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A Grammy-Nominated Singer Performs and Explores Music's Power

Summary, books mentioned, transcript quotes, and timestamps for A Grammy-Nominated Singer Performs and Explores Music's Power on The Ezra Klein Show.

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A Grammy-Nominated Singer Performs and Explores Music's Power mentions A Fortune for Your Disaster by Hanif Abdur-Akib, The Bone People by Carrie Hume, and Our Native Daughters with timestamps, quotes, and episode context.

3 books from this episode

Hanif wrote an incredible piece about an artist who disappeared.

The Bone People
Carrie Hume

One that I started reading first when I was 11 years old and returned to almost yearly is called The Bone People by Carrie Hume.

I like to think of as a super group, our Native daughters.

Episode summary
In times of deep sorrow or joy, humans have always turned to music. Archaeologists have found evidence of instruments among very early civilizations. Spiritual communities have centered on music for centuries. We teach our children their ABCs and how to brush their teeth with songs. We dance out our feelings and cry along with sad tunes. What is it about music that enables it to work so powerfully on our bodies, minds and emotions? That is one of the core animating questions of this conversation with Allison Russell. Russell is a Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter whose debut album, “Outside Child,” was named one of the best albums of 2021 by critics at NPR and The Times. Russell has played in bands including Birds of Chicago and Our Native Daughters, traversing folk, rock ’n’ roll, Celtic music, the blues and other genres. But alongside her powerhouse vocals and gorgeous melodies, Russell infuses a deep scholarly curiosity into her songs — not just about the nature and power of music, but also what it can teach listeners about our world. Digging into archives and family history, she explores themes like generational trauma, our relationships to diaspora and migration and how music can build empathic bridges between us in times of deep division. But above all, her songs testify to the sheer human capacity for resilience: our capacity to transcend our darkest times if we hold on, reach out to one another and seek out art that helps console. In this episode, Russell performs four songs with a full band, so listeners can enjoy her infectious art. And then we use those songs as jumping-off points to explore the deeper ideas embedded in her music: why we fall into melodies so soon after our births; how music moves us differently from how books or speeches do; how sound can help regulate our emotions, slow our breathing and rewire our neural networks; how Russell’s melodies and vocal performances come together in her mind; why songs can at times be more persuasive than nonfiction; why our unwillingness to divulge painful secrets goes back to the Victorian era; how generational trauma like the Middle Passage connects to personal trauma in the present; how Russell structures her songs to help people transcend profound pain; what message Russell would send to people who are struggling and much more. This episode contains references to sexual abuse. Mentioned: “The Transmogrification of Trauma into Art” by Allison Russell “Barley” by Birds of Chicago “Real Midnight” by Birds of Chicago “Songs of Our Native Daughters” by Our Native Daughters “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” by Gordon Lightfoot “Take Em Away” by Old Crow Medicine Show “The Art of Disappearance” by Hanif Abdurraqib Music and Book Recommendations: The Bone People by Keri Hulme A Fortune for Your Disaster by Hanif Abdurraqib Breaking the Thermometer by Leyla McCalla Carry Me Home by Mavis Staples and Levon Helm This episode was guest hosted by Annie Galvin, the associate producer of “The Ezra Klein Show.” Galvin has covered books and music for almost a decade and hosted a season of “Public Books 101,” a public-scholarship podcast she co-created. Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at [email protected]. You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast, and you can find Ezra on Twitter @ezraklein. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs. “The Ezra Klein Show” is produced by Annie Galvin and Rogé Karma; fact-checking by Michelle Harris, Mary Marge Locker and Kate Sinclair; original music by Isaac Jones; mixing by Carole Sabouraud and Isaac Jones; audience strategy by Shannon Busta. Special thanks to Kristin Lin, Kristina Samulewski and Erika Duffee. Russell’s band is Monique Ross, Chauntee Ross and Mandy Fer. Additional thanks to Jeff Gruber of Blue House Productions and Allison’s touring engineer, Ross Collier. The songs Russell performs in this episode were written by Allison Russell and Jeremy Thomas Lindsay.
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A Fortune for Your Disaster
Hanif Abdur-Akib

The host mentions 'A Fortune for Your Disaster' as a significant work that has shaped their understanding of survival…

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The Bone People
Carrie Hume

The host mentions 'The Bone People' as a significant book that has shaped their perspective since childhood. They emp…

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Our Native Daughters

The host mentioned 'Our Native Daughters' while discussing the themes of migration and the concept of home. This refe…

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What is A Grammy-Nominated Singer Performs and Explores Music's Power about?

