Jazz pianist Billy Tipton has been celebrated by some as a trans pioneer – but his story resists an easy telling.

Lost Notes S2 Ep. 6: Imagining Billy Tipton

KCRW’s acclaimed music documentary podcast, Lost Notes, is back for its fourth season! Co-hosts Novena Carmel (KCRW) and Michael Barnes (KCRW / KPFK / Artform Radio) guide you through eight wildly different and deeply human stories, each set against the kaleidoscopic backdrop of LA’s soul and R&B scene of the 1950s-1970s.

Music

Lost Notes introduces a pair of brothers - one from NASA, the other from Motown - who launched an entire musical universe from their Hollywood Hills hideout.

Places & Spaces: The Mizell Brothers’ LA Alchemy

Lost Notes returns with a brand new episode next Wednesday. To tide you over, we’re featuring a deep dive into Kendrick Lamar’s 2022 album Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers from our friends at Switched on Pop.

Kendrick Lamar and the big samples (from “Switched on Pop”)

Lost Notes explores how the song “Viva Tirado” exemplifies the inter-generational musical conversation between LA’s Black and Brown communities.

Viva Tirado: The South/East LA Connection

Lost Notes explores how Fela Kuti’s time in LA in 1969 was instrumental in the creation of his legendary Afrobeat sound.

My Lady’s Frustration: How Fela Kuti Found Afrobeat in LA

Lost Notes details the darkly hilarious schemes of record-label magnate Ruth Christie, who instigated one of the most absurd court cases in music history.

Lost Notes S2 Ep. 6: Imagining Billy Tipton

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