Q&A
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Q&A: Colombian Loyal Lobos on ‘Everlasting,’ her strong-willed mom and the pandemic
Loyal Lobos, courtesy Diego Trenas. Colombian singer-songwriter Andrea Silva, who writes and performs as Loyal Lobos, is proud, inspired and terrified of her mother, who took on numerous ventures as Silva grew up to protect her family and ensure its well-being. Everlasting Loyal Lobos AWAL, Aug. 7 Silva, who…
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Oakland’s Damian Lillard on how we can be allies to Black people in the Bay Area
Damian Lillard walks arm in arm with other Black Lives Matter protestors on the Morrison Bridge in Portland, Oregon on June 4, 2020. Photos courtesy: Bruce Ely/Trail Blazers. A day prior to getting his first on-court action in more than four months in the Portland Trail Blazers’ first scrimmage…
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Q&A: Caroline Jones one of the ‘Boys’ with Jimmy Buffett, Zac Brown and Kenny Chesney
Caroline Jones, Courtesy. Country singer-songwriter Caroline Jones has crisscrossed the country on tours with Kenny Chesney, Zac Brown and Jimmy Buffett, seeing bits here and there out of the bus window, yet she’s never been on a true coast-to-coast road trip. So when planning for the fictional car chase…
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Q&A: Sinéad Harnett morphs into pandemic ‘Quarantine Queen’
Sinéad Harnett, Courtesy. After her debut album, Lessons In Love, brought her into the global spotlight in 2019, north London R&B and soul singer Sinéad Harnett looks forward to releasing her latest album later this year. The coronavirus pandemic left her at a bit of a standstill, like most artists now.…
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Q&A: Dedric Clark of Social Animals on losing his ‘Best Years’ and finding new ones
Social Animals. Courtesy of Rise Records. When you’re desperate for paying work, you take anything available to you. That was the case for Duluth, Minnesota’s Social Animals, who had followed a motto to never say “no” to an offer. That’s how the quartet found itself with a gig at…
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Fantastic Negrito on protests, growing up on the street, and the George Floyd video
Fantastic Negrito photographed in downtown Oakland on June 3, 2020. Jane Hu/STAFF. On Wednesday, June 3, Xavier Dphrepaulezz—Fantastic Negrito—sat down with RIFF editors Daniel J. Willis and Roman Gokhman to talk about the ongoing protests against police brutality in Oakland and around the world. From his studio, he told…
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Q&A: Oakland’s Ultra Q drops quarantine EP, ponders future after shelter-in-place
Ultra Q, Courtesy: Andrew Diaz. Some bands can get by on streaming royalties for a while in the event of a catastrophic pandemic, but Oakland’s Ultra Q is not a “streaming band,” frontman and bandleader Jakob Armstrong said. Brothers Enzo and Chris Malaspina, Kevin Judd and Armstrong, the youngest son…
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INTRODUCING K.O.: DJ and visual artist Ko Lee steps into a new realm with “Sadderday”
K.O. (Ko Lee). Ko Lee is still new to writing and recording her original songs as K.O., but the Angeleno has been making art of the visual kind for several years, usually using herself as the subject. While she’s grown a massive online fanbase, Lee is quick to point…
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Q&A: Katelyn Tarver on her mental health, trying new recipes during quarantine
Katelyn Tarver. Courtesy of Girlie Action. By the time Katelyn Tarver won on episode of NBC’s “Songland” in 2019, she was already an accomplished artist. Hot Chelle Rae, Katelyn Tarver Who the hell knows? August Hall, maybe The Angeleno, whose winning song, “Young,” went on to be recorded by…
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Q&A: André Allen Anjos on his new RAC album and earning a paycheck during the concert blackout
André Allen Anjos (RAC), Courtesy: Jules Davies. It’s March 48 (who’s keeping track, though?) and musician-producer André Allen Anjos, better known as RAC, seems happy to see a new human face. After several weeks of keeping indoors at his Portland, Oregon apartment, Anjos, like most of us, is living…
