Carolina Chocolate Drops' Rhiannon Giddens is featured on the latest episode of Nurse Jackie, airing on Showtime this Sunday, April 20. She performs four traditional tunes, backed by her bandmate Hubby Jenkins and three other old-time musicians, with Giddens doing square dance calls and playing fiddle. The episode is available now via Showtime's online streaming service, Showtime Anytime. The New York Times, reviewing Carolina Chocolate Drops' recent show in Brooklyn, called it a "rollicking, revelatory concert," lauding Giddens as "ridiculously charismatic." Times columnist Paul Krugman called the show "totally amazing."

Rhiannon Giddens, co-founding member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, receives the 2014 Sam Ragan Fine Arts Award from St. Andrews University in Laurinburg, NC, today. The Sam Ragan Fine Arts Award is presented annually to recognize outstanding contributions to the Fine Arts of North Carolina. "Honorees are persons who have, over a long period, been outstanding practitioners of their art," says Ron Bayes, distinguished professor of creative writing Emeritus, "and who have selflessly shared their talent with other creators, working in their primary genre and beyond."