Rhiannon Giddens' new album, You're the One, her first of all original songs, is out now. "Giddens melds the past and present, writing a bold new future for herself in the process," says Rolling Stone. "One of Americana music's most vital voices expands her sound without abandoning her roots." "It’s easy to hear the joyous spirit in which she’s singing these songs," says Folk Alley, "and Giddens delivers a little masterpiece of an album that showcases her commanding presence as a singer and songwriter." Uncut calls the album an “accomplished tour d’horizon by [a] prolific polymath.” "There are good years, and then there are great years. Rhiannon Giddens is having one of those," says Michel Martin on NPR's Morning Edition; you can hear their conversation here.

Portuguese fado singer Carminho's new, self-produced album, Portuguesa, released to critical acclaim earlier this year, is now available in the US on CD and vinyl on Nonesuch, ahead of a fall North American tour. You can take a quick look inside the vinyl here. The sixth album of Carminho’s career, Portuguesa features fourteen compositions: several of her own songs as well as those of other writers, including traditional fado songs, through which she explores various combinations within the canons, reimagining the form.

k.d. lang's recording of the song that was Tony Bennett’s first no. 1 hit, “Because of You,” for CBS News Sunday Morning, in memory of her longtime friend, teacher, and musical collaborator, is now available to stream and download. lang is donating her proceeds from the single to the Tony Bennett Legacy Fund of Exploring the Arts, the nonprofit he and his wife Susan Benedetto founded. “‘Because of You’ was the last song Tony sang, just two days before he passed,” Benedetto said. “Hearing k.d.’s beautiful rendition of the song she and Tony sang together brings back wonderful memories and pays tribute to their friendship. As I mentioned to k.d., ‘If Tony were here, he would say only one word after hearing you sing that song, ‘Perfect.’”

Composer Steve Reich talks about creating his iconic 1965 tape piece It's Gonna Rain in a new video from his publisher Boosey & Hawkes. That year, Reich recorded Pentecostal preacher Brother Walter preaching on Noah and the Flood in San Francisco, then aligned two Wollensak tape recorders that gradually fell out of sync, eventually creating contrapuntal lines from the recording. Reich's first major phasing work, it would become a landmark piece.

Rhiannon Giddens was on the Today show on NBC to perform the title track to her new album, You're the One, out this Friday, and the new album track "Too Little, Too Late, Too Bad," which was released today. "I listened to a bunch of Aretha Franklin, and then turned to fellow Aretha-nut Dirk Powell and said, ‘Let’s write a song she might have sung!,'" Giddens says of the new song. You can watch the Today performances and listen to the new album track here.

Natalie Merchant recently gave an intimate performance at The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture in NYC for WFUV’s FUV Live. She spoke with host Alisa Ali and was joined by her longtime guitarist Erik Della Penna to perform several songs from throughout her career. You can now watch her perform "Sister Tilly," from her new album, Keep Your Courage, as well as “Carnival” and “Break Your Heart” from the set here and listen to the complete session at wfuv.org. Merchant resumes her Keep Your Courage tour on the US West Coast, Europe, and the UK in the autumn.

Hurray for the Riff Raff begins a UK duo acoustic tour with shows in London, Oxford, and Hebden Bridge. Laurie Anderson joins Joan Baez at HamptonsFilm SummerDocs. Julia Bullock joins Scottish Chamber Orchestra for Mozart's The Magic Flute at Edinburgh International Festival. Rhiannon Giddens talks about her new album, You're the One, at Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville. Brad Mehldau joins drummer Joe Farnsworth and bassist Larry Grenadier at Smoke Jazz Club in NYC. Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway are at Edmonton Folk Festival.

David Byrne & Fatboy Slim’s acclaimed 2010 album Here Lies Love is now available on vinyl for the first time, to coincide with the 2023 Broadway production. This double-disc song cycle about the rise and fall of the Philippines’ notorious Imelda Marcos and the People Power Revolution was conceived by David Byrne; composed by Byrne and Fatboy Slim; and performed by a dream cast drawn from the worlds of indie rock, alt country, R&B, and pop, including Florence Welch, Cyndi Lauper, Steve Earle, Sharon Jones, Natalie Merchant, Tori Amos, Kate Pierson, St. Vincent, My Brightest Diamond, Nellie McKay, Martha Wainwright, Róisín Murphy, Santigold, and Byrne himself. “Ingenious,” said the New York Times. “Insidiously infective songs.”

Composer John Adams talks about his acclaimed opera Doctor Atomic and the aria “Batter My Heart” in a new video from Boosey & Hawkes. The opera, with a libretto by Peter Sellars drawn from original sources—including, for this aria, the John Donne sonnet—tells the story of Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer and the first atomic bomb explosion in New Mexico in July 1945. The video features scenes from the Dutch National Opera production starring Gerald Finley, who originated the role of Oppenheimer in 2005 and can be heard on the Nonesuch first recording of Doctor Atomic, with the composer leading the BBC Singers and the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and Julia Bullock as Kitty Oppenheimer. You can hear “Batter My Heart” from the recording here as well.

Darcy James Argue's Secret Society has released “Last Waltz for Levon,” a new song from their upcoming album, Dynamic Maximum Tension, due September 8. The track, which you can hear here, is dedicated to drummer and vocalist Levon Helm of The Band. Argue’s treatment, featuring solos by trombonist Mike Fahie and bassist Matt Clohesy, is also inspired by the horn arrangements written by legendary songwriter and producer Allen Toussaint for The Band’s classic live album Rock of Ages. Argue and Secret Society celebrate the release of Dynamic Maximum Tension with a four-night run at NYC’s Jazz Gallery, September 13–16.

David Byrne is the subject of a Financial Times Magazine feature and spoke with writer Lilah Raptopoulos on the FT Weekend podcast. They talk about some of the “million-and-a-half things” for which he is known, including Talking Heads and the just-opened Broadway production of Here Lies Love, the original 2010 double-disc song cycle album of which gets its first vinyl release this Friday. You can hear their conversation here.

Portuguese fado singer Carminho performed before Pope Francis and attendees of the World Youth Day Prayer Vigil at Campo da Graça in Lisbon’s Parque Tejo on Saturday night. She sang “Estrela,” from her 2019 album, Maria. You can watch the performance here.