Summary, books mentioned, transcript quotes, and timestamps for A Grammy-Nominated Singer Performs and Explores Music's Power on The Ezra Klein Show.

What are the main takeaways from A Grammy-Nominated Singer Performs and Explores Music's Power?

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  • The conversation centers on escapism and community.
  • A second recurring theme is importance of escapism.
  • Referenced books include A Fortune for Your Disaster by Hanif Abdur-Akib and The Bone People by Carrie Hume.
  • The strongest audience signal points to Readers interested in poetry and personal exploration and Readers seeking stories of survival and hope.

Which books are mentioned in A Grammy-Nominated Singer Performs and Explores Music's Power?

A Fortune for Your Disaster by Hanif Abdur-Akib, The Bone People by Carrie Hume, and Our Native Daughters are the clearest linked books in this episode, each tied back to transcript timestamps and quote cards.

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Topic and sentiment signals

Aggregated from transcript-derived mention metadata for better topical navigation and citation.

Mention sentiment
Highly Recommended(2)Passing Reference(1)
Audience signals
Readers interested in poetry and personal explorationReaders seeking stories of survival and hopeListeners interested in diasporic literature and music.

Books Mentioned

The full list below is ranked by how useful each mention is to a listener: stronger recommendation language, clearer quote context, and better timestamp support rise first.

A Fortune for Your Disaster cover
Best for Readers interested in poetry and personal explorationOften cited around escapism and community

The other book is actually a much more recent one, a book of poetry by a writer who I knew more as a music journalist initially. It is called A Fortune for Your Disaster by Hanif Abdur-Akib.

View mention details
Sentiment: Highly Recommended
For: Readers interested in poetry and personal exploration
Key quote: Hanif wrote an incredible piece about an artist who disappeared.
The host mentions 'A Fortune for Your Disaster' as a significant work that has shaped their understanding of survival and connection. They highlight the author's deep exploration of the themes of choosing to stay or go, which resonates with the discussion about finding one's community.
Direct Amazon listing · affiliate link
Check price
The Bone People cover
The Bone People
Carrie Hume
Best for Readers seeking stories of survival and hopeOften cited around importance of escapism

One that I started reading first when I was 11 years old and returned to almost yearly is called The Bone People by Carrie Hume. It is one of the most important touchstone books to me.

View mention details
Sentiment: Highly Recommended
For: Readers seeking stories of survival and hope
Key quote: One that I started reading first when I was 11 years old and returned to almost yearly is called The Bone People by Carrie Hume.
The host mentions 'The Bone People' as a significant book that has shaped their perspective since childhood. They emphasize its importance as a story of survival, which resonates with the themes of finding hope and community.
Direct Amazon listing · affiliate link
Check price
Our Native Daughters cover
Best for Listeners interested in diasporic literature and music.Often cited around migration and home

The speaker mentions the liner notes of 'Our Native Daughters' and describes it as a deeply scholarly companion, highlighting the learning experience from reading about the banjo.

View mention details
Sentiment: Passing Reference
For: Listeners interested in diasporic literature and music.
Key quote: I like to think of as a super group, our Native daughters.
The host mentioned 'Our Native Daughters' while discussing the themes of migration and the concept of home. This reference highlights the collaborative nature of the music created by the group, which reflects on shared histories and experiences.
Direct Amazon listing · affiliate link
Check price
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A Fortune for Your Disaster
The Ezra Klein Show · 1:15:29
Hanif wrote an incredible piece about an artist who disappeared.
The Bone People
The Ezra Klein Show · 1:14:43
One that I started reading first when I was 11 years old and returned to almost yearly is called The Bone People by Carrie Hume.
Our Native Daughters
The Ezra Klein Show · 54:07
I like to think of as a super group, our Native daughters.
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A Fortune for Your Disaster cover
Mentioned at 1:15:29
A Fortune for Your Disaster
Hanif Abdur-Akib

The host mentions 'A Fortune for Your Disaster' as a significant work that has shaped their understanding of survival and connection. They highligh…

Direct Amazon listing · affiliate link
The Bone People cover
Mentioned at 1:14:43
The Bone People
Carrie Hume

The host mentions 'The Bone People' as a significant book that has shaped their perspective since childhood. They emphasize its importance as a sto…

Direct Amazon listing · affiliate link
Our Native Daughters cover
Mentioned at 54:07
Our Native Daughters

The host mentioned 'Our Native Daughters' while discussing the themes of migration and the concept of home. This reference highlights the collabora…

Direct Amazon listing · affiliate link

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