What makes a home? Is it where you create? Where you feel seen? And for a musician like Rhiannon Giddens, how does the idea of home shape the sound of her music? This week, Hanif sits down with North-Carolinian multi-instrumentalist Rhiannon Giddens from her new homebase in Dublin. They talk about how Ireland has seeped into her music, muse on the banjo as a weapon and a tool of archiving Black histories, and how Rhiannon is able to masterfully draw influences -- wherever she finds herself. For the playlist of songs curated for this episode, go to www.mixcloud.com/sonos.
What makes a home? Is it where you create? Where you feel seen? And for a musician like Rhiannon Giddens, how does the idea of home shape the sound of her music? This week, Hanif sits down with North-Carolinian multi-instrumentalist Rhiannon Giddens from her new homebase in Dublin. They talk about how Ireland has seeped into her music, muse on the banjo as a weapon and a tool of archiving Black histories, and how Rhiannon is able to masterfully draw influences -- wherever she finds herself. For the playlist of songs curated for this episode, go to www.mixcloud.com/sonos.
/Show Notes/
Rhiannon Giddens’ recent release is They’re Calling Me Home.
Hanif references his book, Little Devil In America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance and brings up the performer, Bert Williams.
Rhiannon talks about learning to play the akonting in Gambia and her first solo album Tomorrow is My Turn.
This interview was originally recorded at On Air Fest.
/Music In This Week's Playlist/
Waterbound, Rhiannon Giddens and Francesco Turrisi
Carry Me Ohio, Sun Kil Moon
Dishes, Pulp
Baby Can I Hold You, Tracy Chapman
A Piece of Ground, Miriam Makeba
Midwest, Midsummer, Used Kids
My City Was Gone, Pretenders
Domestica, Björk
/ Credits /
Object of Sound is a Sonos show produced by work x work: Scott Newman, Jemma Rose Brown, and Babette Thomas. The show is additionally produced by Hanif Abdurraqib. Our engineers are Sam Bair and Josh Hahn of The Relic Room.