We talk to Annie Caldwell, singer and forming member of The Staples Jr Singers. 

They started out as a group of teenage siblings in 1975, covering their favorite songs by Mavis Staples – hence the bandname The Staples Jr Singers.  Most weekends they would play shows across their home state of Mississippi and beyond. 

But like many gospel musicians of the time, they lacked the backing of a record company, and instead self-published an album called When Do We Get Paid, to be sold at performances and from the family’s yard.

The band did eventually split up, but now, almost fifty years after they started, their music is embraced by audiences all over the world. This unexpected chapter in Staples Jr. Singer’s career began when the record label Luaka Bop reissued their album. 

We'll get to that part, but first we'll ask Annie Caldwell to take it from the top – the beginning of The Staples Jr Singers in Aberdeen, Mississippi 1975.