Recently, I attended AmericanaFest in Nashville, a gathering for all in the music industry — musicians, record labels, radio stations, festivals, agents and more — to help keep the Americana genre alive and thriving.
During that week, I was able to sit down with several musicians at a studio for a chat along with getting intimate and stripped-down performances from those artists that you'll be hearing on KAXE.
Lizzie No
Lizzie No thinks a lot about radio — about real people singing her songs in houses and cars across the country, in real time. So much so that when I introduced myself to her at AmericanaFest, she immediately recognized the KAXE call letters and thanked us for playing her music.
Still riding the wave of her latest release Halfsies, No has been touring the country and than some, getting her songs out into the world. She finds performing live to be physically and emotionally cathartic.
"The song, 'Sleeping in the Next Room,' was about to be on the cutting room floor. I had moments where I wasn't sure I was going to release it," No said. "... But it's actually become my favorite song to perform live. I think that there's something about the groove of that song that I find really cathartic to play live.
"The way that the harp and the guitar and everything works together, feels physically really comforting. ... That song is a love letter to women who are kind of backed into a corner looking for a way out.
"It's a moment where I get to talk a little bit to like the women and femmes and queer people in the audience, like, this one's for us."
Take a listen to the conversation above.
