Jewly Hight: In the new issue of the Nashville Scene, there are critics picks on a bunch of shows. So how about we focus first on the ones that showcase many different kinds of music that are made right here in town? And what do you say we work in a history lesson and go in chronological order, beginning with the group, the institution, that earned Nashville its “Music City” nickname? What do the Fisk Jubilee singers have on the calendar?
Stephen Trageser: On Thursday, they’re going to be at the Ryman Auditorium. They are kind of winding down their 150th anniversary celebration. They’ve had all kinds of stuff going on this year, including the premiere of great documentary called “Walk Together Children.” And they’ve got this big showcase concert to wrap that up. They’ve got tons of guests coming in, folks like Rissi Palmer, Jason Eskridge, Brassville, even Dr. Bobby Jones, and lots more folks coming in.
JH: One of your Scene contributors wrote about an artist who has been a leader in Nashville hip-hop for over a decade now, an artist whose work is also the subject of our Record of the Week feature this week at WNXP. I think this will be the Mike Floss’s first show here in Nashville since 2019. What can you tell us about it?
ST: Well, it’s one of the strongest voices in local hip-hop. He has kind of spent a little bit of time away from the scene, but never really lose in touch. Now he’s coming back. He’s going to be at Exit/In on Friday. He’s got a bunch of guests as well. He’s got Savvy, who’s a local rising rapper and R&B singer. And he’s also got Josh Black, the comedian doing a set, as well as DJ TrueStar.
JH: Mike Floss is not the only second-generation Nashville artist who’s performing soon. Lilly Hiatt is as well. She has a show coming up that you also covered, right?
ST: Yes, indeed. She is going to be at 3rd and Lindsley on Sunday night. She’s had two records worth of material to get back on the road with year as pandemic restrictions have been easing up. So she’s got material from her 2020 album Walking Proof and another one called Lately. She and Lydia Loveless have been barnstorming across the country, and they’re wrapping their tour up with the show Sunday night.
ST: There are a few other shows that you also spotlight in this issue that feature artists who live here and have histories with, or are presently with, bands. I’m talking about Deer Tick, Mark Fredsen and Allison Russell. Can you bring us up to speed on what they each have planned?
ST: Sure thing. Mark Fredson, who you might remember from the kind of country group Local H, he is celebrating the release of his second solo album of more ’70s mainstream pop, kind of proto-yacht rocky kind of sound. The record’s called Nothing But Night. He is playing Saturday night at the 5 spot.
You’ve got Deer Tick, who kind of were laying low a little bit before the pandemic, but now are kicking things back into gear. They’re going to be at Brooklyn Bowl on Monday night.
And then you’ve got Alison Russell, who’s been in a ton of really noteworthy groups, including Birds of Chicago and the supergroup Our Native Daughters. This year, she’s got a folk- and soul-leaning solo album Outside Child. That’s her first solo record, and she’s going to be at Third Man Records Thursday night.
JH: Just for good measure, let’s touch on a couple of out-of-towners who listeners might hear on WNXP and whose upcoming shows also receive mentions in the Scene: Indigo de Souza and Dinosaur Jr. Can you give us the lowdown, in brief, on what they have coming up?
ST: Sure thing, Indigo de Souza is an Asheville, North Carolina singer-songwriter [who] really runs the gamut on the new record [Any Shape You Take]. They’re going to be at Mercy Lounge on Sunday. And you’ve got Dinosaur Jr., who are not fixing anything that isn’t broken on their new record, Sweep It Into Space. They’re bringing that kind of post-Neil Young, grunge-era sound to Brooklyn Bowl on Friday.