Betty Davis Betty Davis artist page: interviews, features and/or performances archived at NPR Music

Betty Davis

Subscribe to Breaking News Alerts

Rodrigo y Gabriela Spin The Songs Behind Their Wild Sound

Gabriela Quintero and Rodrigo Sanchez Ebru Yildiz/Courtesy of the Artist hide caption

toggle caption

Ebru Yildiz/Courtesy of the Artist

Alt.Latino

Rodrigo y Gabriela Spin The Songs Behind Their Wild Sound

May 24, 2019 • The Mexican guitar duo talk share songs by Nina Simone, Caifanes and Rage Against the Machine and discuss the role of the guitar in rock.

Rodrigo y Gabriela Spin The Songs Behind Their Wild Sound

28:59

Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/726196063/726590662" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Behind The Black Power Goddess: Betty Davis' Early Demos Released

The Columbia Years 1968-1969 is a collection of little-heard, long sought-after recordings by funk artist Betty Davis. Photo by Baron Wolman/ Courtesy of Iconic Images hide caption

toggle caption

Photo by Baron Wolman/ Courtesy of Iconic Images

Review

Music Reviews

Behind The Black Power Goddess: Betty Davis' Early Demos Released

July 6, 2016 • Betty Davis was already gaining attention as Betty Mabry in the late 1960s when she met Miles Davis. He produced legendary sessions for her that have never been released — until now.

Behind The Black Power Goddess: Betty Davis' Early Demos Released

Listen · 4:10 4:10

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/484808335/484987342" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Betty Davis: A 'Nasty Gal' Ahead Of Her Time

Courtesy of the artist

Review

Music Reviews

Betty Davis: A 'Nasty Gal' Ahead Of Her Time

October 26, 2009 • Listening to Davis' propulsive funk, it's apparent that her image was just as important to her albums as a guitar or a keyboard or her voice. In 1975, she seemed to represent her era, but she probably pushed boundaries too far for mainstream music. Here, Meredith Ochs reviews a recent reissue of Davis' groundbreaking album Nasty Gal.

Betty Davis: A 'Nasty Gal' Ahead Of Her Time

Listen · 4:17 4:17

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/114171958/114182538" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Transcript

Shadow Classics

An Incendiary, Influential Funk Genius Gets Her Due

March 14, 2007 • Betty Davis could be sultry or earthy, strident or nasty. She seized heavy funk backbeats, and around them built commanding, sometimes taunting vocal entreaties that were way ahead of their time: Her work presages the stances and ideas of strong hip-hop women from Erykah Badu to Foxy Brown.

Courtesy of the artist

Review

All Songs Considered

Lesser-Known Love Songs

February 9, 2009 • Host Bob Boilen chats with Carrie Brownstein, Robin Hilton and Stephen Thompson about their favorite songs for love and heartbreak.

Lesser-Known Love Songs

Listen · 1:03:08 1:03:08

Download
Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/100430368/100430427" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">