Natalie Merchant is an award-winning singer and songwriter from upstate New York. She was the lead singer of the band 10,000 Maniacs until she left in 1993. And then, as a solo artist, she’s put out nine albums over the last 30 years. Between 10,000 Maniacs and her solo work, she’s had multiple multi-platinum records. 

In April 2023, Natalie put out her first album of new songs in nine years. It’s called Keep Your Courage. And for this episode, she talked to me about the song “Sister Tilly.” It’s a eulogy for a fictional character – a woman who represents the generation of women who influenced her. Women who were activists in the 1960s and 70s, when she was growing up. 

You can buy or stream “Sister Tilly” here.

Illustration by Carlos Lerma.

For a transcript of this episode, click here.

footnotes:
“Waterloo Sunset” – The Kinks song
Sally Grossman
Bob Dylan
Gabriel Kahane – arranger
Led Zeppelin
Jimmy Page
Joan Didion
Alex Sopp – flute
Eleanor Norton – cello
Ravi Shankar
Sitar
Ashram
Tanpura

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Feist is a singer-songwriter from Canada. She put out her first solo album in 1999. She’s won 11 Juno awards, including two for Artist of the Year, and she has four Grammy nominations. She’s also been a member of the band Broken Social Scene since 2001.

In April 2023, Feist put out her sixth album, Multitudes. And for this episode, I talked to her about how she made the opening song from that album, called “In Lightning.”

You can buy or stream “In Lightning” here.

Illustration by Carlos Lerma.

For a trannscript of this episode, click here.

footnotes:
Robbie Lackritz – producer
Mocky – producer
Todd Dahlhoff – multi-instrumentalist
Amir Yaghmai – multi-instrumentalist
Shahzad Ismaily
Gabe Noel
Miguel Atwood-Ferguson
Michael Harris – engineer
Mike Mills – film director (and co-producer)
Banff Center for Arts and Creativity – location of Feist’s artist’s residency
Moog Rogue – synth
Key Change – Mocky record

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Madison McFerrin is a singer, songwriter, and producer from New York. She’s sung with legends like Aretha Franklin, George Clinton, and De La Soul & The Roots. Madison’s first EP came out in 2016, and last week, she released her debut album, I Hope You Can Forgive Me. In the years between the EP and the album, Madison started producing her own music. It wasn’t really her plan, but something that developed over the course of the pandemic. For this episode, I talked to Madison about a song from her album called “Run.” It was inspired by Madison’s discovery that she’s the descendant of a woman who escaped slavery. And it features guest vocals from Madison’s father, Grammy-winner Bobby McFerrin.

You can buy or stream “Run” here.

Illustration by Carlos Lerma.

For a transcript of this episode, click here.

footnotes:
“Follow the Drinkin’ Gourd” – African-American folk song
Juju

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