Suzanne Vega On World Cafe

Suzanne Vega's musical career stretches across two decades and the staying power to last a couple more. Raised in Spanish Harlem and the Upper West Side in New York, Vega began writing poems and songs at a very early age, picking up the guitar at 11 years old.

She signed her first record contract and released her debut album in 1985. People were floored by her work and the album sold an unexpected number of copies in both the U.S. and U.K. Her impeccable knack for storytelling mixed with clear-cut vocals and a neo-folk style, Vega inspired a new wave of female singer-songwriters.

Over the years, she has experimented with different sounds from folk music to dance. Her latest project, Close-Up, finds her re-recording her catalog and organizing the songs around themes. Of the four volumes planned, Vega has released only the first two, Love Songs and People & Places, so it looks like 2011 could be an active year.

This segment originally aired on Oct. 26.