talks about his work and the basis of the film. 

Being on the road with her current band is what inspired her latest record Portrait. With her band, Samara Joy will be on stage Tuesday, May 13 at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center. Hear the full conversation with Samara Joy talking about her musical upbringing, introduction to Jazz, and her new album Portrait above the article or head over to WNXP Podcast, where you listen to your podcast. 

Music City Movement's mission is to foster a creative collaborative environment for musicians and creatives through open mic, educational sessions, and networking events. They will be hosting Spring Fest this Saturday at Honeytree Meadery featuring local artists and vendors. 

For nearly two decades as one half of the band Lucius, Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig have been sending us to space, and also wrapping us up like Snuggies, with their vocal harmonies. The new Lucius record, self-titled and self-produced by drummer Dan Molad, represents what Wolfe said is “the most honest and unfiltered” version of the group, including impressions of domesticity, growth and loss. Laessig said making this as just the four-piece “felt like a coming home.”

Daptone Records released the 20 Year Anniversary of Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings second album Naturally, with songs like “How Long Do I Have to Wait For You” and “This Land Is Your Land” this record that not only helped Daptone become a household name, but helped Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings cement their legacy in soul music in the process. Neil Sugarman, co-owner of Daptone Records and sax player of the Dap-Kings joined us to discuss the formation of the label and the impact of the record.

This week for What Where When-sday, we discuss Cinco De Mayo with WPLN's Rachel Iacovone with events from Plaza Mariachi's five-day celebration to a Rudy's Jazz Room residency, Secret Bodega's Taco Bell-inspired takeover at Pearl Diver, and It's Giving Global at Cherries out East. 

When in Nashville for a special performance at Grimey's record store, Boston trio Vundabar stopped by WNXP to talk about their new full-length, 'Surgery and Pleasure,' as well as learnings from their 10+ years playing together.

This Saturday is the 12th annual Independent Bookstore Day, celebrating indie bookstores across the country with everything from exclusive books to literary items. Participating stores in Middle Tennessee include Parnassus, Fairytales, The Bookshop, The Grumpy Bookpeddler, and more. But today, we talk with the owners of Novelette, located in East Nashville. 

Josh Tillman is the person behind the persona of the musician Father John Misty. Or, is it the other way around? Tillman's reputation as a provocateur and chimera reached a fever pitch about seven years ago and the songwriter stopped talking to the press and public all together, only performing. In a rare interview, Tillman talked to Music Reporter Justin Barney, about his latest album, Mahashmashana and his disappearance from the spotlight.

Nestled in the heart of 5 Points, Duke's has become a mainstay for the local music community. I've fallen in love in this bar, had my heart broken, made business deals, commiserated and celebrated everything along the way. With a decade under their belt, many Nashvillians can say the same. Duke's is celebrating their 10 year anniversary with a parking lot blowout this Saturday featuring music from some of old Nashville's finest including William Tyler, Be Your Own Pet and Heavy Cream. Ahead of the celebration, I sat down with co-owner Sara Nelson to talk about the bar's impact on the city. 

WNXP got Rhian Teasdale -- one-fifth of the Isle of Wight band Wet Leg -- on the record about their forthcoming sophomore release, moisturizer, out on June 11. This buzzy group played WNXP's 2nd birthday show in 2022 and won two Grammys for their first record in 2023. The first single from moisturizer is "Catch These Fists."

The forlorn falsetto of Justin Vernon's voice has propelled Bon Iver into indie stardom. But fame only seemed to make Vernon retreat into his sadness more.Now, with the new album called “SABLE, fABLE,” out today, Vernon appears to be in bloom. He granted a rare interview to Music Reporter Justin Barney where they talked all about how Vernon changed his tune.Learn more at WNXP.org.

This Sunday (April 13), Eastside Bowl will turn into a underground disco with the third annual Disco Ball. This event is a benefit for Kindling Arts Festival, their annual summer festival that uplifts local artists. Daniel Jones, Producing Artistic Director of Kindling Arts, describes the event as a fun party with a cocktail hour and immersive performances, with a stage program that features local artists working in dance, theater, music and drag. 

Now in theaters, "The Ballad of Wallis Island" is a feature film based on the 2007 award-winning short film created by the comic actors Tim Key and Tom Basden. With the addition of a new character, a former bandmate and lover played by Carey Mulligan, the expanded story set in a fictional remote place in the UK explores new dimensions of artist-fan relationships, creative integrity and nostalgia. The film's soundtrack includes 14 original songs written by Basden.

