Black Pumas

Black Pumas—Eric Burton and Adrian Quesada—talk about how they first came together, the instant musical chemistry that defined their collaboration, and how they’ve evolved as a band. Norah joins in for some of their standout songs.

• 0:00Speaker 00

  This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed Human.

• 0:04Speaker 01

  OnDeck is built to back small businesses like yours. Whether you're buying equipment, expanding your team, or bridging cash flow gaps, OnDeck's loans up to $400,000 make it happen fast. Rated A plus by the Better Business Bureau and earning thousands of five-star TrustPilot reviews, OnDeck delivers funding you can count on. Apply in minutes at ondeck.com. Depending on certain loan attributes, your business loan may be issued by OnDeck or Celtic Bank. OnDeck does not lend in North Dakota. All loans and amounts subject to lender approval. Hey, I'm Niall Rogers. This fall, I'll be driving across the country, meeting some of today's coolest and most fascinating artists. We'll explore the stories before the moments that changed everything.

• 0:46Speaker 01

  Because every musician remembers the moment where it all began. Experience Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series on the iHeart Radio app, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

• 1:04Speaker 00

  Hi, I'm Norah Jones, and today I'm playing along with Black Pumas.

• 1:09Speaker 02

  I'm just playing along with you.

• 1:15Speaker 02

  I'm just playing along with you.

• 1:22Speaker 00

  Hi, I'm Norah Jones, and with me as always is Sarah Oda.

• 1:25Speaker 03

  Hello, hello. Welcome back.

• 1:29Speaker 00

  This is our first show back.

• 1:30Speaker 03

  This is our first show back. We've taken a very long break.

• 1:33Speaker 00

  We have taken a long break.

• 1:34Speaker 03

  But we're back and we're in full effect.

• 1:36Speaker 00

  We have a lot coming up.

• 1:37Speaker 03

  We are very excited.

• 1:39Speaker 00

  The pipe she loaded. Wait.

• 1:43Speaker 00

  We have so many incredible guests coming up, and we are going to be releasing episodes weekly with some holiday exceptions, but so we're coming in hot.

• 1:55Speaker 03

  Yes, we're very excited. We have guests from every corner of this music world.

• 2:02Speaker 00

  Each nook and each cranny.

• 2:03Speaker 03

  Every aisle of the grocery store. Our guests today are Eric Burton and Adrian Casada of Black Pumas.

• 2:10Speaker 00

  Yay.

• 2:11Speaker 03

  So excited to have them. They're an incredible duo. They are, Eric is a soulful, powerful singer. He's got this incredible voice. And then Adrian is a producer and guitar player, and he kind of has all those unforgettable musical grooves that stick with you forever. They met in 2017 and had instant chemistry. They're the kind of people who walk into a room and are just very uplifting, and it's really fun to be around them. They have great energy. So we had an incredible session with them.

• 2:40Speaker 00

  It really was. The kids, they call it, do they call it aura farming?

• 2:48Speaker 03

  I think I'm a kid.

• 2:48Speaker 00

  I think I'm misusing that. Let me, let me go back on that. But yeah, I feel like the energy was really special for this. And we actually recorded this a hot second ago. Like, it's been a while. We kind of didn't have a release plan for a while. So we're excited that this is finally getting it out into the world because we had so much fun hanging out. Eric's voice is so incredibly powerful live. It's insane. So I hope you enjoy this episode with Black Pumas.

• 3:36Speaker 00

  You played at Radio City Music Hall last night. How was it? I'm sorry I couldn't come.

• 3:41Speaker 04

  It was pretty cool. Pretty cool. Sold out?

• 3:43Speaker 00

  Yeah, it's incredible. So proud of you.

• 3:46Speaker 05

  Thank you.

• 3:47Speaker 04

  It was exceedingly dope. Like, I mean, we had Digable Planets.

• 3:50Speaker 00

  Yeah, that also I saw, and that made me really bummed I couldn't go.

• 3:54Speaker 05

  Still hard to believe that they're like, opening for us. You know, we were just-

• 3:57Speaker 00

  So cool.

• 3:58Speaker 05

  And they were so gracious and cool. Yeah, the place was like, twice as big as I imagined it.

• 4:04Speaker 00

  It's so big. I took my kids to see the Rockettes in December, and I walked in and I, I was like, oh my God, this is giant.

• 4:14Speaker 04

  Yeah, so our first time there, we sold it out. They gave us these like little Tiffany, like all access little badges.

• 4:22Speaker 00

  Wow, for life.

• 4:23Speaker 04

  Sterling silver, yeah.

• 4:24Speaker 00

  Like you get to go to anything.

• 4:25Speaker 04

  Yeah, like it was an interesting little, you know, piece of, you know, jewelry, I guess.

• 4:32Speaker 00

  It's so cool.

• 4:33Speaker 04

  The audience were, were super reciprocative of just great energy.

• 4:39Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 4:39Speaker 04

  You know, from the, for the, from the top tier to the bottom. It was crazy. I was just like so epic, like from the start to the finish. You, you, we, we start the show not realizing, you know, what kind of energy you're gonna get in a, in a theater like setting where it's a little bit more like, like a Sunday service almost. It doesn't feel like rock and roll at face value for, for what we know it to be today in like more intimate venues where it's like all standing and people are like, you know, going crazy. But I think we've had some friends reciprocate the fact that like people were like crying and, you know.

• 5:16Speaker 00

  Oh my god, like emotional.

• 5:17Speaker 04

  It was very beautiful. It felt very cool.

• 5:19Speaker 00

  That's great. I'm happy. Do you warm up your voice before a show, like for real?

• 5:24Speaker 04

  Uh, yeah, a little bit.

• 5:25Speaker 00

  Do you do vocal warmups?

• 5:26Speaker 04

  Yeah, I got some lip trills, some tongue trills that I do on, you know, various scales for tenor, like a tenor voice. Yeah, it's just to kind of like help remind the, the soft palate to relax a little bit.

• 5:43Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 5:44Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 5:44Speaker 00

  And sound check never hurts, right?

• 5:46Speaker 04

  Yeah, sound check is, yeah, never hurts for sure. We're always working through different ideas as well. I feel like the songs always take on like a different, like a new life sometimes.

• 5:56Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 5:57Speaker 04

  In a sound check, you know.

• 5:58Speaker 00

  That's the fun part.

• 5:59Speaker 04

  Yeah, it is. It is.

• 6:01Speaker 00

  Yeah, not staying too exact. How big is the band?

• 6:05Speaker 05

  We are at eight pieces now. We, we were at seven and we just added an auxiliary guy who's covering like percussion, guitar, keys, vocal, everything.

• 6:14Speaker 00

  That's a, that's a big band.

• 6:15Speaker 05

  It is, it is, yeah.

• 6:16Speaker 00

  But the records are very full sounding, so.

• 6:19Speaker 05

  This one in particular is even more. I wouldn't say dense, but it just has a wider palette. The first one was a really specific palette. So it was like a little easier to recreate. And this one, it was just like whatever worked and whatever sounded best. And then stepping back and figuring out like, now, how do we play this?

• 6:36Speaker 00

  Yeah. Well, I mean, the songs stand on their own. So you can take them out of the arrangement. But the arrangements are just so cool on the record. You don't really want to lose them.

