Singer/songwriter Joe Pug has released four full-length albums, the latest of which, "The Flood In Color," came about during a period when he was assessing whether forging on as a touring musician meshed with his life outside of music. The tracks that ended up on the album came from a collection of over 80 newly written songs.

Son Little has always recorded his music with a very hands-on approach.  That deft ear and attention to craft garnered the attention of such artists as Mavis Staples, who asked Little to produce her Grammy-winning EP.  But on his new album 'aloha,' he handed control to another producer for the first time.

Both Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn have taken the banjo to new heights; Washburn through her innovative collaborations with Chinese musicians, and Fleck through a multitude of projects ranging from classical concerti to his exploration of the African roots of the instrument. As a duo, they've worked to merge their different styles of playing into a unique sound heard on their latest album Echo In The Valley.

On her latest album Stonechild, singer-songwriter Jesca Hoop enlisted the help of producer John Parish, who she claims "killed one of her darlings" on the way to a record characterized by stark minimalist arrangments. The album's title and theme (and cover art) was inspired by an unusual mask on display at the Mutter Museum.  It led to Hoop's exploration of secrets, lies, and the process of letting go.

Sister duo Lily & Madeleine first joined us as teenagers back in 2014. Their beautiful debut album was full of shimmering indie pop that highlighted their marvelous sibling harmonies.  Now in their early twenties, the veteran singer/songwriters have just released their fourth full-length album called Canterbury Girls.

Singer/songwriter Liz Longley is following a path that many musical artists have in recent years - a path toward complete artistic independence. But in Longley's case, the path was lined with accelerants - thousands of fans who stepped up to support an online fundraising campaign to regain control of the master recordings of her new album Funeral For My Past.

Back in 2006, a group of cellists in Portland got together for what they thought would be a one-off performance at the Doug Fir Lounge. It wasn't. Rather, it was the beginning of a long and expansive journey featuring over a hundred different members and well over a thousand different pieces of repertoire.

A member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame and multiple-Grammy winner, Rodney Crowell has been making music for over forty years. In that time, he's released over twenty albums, written and recorded five consecutive number-one hits, and produced scores of albums for other stars. He's been honored with an ASCAP lifetime achievement award for his work.

Curtis Salgado has been a landmark in the Northwest blues music scene for over 30 years. His unique style of blues, soul, and r&b has propelled him to the top of the scene. In Alan Hager, Salgado found not only an excellent lead guitarist for his band, but a like minded scholar of music - able to turn on a dime in virtually any direction.

Growing up in Nairobi, Kenya, J.S. Ondara was tuned into the BBC and the vast world of music that was often as far away as the United States. None of those sounds resonated more clearly than those of one particular troubadour from Minnesota: Bob Dylan.  Fast forward ten years and J.S. Ondara has relocated to Minnesota, hoping to follow a path of inspiration and carve his own career as a singer and songwriter.He stopped by JPR to perform songs from his critically acclaimed debut album Tales of America, and to share stories of how his true impessions (or stories) of America have changed since those days of listening from afar on shortwave radio.