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Hear a sampling of Erin Rae's 'Lighten Up' album : World Cafe : World Cafe Words and Music Podcast Erin tells Nashville correspondent Jessie Scott that the idea of "lightening up" wasn't about the outside world, but her own inner world.

World Cafe Words and Music Podcast

Erin Rae's voice on her new 'Lighten Up' album is both arresting and intimate

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Erin Rae on World Cafe

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Bridgette Aikens/Courtesy of the artist

Erin Rae

Bridgette Aikens/Courtesy of the artist

Set List

  • "Candy & Curry"
  • "True Love's Face"
  • "He's Not Free"
  • "Modern Woman"

Erin Rae's new album, Lighten Up, was made during a time that hasn't felt very light. But as Erin tells our Nashville correspondent Jessie Scott, the idea of "lightening up" wasn't about the outside world, but her own inner world. Her voice is both arresting and intimate on this record, made with a more intricate instrumentation than her last album. And subject matter on Lighten Up serves as a contrast to her 2020 song called "He's Not Free." That song, released between records, was written after the murder of George Floyd and voter suppression in Georgia made headlines. Erin talks about how 2020 shifted her perspective and more, as she shares live performances of some of the songs on Lighten Up in this World Cafe session from Nashville.

Episode Playlist