• 6:45Speaker 05

  Well, that's what's amazing with this band and Eric's songwriting is that at the song, you could play every one of these songs in this format and not rely on the production. You know, but then the production is like a nice icing on the cake to bring the record to life. But ultimately, you know, he could play them by himself. We can play them in this format. We did some taping earlier this week that was just me and him, and it sounded super cool.

• 7:08Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 7:08Speaker 04

  Yeah, it's so funny. Everyone's got their own like little ritual. Sometimes we'll walk in on Steve, like doing pushups. Steve's our drummer.

• 7:17Speaker 00

  Yeah, that's a drummer thing.

• 7:18Speaker 04

  Yeah, pushups and hand stretches. What do you do?

• 7:23Speaker 05

  Just mess around on Instagram.

• 7:24Speaker 04

  Shoot shots of tequila.

• 7:25Speaker 05

  I've been trying to get a-

• 7:26Speaker 00

  Yeah, I was gonna say, do you have a pre-drink?

• 7:28Speaker 05

  I always do a little bit, yeah. You know, trying to not use it as a crutch anymore. But it is, it is nice to, I don't know if it's a ceremonial thing, just to have like a little mezcal and no like-

• 7:38Speaker 00

  Yeah, loosen you up a little.

• 7:39Speaker 05

  Loosen me up into the spirit world. Been trying to keep a guitar in the green room and just do exercises, like little- I feel like with the muscle memory, if I practice guitar, I play like the same thing always. So I've been trying to just like learn new exercises and just while, instead of picking up my phone and doom scrolling like-

• 7:58Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 7:58Speaker 05

  Just getting my fingers moving around.

• 8:01Speaker 00

  Yeah, I feel like there should be like a no phone zone backstage, just to get you out of that. But that would be also kind of mean.

• 8:10Speaker 04

  It's so crazy.

• 8:11Speaker 00

  People need it, you know?

• 8:12Speaker 04

  Yeah, because like right before the show, like I feel like that's like the busiest time. Like we'll get everyone, you know, our team wants to come in every five minutes with posters for us to sign and people to meet. I'm like, what is-

• 8:23Speaker 00

  You're like, this should be sacred.

• 8:25Speaker 04

  It's so crazy.

• 8:26Speaker 05

  So you know, actually, what's been really cool, and it was something Eric had kind of prompted a while back, and we've just stuck to it, is um- We've been doing a pre-show like little band 10-minute quiet like meditation. Like we actually all get in the green room and dim the lights. And Brendan, our bass player, always has these like YouTube meditations.

• 8:45Speaker 00

  Oh, cool.

• 8:45Speaker 05

  And we kick everybody out, or we try to.

• 8:47Speaker 00

  That's great.

• 8:48Speaker 05

  And just like really just connect and have like a quiet moment.

• 8:51Speaker 00

  That's really smart. I like that. I was hanging out with Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks. And they have a whole band room set up before the shows and they practice. They like jam before the show.

• 9:04Speaker 05

  Mm-hmm.

• 9:05Speaker 00

  It's a huge setup. It's crazy. I was like, wow, I never thought to do that.

• 9:09Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 9:10Speaker 00

  I noticed a theme in your lyrics. Are you the one who is the meditator, Eric?

• 9:16Speaker 04

  Uh, yeah, I'll meditate. Yeah. I was introduced to the technique of Pasana through an ex-girlfriend. And I've been kind of using it ever since. It was like really interesting. It was just like a really interesting introduction to meditation and super accessible as well. I think it happens annually. Different centers will put it on for free, you know, from lodging to eating. And, you know, you'll have like 100 students every time that happens. And yeah, just really cool. It's just, you know, briefly, you know, I feel like we all have a way of holding on to past traumas

• 10:01Speaker 04

  in our tissues and our bodies. And it's important to kind of be able to, you know, work some of that stuff out and following your sensations to, you know, the points of where you're triggered.

• 10:16Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 10:17Speaker 04

  And so, yeah, it's just amazing what presence and awareness will do to your presentation to the rest of the world as we react to our thoughts biochemically on a day-to-day basis. Which is why I like it's so cool that as a band we'll do the meditation. Someone said, I think the lead guy at ATO, our label, he was saying, "Yeah, you guys had a really comfortable way on stage together." And I think it's mostly due to being able to take those 15 minutes right before the show to just get in touch with ourselves. Like just, you know, super easy to do. We forget to, you know, have some presence sometimes, so.

• 11:00Speaker 00

  Everybody does, yeah.

• 11:02Speaker 04

  Yeah, so I'm just happy that like people are like super down about it. You know, I don't have to remind anyone. You're like, okay, well, what about this? You know, it's become like a really nice thing that we do as a band.

• 11:13Speaker 05

  Even when it ends up with us bursting out in laughter like two days ago.

• 11:16Speaker 04

  Oh.

• 11:16Speaker 05

  It still brings you together. They were playing like the house music was coming through the green room. We forgot to turn it down and we're like, we have this like meditation exercise. And she's like, breathe and feel and focus on the task at hand. And we're all quiet and they're playing hip hop. And all of a sudden it's like, yeah, mother. Everybody just started like, yeah. It was just like, even that was just like a moment, you know, of connection.

• 11:37Speaker 04

  Yeah, so, yeah, it's been, it's nice, man. Yeah, so cool to be apart, you know, the camaraderie and the strength that comes from being in a room full of creatives and passionate people like this. This job is like, it's, it's paradoxically like super chill and very easy. But then like really hard and demanding, you know? It's, it's not for the faint of heart, I feel. It, it really takes all of you to really put something, you know, engaging across and honest.

• 12:11Speaker 00

  Well, you have to be engaged and honest for it to really connect, I think.

• 12:15Speaker 04

  Mm hmm, I agree.

• 12:16Speaker 00

  People don't know technically maybe, but they know in their hearts if it's not.

• 12:22Speaker 04

  That's right.

• 12:23Speaker 00

  Maybe not all people, but it seems like they do.

• 12:27Speaker 04

  But that's interesting. That's, that's interesting, you know? Like you, you've gone to school to do this and I've, I've had conversations with some of your peers from school, like R.C. Williams is one of my good friends.

• 12:39Speaker 00

  That's so crazy.

• 12:40Speaker 04

  We have an interesting way of collaborating as well where you just kind of understand, regardless of the, the knowledge in the, you know, whatever technique you're, you're meeting, whoever you're collaborating with at that table. There's just that thing, that universal quality that is felt in the music. That's just from your soul that we all kind of have a way of understanding. That's kind of like brings us and elevates everyone together as a unit. So, yeah, man, what a cool conversation. This is cool.

• 13:12Speaker 00

  That's cool. You're, you're cool. Let's play a song.

• 13:15Speaker 04

  Yeah, this place is so cool, by the way.

• 13:17Speaker 00

  I'm so glad you could come.

• 13:19Speaker 04

  You know, I feel like my sneakers are impressed right now.

• 13:22Speaker 00

  They're cork.

• 13:23Speaker 04

  This is cork.

• 13:24Speaker 00

  It's cork.

• 13:25Speaker 05

  It's good for the environment.

• 13:26Speaker 00

  Yeah, I guess, I don't know.

• 13:28Speaker 06

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• 13:57Speaker 01

  Hey, it's Nile Rodgers, host of "Before the Moment", a Lincoln original series. I'm driving across the country, meeting some of today's most fascinating artists. We're exploring the stories before the moment that changed everything. This week, I'm joined by Miguel.

