Rhiannon and Justin | My Music with Rhiannon Giddens

Learn about Rhiannon Giddens’ journey from opera major at Oberlin college to proud chronicler and performer of Black traditional music in this inaugural segment of My Music with Rhiannon Giddens. This transition began when Giddens’ discovered the banjo—not only its singular sound but its fascinating history. Later in the episode, Giddens reunites with her Carolina Chocolate Drops bandmate Justin Robinson. The two sing one of the Grammy Award-winning group’s most popular numbers, “Cornbread and Butterbeans,” and share memories of their shared mentor, the legendary musician Joe Thompson, whom Giddens calls “the last traditional Black fiddler.” Thompson served as a living link to the Black string band tradition, which in turn is part of a “hidden history that has been erased from the musical narrative.”