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CHIRP Podcasts
Artist Interviews Slow Riser Interview
This week, Features Director Marjorie Alford speaks to Ian Young of Slow Riser about their recent release Midnight Talks. They discuss the birth and evolution of the project - including restructing from a trio to a duo and the pace change of creating through the pandemic - as well as the ins and outs of their live shows, and the truth in art of being a slow riser.
"When Claire and I were talking about like overarching themes we landed on our own relationship to the night and how that changes over the years, how that changes depending on what time of year it was, how we feel mentally, all that stuff. So Midnight Talks is very much me trying to create a vignette of what it was to drive around small towns, growing up at night with my friends." - Ian Young
Produced by Jack Deubner.
Photo Credit: Slow Riser
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Artist Interviews Eel Romance Interview
This week, Features Director Jessi D speaks with Cameron Lee, who performs as Eel Romance, about his debut album, Funny Blue, his struggle with and commitment to creating his perfect first album, being inspired to finish his album by recording and distributing his own cassette tapes using a recorder from a 90s cereal promotion, and how his own audio diaries formed his sampling process.
"I was just going to share it with some friends, and mainly it was just a personal milestone where I wanted to finish something. [...] I've always had trouble saying that something is finished and committing it and saying this is what I wanted to do, I am proud of this. This represents a piece of me. But this one happened to work, and that took a lot of work to do. [...] This is great surprise, and it's very exciting for me. Because I've always wanted to talk about this, I've always wanted to do this." - Cameron Lee
Produced by Jessi D.
Photo Credit: Nat Werth
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First Time: First Break - Andre Vasquez
Born and raised in Chicago, Andre Vasquez is the Alderperson of the 40th Ward and one of the six Democratic Socialists elected to City Council.
Prior to his life in Public Service, he was the Illinois Director for AT&T Connected Communities, a local Community Organizer with the Peoples Lobby, and a Hip Hop Artist. He has brought those different experiences and perspectives to City Council to improve government services while creating community-centered development.
He is the Vice Chair of the Committee on Special Events and Cultural Affairs, the Secretary of the Progressive Caucus, and Treasurer of the Latino Caucus.
The First Time is hosted by Jenn Sodini. Produced by Bobby Evers, Andy Vasoyan, and Julie Mueller. Podcast produced by Andy Vasoyan. Recorded by Tony Baker.
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First Time: First Break - Parker Malloy
Parker Molloy is a Chicago-based writer and author of The Present Age, a newsletter about communication in a hyperconnected world.
Between 2018 and 2021, Parker was editor-at-large at Media Matters for America, a non-profit progressive media watchdog. There, she wrote about the role right-wing media played in the rise of Donald Trump and the creation of alternate perceived realities.
Her work has also appeared in places like The New York Times, Rolling Stone, The Daily Beast, and VICE. The Present Age was the 2022 winner of New York University’s American Journalism Online Award for Best Media Criticism. Judge and former CNN host Brian Stelter called The Present Age “an essential part of an informed citizen’s media diet.”
The First Time is hosted by Jenn Sodini. Produced by Bobby Evers, Andy Vasoyan, and Julie Mueller. Podcast produced by Andy Vasoyan. Recorded by Tony Baker.
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Artist Interviews Caroline Lucius Interview
This week, Features contributor Matty G speaks with Chicago-based artist Caroline Lucius and her brother and producer Schaeffer Lucius. They discuss the creation process for her newest EP, Running Without Me, producing the entire album alone in the home the siblings share, using samples from family VHS tapes in the production of the album, and making sure to take time for rest.
"I feel like part of me is very anti-nostalgia and against sentimentality because it can hold you back in some ways, and it can make you stay in the past. And I feel like I sound harsh when I say that, because so many people will say, it's ironic - your music has a nostalgic vibe." - Caroline Lucius on sampling her family's VHS tapes in her music
Produced by Jessi D.
Photo Credit: Lori Allen
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