Shilpa Ray is a singer, songwriter and a multi-instrumentalist based in Queens, NY. She has been recording, releasing and touring on records in various incarnations from 2006 to the present. Her most recent release, Portrait Of A Lady (via Northern Spy Records) is her most personal, direct record to date, and delivers a jarring honesty that keeps the listener engrossed in the wide batch of sonic and lyrical intensity. In this episode Shilpa tells us why her first instrument was a harmonium, how The Side Walk Cafe's nurturing environment help her get her start in live performance and why drums and time keeping are so important to her. She tells us how the combination of a sound check with Andrew Bird and an image of Nan Golden re-illuminated the importance of art in her life and inspired her to write a record focused on her own personal experiences. We learn who the bootlickers are in the song Bootlickers Of The Patriarchy, she tells us a wild tour story thank involves Rick James's gravestone and we hear a couple tunes.

Shilpa Ray

Northern Spy Records

Episode supported by Distrokid

Episode supported by Izotope

Episode supported by Native Instruments