#activism

Kebs Talks Skateboarding, Inclusion, and Her Debut LP with Punitive Damage

With a raw ferocity and a merciless attack on their instruments, their debut full length, This is the Blackout, which drops on October 14th via Atomic Action Records, rages at our...

Alexa Peters

Joan Osborne Tackles Abuse of Power, Climate Change, and Immigration on Trouble and Strife

She's earned seven Grammy nominations along the way, a testament to her...

Annie White

PLAYING SEATTLECellist and Activist Ebony Miranda Talks Resistance and Allyship Through Music

According to a 2014 study by the League of American Orchestras, less than 2% of musicians in American orchestras are African American, only 4.3% of conductors are black, and composers remain predominantly white as well. Hence, as a classically-trained cellist and person of color (POC), Ebony...

Alexa Peters

INTERVIEWBella Alubo Contributes Track to Red Hot COVID Relief EP Kele•le

On her catchy new single, Nigerian hip-hop/afro-pop artist Bella Alubo sings about being the "Loneliest Girl in the World" — a position many people under quarantine can relate to right now. But for some people in the midst of the pandemic, loneliness is the least of their worries. That's why Alubo...

Annie White

PLAYING CINCYDave Chappelle Brings Stevie Wonder, Chance the Rapper and More to Dayton Benefit Concert

For this week's Playing Cincinnati, we traveled 20 miles north to Dave Chappelle's Gem City Shine Benefit Concert in Dayton, Ohio. Chappelle, who lives in the neighboring Ohio town of Yellow Springs, threw the enormous block party to commemorate the nine lives lost in a recent mass shooting at a...

Victoria Moorwood

PLAYING CINCYTRIIIBE Stays Busy With New Album, Solo Projects and Outreach Programs

With three very active members in Cincy's hip-hop community, TRIIIBE always has a lot going on. Aziza Love recently dropped her solo effort Views From The Cut EP, Siri Imani is gearing up to release her debut solo project Therapy project next month, and as a trio they've not only been working on...

Victoria Moorwood

PLAYING THE BAYIvy Jeanne Is Not For Sale

Ivy Jeanne wears many hats. Political femme activist, lead singer of Black Rainbow, muralist, and longtime San Francisco resident, are just a few ways to describe her momentum and dedication to our local community. We chat on Clarion Alley, in front of her very own mural (influenced by the...

Kayla Fong and Zihao Huang

ONLY NOISERise

Sometimes, these columns are damn hard to spit out. It’s not always easy to remain enthralled with the music world, especially when the real world seems to be crumbling around us. We don’t have to pretend. 2017 has been a fucking nightmare. We’ve witnessed the inauguration of Donald J. Trump, North...

Madison Bloom

NEWS ROUNDUPBandcamp, The State Of Indie Rock and More

In New York this week, we've learned that there are no snow days for the humble musician. Bandcamp Made it Rain For The ACLU After the site announced it would donate its share(about 12%) of all purchases last Friday, music fans bought about $1,000,000 worth of music. According to Bandcamp, that’s...

Emily Daly

ARTIST OF THE MONTHMadame Gandhi

I met up with Gandhi for a coffee earlier this month, to chat about her love of the drums, her upcoming musical projects, and the eternal wisdom of Spiderman.

Madison Bloom

LIVE REVIEWMadame Gandhi + Fuck Rape Culture @ Baby's All Right

The evening was peppered with some remarkable acts including The Skins and The New Tarot. Amber Tamblyn offered an impassioned poetry reading while actress and rape survivor Rose McGowan gave an admirably vulnerable speech.

Madison Bloom