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Music Interviews

Cimafunk: How his Afro-Cuban funk tells a bigger story about the African diaspora

Cimafunk is this week's guest on Alt.Latino. Jack Vartoogian/Getty Images hide caption

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Jack Vartoogian/Getty Images

Alt.Latino

Cimafunk: How his Afro-Cuban funk tells a bigger story about the African diaspora

Anamaria Sayre and Felix Contreras sit down with Cimafunk to talk about how he's created his singular sound, the complex African lineage of his music and why his band is his "tribe."

Cimafunk: How his Afro-Cuban funk tells a bigger story about the African diaspora

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Chicago's jazz scene was the perfect place for Makaya McCraven to break the rules

Makaya McCraven Sulyiman/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Sulyiman/Courtesy of the artist

World Cafe Words and Music Podcast

Chicago's jazz scene was the perfect place for Makaya McCraven to break the rules

XPN

The "beat scientist" and composer chats about his musical upbringing and his approach to remixing live music.

Makaya McCraven on World Cafe

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Matt Butler has played concerts in more than 50 prisons and jails

Matt Butler performing at the Central Utah Correctional Facility. Liam Trouchard/Matt Butler hide caption

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Liam Trouchard/Matt Butler

Music

Matt Butler has played concerts in more than 50 prisons and jails

"Reckless Son" is a one-man show by singer/songwriter Matt Butler inspired by the convicts he's met while touring American prisons and jails.

Matt Butler has played concerts in more than 50 prisons and jails

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Here are 5 Chicago soul records you should know

Ayana Contreras Guillaume Ziccarelli/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Guillaume Ziccarelli/Courtesy of the artist

World Cafe Words and Music Podcast

Here are 5 Chicago soul records you should know

XPN

Ayana Contreras, host of WBEZ's Reclaimed Soul, talks about what makes Chicago soul special.

Ayana Contreras on World Cafe

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Guest DJ Tom Verlaine (2006)

Tom Verlaine spins everything from Charles Mingus to The Day the Earth Stood Still soundtrack. Stefano Giovannini/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Stefano Giovannini/Courtesy of the artist

All Songs Considered

Guest DJ Tom Verlaine (2006)

Tom Verlaine spins everything from Charles Mingus to The Day the Earth Stood Still soundtrack.

Guest DJ Tom Verlaine (2006)

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As Ryuichi Sakamoto returns with '12,' fellow artists recall his impact

Japanese musician, composer, record producer, pianist, activist, writer, actor and dancer Ryuichi Sakamoto, photographed on June 30, 2016 in Paris. Joel Saget/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Joel Saget/AFP via Getty Images

As Ryuichi Sakamoto returns with '12,' fellow artists recall his impact

The composer has been lauded for decades over his deeply affective music; director Alejandro González Iñárritu, composer Hildur Guðnadóttir and more join us to explain why.

As Ryuichi Sakamoto returns with '12,' fellow artists recall his impact

Listen · 8:00
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'This is not entertainment': John Zorn, all over Big Ears

John Zorn in performance in New York. Jonathan Chimene/WBGO hide caption

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Jonathan Chimene/WBGO

Jazz Night In America: The Radio Program

'This is not entertainment': John Zorn, all over Big Ears

Jazz at Lincoln Center

Composer and alto saxophonist John Zorn brings eight eclectic bands to the Big Ears Festival stage, ranging from solo classical piano to all-out electrified jams.

'This is not entertainment': John Zorn, all over Big Ears

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For Missy Mazzoli, composing is the hard work of making life easier

Missy Mazzoli's next opera, Lincoln in the Bardo, was commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera and is slated for a 2025 production. Caroline Tompkins/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Caroline Tompkins/Courtesy of the artist

Editors' Picks

For Missy Mazzoli, composing is the hard work of making life easier

The composer of Breaking the Waves speaks candidly about equity in her field, the importance of role models and the unglamorous side of writing music every day.

A 'product child of Chicago,' KAINA is learning to savor the home she's made here

KAINA Dennis Elliott/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Dennis Elliott/Courtesy of the artist

World Cafe Words and Music Podcast

A 'product child of Chicago,' KAINA is learning to savor the home she's made here

XPN

The musician talks about her latest album, It Was A Home, and the creative community she's fostered in Chicago.

KAINA on World Cafe

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Adeem the Artist refines their ability to tell country tales from where they stand

Adeem the Artist's new album, White Trash Revelry, captures fresh awareness of the scrutiny they receive for the array of identities they embody in life and in song. Madison Miles/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Madison Miles/Courtesy of the artist

Adeem the Artist refines their ability to tell country tales from where they stand

On White Trash Revelry, Adeem worked to understand their white, Southern, working-class, pansexual, nonbinary country songwriting identity — and they have some pretty great jokes about it.

