“I'm just so fascinated by the voice,” says Taja Cheek, the experimentalist and multi-instrumentalist behind L’Rain. “It feels so scary to me, but that's also what kind of draws me closer to it to try to figure it out.” It’s this fascination Taja credits with inspiring the dreamy and ethereal vocal manipulations on Fatigue, L’Rain’s second album. On this episode, Hanif and Taja sit down ahead of L’Rain’s upcoming tour to talk in detail about her process, the power of repetition, and confronting one’s own voice.  We’ll also talk about L’Rain’s upcoming show at BAM, where she is performing with Moses Sumney as part of a series of concerts curated by Hanif. Plus, stay tuned at the end of the episode as Hanif and Taja collaborate on a vocal experiment of their own. For the playlist of songs curated for this episode head over to https://bit.ly/oos-repetition. 

/ Music In This Week’s Episode /
Find It - L’Rain
Halo - Beyoncé
I’m Goin’ Down - Bruce Springsteen
Work - Rhianna, Drake
Mr. Brightside - The Killers
Thong Song - Amber Mark
Ain’t No Sunshine - Bill Withers

Transformation Through Repetition (feat L’Rain)

Object Of Sound brings you in tune with the music shaping our culture today. Hosted by poet and critic Hanif Abdurraqib, each episode blends the eclectic curation of freeform radio with artist interviews and textural storytelling, guiding you to a new way of listening. 

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What is the sound of where you come from? Is it a particular song you remember from your childhood? Maybe it’s a collection of remembered sounds from your first home—a train that passed nearby, or the wildlife that would sing at night. Maybe it’s the first song that you ever really connected to, the one that first made you feel like you belonged. In this special episode, we’re exploring this question from many perspectives. Hanif speaks to composer and multi-instrumentalist Angélica Negrón, whose work is deeply invested in these questions of sound, home, and belonging. Plus we hear from Hanif’s friends, and from you, our listeners, about what ‘the sound of where I come from’ means to you. For the playlist of songs curated for this episode, head over to https://www.mixcloud.com/sonos/

Music in this episode:
O-H-I-O - Ohio Players
Letter Home - Defiance, Ohio
Findlay, Ohio 1968 - Indigo Girls
Cuyahoga - R.E.M.
Cleveland Is The City - Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
Look At Miss Ohio - Gillian Welch

The Sound of Where You Come From (feat. Angélica Negrón)

Imagine walking inside a room that was made for fans of this show. We've teamed up with the first-ever immersive podcast experience happening Feb 23-26 at Wythe Hotel in Williamsburg Brooklyn to make it happen. Flip through original vinyl and artifacts from the show, add your selects to a living playlist, and if you're lucky, run into Hanif in the room! All the details are available at bit.ly/oos-experience

The Listening Lounge: The Sound of Where You Come From

Welcome to our first ever year end special, ‘This Year In Music with Hanif Abdurraqib.’ December is the perfect time to look back on all the incredible music that has been released over the past year: the songs that moved us to dance, and the songs that helped us endure. In this hour-long deep dive, we'll review the musical highlights of 2022 and make predictions about the future of music in 2023 together with special guests Kelela, Sam Sanders, and Santigold.

This Year In Music (feat. Kelela, Sam Sanders, & Santigold)

In Mali, where Fatoumata Diawara was raised, it is common for women to sing, but much rarer for women to play an instrument. As a result, Fatoumata—who is one of the first, if not the first woman guitarist in all of Mali—has developed a self-taught, intuitive guitar playing style that is entirely her own. “This way of playing, it's me,” says Fatoumata. “It represents my fight as a musician, as an African, and as a lady on stage.” In this episode of Object of Sound, Fatoumata talks to Hanif about how she discovered her calling as a musician, and the exciting ways that she is fusing the traditional music of her homeland with Western influences on her third studio album, out next year. Hanif closes the episode with a selection of blues and folk music from Mali. For the playlist of songs curated for this episode, head over to radio.sonos.com.

Music In This Week’s Episode: 
Kalan - Fatoumata Diawara
Bassemory - Mamou Sidibé
Lalla - Tinariwen
Kuma - Salif Keita
Sabali - Amadou & Mariam
Sarama - Oumou Sangaré
Tongo Barra - Vieux Farka Touré, Khruangbin

Future Facing Sound (feat. Fatoumata Diawara)

The night before Thanksgiving, Hanif has a special invented tradition: every year, he makes a batch of cupcakes and watches The Last Waltz—and every year, he finds new things to love about the film. Directed by Martin Scorsese, The Last Waltz is a 1978 concert film documenting the final performance of The Band. To Hanif, the movie is not just a collection of great performances, but a study in exquisite tenderness, and how to say goodbye. Hrishikesh Hirway joins Hanif to discuss the film in this special episode recorded live at On Air Fest LA Annex 2022. For the playlist of songs curated for this episode, head over to radio.sonos.com. 

Music In This Week’s Episode: 
Sip the Wine - Rick Danko
Don’t Do It - The Band
My Love - Rick Danko and Richard Manuel
Down South in New Orleans - The Band, Bobby Charles
False Hearted Lover Blues - Levon Helm
Tura Lura Lural (That’s an Irish Lullaby) - The Band, Van Morrison 
All Our Past Times - Rick Danko
Showdown at Big Sky - Robbie Robertson

Transformation Through Repetition (feat L’Rain)

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