At the beginning of July, we featured Phöenix Lazare in The Ditty Dozen as one of ’12 Artists You Need to Know,’ and today, we’re doubling down on that stance. Lazare, a graduate of Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA, independently released her debut full-length album Gold on July 9th. We caught up with Lazare to hear her take on DIY recording, liner notes, what to do when uninspired, what constitutes a ‘hypnotic’ song,

“We believe that the Blues has a good future in store for it. We live in a time where people are becoming more okay with being themselves, being unique, and being more open to non-mainstream art forms,” says Alex Peterson, who, along with his brother Glenn, has been sharpening his skills as a Blues-rooted musician in The Peterson Brothers for over a decade. The Texas natives truly enjoy the unique ride of being siblings on

Aside from adoring poets and authors like Toni Morrison, Sandra Cisneros, and Karen Russell, Kate Vargas believes our grandparents, parents, teachers, friends, and kids are all equally important storytellers. As far as her own songs and stories, she wants them to be more like an enjoyable conversation, a conversation which we at DittyTV encourage you to take part in. Vargas’ latest LP Rumpumpo was just released on July 16th, and today, we’re offering the video

5 Questions with Joyann Parker by Sam Shansky 1) How would you describe the overall theme of your 2021 LP Out of the Dark? Much of the music on Out of the Dark is about figuring out who you are, acknowledging the good and the bad and using all of those experiences to become a better version of yourself. Hope has always been a theme in my music and is on this record, as well.

5 Questions with The 40 Acre Mule’s J. Isaiah Evans by Sam Shansky 1) You’re about to get back out on the road this month, sharing dates with The Delta Bombers and Ottoman Turks. How are you feeling about touring and performing live for fans once again? We went out with Old 97s for a few dates last month. That was our first tour since the lock down and it was definitely emotional. Being on

5 Questions with Them Coulee Boys (all answers by Soren Staff) 1) Let’s talk about your upcoming album Namesake (out August 6th). This is your 4th LP, and it was written largely during the COVID-19 lockdown months in 2020. Could you describe that writing period for the band and how the songs on the record reflect what was happening then? The unique part of the writing process for Namesake is that for the first time

5 Questions with Danny Burns by Sam Shansky 1) For those not familiar with your story, could you share a bit about your background and your musical journey to this point? I started off as a Folk and traditional player backing musician. From there, I moved my way around genres like Dewey Cox, playing and recording with all sorts of folks in places like New Orleans, with George Porter Jr of The Meters, along with

Chance Emerson is an American singer-songwriter born in Taiwan, raised in Hong Kong, and now a college student in Providence, RI; however, this past year, he moved back to his birthplace to spend time studying archaeology at a university in Tainan City, Taiwan, while playing festivals around the island and recording music. His latest release is a single titled, “Gloria Gracie,” a song that explores new rhythms with the energy of unfettered youth. A mature

Mississippi Hill Country bluesman and two-time GRAMMY nominee Cedric Burnside is all set to release his new album I Be Trying on June 25 via Single Lock Records, the same day he’ll be performing at the North Mississippi Hill Country Picnic in Waterford, MS along with Luther Dickinson and Sharde Thomas. Recorded over a three-day stretch at Royal Studios in Memphis with producer/engineer Boo Mitchell and members of Alabama Shakes and North Mississippi Allstars among others,

On June 25, Michigan-born, Los Angeles-based musician Anna Ash will release her new EP titled Fire Season, featuring songs recorded and mixed at Eli Crews’ home studio in the Catskill Mountains with her friend Eric Kuhn in November of 2020. “Even though we had taken all the necessary covid precautions,” says Ash, “I was still like, ‘Man, let’s just have our own little zones, I’ll stay in my room, you stay in yours, and Eli stays