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The last time I had the privilege of interviewing Rhiannon Giddens it was in 2017 at Edmonton Folk Fest.

In the next five years, she became a World star.

For example:

In October 2017, Giddens was named one of the 2017 class of MacArthur “Genius” Fellows.

In 2017 and 2018, Giddens appeared in the fifth and sixth seasons of the CMT‘s

In January 2018, Giddens co-produced Songs of Our Native Daughters for Smithsonian Folkways.

in early 2018, the Nashville Ballet announced that Rhiannon Giddens has been commissioned to write the music for Lucy Negro, Redux. In 2019, Giddens released two studio albums: Songs of Our Native Daughters  and There Is No Other with Italian musician Francesco Turrisi

Giddens earned an Honorary Doctor of Letters from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro for her lasting impact on the UNCG community and her work in music. In 2023, she was awarded an honorary Doctor of Music from Princeton University

In other words, the last 5-6 years have been a delightful blur.

Thus my first question was …what do you remember of the last 5 years?

If anyone is going to change music in her lifetime – it’s Rhiannon Giddens!!

Enjoy.

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Terry sits down with Rhiannon Giddens in 2020 while at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival in 2020.  Tonight Terry will be speaking to her again to catch up On the past 4 years!

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This is the first repeat that we’ve presented on the Podcast.
It comes from working on a Mulligan Stew special celebrating our many years at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival.
One interview stood out.
This one with Rhiannon Giddens.
It was 2018 and she was returning to the festival for the first time since taking time away from her friends in Carolina Chocolate Drops.
She was now a solo artist with T Bone Burnett producing and mentoring.
That’s a matter of record.
What was outstanding were her comments 2 years ago on Black Lives Matter, civil rights, the history of black struggle in America, and her place in that struggle.
Powerful words and opinions. As essential today as they were 2 years ago.
We present Rhiannon Giddens. The complete interview.

Recorded live at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, Rhiannon Giddens talks to Terry David Mulligan about stepping into the spotlight as a solo artist, the influence T-Bone Burnett has had on her career, her latest record ‘Freedom Highway’ and her thoughts on the recent sea change in American politics.