• 14:15Speaker 02

  Man, I'm a black and Mexican kid from San Pedro, and I grew up in Inglewood as well. I never liked to be boxed in. Both of my parents colored outside of the line. I mean, even them being together at the time in L.A. was just not typical. And so I think that has always been a part of my DNA. There's a defiant something in me that feels like what we get to do with what we're given that's greater than us is to maybe connect people to ideas that they wouldn't naturally, you know, connect to. That's really me. I'm just kind of like defiant with love, though.

• 14:51Speaker 01

  Experience Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series on the iHeartRadio app, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is Colin Cowherd from the Colin Cowherd Podcast. Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota Ford ability. All starts with a great deal on an off-road ready Tacoma or a half-ton Tundra to a Toyota's most capable and longest-lasting trucks. Built on a reputation for quality and reliability, Toyota trucks are known for holding their value, which could mean big savings when it's time for your next Toyota. For a great deal today to a great value tomorrow, shop toyota.com. Toyota, let's go places.

• 15:32Speaker 05

  What do you want to play, Maru?

• 15:33Speaker 00

  I was thinking we could start with more than a love song, but that's just because that's my, how I've been listening to it.

• 15:41Speaker 04

  Yeah, I'll put this down.

• 15:42Speaker 05

  Let's do it. You want me to start it?

• 15:44Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 15:45Speaker 05

  All right.

• 15:59Speaker 04

  Right on, baby. Right on, Nora.

• 16:06Speaker 04

  See the two blackbirds flying. Flying high. Just to be together. When we face the music. I'd have them get to the other side of the great divide. Let's fly together.

• 16:27Speaker 04

  I've asked the Grand Master, "Who?" I've asked, "Who?" Life feels so hard sometimes. Is that to use the music? Sweet soul music, sweet soul music. To reignite your soul. Divide, to reignite your soul. Cause life is more. More than a love song. It's more than a fantasy. More than a little bit. It's life is more. More than a dream, y'all. It's more than a fantasy. More than a little bit. So take your time.

• 17:11Speaker 04

  Be real light and fly.

• 17:16Speaker 04

  We oughta fly. Let's fly together.

• 17:25Speaker 04

  I hear the two bluesbirds, they sing a song. Do, do, do. Do, do, do. Yeah, right.

• 17:34Speaker 04

  My respects to the Grand Master. For the life. Such a pretty thing, have a melody about. It's life is more. It's more than a love song. It's more than a fantasy. More than a little bit.

• 17:55Speaker 02

  Yes, life is more than a dream young. It's more than a fantasy.

• 18:02Speaker 04

  More than a little bit.

• 18:05Speaker 02

  Yes, life is more.

• 18:07Speaker 04

  It's more than a lot, son.

• 18:09Speaker 02

  It's more than a fantasy.

• 18:12Speaker 04

  More than a little bit.

• 18:15Speaker 02

  I'm through the door now. I see the sun shining. Way more, babe. It's more than a little bit. So let's hold hands and walk through that door. We know life is so much more. More than pretty things, or singing melodies. Well, life is more. Way more. Way more, babe. Let us fly. Why, when the thunder shines? You see the lightning almost touch the ground.

• 19:00Speaker 02

  I hear my inner voice sing sometimes. Let's fly together.

• 19:06Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 19:14Speaker 02

  Sometimes you lose your mind. You just grab your sister's hand and got to fly.

• 19:21Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 19:25Speaker 02

  Okay, now I'll repeat after me. Bluesbirds.

• 19:28Speaker 04

  Bluesbirds.

• 19:29Speaker 02

  Fly together.

• 19:30Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 19:31Speaker 02

  Let's fly together, babe.

• 19:33Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 19:34Speaker 02

  Let's fly together.

• 19:36Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 19:37Speaker 02

  Let's fly together.

• 19:38Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 19:39Speaker 02

  All night long, together.

• 19:41Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 19:42Speaker 02

  Let's fly together.

• 19:43Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 19:44Speaker 02

  Let's fly together, babe.

• 19:46Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 19:47Speaker 02

  Let's fly together.

• 19:48Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 19:49Speaker 02

  Let's fly together.

• 19:51Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 19:52Speaker 02

  Let's fly.

• 19:53Speaker 04

  Fly together now.

• 19:54Speaker 00

  Fly together.

• 19:55Speaker 04

  Let's fly together.

• 19:56Speaker 00

  Fly together.

• 19:57Speaker 04

  We'll hide together.

• 19:59Speaker 00

  Fly together.

• 20:00Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 20:01Speaker 00

  Fly together.

• 20:03Speaker 04

  Fly together.

• 20:04Speaker 00

  Fly together.

• 20:06Speaker 04

  Right on, Nora, yeah.

• 20:10Speaker 00

  Oh my god.

• 20:13Speaker 00

  Your voice is so powerful.

• 20:15Speaker 04

  Thank you.

• 20:15Speaker 00

  Holy crap.

• 20:17Speaker 04

  Me too, this was fun.

• 20:18Speaker 00

  That was beautiful.

• 20:19Speaker 05

  It was amazing.

• 20:20Speaker 00

  Oh my god.

• 20:21Speaker 05

  I forgot to turn off the, turn on the tremolo, so it was like particularly warbly.

• 20:24Speaker 00

  I liked it.

• 20:25Speaker 05

  We sounded like we were underwater, but yeah.

• 20:27Speaker 00

  I liked it. I felt, you sounded amazing.

• 20:30Speaker 04

  First time performing this song, like I gotta give you your flowers too. This is super pro.

• 20:35Speaker 00

  I was cheating, I had my lyrics.

• 20:36Speaker 04

  Yeah. And then I think like in a studio setting where the sound is dead as well, like not having the headphones to like really hear each other, like I've gotta commend you on that too.

• 20:46Speaker 00

  Oh, thanks.

• 20:47Speaker 04

  I'm like trying to hear you so I can, so I can dance with you better too.

• 20:51Speaker 00

  Sometimes it's tricky, but it's, I like not having headphones.

• 20:54Speaker 04

  Okay.

• 20:55Speaker 00

  Yeah. God, your voice is power. It's amazing.

• 21:00Speaker 04

  I think I'd have to give, I gotta give this guy flowers because before, before doing this, I was, I was singing folk music. It was more like neo soul. I was listening to people like Bob Dylan and Neil Young and Al Green a little bit. And I was coming up with an amalgamation within that kind of like way of inflection to kind of sing. So this, like singing from like Black Moon Rising and Fire, like I had to really figure out, okay, I had to, I had to find my inner Wilson Pickett, my inner Otis Redding. I'm like, man, how do I do that razor sharp thing? So.

• 21:38Speaker 00

  You found it.

• 21:39Speaker 04

  Yeah, man. Yeah. Thank you, Adrian, you know?

• 21:42Speaker 05

  You're welcome.

• 21:42Speaker 00

  It's funny how you change. I mean, as a musician, you change also as an instrumentalist, but as a singer. It's just part of you and it's just you. But there is something about letting go as you get older and stumbling into different things that maybe you couldn't do before or you didn't know how to reach that far before.

• 22:02Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 22:03Speaker 00

  I feel like that, too.

• 22:04Speaker 04

  Totally. And then when you're on tour, like the last, you know, after the last show, you're probably at your most sharp.

• 22:10Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 22:11Speaker 04

  Like.

• 22:11Speaker 00

  That's when you want to record an album.

• 22:13Speaker 04

  Yes, exactly, exactly.

• 22:15Speaker 00

  Except you're too tired.

