Rhiannon Giddens Slates New Album ‘Hope Is The Thing With Feathers’ For September

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Rhiannon Giddens will release her new album Hope is the Thing with Feathers on Sept. 18 on Nonesuch Records.

The 10-song collection was inspired by the beauty of people coming together and drawing strength from each other, and was recorded live at The Cypress House in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana. From exploring the lineages that make American music to the community-oriented spirit in which it was conceived and recorded, in many ways the album tells the story of the last 20 years of Giddens’ life. The project features four original songs written by Giddens and longtime collaborator/bandmate Dirk Powell, including leadoff single “Carolina Rain,” in which Giddens sings about love and money. Another track “Wish in Vain” was written about the refugee crisis around the globe.

The album also features interpretations of pieces by North Carolinians Ola Belle Reed (“High on a Mountain”) and Elizabeth Cotton (“Freight Train”), Indigenous activist, singer-songwriter and storyteller Pura Fé (“Going Home”), and traditionals including “Cluck Old Hen” and “Walk with Me” (a duet with Giddens’ sister). The title track was inspired by the poem by Emily Dickinson.

“Louisiana, the Congo, Italy, the Carolinas – all of these influences and people coming together to make something: that is American music,” says Giddens. “It’s how American music came to be, and that was the original thought of creating a band with the musicians that I’ve been playing with for years, and featured on this album.”

Giddens has a full slate of performances throughout the summer, including a special five-night slate of concerts with Mavis Staples, Mary Chapin Carpenter and Hurray for the Riff Raff under open skies for a joyful celebration of American songs that connect generations.

Hope is the Thing with Feathers Track List:
1. “Angel Fire Rise”
2. “Hope Is the Thing with Feathers”
3. “Step Away Blues”
4. “Wish in Vain”
5. “Carolina Rain”
6. “High on a Mountain”
7. “Freight Train”
8. “Walk with Me”
9. “Cluck Old Hen”
10. “Going Home”

Lorie Hollabaugh
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