Ludwig Göransson, Grammy and Academy award winning producer and composer, discusses his collaborations with Christopher Nolan, the loneliness of life in Los Angeles, and the use of artificial intelligence in Hollywood and the music industry.

DJ Drama, the iconic mixtape DJ, talks about his influential mixtapes, his battle with opioid addiction, and his signings to Atlantic Records imprint Generation Now. He also shares the story of Lil Jon recording his drops in Drama's laundry room.

Renowned guitarist Johnny Marr talks about scoring movies with Pharrell and Hans Zimmer, performing in stadiums with The Pretenders, and buying a Fender Stratocaster with Noel Gallagher that led to writing one of his best solo songs.

Mavis Staples, member of the iconic Staples Singers, shares stories from her time with the group. Mavis and Norah play a gospel classic and pay homage to Pops Staples. The hosts discuss heartfelt singing and reminisce about holding hands during a performance. They reflect on growing up with love and music and share memories of meeting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. They also talk about touring experiences and the healing power of music.

Musician and producer James Blake discusses constructing key tracks on his new album, a conversation with Rick Rubin that changed his life, and his months spent making music with Andre 3000 that may never be released.

Joan Baez, the folk musician and advocate for non-violent activism, discusses her transition to visual art, the challenges of balancing music and activism, and her experience handing over access to her personal storage unit to documentary filmmakers. She also reflects on her first encounter with Dr. King and the initial perception of her in the folk scene. The podcast concludes with insights on activism, hope, and making a difference in the world.

Robbie Robertson joins Rick Rubin, Malcolm Gladwell, and Bruce Headlam to discuss creating the Shangri-La studio, helping Bob Dylan go electric, writing "The Weight," collaborating with Martin Scorsese, recording music outside of traditional studios, and merging the music of Dinah Washington and Max Richter for a film.

Today we're sharing an episode from another Pushkin podcast we love called The Last Archive. The fourth season of The Last Archive just dropped and it's full of truly unexpected stories and big ideas. The episode you will hear today, "Player Piano," is an audio biography of one of the most famous composers of the 20th century who most people have never heard of: Raymond Scott. He wrote tons of hits in the '30s and since then his music has been sampled by Lizzo, J. Dilla and the Gorillaz. Aside from being an avid composer, Scott was also an inventor. And later in his life, he was hired by Motown Records to create a machine that could help people write songs. He called it The Electronium. Today's episode is a crazy piece of musical history, and just a wild story. Be sure to subscribe to The Last Archive to hear other episodes about time travel, invasive species panics, freelance wiretappers-turned-evangelists, and secret science fiction family histories, and more.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Santigold is an artist who exists at the cross-section of punk, dub, new wave and indie pop. Long frustrated with attempts like these to classify her style, Santi has always been a proud outlier among the restrictive categories used to divide music. Santi’s anti-establishment bent was in part a reaction to working as an A&R for Epic Records’ black music department. Frustrated with what they categorized as “urban music” in the early aughts, Santi left her job, went home to Philly, and started a punk band called Stiffed. After honing her chops for a few years as a lead singer, Santi released her debut solo album, Santigold in 2008. The album’s lead singles “Creator” and “L.E.S. Artistes” were a revelation when they came out, and led to Santi headlining tours around the world and even opening shows for Bjork, Coldplay, Jay-Z and the Beastie Boys. Now with three other albums to her credit, including last year’s soul-stirring Spirituals, Santigold is celebrating the 15th anniversary of her debut release. And today she’s expanded her artistic endeavors to include a podcast called Noble Champions where she mines the creative life with friends like Olivia Wilde, Questlove and Yasiin Bey. On today’s episode Leah Rose talks to Santigold about the unique path she took to build her solo career. Santi also shares why she decided to cancel her tour last year with a heartfelt public letter that shared insight into the financial and emotional toll of touring post-pandemic. She also recalls finding out that she was included in a list of influential black female artists on Beyonce’s “Break My Soul” remix. You can hear a playlist of some of our favorite Santigold songs HERE.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Albert Hammond Jr. first rose to prominence as the lead guitarist of The Strokes—a band at the forefront of New York City’s indie rock renaissance in the early aughts. In 2007 Albert Hammond Jr. launched his solo career, putting his songwriting and abilities as a frontman to the test. He’s now released five albums, including, Melodies On Hiatus, which came out just a couple months ago. It’s a double album that he co-wrote with Canadian singer Simon Wilcox, and features collaborations with GoldLink and Matt Helders from the Arctic Monkeys. On today’s episode, Albert Hammond Jr. and Justin Richmond talk about how he was dramatically impacted by his parents’ recent divorce, despite the fact that he’s in his early 40’s. Albert also reminisces about his past life as a champion roller skater who was once scouted by Kristi Yamaguchi’s Olympic ice skating coach. And he explains why he’d never been a fan of Radiohead or Led Zeppelin. You can hear a playlist of some of our favorite Albert Hammond Jr. songs HERE.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.