• 22:16Speaker 04

  Totally. We concluded a couple of songs at the, towards the end of a tour. And I realized that I started at the end of a tour, the next time we had a session, I noticed just a certain level of freedom to like try things.

• 22:29Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 22:30Speaker 04

  You know? And I couldn't, I, you know, I never, I had never, like, I was never like a screamer. But I remember it just kind of happening on a track I was freestyling through for like melodic lines to remember. And I was like, whoa. I kind of surprised myself in the studio. I was like, whoa, it's cool, let's do it again, you know?

• 22:48Speaker 00

  Well, it's so great when you can capture that, that thing in the studio. It's harder in the studio to capture that fire than it is live, you know? I mean, it doesn't have to be, but sometimes it can be, I think.

• 23:01Speaker 04

  Yeah. Well, when you're raised in the theater, like for me, I feel so moved to take on a character. And I think I've accepted the, you know, performing within the context of, okay, we're pressing record and action.

• 23:18Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 23:18Speaker 04

  It's kind of like been a dream of mine to be a part of the theater for a long time.

• 23:22Speaker 00

  Really?

• 23:22Speaker 04

  I love the studio.

• 23:24Speaker 00

  Have you ever done any theater?

• 23:25Speaker 04

  Uh, yeah, a little bit, yeah. I just produced my first film and I just acted in like a, you know, professional short.

• 23:35Speaker 00

  Oh, that's amazing.

• 23:36Speaker 04

  Yeah, you know, shooting music videos lately have been like really fun.

• 23:40Speaker 00

  It's, it can be really fun. Yeah, that's great. Well, so where are you guys from? Cause I know you live in Austin. So are you both from Texas or where are you from, Eric?

• 23:52Speaker 04

  I'm from Los Angeles, California. I was born in the San Fernando Valley.

• 23:56Speaker 00

  Okay, cool. And how did you get to Texas?

• 23:59Speaker 04

  I was busking. I was playing music on the street, made a couple of friends on the Santa Monica Pier.

• 24:04Speaker 00

  Wow.

• 24:05Speaker 04

  We did well enough that we had the idea to take it on the road. We ended up in Austin, Texas, where I decided to send them on their way and stay.

• 24:13Speaker 00

  Wow.

• 24:14Speaker 04

  And just make a, you know, make way for something new and fresh. Within a year and a half, I met Adrian and we were, you know, just off to the races.

• 24:23Speaker 00

  That's amazing.

• 24:23Speaker 04

  Pretty quickly.

• 24:24Speaker 00

  And are you from Austin?

• 24:26Speaker 05

  I'm from Laredo, Texas.

• 24:27Speaker 00

  Oh, cool.

• 24:27Speaker 05

  From the border.

• 24:28Speaker 00

  Nice.

• 24:29Speaker 05

  So I'm like three and a half hours south of Austin. I'm from South Texas. I moved to Austin to go to school and because of the music scene, really.

• 24:35Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 24:36Speaker 05

  So, yeah, I went there, studied art, but I knew I was like there for the music and just never left, you know? And I met Eric in 2017 via a mutual friend and we started this, yeah.

• 24:46Speaker 00

  Wow.

• 24:47Speaker 05

  So, nobody, you know, very few people are from Austin.

• 24:50Speaker 00

  Totally.

• 24:50Speaker 05

  Our wife is actually from Austin, like they're not.

• 24:52Speaker 00

  It's rare.

• 24:53Speaker 05

  Yeah. Thing, but I've now been there most of my life, you know?

• 24:57Speaker 00

  I love Austin.

• 24:58Speaker 05

  Yeah, it's a great city.

• 24:58Speaker 00

  I'm from Dallas.

• 25:00Speaker 05

  Oh, yeah.

• 25:00Speaker 04

  Oh, yeah, that's right.

• 25:01Speaker 00

  That's how I know RC. We went to high school together.

• 25:03Speaker 04

  That's so cool.

• 25:04Speaker 00

  I know.

• 25:05Speaker 04

  Yeah, they were saying that they were so surprised. You're like, wow, Nora sings? You did like a talent show? No one knew you sang till like the end of like your scholastic career there?

• 25:15Speaker 00

  Yeah, I was a piano major.

• 25:17Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 25:17Speaker 00

  Yeah, I was shy, but.

• 25:19Speaker 05

  There was a, yeah, we all have a, so somebody, I knew somebody who dated a girl who was one of your roommates in college.

• 25:25Speaker 00

  Which one? Lindsay? Yeah, she lives in Austin, right?

• 25:28Speaker 05

  Yeah, yeah, I haven't seen her in forever, but she used to be a friend of mine.

• 25:30Speaker 00

  I haven't seen her in forever either.

• 25:31Speaker 05

  So, yeah, we all, your name always came up back then, yeah.

• 25:34Speaker 00

  I was thinking about her the other day and her peanut butter sandwiches on Saturday.

• 25:39Speaker 04

  I love your voice, by the way, Nora.

• 25:41Speaker 00

  Thank you, I love your voice.

• 25:43Speaker 04

  It's so nice and warm. You just want to hear that voice talk all day or tell you.

• 25:50Speaker 00

  Oh, my talking voice? That's nice.

• 25:51Speaker 04

  Tell you a story.

• 25:52Speaker 00

  I hate my talking voice, usually when you hear it, you know, on a recording at the end of the take. Oh, I don't know about that one, then it's like, shut up, don't play that part.

• 26:00Speaker 04

  Sometimes it's like, sometimes you can tell that someone has like a really, might have a really nice singing voice by the way that they speak.

• 26:07Speaker 00

  Really?

• 26:07Speaker 04

  I can tell sometimes.

• 26:08Speaker 00

  Do you think my-

• 26:09Speaker 04

  Wow, you sound like a singer.

• 26:10Speaker 00

  I wonder if my singing voice sounds like my speaking voice. Cause sometimes people, it doesn't, you know? It sounds totally different, like two different voices.

• 26:18Speaker 04

  I can, it's, it's very similar.

• 26:20Speaker 05

  It is, I would say it's similar. And I'm not a singer.

• 26:23Speaker 04

  So this, it's perfect, I mean, obviously you know that you, you've, you've got an okay speaking voice, otherwise you wouldn't be doing a podcast.

• 26:30Speaker 00

  You're right, I wouldn't be able to stomach it.

• 26:32Speaker 04

  But you're killing it, you know?

• 26:33Speaker 00

  Yeah, it's been so fun, meeting people and playing music with them like this. It's like a dream. You guys have been in New York all week doing like promotion for the new album, right?

• 26:45Speaker 05

  That's right.

• 26:45Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 26:45Speaker 00

  You did, you did Kelly Clarkson's show. Did you sing together?

• 26:50Speaker 04

  We did not sing together.

• 26:51Speaker 00

  Oh, that's too bad, that would have been cool.

• 26:53Speaker 04

  Yeah, does that happen?

• 26:54Speaker 00

  I don't know, I, I don't really know. I haven't watched much of her show, but I feel like I see clips of her singing with people sometimes. Yeah. You did something else cool this week, I can't remember.

• 27:03Speaker 04

  Seth Meyers?

• 27:04Speaker 00

  Oh yeah, nice.

• 27:06Speaker 04

  That was fun. I've noticed in doing the TV shows, everyone's always so, just so nice.

• 27:12Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 27:12Speaker 04

  And, and I'm finding that we're, we're getting to be more and more comfortable and confident in, in a setting like, like that.

