An Album 2Day

EP 15 | LEGACY! LEGACY! by Jamila Woods (2019)

“What will your legacy be?” poses Chicago artist, author, and co-founder of the DuSable Museum Margaret Burroughs. “How can I map a portrait of myself  (and my own legacy) through vignettes of the legacies of artists before me?” responds Jamila Woods in her 2019 work “LEGACY! LEGACY!” Across 12 creatives of color, trailblazers and innovators of their time inclusive of Nikki Giovanni, James Baldwin, Betty Davis, and Jean-Michel Basquiat, Woods explores themes of resilience and rebellion, joy, white violence, Black rage, and self-reflection. She pivots through sounds as the songs swing from upbeat classic hip-hop beats (FRIDA, SONIA) to sci-fi ambience and synths (SUN RA, OCTAVIA). Amidst it all, Jamila’s voice, dedication to uplifting Black history, and repping of her hometown Chicago remain consistent including using Chicago producers and artist features as well as familiar faces of the Chicago social and arts scene in her music videos.  “The beauty of our Blackness is generational!” this album decries. Our strength and resilience, creativity and coolness, brilliance and bravery are woven through generations and will continue to be. Through this album, Woods urges and hopes for young Black people to feel empowered through their history. A teacher and poet, Jamila knows the power of words and is unafraid to flaunt her talents in masterfully stringing them together. Alongside her voice, her wordplay is truly a standout on this album. This record is one for the books and an exciting re-listen as Woods gears up to release her third full project in October of this year. Personal favorites include: “GIOVANNI,” “SONIA,” “MILES,” “MUDDY,” “BASQUIAT,” and “BETTY (for Boogie).”  📀 As always, this episode and all others are available on Apple Music and Spotify - link in bio!  📀 This episode wraps up season 1 of An Album 2Day Podcast! It has been such a fun journey sharing these albums and learning more about artists and the projects they put their thought, time, and energy into. Over the next few months, I’ll be taking a break, checking out all kinds of new music, seeing some live shows, and listening to music just for fun (because the fun is the point!). I can’t wait to come back and share even more projects and hopefully talk more with artists and community members about their work. Talk soon! 📀 Peace n luv, Ash

EP 14 | Visions of a New World by Lonnie Liston Smith (1975)

Celestial and warm jazz fusion just in time for the summer, this week’s album of focus is “Visions of a New World” by Lonnie Liston Smith and the Cosmic Echoes, released in 1975 under Flying Dutchman Records. Having worked under prolific jazz artists like Miles Davis, Gato Barbieri, and Art Blakey, Lonnie Liston Smith began focusing on his own work in the early 1970s (more key influences and partners mentioned in the show!). After forming the Cosmic Echoes with bass, sax, percussion, and more, Lonnie Liston Smith put out a few releases before adding on his brother Donald Smith to vocals a couple years later. With the brothers working together, the band created albums like today’s hit. A tail of its time, the record is focused on peace and love with no war, music and nature as healing forces, and the beauty of possibility. Personal favorites are “Colors of the Rainbow,” “Deevika (Goddess),” “Visions of New World (Phase 1)” and “Visions of a New World (Phase 2)”.  📀 All episodes available in bio! Catch you soon 🌈☀️

EP 13 | Raven by Kelela (2023)

EP 13 | Raven by Kelela (2023) **late night / early morning release for the club queen herself** Raven is for the rave bitches, club kids, and dance queens! Resonance and resilience fill Kelela's sound and perspective as she crafts an album shaped around the transformative symbolism of the Raven. Reflections of isolation and longing as a queer Black femme in the electronic music scene set the mood of this album as Kelela features this album as a response - to white business execs she’s cut ties with due to political misalignment, straight exes who have left her with the brunt of emotional labor, and non-Black dj’s who stifle the music scene leaving no room for people like Kelela. Other themes of the album include separation and awayness, boundary setting, sexual and personal empowerment, and most importantly, water. Amidst submersion, lies a refusal to submission. Sonically, she plays with electronic & dance music subgenres like jungle, drum n bass, downtempo, breakbeat, and classic EDM while staying grounded in RnB and soul roots. Singles released are “Washed Away,” “Happy Ending,” “On the Run,” “Contact,” and “Enough for Love.” Personal favorites are “Bruises,” “Closure,” “Contact”, “Happy Ending,” “Fooley,” and “Sorbet.” 📀 Articles mentioned are “Kelela Knows What Intimacy Sounds Like” by Hannah Giorgis (https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2023/03/kelela-interview-raven-album-review/673296/ [https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2023/03/kelela-interview-raven-album-review/673296/]) and “The meditative, ambient calm of Kelela’s ‘Raven’” by Vrinda Jagota  (https://www.npr.org/2023/02/22/1158721846/kelela-raven-review [https://www.npr.org/2023/02/22/1158721846/kelela-raven-review]) 📀 As always, episode is available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts! Link in bio.

