Michelle Branch is a Grammy-winning singer/songwriter. She put two platinum albums when she was still a teenager. Those records were huge hits, and so her sound on those records defined her as an artist—for better or worse. Over a decade later, and after a long stretch, in 2017, Michelle put out her third album, Hopeless Romantic. In this episode, Michelle talks about why she was in musical limbo for so long, as she takes apart her song “Best You Ever.”

You can get “Best You Ever” on iTunes.

Illustration by Carlos Lerma.

For a transcript of this episode, click here.

footnotes
Michelle Branch – Everywhere
Amy Kuney
Harlan Silverman
The Black Keys
Patrick Carney
Gus Seyffert

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Alt-J formed in Leeds, England in 2007. Their debut album won a Mercury Prize, and their second was nominated for a Grammy. They released their third album, Relaxer in June 2017. In this episode, singer Joe Newman and keyboardist Gus Unger-Hamilton break down their song “In Cold Blood.”

You can get “In Cold Blood” on iTunes.

Illustration by Carlos Lerma.

For a transcript of this episode, click here.

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Michael Kiwanuka is a singer/songwriter from London. His second album, Love and Hate, came out in 2016, and was named one of the Best Albums of the Year from the BBC, NME, The Guardian, GQ, and more. One of the songs on the album was used as the theme for the hit HBO series Big Little Lies. In this episode, Michael breaks down the song “Black Man in a White World.”

You can get “Black Man in a White World” on iTunes.

Illustration by Carlos Lerma.

For a transcript of this episode, click here.

footnotes
Son House – Grinnin’ in Your Face
Curtis Mayfield – Move On Up

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