• 27:21Speaker 00

  That's a hard setting.

• 27:22Speaker 04

  Like this, right? Like it's studio, it's, alright now, you know? It's theater.

• 27:27Speaker 00

  TV is, I feel very hard, because it's like alright now, but before they say now, they're playing some loud in-between music and it's completely different vibe, different tempo, and it's, you have to just switch really fast into your vibe.

• 27:41Speaker 05

  Seth Meyers was in the same building as Jimmy Fallon and we've done Fallon a couple of times and that one is particularly daunting to me, because first of all, they're always a lot, the studios are so much smaller than they look on TV.

• 27:53Speaker 00

  Yes.

• 27:53Speaker 05

  So you're like, with Fallon, you're going up there and you have like The Roots, one of the best bands in the business, and Questlove, one of the best M.D.s and, you know, kind of, and they're all just like, right there staring at you. Yeah, and they're just literally staring at you and you're like, what? Like what is going on here? This is crazy.

• 28:11Speaker 00

  Do they like me?

• 28:12Speaker 05

  I know, yeah. That one, that one to me took, the second time we went back, I was more comfortable. The first time, I couldn't even, I couldn't even look over there. I was like, this is crazy.

• 28:20Speaker 04

  But the first time was like my favorite performance to look back on, um, as far as like his show goes.

• 28:26Speaker 05

  And they were cool, super cool, but it's just, it's just a weird feeling.

• 28:29Speaker 00

  It's daunting.

• 28:29Speaker 04

  I remember Black Thought like coming up to, to us at the end of, uh, the first performance. It's like one of my favorite moments. Uh, he, he just like walks up, he like beelines it for me at the end of, uh, colors. And he like daps me, it was like, yo, Brody, you killing it, Brody. Killing it, bro.

• 28:46Speaker 00

  That's so cool. That must feel so good.

• 28:49Speaker 05

  Yeah, it feels amazing.

• 28:50Speaker 00

  Yeah, that's good.

• 28:52Speaker 04

  Validation.

• 28:53Speaker 00

  It does feel good to be validated.

• 28:55Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 28:55Speaker 00

  It's not nothing.

• 28:56Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 28:57Speaker 00

  It, it matters.

• 28:59Speaker 05

  I feel like that peer to peer, like face to face, validation is so much more impactful.

• 29:04Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 29:05Speaker 05

  You know, to actually have a musician, like one person come up to you than like.

• 29:08Speaker 00

  It is.

• 29:08Speaker 05

  You know, they ask us a lot about the impact of the Grammys and things like that, which are all amazing opportunities.

• 29:13Speaker 00

  It's not the same.

• 29:13Speaker 05

  The personal, like somebody actually telling you in your face, hey, I really enjoy what you're doing. Then that, that just means like, I go to bed thinking about that stuff.

• 29:21Speaker 00

  I know, it's nice. It's, it's funny. I feel like in the beginning of my career, I was like, oh no, it's okay. I'm good. I don't need that. Oh, no more, you know? Like, cause I had such a crazy, coming out with my first album was crazy and it was kind of overwhelming. But with like, high success comes also a lot of criticism. So I feel like it kind of evened out for a minute, you know? But it does feel, it feels good. It's, it's like a lucky place to be.

• 29:48Speaker 06

  OnDeck is built to back small businesses like yours. Whether you're buying equipment, expanding your team, or bridging cash flow gaps, OnDeck's loans up to $400,000 make it happen fast. Rated A plus by the Better Business Bureau and earning thousands of five star TrustPilot reviews, OnDeck delivers funding you can count on. Apply in minutes at ondeck.com. Depending on certain loan attributes, your business loan may be issued by OnDeck or Celtic Bank. OnDeck does not lend in North Dakota. All loans and amounts subject to lender approval.

• 30:16Speaker 01

  Hey, it's Nile Rodgers, host of Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series. I'm driving across the country, meeting some of today's most fascinating artists. We're exploring the stories before the moment that changed everything. This week, I'm joined by my friend, John Legend. So you're helping Will.i.am write hooks. What made "Ordinary People" become the one song from those sound checks you knew you had to make your own?

• 30:44Speaker 02

  I was just writing for the Black Eyed Peas. I wasn't expecting to write something for myself in that session. But I wrote the hook for "Ordinary People," and I recorded a demo, and I'm like, I would rather keep "Ordinary People" for myself. This station in Chicago, W G C I, they start playing it before we're promoting it. The song spoke for itself. It became the defining song for my first album. I knew it was special, but you never know how special it's going to be and how much impact it's going to have in people's lives. And you never believe that you're going to actually change people's lives with a song.

• 31:14Speaker 01

  Experience Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series on the iHeartRadio app, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

• 31:23Speaker 00

  Hey, what's up? This is Kelvin Washington from The Odd Couple with Rob Parker and Kelvin Washington. Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota affordability, and it starts with a great deal on off-road-ready Tacoma or half-ton Tundra. Two of Toyota's longest-lasting trucks, combining power for work, tech for adventures, and style in between. Built on a reputation for quality and reliability, Toyota trucks are known for holding their value, which could mean big savings when it's time for your next Toyota. So get a great deal today and a great value tomorrow. Shoptoyota.com for more. Toyota, let's go places. Let's try to do another song. You wanna do another song?

• 32:03Speaker 04

  Yeah, what you feeling?

• 32:06Speaker 00

  Well, Chronicles of a Diamond from the new album. That could be fun.

• 32:11Speaker 04

  Okay.

• 32:11Speaker 00

  You said you played the piano part on this, right? It's like...

• 32:19Speaker 04

  Perfect, yeah. That's it.

• 32:22Speaker 00

  Is that okay?

• 32:23Speaker 04

  I love how you play it. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's cool.

• 32:28Speaker 04

  Can I, can I get this microphone raised a little bit?

• 32:35Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 32:48Speaker 02

  Look at how the waves say crash I yearn to get high like seagulls fly I look at how the pretty girls walk by Dreaming I'm in love for the first time darling Look at how my heart goes boom bap I'm leaning on the music majesty So make like a golden chalice Cause in a different kind of golden palace If you wanna win Bad as you wanna breathe

• 33:31Speaker 02

  Out in these waters baby

• 33:41Speaker 02

  Then the tide will say I'd be cashless king Before your soul is fading

• 34:00Speaker 02

  So look at how the world keeps spinning I yearn to get around on the neighbor I'm the voice of the diamond trailing On a seventy seven Cadillac Profound when I'm catly dreaming Chief and awesome holy ghost I found So look at how the flame keeps flaming I feel I'm in love for the first time If you wanna win Bad as you wanna breathe

• 34:45Speaker 02

  Out in these waters baby I don't know

• 34:55Speaker 02

  Then the tide will sing, oh. I dub the cash as king. Before your soul is faded, oh. Ooh, to the bridge now. You know it's hard to get yourself together, baby. Left side chilling, I'm cruising on right now. When I'm running on E and I'm tired, I got to meditate, child.

• 35:32Speaker 02

  But now I'm calling up the crew and I'm sorry, but I'ma celebrate now. Let's sail around the block, the block. Twenty-five years dreaming like the diamond in the bed. I wanna win, oh. Better is you wanna breathe. It's the truth, out in these waters, baby, oh. Ooh. And the tide will sing, oh.

