Issue Articles — BackTalk
John “Papa” Gros talks back
I interviewed John Gros for this piece on March 12. There was so much to talk about. He had a great new album, Central City, which he was going to […]
Emilio Castillo of Tower of Power talks back
This interview was conducted before Tower of Power’s April 22 performance at the House of Blues New Orleans was cancelled- ED. After 50 mighty years of making music, what does […]
Christone ‘‘Kingfish’’ Ingram talks back
A native of Clarksdale, Mississippi, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram comes from the land of Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, John Lee Hooker and Skip James. Just turned 21, this young man with […]
Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph talks back
As eclectic as the New Orleans music scene is, it’s still hard to imagine an artist having a more diverse career than Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph, who, at the age of […]
Rhiannon Giddens talks back
In 2007, Rhiannon Giddens performed at the Folk Alliance International conference with the aspiring black string band Carolina Chocolate Drops. On January 25, 2020, following one Grammy Award, six Grammy […]
Jimmy “Duck” Holmes talks back
Mississippi’s Jimmy “Duck” Holmes is the keeper of the Bentonia blues tradition flame. He follows such earlier practitioners of the country-blues style as Skip James, Jack Owens and brothers Henry […]
Terence Blanchard talks back
In June, the Metropolitan Opera announced that it will stage an opera by an African-American composer for the first time in the company’s 163-year history. New Orleans jazz trumpeter Terence […]
Little Steven Van Zandt talks back
After press time, Steven Van Zandt announced the cancellation of his upcoming tour, due to sinusitis. He will no longer appear in New Orleans on October 1, 2019, as previously […]
Ken Burns talks back
In early August, documentary filmmaker Ken Burns was in full evangelist mode. Five weeks before the September 15 debut of Country Music, his latest television epic, Burns rhapsodized over country […]
Ricky Riccardi talks back
Ricky Riccardi’s devotion to Louis Armstrong began when he was a high school freshman in Toms River, New Jersey. Then 15, the future director of research collections at the Louis […]