Episode 3 of Music Citizens tells the story of Brent Arledge who is the most prolific piano tuner in Nashville, and possibly the world. He tunes the Ryman, the Schermerhorn and the Grand Ole Opry. He services dozens of studios and is trusted in the homes of countless Nashville musicians. Arledge's craft can be heard on every song coming out of Music Row that features piano.But elite piano tuning is grueling work. It's taxing on the body, it strains relationships, and it never leads to fame or glory. How does someone become the top piano tuner in Nashville? And why would they want to?Voices in the episode include: Jason Moon Wilkins — Host Justin Barney — Reporter, Producer Brent Arledge — Piano Technician James Arledge — Piano Technician T Bone Burnett— Producer, musician Ian Fitchuk — Producer, musician Georgia Middleman— Singer/songwriter This episode was produced by Justin Barney, Emily Siner and Jason Moon Wilkins. Mixing and Mastering by Michael Pollard. Special thanks to Tony Gonzalez, Jewly Hight, Rachel Iacovone, Char Daston, Tasha A.F. Lemley, Meribah Knight, Jesse Strauss, Carly Butler, Stephanie O'Byrne, and everyone who helped.Institutional support from Tennessee Arts Commission, Metro Arts Thrive and First Horizon Foundation. Follow WNXP on social platforms as @WNXPNashville

Carl Broemel, guitarist for My Morning Jacket, spoke with us about the band's 10th LP called Is ahead of its March release and a couple weeks in advance of their curated and hosted One Big Holiday Festival in Florida. Broemel, who lives in Nashville, also highlighted collaboration with the band Futurebirds, finding new music via different methods and expanding his collection of gear.

Music Citizens Episode 3: The Tuner ready for launch on Sunday, April 6th.Episode 3 of Music Citizens tracks down Brent Arledge, Nashville's, and possibly the world's most prolific piano tuner. Arledge has played an uncredited part of every top ten hit featuring piano to come out of Music Row for the past 25 years. He tunes The Ryman, The Schermerhorn and The Grand Ole Opry. He is trusted in the homes of so many Nashville musicians. In a city that is often so good at recognizing the key players on a song, service workers like Arledge are often forgotten. This episode gives credit where credit is due.

WNXP Nashville Artist of the Month Annie DiRusso pretty rapidly went from fan to friend and collaborator of fellow Music City artist Ruston Kelly. This month both DiRusso and Kelly released albums featuring the other one, and hosted hometown shows where they were special guests. Here's the tale of two songs, more or less, stories straight from their mouths and sound from each of their concerts.

Our Record of the Week on WNXP is an album ten years in the making. Michigander's self titled debut. We sat down with him in his home here in Nashville to talk about being a frontman, finally feeling ready to release his debut and watching videos of U2 at his local library when he was in grade school.

WNXP's Nashville Artist of the Month Annie DiRusso released her first full-length album Super Pedestrian this month. Having first moved to Nashville to find the indie scene male-dominated, she's grown in influence and confidence as a songwriter and guitarist. Like it or not, and Annie quite likes it, this is no longer the boys' club of yesteryear.

Benjamin Booker has been relatively quiet since releasing his 2017 album Witness. He released a song called “Black Disco” in 2020 and has collaborated with Armand Hammer as well as Billy Woods & Kenny Segal back in 2023. Almost eight years since his last project, during that down time he has been working towards his new album Lower, this week's WNXP Record of the Week. 

Match Records is a multi-genre, student-led record label service company out of Middle Tennessee State University. It gives students hands-on experience within the music industry and assists student-artists with distributing and promoting their music. The label will be doing their first showcase at The Basement on Sunday, March 23. 

Billboard Heart is the fourth album from Deep Sea Diver, a Seattle band fronted by guitarist Jessica Dobson, who shared insight with WNXP about tapping into her childlike spirit to make the record, enlisting Madison Cunningham, stage presence inspiration from Karen O and more.

LA LOM stands for Los Angeles League of Musicians, paying homage to the trio's hometown. But with the release of their self-titled debut, LA LOM stands in a league of their own. Drawing inspiration from the diversity of the Los Angeles sound, the instrumental group blends everything from surf rock and rockabilly to cumbia and boleros. Bottom line, it's groovy. It's also unique — while it feels nostalgic of the '50s and '60s, the sound (consisting solely of guitar, drums and bass) somehow feels contemporary and exciting. Perhaps because few artists in dance music are bold enough to take such a simple and direct approach to music making. No fancy production or special effects needed for LA LOM to get you on your feet.Watch LA LOM perform “Danza de LA LOM,” “La Tijera” and “Alacrán” live at WNXP's Sonic Cathedral here.

The SEC Basketball Tournament has bounced from one host city to another, depending on the year, but now Nashville will be the host for the next decade. As mostly everyone will be filling out their bracket, there's a chance that more than 10 teams from the conference could potentially compete in the NCAA Tournament, making this tourney as close as we can get to a Final Four in Nashville.On this week's What Where When-sday, WPLN's Rachel Iacovone and WNXP's Marquis Munson talk about why the SEC chose Nashville as its host city and options for those trying to watch the games this week, including events at Acme Feed & Seed, Skydeck on Broadway and Music City Walk of Fame Park.

LA based artist Mereba dug into her Ethiopian roots and preserved some sage wisdom from her late father on her beautiful new album, "The Breeze Grew a Fire" which is our Record of the Week on WNXP.