• 36:14Speaker 02

  I dub the cash as king. Before your soul is faded, oh. Ooh, ooh. If you wanna win, oh. Better is you wanna breathe, yeah. Out in these waters, baby, oh. Ooh. And the tide will sing, oh. I dub the cash as king. Yeah.

• 36:56Speaker 02

  Before your soul is faded, oh. Ooh. All right, take us out, man, to the beat.

• 37:19Speaker 04

  This has been Good Times with Black Pumas and Norah Jones. Right on. Yeah.

• 37:30Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 37:33Speaker 04

  Cheers.

• 37:34Speaker 00

  That was so fun. That was fun to play.

• 37:36Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 37:36Speaker 00

  I feel the time with your body moving. You just, it's like so in tune.

• 37:42Speaker 04

  Oh, yeah.

• 37:42Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 37:43Speaker 05

  When we do these duo things and he doesn't play guitar and I have to play on some of them, like I can catch just his foot or his fingers and I'm just like, it's like a little metronome watching.

• 37:52Speaker 00

  Yeah, you can tell it.

• 37:52Speaker 05

  Oh, yeah.

• 37:53Speaker 00

  That's so cool. When you guys first played together, what was the scenario? How was the first meeting? Was it with any expectations? What happened there?

• 38:02Speaker 04

  The first meeting was in the studio. The first time we played together was when we had the album finished.

• 38:07Speaker 00

  Oh, wow.

• 38:08Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 38:09Speaker 00

  Wow. So it was more of a studio production kind of

• 38:13Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 38:13Speaker 00

  playing around in the studio kind of thing?

• 38:15Speaker 04

  Right.

• 38:16Speaker 00

  Wow.

• 38:17Speaker 05

  We weren't really, we didn't really have a plan to be a band. We were just getting together and making songs. And all of a sudden it was like, you know, I mean, I was I was super excited the first day that we did two, but I just played it cool and was like, yeah, that's cool. Yeah. Well, you know, we'll hook up. And we just like texted. But I just couldn't stop listening to it. And we had four and we had five. And all of a sudden I was like, this is kind of crazy. And I even took a while to tell him. But I remember specifically, he was like leaving and I was like, hey, wouldn't it be kind of cool to play this stuff? Like,

• 38:46Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 38:46Speaker 05

  And I was like, just for like a month. We'll just do it for like, I was like, we'll just do like four shows. And he was like, down. He's like, I'm down.

• 38:53Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 38:53Speaker 05

  And that was it.

• 38:53Speaker 00

  That's great.

• 38:55Speaker 04

  Yeah. And so the first time we played like live, we played the songs live. I mean, I feel like this guy knows just as well as anyone that in Austin, Texas, like in a, in a club like C-Boys, well, we'll have some of the coolest kids come out. And it's like this the entire night, you know, they're in back room, they're, they're in the back of the room, it's a shotgun club, you know, you know.

• 39:17Speaker 00

  They're not really.

• 39:18Speaker 04

  But it kind of caught on like right away. I mean, the first night, we, you know, we had, we, we had rehearsed one time before the show, which is crazy because we don't really, we don't rehearse that much and that, and that blows my mind. Yeah, we rehearsed one night, like I think the, the night before the show.

• 39:36Speaker 00

  Oh, wow.

• 39:36Speaker 04

  And so we did, we did the show, you know, it was fun, it was excitable. And then we did the second, the second night and people were really, there, there weren't any, you know, arms folded, you know, people started coming out. I think the third night, third or fourth night, I think the third night, because we had a weekly residence, we had people lining up around the block. We started getting calls from like, like just weird places. So it felt like it caught wind really fast. And to conclude that, the difference in the sonic quality of the actual album in conjunction with our first playing together in a live setting is from like smooth and kind of sharp to rock and roll and very gritty. So it was

• 40:21Speaker 04

  like a really excitable, passionate meeting as far as playing with an actual band, like on like no rehearsals.

• 40:29Speaker 00

  It's like everything starts to fly, right?

• 40:31Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 40:31Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 40:32Speaker 04

  You know.

• 40:33Speaker 00

  It's the best.

• 40:34Speaker 05

  I actually didn't even know that until that point, that I had only seen Eric play solo before that.

• 40:41Speaker 00

  Okay.

• 40:41Speaker 05

  And it was always, you know, with him accompanying himself playing guitar. And then we took off your guitar and like all of a sudden was like this, these frontman skills where I was like, oh, wow, that's like another level.

• 40:52Speaker 04

  That was the first time I, I knew too. I was just like, all right.

• 40:55Speaker 05

  I thought he was gonna stand there with a guitar the whole time, which would have been awesome. But like all of a sudden it was like, oh no, this is a whole other level.

• 41:01Speaker 00

  That's great. Cause sometimes when you take off the instrument, you don't know what to do with yourself. But if you have the energy and the right, you just feel in it, you're not scared without your instrument, then it, it works.

• 41:13Speaker 04

  Yeah. The theater, I love the theater.

• 41:15Speaker 00

  That's so cool.

• 41:16Speaker 04

  So that was cool.

• 41:17Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 41:17Speaker 04

  I was like, okay, cool. Now I get to be.

• 41:18Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 41:19Speaker 04

  I get to come up with a character here.

• 41:21Speaker 00

  That's fun.

• 41:22Speaker 04

  It was nice.

• 41:22Speaker 00

  Oh, can we please do "Angel"?

• 41:25Speaker 04

  Yes.

• 41:25Speaker 00

  I love this song so much.

• 42:01Speaker 02

  Come alive, little angel.

• 42:18Speaker 02

  To this dream we're all living.

• 42:28Speaker 02

  In the sun, today. And leaving love, little angel.

• 42:43Speaker 02

  Ooh.

• 42:54Speaker 02

  And the same lovely keep you.

• 43:02Speaker 02

  In this dream. And to wake.

• 43:13Speaker 02

  And good Lord, is she really real?

• 43:22Speaker 02

  Find my dream, she's the lover, yeah.

• 43:30Speaker 02

  And my heart isn't made of steel, oh, isn't made of steel. Got the flame to the rubber, yeah.

• 44:21Speaker 02

  Make it shine, little angel.

• 44:39Speaker 02

  In the scene of the evening.

• 44:48Speaker 02

  As the moon comes to play.

• 44:56Speaker 02

  Take your time, little angel.

• 45:14Speaker 02

  Stifling sings to the painter.

• 45:23Speaker 02

  Make him see what I say.

• 45:35Speaker 02

  And good Lord, is she really real?

• 45:43Speaker 02

  Find my dream, she's a lover, yeah.

• 45:52Speaker 02

  My heart isn't made of steel. Oh, isn't made of steel. Got the flame to the lover, lover. So come and let me know.

• 47:05Speaker 04

  How you feeling?

• 47:06Speaker 00

  It was beautiful.

• 47:06Speaker 04

  Sweet.

• 47:07Speaker 00

  Yeah. How do you feel?

• 47:09Speaker 04

  Oh, good.

• 47:09Speaker 00

  Good, okay. It's funny, the way you sing, it's like you go for it. So if you're not feeling good about something, do you save it? Like, how do you, how do you deal with that if something is kind of not quite? Or do you just go for it until you make it the thing? Because that's a thing.

• 47:28Speaker 04

  Yeah, yeah. I just don't do it at all.

• 47:31Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 47:31Speaker 04

  If it's not a thing.

• 47:32Speaker 00

  Like, you don't come in?

• 47:33Speaker 04

  Yeah. Yeah, we'll just, we'll just reschedule.