Dos Santos' sound is a cultural melting pot as eclectic as their Chicago home

Dos Santos Jose Calvo/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Jose Calvo/Courtesy of the artist

World Cafe

Dos Santos' sound is a cultural melting pot as eclectic as their Chicago home

XPN

The Chicago band pulls from a mix of Latin influences to create their unique take on psychedelic rock.

Dos Santos on World Cafe

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John Cale, ever restless, returns with the deeply collaborative 'Mercy'

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Marlene Marino/Courtesy of the artist

John Cale, ever restless, returns with the deeply collaborative 'Mercy'

The Welsh-born artist, a co-founder of The Velvet Underground, has been relentlessly creating for nearly 60 years. On his new album, he sounds as alive as ever.

John Cale, ever restless, returns with the deeply collaborative 'Mercy'

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Rachael & Vilray share a mic — and a love of old swing standards

Fresh Air

The duo have a new album, I Love a Love Song. In 2020, Rachael & Vilray spoke to Fresh Air and played songs from their self-titled debut album, which drew on the music of the '30s and '40s.

Rachael & Vilray share a mic — and a love of old swing standards

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Reyna Tropical: How Fabi Reyna learned to listen to her revolutionary intuition

Reyna Tropical's Fabi Reyna is this week's guest on Alt.Latino. Alex Knowbody/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Alex Knowbody/Courtesy of the artist

Alt.Latino

Reyna Tropical: How Fabi Reyna learned to listen to her revolutionary intuition

Anamaria Sayre sits down with Fabi Reyna of Reyna Tropical to talk about the process of trusting yourself, how music saved her life and moving forward after losing her creative collaborator Sumohair.

Reyna Tropical: How Fabi Reyna learned to listen to her revolutionary intuition

Listen · 26:50
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Demi Lovato finally gets to unleash her anger on 'HOLY F***'

Demi Lovato Brandon Bowen/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Brandon Bowen/Courtesy of the artist

World Cafe Words and Music Podcast

Demi Lovato finally gets to unleash her anger on 'HOLY F***'

XPN

Demi Lovato reflects on the limitations of the "hyper-feminine pop star" and embracing a hard rock sound on her latest album, HOLY F***.

Demi Lovato on World Cafe

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Danielle Ponder found her own voice after years of giving a voice to others

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aige Walter/WXPN

World Cafe Words and Music Podcast

Danielle Ponder found her own voice after years of giving a voice to others

XPN

For a long time, singing was something Danielle Ponder did on the side, but with the release of her debut album, Some of Us Are Brave, last fall, it's become her main focus.

Danielle Ponder on World Cafe

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Margo Price embarks on a new, psychedelic journey on 'Strays'

Margo Price Alysse Gafkjen/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Alysse Gafkjen/Courtesy of the artist

World Cafe

Margo Price embarks on a new, psychedelic journey on 'Strays'

XPN

The Nashville singer-songwriter tells the story of the mind-altering trip that set the stage for her latest album, and changed her life.

Margo Price on World Cafe

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Margo Price shares the struggles, joy behind new album

"I was thinking about how you just get lost looking in the mirror," Margo Price says about writing the song "Hell in the Heartland" shortly after she quit drinking. Alysse Gafkjen/NPR hide caption

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Alysse Gafkjen/NPR

Margo Price shares the struggles, joy behind new album

Singer-songwriter Margo Price opens up about the raw, real-life inspirations for her new album, Strays, which she wrote after taking psychedelic mushrooms.

Margo Price shares the struggles, joy behind new album

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Captain Kirk Douglas dives into a 'New Unknown'

Captain Kirk Douglas Alexander Fischetti/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Alexander Fischetti/Courtesy of the artist

World Cafe Words and Music Podcast

Captain Kirk Douglas dives into a 'New Unknown'

XPN

Captain Kirk Douglas, the guitarist and vocalist for The Roots, talks about his second solo album, New Unknown.

Captain Kirk Douglas on World Cafe

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Alvvays hopes a sip of 'Blue Rev' will transport you to a different time

Alvvays Eleanor Petry/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Eleanor Petry/Courtesy of the artist

World Cafe Words and Music Podcast

Alvvays hopes a sip of 'Blue Rev' will transport you to a different time

XPN

Alvvays frontwoman Molly Rankin talks about the stolen demos and recording experiments that led to the Canadian band's latest album, Blue Rev.

Alvvays on World Cafe

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