BONUS TRACKS: Americana’s Lifetime Achievement Awards and More Music News

AmericanaFest is right around the corner — kicking off next Tuesday and taking over Nashville through Saturday. The Americana Honors & Awards Show is Wednesday evening, and while we’ll have to wait until then to hear the winners of album of the year, song of the year, and other awards, the Americana Music Association has already announced the honorees for its lifetime achievement awards. The Avett Brothers, Patty Griffin, Bettye LaVette, Nickel Creek, and New West Records co-founder and owner George Fontaine Sr. will be celebrated for their career contributions, which of course are still unfolding. No Depression will be at the awards show to cover all the big moments (here’s a list of nominees to tide you over), and we’ll bring you the best of the showcases and panels happening next week, too, so stay tuned.

Whatever music programming you think of at NPR, chances are Bob Boilen had a hand in it. Boilen, a 35-year NPR veteran and longtime All Things Considered director, created online music show All Songs Considered in 2000, when “online music shows” were barely a thing. And in 2008 he launched the Tiny Desk Concert series, which took place at his actual desk at NPR’s offices in Washington, DC. Boilen’s retirement takes effect Oct. 2, and there’s been no word about the future of NPR’s music programming after his departure. In a tweet announcing his plans, Boilen said “it’s time to find new challenges.” Read more about the news via this coverage from Consequence. Whatever’s ahead for Boilen, he’s expanded our musical palates and brought joy to audiences and artists alike, so I hope it’s wonderful.

An upcoming documentary film tracks songwriter and composer Kishi Bashi’s years-long exploration of his identity as a Japanese American against the backdrop of a recent rise in anti-Asian hate in the US and the shameful history of Japanese American incarceration after the attack on Pearl Harbor. A Song Film by Kishi Bashi: Omoiyari finds Kishi Bashi — real name Kaoru Ishibashi — creating music in locations related to World War II internments and talking to people who lived through it. Omoiyari, he explains in the film’s trailer, is a Japanese word for having empathy and compassion, and that is the call to action for the film, coming to theaters starting Oct. 6,  and the accompanying soundtrack, out Nov. 17 via Joyful Noise Recordings. The first single from the soundtrack is “Red, White, and Blue,” which you can check out in this gorgeous, heartbreaking video:

WHAT WE’RE LISTENING TO

Here’s a sampling of the songs, albums, bands, and sounds No Depression staffers have been into this week:

Charlie Robison  – “My Hometown”
Golden Shoals – “Bitter”
Leyla McCalla – “Crown” (Kendrick Lamar cover)
EmiSunshine – “The Boy I Never Loved,” from her new album, Sideshow, coming in October
Big Thief – “Born for Loving You”
Dallas Ugly – “Big Signs”
Keyon Harrold feat. Common, Robert Glasper, and Jean Baylor – “Find Your Peace”
Run-D.M.C. – Raising Hell
Talking Heads – Stop Making Sense
Josh Ritter – “Good Enough” (Cyndi Lauper cover from the Goonies movie)
Nick Hans – “Cryin’ Shame”
The Resonant Rogues – “Leave the Path”
The Staves – “You Held It All”
jaimie branch – Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((world war))
Chris Shiflett – “Overboard,” from his new album, Lost at Sea, coming in October
Kelly Hunt – “On the Bayou,” from her new album, Ozark Symphony, coming in October