• 47:36Speaker 00

  Yeah, totally. I like that, yeah.

• 47:40Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 47:40Speaker 00

  No, but I mean, if you were in a situation where you're playing music with someone. It's not quite there yet. You just wait?

• 47:47Speaker 04

  See, I'll get on people's nerves, like, because I'll keep doing it. And we'll just keep on and take joy in the meditation that is the process of muscle memory and chemistry. And for me, there's little moments that you work for. Like Michael Jordan said, man, I give 210% in practice of that. When the game comes, it's super easy and I play. What would he do? He would come up with games within the game, right? And so for me, in reflection to that, it's about finding little moments throughout the day

• 48:26Speaker 04

  to be, to take observation in the presence of the most high. You know, and so, you know, and there's so many ways to see that and think of that and meditate on that and feel good in that. And so it's just kind of a way that gets built up over time, I think, in a situation that's like, that kind of like completely takes my mind off of the overarching song or disposition towards inflecting on this part or whatever. It's just about trying to be aligned.

• 49:03Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 49:04Speaker 04

  And so some people, like, you know, some people don't really have the patience for that. Like, I'll be in the studio all day. You know, I can kick it in here all day and just be moved, you know?

• 49:15Speaker 00

  Yeah. And how do you work, Adrian? Do you like?

• 49:19Speaker 05

  I mean, it's just nonstop for me. Like, I feel like I'm always, I have a studio. I'm just in there all day, every day. And, you know, like Eric said, with the like finding the game within the game, I actually find that lately I've had to give myself exercises to not repeat. The same things, you know, when you're kind of in there like a lot. I kind of work by myself a lot. There is a muscle memory where like, I feel like, did I just write that? Like that same thing, like forty times in a row?

• 49:45Speaker 00

  It's hard not to do that.

• 49:47Speaker 05

  I give myself exercises and I feel like it breaks me out of a rut. I read, um, there's an artist in Austin, who's from Austin, who's really famous now. Her name's Deborah Roberts. And she said that when she would try a new technique in art school, she had a professor that was like, you have to make forty of it. Was it twenty or forty of that? Like to break out, to really, really get going. Like you can't just make, say like, oh, I'm gonna try this new technique today.

• 50:09Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 50:10Speaker 05

  One is not enough. You have to make twenty or forty. So I have like folders of like, I'm gonna try writing on a synth and I'm gonna write twenty. And, and I feel like sometimes it takes twenty before a good one comes out where I'm like, oh, finally, something. So I kind of have to give myself like, I have to be more disciplined like that. Then that's a recent thing. I didn't think, I didn't used to be like that. I was just kind of always doing stuff. And lately I've been like, I have to, I have to set some boundaries or I think I'm starting to repeat myself.

• 50:37Speaker 00

  It's hard to, especially when you're working all the time. It's hard not to.

• 50:41Speaker 05

  For sure.

• 50:42Speaker 04

  And then also, you know, it, it really just comes down to the material in the song. Like, are you moved by the material? Does it make you want to laugh? Does it make you want to cry? You know, what, you know, how sincere is your prayer? Right? And so if, if you're not moved from the very beginning, then it's, for me, it's harder to do that. And that's, that was like, that was like the biggest thing, I think, going into this, uh, this record that we just released as well was, you know, that I just had a little bit more space and room to be a part of the initiation of that prayer.

• 51:20Speaker 04

  That our aesthetic was really a, a little bit more compatible with who, who I am, I feel. And so in that, it's really easy to, you know, get something locked in on a voice memo and be like, oh, my God, like this is such a wave. And so you just, you just never forsake the, that highest thing, that feeling that you know.

• 51:43Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 51:44Speaker 04

  You know it's good and, and. And you know, and when you have that confidence going into something, then it doesn't really matter what what someone else is thinking, or what how the public might perceive you. Because at the end of the day, this is like, we are voyagers, you know, satellite voyagers of of of of an artist that, you know, you have to be OK with kind of traversing the the unknown from other people's perspective.

• 52:10Speaker 00

  So yeah, for sure. You're on your own wave.

• 52:13Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 52:13Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 52:14Speaker 04

  You know, but you know, but you know, but but but no, we're on the same wave. We're just different expressions of what that is. And so I think that the task at hand is is finding common ground and doing that. And so I think that's where we've gotten to be like really lucky. It's because like I'm in a collaboration with people who are exceedingly generous.

• 52:35Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 52:35Speaker 04

  And so as we're generous with each other, we're able to kind of find new new places that actually fit our disposition towards expression of that of riding the same wave.

• 52:47Speaker 00

  It's the funnest thing when you find those things together, I think, too. Well, it's beautiful. I love what you guys do together.

• 52:54Speaker 04

  Thank you.

• 52:55Speaker 02

  OnDeck is built to back small businesses like yours. Whether you're buying equipment, expanding your team, or bridging cash flow gaps, OnDeck's loans up to $400,000 help make it happen fast. Rated A plus by the Better Business Bureau and earning thousands of five star TrustPilot reviews, OnDeck delivers funding you can count on. Apply in minutes at ondeck.com. Depending on certain loan attributes, your business loan may be issued by OnDeck or Celtic Bank. OnDeck does not lend in North Dakota. All loans and amounts subject to lender approval.

• 53:25Speaker 01

  Hey, it's Niall Rogers, host of Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series. I'm driving across the country, meeting some of today's most fascinating artists. We're exploring the stories before the moment that changed everything. This week, I'm joined by rising star Sienna Spiral.

• 53:44Speaker 02

  I love the 60s. I feel really jealous that I I wasn't alive for it. I'd be interested, like, knowing what that was like and seeing the way culture and art has has progressed today. How do you find it?

• 53:54Speaker 01

  Wait, wait, I'm.

• 53:55Speaker 02

  I'm sorry, I have so many questions. Sorry.

• 53:58Speaker 01

  You're not nervous, are you?

• 53:59Speaker 02

  I am nervous.

• 54:00Speaker 01

  You are?

• 54:00Speaker 02

  I am. I feel like insecure about my experience. I know I shouldn't, but you know, I'm 20. I haven't really lived my life yet. And then sitting in front of somebody that has lived an enormous life is intimidating. And sometimes I feel like talking about myself is just not as interesting. So that's why I feel a bit nervous. I'll try and, I'll try and ignore it then.

• 54:19Speaker 01

  Please do. Experience Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series on the iHeart Radio app, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

• 54:29Speaker 02

  This is Jonas Knox from Two Pros and a Cup of Joe. Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota Ford Ability, and it starts with a great deal on an off-road-ready Tacoma or half-ton Tundra, two of Toyota's longest-lasting trucks. Combining power for work, tech for adventures, and style in between. Built on a reputation for quality and reliability, Toyota trucks are known for holding their value, which could mean big savings when it's time for your next Toyota. So get a great deal today and a great value tomorrow. Shop toyota.com for more. Toyota, let's go places.

• 55:07Speaker 00

  You want to do one more?

• 55:08Speaker 04

  Yeah, let's do one more.

• 55:09Speaker 00

  All right, take us out. On colors from your...

• 55:14Speaker 05

  Going for the banjo?

• 55:15Speaker 00

  Relax. You want to play the banjo?

• 55:16Speaker 04

  After, after all that, I'm like, oh, man, this is funny. Okay.

• 55:19Speaker 00

  You should do it.

• 55:20Speaker 04

  Oh, shoot. Okay, let's, let's do it.

