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Music Interviews

Across Languages And Generations, One Family Is Reviving Cambodian Original Music

For fans of original music in Cambodia, the movement is about more than just the songwriters. "People see original music as this living proof that we are moving forward," Laura Mam says. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Courtesy of the artist

Across Languages And Generations, One Family Is Reviving Cambodian Original Music

Laura Mam is Cambodian American, and her mother, Thida Buth, is a Khmer Rouge survivor. They're fostering the pop music movement in Cambodia that was wiped out almost 40 years ago.

Across Languages And Generations, One Family Is Reviving Cambodian Original Music

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Rhythm Guitarist Marty Grosz: The 'Fresh Air' Interviews

Fresh Air

Grosz fled Germany with his family in 1933. Now 90, he tells his story in the memoir, It's a Sin to Tell a Lie. Grosz visited Fresh Air in 1984 and 2004 to play music and to talk about his life.

Rhythm Guitarist Marty Grosz: The 'Fresh Air' Interviews

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Nathaniel Rateliff Finds The Light Through A Lot Of Darkness

Nathaniel Rateliff performs live for WXPN's Free At Noon Concert - recorded live for World Cafe Jamie Stow/WXPN hide caption

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Jamie Stow/WXPN

World Cafe

Nathaniel Rateliff Finds The Light Through A Lot Of Darkness

XPN

Known for his gruff, tattooed, bearded look and his foot-stomping, sing-along songs, Rateliff has released a soul-baring new solo record.

Nathaniel Rateliff On World Cafe

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'Art Shouldn't Be Painful': How Wajatta Combines Improvisation And Production

Wajatta is a sort of musical odd couple: John Tejada (left) is a meticulous electronic composer and Reggie Watts (right) improvises all his music. Their album, Don't Let Get You Down, is out now. The1point8/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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'Art Shouldn't Be Painful': How Wajatta Combines Improvisation And Production

The electronic duo, composed of improvisational musician and comedian Reggie Watts and LA dance music powerhouse John Tejada, talk about their second album, Don't Let Get You Down.

'Art Shouldn't Be Painful': How Wajatta Combines Improvisation And Production

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Harry Styles On 'Fine Line,' Stevie Nicks And His Definition Of Success

"I'm trying to let go of the worrying thing, and that's what I've loved the most about this album, rather than the first one," Harry Styles says of making his album Fine Line. Helene Marie Pambrun/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Helene Marie Pambrun/Courtesy of the artist

Harry Styles On 'Fine Line,' Stevie Nicks And His Definition Of Success

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks to the pop superstar and former One Direction member about the creative and commercial pressure behind making his sophomore album.

Harry Styles On 'Fine Line,' Stevie Nicks And His Definition Of Success

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Revisiting Beethoven's Beloved, Radical Symphonies For His 250th Birthday

Sir John Eliot Gardiner and the Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique are performing all nine of Beethoven's symphonies in a series of concerts celebrating the composer's 250th birthday. Chris Lee/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Revisiting Beethoven's Beloved, Radical Symphonies For His 250th Birthday

Sir John Eliot Gardiner conducts all nine symphonies this year. He spoke about the surprisingly political side of Beethoven's music with All Things Considered.

Revisiting Beethoven's Beloved, Radical Symphonies For His 250th Birthday

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A Debut Album That Confronts Ingrained 'Expectations' With Emotional Clarity

"This story isn't unique to us. There's a lot of parents and kids going through this same thing," Katie Pruitt says of confronting her sexuality and her mother on her debut album, Expectations. Alysse Gafkjen/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Alysse Gafkjen/Courtesy of the artist

Editors' Picks

A Debut Album That Confronts Ingrained 'Expectations' With Emotional Clarity

Singer-songwriter Katie Pruitt grew up in a conservative Catholic family in Georgia. On her debut album, she sings about the pressure she felt growing up to hide her sexuality from her family.

A Debut Album That Confronts Ingrained 'Expectations' With Emotional Clarity

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Banoffee Goes From Background To Album Cover

Singer-songwriter Banoffee talks about the making of her debut album, "Look At Us Now Dad," and what it took to make it as a musician in Los Angeles after leaving her native Australia.

Banoffee Goes From Background To Album Cover

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Encore: On 'Seeking Thrills,' Georgia Channels A Lifetime On The Dance Floor

British musician Georgia has a new album out full of throwback dance beats and stripped-back vocals. It's called Seeking Thrills. She speaks with NPR's Ari Shapiro.

Encore: On 'Seeking Thrills,' Georgia Channels A Lifetime On The Dance Floor

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Rachael & Vilray Share A Mic — And A Love Of Old Swing Standards

Rachael & Vilray first met in 2003 when they were students at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, but didn't begin performing together until 2015. Jonno Rattman/ Nonsuch Record hide caption

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Jonno Rattman/ Nonsuch Record

Rachael & Vilray Share A Mic — And A Love Of Old Swing Standards

Fresh Air

The music duo perform songs from their self-titled debut album, which draws on the music of the '30s and '40s. "There is a timeless quality to these old standards," Vilray says.

Rachael & Vilray Share A Mic — And A Love Of Old Swing Standards

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On 'Lost Girls,' Bat For Lashes Spins A Vampire Fairy Tale With Synth-Pop

"I feel like I've always been referencing back to those dark childlike adventure stories," Natasha Khan says of the '80s films that inspired the latest Bat for Lashes album, Lost Girls. Logan White/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Logan White/Courtesy of the artist

On 'Lost Girls,' Bat For Lashes Spins A Vampire Fairy Tale With Synth-Pop

After her 2016 release, The Bride, Natasha Khan didn't know if she'd make another album. But she moved to LA, starting working on a script for a vampire film and found herself writing a concept album.

On 'Lost Girls,' Bat For Lashes Spins A Vampire Fairy Tale With Synth-Pop

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Facing Hearing Loss, Huey Lewis Releases What 'May Be' His Last Album

Weather is the first record of original music from Huey Lewis & The News in nearly 20 years. Deanne Fitzmaurice/Shore Fire Media hide caption

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Deanne Fitzmaurice/Shore Fire Media

Facing Hearing Loss, Huey Lewis Releases What 'May Be' His Last Album

Huey Lewis & The News just released their first album of original music in almost 20 years. But Weather also might be the last for the band's frontman, whose hearing collapsed two years ago.

Facing Hearing Loss, Huey Lewis Releases What 'May Be' His Last Album

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50 Years Of 'The Point,' Harry Nilsson's Wonderful, Weird Musical Fable

Harry Nilsson's concept album The Point — about a round-headed boy in a world where everything is pointy — turns 50 this year. Stan Meagher/Getty Images hide caption

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50 Years Of 'The Point,' Harry Nilsson's Wonderful, Weird Musical Fable

50 years after Harry Nilsson's concept album about a round-headed boy from a land of pointy heads, his son Kiefo and actor Mike Lookinland talk about a new release of the animated film from 1971.

50 Years Of 'The Point,' Harry Nilsson's Wonderful, Weird Musical Fable

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Remembering Joseph Shabalala, Founder Of Ladysmith Black Mambazo

Fresh Air

Shabalala, who died Feb. 11, fronted of the South African a capella group. He spoke with Terry Gross in 1991 about collaborating with Paul Simon on Graceland and growing up on a farm.

Remembering Joseph Shabalala, Founder Of Ladysmith Black Mambazo

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