Rhiannon Giddens trained as opera singer, but her love of folk, country and blues proved greater. So that’s the mix we find on her third solo album ‘You’re The One’ (release August 2023 on Nonesuch Records), one that she comes to present at AB. 

As a black woman, at first she felt like an interloper in the predominantly white world of country and string band music, until she discovered that the roots of that music were intercultural, both black and white. With Carolina Chocolate Drops, she reclaimed string band music for black artists. Her work has since been recognised with various Grammys and even a Pulitzer prize. 

She wrote the songs for her new album entirely on her own for the first time, but in the studio she surrounded herself with producer Jack Splash (known for his work with the likes of Kendrick Lamar, Solange and Valerie June) and top musicians including multi-instrumentalists Francesco Turrisi (Lisa Hannigan, Bobby McFerrin) and Dirk Powell (Eric Clapton, Joan Baez, Jack White, Levon Helm, ...) bassist Jason Sypher (Clifton Chenier) , Congolese guitarist Niwel Tsumbu and drummer Attis Clopton. 

Giddens about the album: ‘I hope that people just hear American music. Blues, jazz, Cajun, country, gospel, and rock—it's all there. I like to be where it meets organically. They're fun songs, and I wanted them to have as much of a chance as they could to reach people who might dig them but don't know anything about what I do’.

On this tour, Rhiannon will be joined by:

• Francesco Turrisi - Keys, Accordion, Percussion
• Dirk Powell - Keys, Guitar, Violin, Accordion, Vocals
• Jason Sypher - Bass
• Niwel Tsumbu - Guitar
• Attis Clopton – Drums