EP 12 | Saturno by Rauw Alejandro (2022)

EP 12 | Saturno by Rauw Alejandro (2022) Love, pride, and sex galore color the third album of Puerto-Rican prince Rauw Alejandro. Serving as an introduction and soundtrack of his world, Saturno is a depiction of the hard-working heartthrob’s inner self. He is as braggadocious and macho as he is vulnerable and loving. He is always protected  - quite literally, cough cough Punto 40 y Cazadores. And, he is a man of his people. Throughout the album, Rauw pays homage to his Puerto-Rican roots as he features reggaetonero heavy hitters like DJ Playero and Daddy Yankee and hinges his sound on classic PR reggaeton, perreo, y PR freestyle/underground - an electronic club sound that was popular in underground parties when music was outlawed on the island. Rauw fuses past and present as he looks towards the future in his sound and in his 777 aircraft to Saturn. Noting his mom’s encouragement that he is so unique he is from another planet, Rauw utilizes each second of this album to display himself and his talents.  Singles of the album are “Lokera,” “Punto 40,” “Dime Quien,” “Lejos del Cielo,” “De Carolina,” “Ron Cola,” “Panties y Brasieres,” y “Que Rico Chingamos.” Personal favorites are “Saturno,” “Punto 40,” “Mas de Una Vez,” “Panties y Brasieres,” “Cazadores,” “Verde Menta,” y “De Carolina.”  📀 Texts to note are “Remixing Reggaeton” by Petra R. Rivera Rideau (2015) and “Rauw Alejandro’s Cosmic Reggaeton Takes Flight by Isabelia Herrera (11/2022) www.nytimes.com/2022/11/14/arts/music/rauw-alejandro-saturno.html [http://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/14/arts/music/rauw-alejandro-saturno.html].  📀 Episode is available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts! Link in bio.

EP 11 | Dirty Computer by Janelle Monae (2018)

EP 11 | Dirty Computer by Janelle Monae (2018)  “I’ll love you in this space and time,” the singer repeats in the intro and title track of her third studio album “Dirty Computer.” Released April 27, 2018, “Dirty Computer” by Janelle Monae invites listeners into the digital vortex and inner programming of Janelle Monae as she strips away her previous albums’ alter ego Cindi Mayweather. Often referring to it as introspective and anthemic, “Dirty Computer” stands as a fight song (well… album) for marginalized folks living in the United States, particularly during the mayhem of the 2016 presidential election, continuous killings of Black people by police, multiple constraints on reproductive rights, and more. Themes of digitization, futurism, confidence, and humor all float through the album as Monae argues for the happiness and freedom of Black women and queer women in particular. Though the album itself is rather dated to the specifics going on around its release, the topics and trials of oppressed communities remain intergenerational. As the final song of the album (“Americans”) points out, it’s up to us to put up the fight to stop the cycles of systemic oppression and violence that constitute the very fabric of American society.  Singles of the album include “Make Me Feel,” “Django Jane,” “Pynk,” and “I Like That.” Personal favorites are “Dirty Computer,” “Screwed,” “Make Me Feel,” “I Got the Juice,” and “Don’t Judge Me.”  📀📀 Podcast episodes are available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and IHeartRadio. All links are in the bio.  📀📀 Article pictured is “Janelle Monae's Dirty Computer: An Experience Immersed in Musical Activism” (Medium, Lucas Cava, 01/19) https://lucascava.medium.com/dirty-computer-an-experience-immersed-in-musical-activism-b28dcd02c8aa [https://lucascava.medium.com/dirty-computer-an-experience-immersed-in-musical-activism-b28dcd02c8aa].