Steven Greenberg, the creative force behind the hit “Funkytown”, on crafting one of the most enduring dance tracks of all time, bridging the transition from disco to synth-driven pop, and the discipline required to bring musical ideas to life in an era before digital shortcuts.
Read MoreDrummer, producer, and composer Makaya McCraven, whose work bridges improvisation, production, and cultural synthesis, on rhythm, time, and the balance of tradition and innovation, plus his creative journey, from his roots in Northampton, Massachusetts, to his innovative projects like In The Moment and In These Times. This hybrid episode spanning interviews from 2022 and 2025 offers a deep dive into the mind of a true beat scientist.
Read MoreRevisiting this conversation with Jacob Collier recorded at his family home in North London, just as his career was beginning to take flight. At 20 years old, Jacob had already captivated musicians and fans alike with his groundbreaking YouTube videos. Ten years later, with six Grammys, millions of fans, and collaborations with icons like Herbie Hancock and Chris Martin, Jacob’s journey from his small music room to global acclaim underscores the transformative power of artistic connection. This early conversation captures a young artist at the cusp of greatness, offering a rare glimpse into the genesis of one of the most influential musicians of our time.
Read MorePianists Aaron Parks and Marta Sanchez on how music has helped them navigate life's complexities. Aaron talks about his move to Portugal, the release of his latest album Little Big III, and how addressing mental health shaped his journey. Marta reflects on leaving Madrid for New York and the deeply personal inspiration behind her album Perpetual Void.
Read MoreComposer/pianist/singer Samora Pinderhughes and drummer/producer Jack DeBoe on their long standing collaborative relationship, what happens when art confronts life’s heaviest themes, but the creators meet it with laughter, lightness, and trust.
Read MoreAllan Tannenbaum, the legendary photographer behind some iconic images, from 1970s NYC nightlife to global headlines, on how he captured it all.
Read MoreGrammy-winning composer and NEA Jazz Master Maria Schneider on 30 years of the Maria Schneider Orchestra, her life and career, from her small-town Minnesota roots to her groundbreaking collaboration with David Bowie and her fight for artists’ rights.
Here she talks about how her music channels the wonder, mystery, and tension of her life experiences, her poetic creative process, her acclaimed album Data Lords, and her reflections on what’s next as she looks back on a remarkable journey.
Read MoreSinger Songwriter and multi instrumentalist Andrew Bird on “the reckoning” of returning home from the road, his early days in Chicago, discovering his sound, songwriting as a form of “speaking in tongues”, what it means to be living his life in song form, the upside of obscurity, and what he learned from singing standards.
Read MorePianist Aaron Goldberg on 20 years of organizing jazz fundraisers for presidential campaigns (this year's was Jazz for Kamala), how he thinks about the potential of music to provoke personal transformation and political action, his own relationship with activism and progressive politics, concert curation, Israel and Gaza.
Read MoreFamily music artist Lucy Kalantari on the power of intention, why gardening is her favorite metaphor for living a creative life, staying curious, parenthood, and the Grammys.
Read MoreTrumpeter Riley Mulherkar is very much a man of his moment, and also mindful of the echoes from the past. His album Riley is one of the most innovative, creative explorations in the space between yesterday and tomorrow that I have heard in a long time. Here he talks about his diverse career as a collaborator, music presenter, composer, and now solo artist, and how thinking of jazz as a family tree helped him to find his place in the music.
Read MoreSinger-songwriter Jesse Harris on Paper Flower, his most recent album recorded in Paris with American and French musicians, his approach to songwriting (“writer's block is a choice”) and production, taking things as they come, confession versus craft, venturing into the unconscious, and whether it is his fate to work with female artists.
Read MoreGuitarist Ella Feingold on her personal and musical rebirth, the importance of rhythm (“I don’t want to impress anyone I just want to make people feel good”), inverted tuning, orchestration, transphobia, and why she hopes to be the Mister Rogers of funk guitar.
Read MorePaula Cole on her early success, dreaming big, her life and career, the power of “the beginner’s mind”, the distinction between being an artist and an entertainer, the feeling of being pregnant with song, speaking for those who cannot speak, navigating a life in the music business, learning from young people, and her new album, Lo.
Read MoreBen Sidran on his most recent record, Rainmaker, the stories behind the songs, his belief in the power of humor to help survive adverse situations, how Philip Roth’s retirement from writing affected him, whether or not he thinks retirement is truly possible for an artist, if this is in fact his last record, and what French rapper MC Solaar has to do with any of it.
Read MoreShabaka Hutchings on growing up between England and Barbados, his shift away from saxophone to wooden flutes, his new record Perceive its beauty, Acknowledge its Grace, the job of the artist, and why this is the right moment to make more patient music.
Read MoreSinger Jose James on his new record 1978, his professional and personal journey, the unique demands of being a jazz singer today, why he believes good art should be transformative, how he stays healthy, the creative challenges brought on by happiness and whether or not one needs to suffer in order to make good art.
Read MoreVocal group säje on their journey - from a weekend retreat in Palm Springs to the release of their first full length album and its subsequent Grammy nomination for Best Arrangement Instruments and Vocals with Jacob Collier for “In The Wee Small Hours of the Morning”, collective lyric writing, managing logistics and juggling four schedules, the emotional space that feminine energy allows, and discovering who they are in public.
Read MoreBassist Will Lee was featured in episode 1 of The Third Story back in 2014. For this tenth anniversary episode, he returns to talk about his career since leaving The Late Show with David Letterman (he was the bass player on both of Letterman’s TV shows starting in 1982), why “music is our boss”, and how he likes to keep things exciting.
Also featured: Amanda Sidran on living with a podcaster.
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