Mary Chapin Carpenter Can’t Hide From the Country’s Mood

It’s no surprise that with a voice like soft suede and a gift for story-telling that hoists listeners up and allows them to float along with her every syllable, country-folk-Americana singer/songwriter Mary Chapin Carpenter has won five Grammys and sold over twelve-million albums worldwide.

Vic Mensa on How Jay-Z Helped Him Shape One of 2017’s Best Albums

Vic Mensa, who opens for Jay-Z on Sunday, November 5 at the Pepsi Center, represents the highest form of hip-hop. His latest recording, The Autobiography, is not only among 2017’s best albums in any genre, but it’s essential listening for anyone who wants to understand the social, cultural and political moment in which we find ourselves. In the interview below, he explains why with both passion and compassion, not to mention a fierce intelligence that spares no sacred cows.

Ragged Union’s Smooth Bluegrass Sound

The path to bluegrass wasn’t linear for Ragged Union’s Geoff Union. Although he was born in North Carolina, it wasn’t until he attended an elite liberal arts college in the Northeast that the music of the hills stirred his soul.