Tunedig

Odetta — a must-know titan of American music and culture — once noted that young people “learn about American history through battles.” But her dream of liberation was shaped much differently: “I learned about the United States through this music, through the songs that I sing.”As we live through the kind of historical moment that makes most folks want to lie down and die, we can — like many heroes before us, from MLK to Maya Angelou — look to the legacy of 1964 and Odetta for strength to insist upon our lives.Follow us on Instagram (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

Once upon a time in Bollywood, one magical man made enough music to fill a million moments—and made space for hundreds of other artists along the way. Of the 331 scores “Pancham” composed in his lifetime, 1978's “Shalimar” is a uniquely compelling introduction to his technical prowess, transcendent alchemy of cultures, and tremendously joyful love of a life full of song.Follow us on Instagram (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

“That’s the thing about pretty faces… We don’t expect them to belong to the fighters— the junkies and monks and cockroaches who’ll survive every atomic bomb and suicide attempt and outlive us all.” - Lindsay ZoladzBroken English is searing, singular snapshot of surviving to spite the devils (who’ve gotten far too much sympathy in the story so far). You’ll love it forever with its good and bad weather.We may have lost Marianne Faithfull this year, but not before she outran the darkness. As we close out a dark year and look ahead for light, there’s a lesson to be learned from her life.Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

Any denier that all art is political need look no further than the smoothed-out soul slipstream of Sade, a group defined by its economics. Rare output, minimal arrangements, reserved volume, and, of course, the premium implied by “Love Deluxe”—a title derived from the idea that true love is among a precious few luxuries that can’t be bought. Our world’s clearly longing for more longing, and we discovered a truly transcendent delicacy as we unboxed Sade’s brand of desire.Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

When you think of true "artists" in music, who comes to mind? Charles Mingus embodied its romantic ideal, for better and for worse. His magnum opus "Black Saint" is more than even jazz's cosmic form can hold—it's the full-bodied essence of a master composer, peerlessly inventive bassist, and clairvoyant critic of the real America. In it, you’ll find what his collaborator Gunther Schuller called "the widest ranging musics you can find composed by one single human being."Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

“Entertainment!” is described by Gang of Four’s Jon King as “a record about young people smiling and dancing in the face of disaster.” Uh oh, sound familiar? This Leeds-born slab of Brechtian boogie reminds us that to navigate a world where everything is (small-p) political, dancing and dialectics belong together. Free your ass and your mind will follow.Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

This is the tale of two lonesome cowboys who got down, turned around, and went to town catching lightning in a bottle on their first try together. Whether or not their decade-defining country anthems lit a flame in your eye in the 90s like they did ours, Ronnie and Kix offer a lens through which outlaws, in-laws, crooks, and straights alike can look for ways to learn to love again.Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

The name "Oumou" derives from an Arabic word meaning "mother of." It is associated with dignity, wisdom, and maternal strength. Southern Mali’s Oumou Sangare has come to embody her namesake for millions around the world, and it all began when she was just 19 years old, channeling the magical music of hunters through her powerful and purposeful voice and creating a moment that captivated an entire country. Hers is a story everyone should know.Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

In the words of one of her groundbreaking forebears, “You feel free? You want to try some wild s**t? Thank Missy.” Since the very first frame of “The Rain” entered our eyeballs, Missy has made the avant-garde accessible, pointing us to a future full of more funk and more fun simply by standing fully in the splendor of her space-age self. Come (supa dupa) fly with us back to the moment where Missy’s magic began.Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

God is a woman and she plays the guitar loud … y’all come catch some Holy Ghost in your hips. Hear our hallelujah for the love story of the queen of rock ‘n roll and the mad daddy holy rollin’ on a river—upstream all the way—and boot scootin’ through a fun and freaky heaven and earth of their own design. The Cramps were Dionysian, devilish, dangerous, and damn good, and they remind us that life can be, too. If you can’t dig this, you can’t dig nothin’.Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

Life’s a bit heavy to chew on these days, so we reached into the pocket of our mid-2000s jeans and found an old piece of Dandelion Gum to chew on instead. As soon as its neon syrup hits your tongue, you’ll wonder why you hadn't let this "future pop for now people, today" melt you, melt you, melt you yet.Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

This life we're livin' is oh so beautiful. Take it from Patrick Houston, who has spread the gospel of the real for three decades, followed by a discipleship that has shaped 21st century culture in his image. For those still alive in 2025 by the grace of God, let us give flowers to the man from the North North.Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

Not a woman. Not a man. A revolution. Music’s long history is littered with larger-than-life characters whose mythology shapes reality for the masses — and few loom larger than the mighty Grace Jones.“Nightclubbing” without context is a tremendous body of songs worth anyone’s time, but after a deep dive into Grace’s time at Compass Point, you’ll agree that it’s a vital work.Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

The menace and melancholy of modern life have sentenced scores of young people to the gilded prison of nostalgia — but much to our surprise, a band of recovering Southern pop-punks have an antidote. For anyone willing to “sit still long enough to listen to yourself,” their new music’s sharp rhythmic angles and sharper lyrical reflections frame a doorway through which to free our big feelings and forge ahead.Follow us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, or Mastodon (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

You know that five-note coyote howl. You may even know the classic film it helps power. But what do you know about the man behind those iconic moments?For our final exploration from our 2024 calendar, reflect with us on the genius of a maestro who could make magic with a mere fistful of notes, who poured forth from his soul a foundation upon which much of 20th century popular culture was built.Follow us on Instagram and Twitter (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

Vision. Bravery. Originality. The 30th anniversary of the ATL-exported opus — by the highest-selling girl group of all time — offered us a chance to reflect on all the ways our hometown heroes ran so some of the 21st century’s most iconic artists could fly.Follow us on Instagram and Twitter (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

Before the Super Bowl, the super beef, the Pulitzer, or PGLang, one good kid and king-to-be sojourned from South Central to the height of the American promise and rained down lightning that united one nation under a groove. You’ll feel the energy of this episode from two planets away — hop in the van real quick and let’s roll out.Follow us on Instagram and Twitter (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

Dream of ethereal waves of sound swirling around you—and words you can’t make out saying more than you could imagine—as you float back upstream with us toward the warmth of Cocteau Twins’ decade-defining masterpiece, which still ripples across a vast pool of influences 25 years on.Follow us on Instagram and Twitter (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

Once upon a time, “your favorite artist’s favorite artist” wasn’t a Midwest princess, but a “mystery white boy” beloved by Bob Dylan and Adele alike. Jeff Buckley’s signature Grace is on the shortlist of transcendent albums every living being should experience, because, as one industry vet put it: “it’s all in there, isn’t it? It’s just all in there.” Marvel and ache with us at the warm glow of a remnant left behind by a fallen star whose light shone briefly but brilliantly.Follow us on Instagram and Twitter (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.

If you like heavy music in 2024 (or want to try), all roads lead back to We Are the Romans. Botch is the Eno-on-Velvet trope of hardcore, the band that launched a thousand imitators simply by being themselves.We Are the Romans is a visceral, vital document guaranteed to make you feel something from its first notes — and there’s never been a better time to stop and smell the roses from a group just now getting its long-overdue flowers.Follow us on Instagram and Twitter (@tunedig) for daily listening recommendations, and check out more episodes at tunedig.com.