In honor of David Lynch's passing, Nashville's Belcourt Theatre presents David Lynch: A Retrospective throughout the month of March, featuring showings of his work (Mulholland Drive, Blue Velvet, Eraserhead and more) along with two seminars on his work. On this week's What Where When-sday, we talk with the theater's program director, Toby Leonard, about Lynch's legacy and impact on the film industry. 

Jasmine.4.t's album, “You Are The Morning” is so much more than a debut album and our Record of the Week. Behind the record, is a story that includes getting ripped off by a promoter in Bristol, a happenstance booking, journeying through self-actualization, being embraced by Boygenius, and making a historic recording in one of the United State's most famous studios.

This week for What Where When-sday we discuss Nashville's newest venue, The Pinnacle, opening Thursday night with Kacey Musgraves. We discuss different elements of the space — including parking. 

After songs like “Mirage” and “Dirty Dancer” saw huge streaming numbers, Orion Sun landed herself on countless “artists to watch” lists, and her debut was one of the most highly anticipated releases of 2024. The 14-song collection exceeded expectations and garnered the LA-based R&B artist fans across the globe. With her sensual delivery of vulnerable topics like heartbreak and self-discovery, Orion's modern take on the genre draws likeness from contemporaries like Frank Ocean and SZA.Watch Orion Sun perform “Already Gone” and “These Days” live at WNXP's Sonic Cathedral here. 

"The things that were so scary in life just become a part of it." Finding peace in every day's horrors is the theme of Bartees Strange's wonderful new album, Horror which is our Record of the Week on WNXP.

It's not just because the late Ted Lucas shared a hometown with Third Man Records co-founder and co-owner Ben Blackwell that the Detroit native became obsessed with reviving Lucas' music. But that surely sweetened the pot. The one and only solo LP by Lucas, self-titled and from 1975, is re-released on vinyl and with digital extra tracks on February 21. We learned more about the artist and these songs from Blackwell inside Third Man's Nashville HQ.

Liberia-born, Tennessee-based artist Mon Rovîa began his career making music more adjacent to alternative R&B. But it was after he stripped his songs back to a simple, binary presentation of voice and ukulele, that his music began connecting deeply via livestreams on TikTok. Fans and big time influencers were drawn to his meditative melodies and spiritually inquisitive, often uplifting lyrics. That led to millions of plays and a sold out tour, including a late January show at the Basement East celebrating his new EP, Act 4 – Atonement. Right Before that show Mon Rovia stopped by WNXP's Sonic Cathedral for a performance and an interview about his incredible journey.

This week for What Where When-sday, we discuss Requiem for Colour, a musical, literary and visual journey happening at the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Belmont University this Tuesday. 

The synth-tastic indie rock quintet called New Translations (formerly known as Jive Talk) formed in Nashville by way of the chemical reaction of old friends combined with new acquaintances and a heavy dose of eastside bar magic, tale as old as time. They've since signed with local label War Buddha (led by two members of country rock trio The Cadillac Three) and recorded the majority of these new tracks at Polychrome Ranch in rural Hartsville, Tennessee with producer Jared Corder, one half of the celebrated regional band *repeat repeat. Before the release of New Translations' official debut full-length on Valentine's Day, bandmates Oliver Pierce (singer) and Andrés Ahogado (multi-instrumentalist) joined me at WNXP to talk about the making of Vacation.

This week for What Where When-sday, we discuss a panel discussion and musical performance celebrating Nashville soul singer Johnny Bragg happening at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum on Saturday. 

Our Record of the Week is from Freak Slug, which is the musical identity of Xenya Genovese. Her album, "I Blow Out Big Candles" is effortless, catchy and honestly, just a really fun time. She will be in Nashville playing at The Blue Room on March 18th.

This week for What Where When-sday, we discuss the National Museum of African American Music's Black History Month programming happening throughout the month of February. 

Recording artist Neko Case -- with more than a quarter-century as a solo artist and as a member of The New Pornographers -- has just published her memoir, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You. Hear Case in conversation with Celia Gregory about the book. A new full-length album is expected later this year.

British funk group Cymande's journey to Renascence has multiple different layers. From a successful debut album in 1972. Going on an extended hiatus only a couple of years later and a rediscovery of their music thanks to the early stages of hip hop with breakbeats and samples. Cymande returned with their first album in 41 years back in 2015 and now they've returned with a new album Renascence, this week's WNXP Record of the Week. 

English Teacher's highly anticipated LP This Could Be Texas is a perfect debut, even earning the esteemed Mercury Prize. The Leeds quartet held little to nothing back across the 13 song collection. With piano refrains, guitar riffs and poetic lyrics, the album defies genre, toeing the lines of post-punk and indie-prog and everything in between. It's expansive and sonically spacious without feeling too unapproachable.Frontwoman Lily Fontaine explains, “I want this album to feel like you've gone to space, and it turns out it's almost identical to Doncaster. It's about in-betweens, it's about home, and it's about Desire Paths.”Watch English Teacher perform “Broken Biscuits” and “Albatross” live at WNXP's Sonic Cathedral here.