• 55:22Speaker 00

  I like the banjo. It's a, it's got no love for a long time, so it's happy.

• 55:32Speaker 05

  Such a wild instrument, the banjo.

• 55:33Speaker 00

  I know. It's a git, Joe, really.

• 55:37Speaker 05

  Oh, okay.

• 55:38Speaker 00

  It's a six-stringer.

• 55:39Speaker 05

  I was gonna say, yeah, because it was too, like, I heard, I picked one up at Fallon's show and tried to play to make everybody laugh. I was like, ooh, I don't even know how to, like, be funny, because I don't know the tuning.

• 55:47Speaker 00

  It's got a different tuning, yeah.

• 55:48Speaker 05

  I didn't even think about that.

• 55:49Speaker 00

  Yeah, it's like a cheater. Every studio should have one.

• 55:57Speaker 00

  Your studio in Austin, is it like, is it in your house? Is it separate?

• 56:02Speaker 05

  It used to be in my house. That's actually where we made the first record. It was connected to my house during the pandemic, kinda just outgrew it. It was perfect timing. I had a friend moving out of like a big, not big, but you know, big for a East Austin property facility and moving back to his house and downsizing. And I had to like, I was bursting at the seams.

• 56:21Speaker 00

  Upsize.

• 56:22Speaker 05

  Yeah, it was basically one huge room. I mean, we made it, it was like, the first album was one huge room like this with Eric singing like right behind me and.

• 56:29Speaker 00

  That's so cool.

• 56:29Speaker 05

  Yeah, now I have three, three rooms.

• 56:32Speaker 00

  Nice.

• 56:32Speaker 04

  This is awesome. Cause I just, I would never do this.

• 56:36Speaker 00

  I know, it's fun.

• 56:37Speaker 05

  Do you wanna like improvise solo over the?

• 56:40Speaker 00

  I can or you can?

• 56:42Speaker 05

  You could, you should.

• 56:42Speaker 00

  Okay.

• 56:43Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 56:43Speaker 00

  Wait, where's?

• 56:44Speaker 04

  It would be after the second chorus.

• 56:45Speaker 00

  Okay, cool. Yeah, no, I remember that now. Who's that playing on there? The piano? Is it you?

• 56:50Speaker 05

  Oh, the piano is, that was Spencer, our first keyboard player.

• 56:53Speaker 00

  Okay, cool.

• 56:53Speaker 04

  Spencer Garland.

• 56:54Speaker 00

  Cool. All right.

• 57:17Speaker 02

  I woke up to the morning sky first.

• 57:22Speaker 02

  Baby blue just like we rehearsed.

• 57:28Speaker 02

  When I get up off this ground, I shake the leaves back down to the brum, brum, brum, brum. Till I'm clean, oh, there.

• 57:43Speaker 02

  I walk where I'll be shaded by the trees. Not a muddle of green for about a mile. I'm ready to town, town, town in style.

• 58:01Speaker 02

  With all my favorite colors.

• 58:07Speaker 02

  All my favorite colors.

• 58:12Speaker 02

  My sisters and my brothers. See 'em like no other. All my favorite colors.

• 58:24Speaker 02

  So good baby, a good babe for me. A good babe, see my favorite colors. Colors. My sisters and my brothers. See 'em like no other. All my favorite colors.

• 58:47Speaker 02

  Now take me to the other side.

• 58:53Speaker 02

  Where the baby bluesbirds fly. See 'em flying.

• 58:59Speaker 02

  In gray clouds, red walls, blue skies. We gonna fly. Feel all right. We feel all right. When you feel all right. Now we gonna move. Move, move, move, move, yeah. They say we like move, move, move, move, yeah. And the least I can say. I anticipate a homecoming parade. It's with me again. A morning, darling. Sweet morning.

• 59:33Speaker 02

  With all my favorite colors.

• 59:39Speaker 02

  All my favorite colors.

• 59:44Speaker 02

  My sisters and my brothers. See 'em like no other. All my favorite colors. Say on.

• 59:56Speaker 02

  It's a good day to be A good day for me A good day to see my favorite colors Colors Add on My sisters and my brothers See 'em like no other All my favorite colors

• 1:00:19Speaker 02

  Alright Noel

• 1:01:06Speaker 02

  All my favorite colors

• 1:01:12Speaker 02

  All my favorite colors Add on My sisters and my brothers See 'em like no other All my favorite colors

• 1:01:29Speaker 02

  It's a good day to be A good day for me A good day to see my favorite colors Colors My sisters and my brothers See 'em like no other All my favorite colors

• 1:02:22Speaker 00

  The banjo version.

• 1:02:24Speaker 05

  Wow. Piano solo version, too.

• 1:02:26Speaker 00

  Oh, my God.

• 1:02:28Speaker 04

  Norah Jones is in the building.

• 1:02:31Speaker 00

  Oh, man, that was so fun.

• 1:02:32Speaker 04

  Black Pumas are so honored to be here. Thank you.

• 1:02:34Speaker 00

  I'm so honored. Thank you so much for coming.

• 1:02:37Speaker 05

  Thanks for having us.

• 1:02:37Speaker 00

  Yeah, I'll catch you out there on the road.

• 1:02:40Speaker 05

  Please do.

• 1:02:40Speaker 00

  Yeah, I'll come find you. Thanks for doing this.

• 1:02:44Speaker 05

  Thank you.

• 1:02:44Speaker 00

  Yay. Aw, yay.

• 1:02:47Speaker 03

  That was so great. Wow, goosebumps. His voice is like...

• 1:02:51Speaker 00

  It's crazy.

• 1:02:52Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 1:02:52Speaker 00

  He gave me crazy, crazy feels.

• 1:02:54Speaker 03

  Yes.

• 1:02:55Speaker 00

  That was such a fun episode. They're great, and I hope we get to see them again soon.

• 1:03:01Speaker 03

  Me, too.

• 1:03:03Speaker 00

  The songs we played today on this episode are "More Than a Love Song" from the album Chronicles of a Diamond from 2023. Also, the title track, Chronicles of a Diamond. We also did "Angel" from Chronicles of a Diamond. And we did the song "Colors" from Black Pumas' release in 2019.

• 1:03:23Speaker 00

  Special thanks to Black Pumas for joining us today. Check out our episode with Margot Price, also out today. We'll be back next week with Jason Isbell. Find us on social media as Norah Jones is Playing Along, or just Norah Jones, for more. Norah Jones is Playing Along is a production of iHeart Podcasts. I'm your host, Norah Jones, and this episode was recorded by Matt Marinelli, mixed by Jamie Landry, edited by Sarah Oda. Additional editing and mixing by Matthew Vasquez. Additional recording by Jamie Landry. Audio post-production by Greg Tobler. Artwork by Eliza Fry. Photography by Shirvin Lenez. Produced by Norah Jones and Sarah Oda. Executive producers Erin Wong Kaufman and Jordan Runtog. Marketing lead, Queen Anaki.

• 1:04:08Speaker 00

  Have a great one.

• 1:04:15Speaker 02

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• 1:05:21Speaker 00

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• 1:05:53Speaker 01

  Hey, I'm Niall Rogers. This fall, I'll be driving across the country, meeting some of today's coolest and most fascinating artists. We'll explore the stories before the moments that changed everything. Because every musician remembers the moment where it all began. Experience Before the Moment, a Lincoln Original Series on the iHeartRadio app, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

• 1:06:25Speaker 00

  This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed Human.