For Joe Henry, truth in songwriting doesn’t come from confession or fact. It comes from presence, from listening, from surrender, from giving shape to the ineffable. As he puts it: “Total presence—that is the code of my road.”

Henry’s road has taken him across both the literal and metaphorical map of American music. Born in North Carolina, raised in Georgia and Ohio, and coming of age in Ann Arbor, Michigan, he grew up suspended between North and South, white and Black, rural and urban. This early sense of duality, of living between poles, helped shape his identity and fed a lifelong curiosity. Alongside his brother Dave, he immersed himself in records, films, and books that would later form the bedrock of his creative work.

Over the past four decades, Henry has become one of the most respected songwriters and producers in American music. His solo albums, beginning in the late 1980s, blend literary songwriting with genre-bending arrangements. As a producer, he’s worked with artists like Allen Toussaint, Mavis Staples, Solomon Burke, Bonnie Raitt, Rodney Crowell, Joan Baez, and Meshell Ndegeocello. He co-wrote Madonna’s hit “Don’t Tell Me,” (she also happens to be his sister in law) and more recently, he’s been collaborating with Jon Batiste.

This year he is releasing three of his classic albums on vinyl for the first time.

In this wide-ranging conversation, Henry discusses his love of character-driven songwriting—an approach influenced early on by Randy Newman and Bob Dylan—and his rejection of the notion that autobiography equals authenticity. “Your factual experience can be disruptive to the truth you're trying to allow to move through you,” he says.

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Aron! is only 22, but his music seems to exist outside of time. A singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist from North Carolina, he studied classical guitar, jazz voice, and film scoring—playing everything from indie rock in a college band to Nat King Cole covers in retirement homes—before landing on a sound that feels both old school and strikingly fresh. (He calls his sound “vintage pop”.)

His debut EP cozy you (and other nice songs) began as a self-produced student project, recorded in a college studio with friends. It was completed before he signed with Verve Records—one of the most iconic jazz labels in the world—and showcases his gift for timeless songwriting, intimate performance, and warm, sophisticated arrangements.

He first gained attention online through casual videos of himself playing standards and originals, quietly amassing a loyal audience. Among his early champions was Ryan Lerman (Scary Pockets), who helped connect Aron! with a wider musical community.

Here he reflects on his musical roots, his love of old songs, the strange path from Instagram to Verve, and the challenge of staying grounded in a moment of rapid change. The songs may sound old, but the feeling is immediate. The muse, it seems, doesn’t care what year it is.

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Over the past two decades, Natalia Lafourcade has evolved from alt-pop prodigy to one of the most revered voices in Latin American music. With 15 Latin Grammys and 4 Grammys to her name, she’s known for blending contemporary expression with deep cultural roots. Her latest album, Cancionera, is a bold new statement—a stripped-down, emotionally direct record that draws on her Veracruz heritage, the son jarocho tradition, and a mystical alter ego she calls La Cancionera.

In this conversation, Natalia reflects on the power of presence, the value of silence, and her decision to perform much of her new music solo on tour. She talks about the “theater of the song,” where voice and guitar take center stage, and about her ongoing effort to honor tradition while contributing something new.

She also speaks candidly about recording live with 18 musicians, working again with producer Adan Jodorowsky, and bringing this music to audiences around the world at a time of division and border politics. Without preaching, she offers a quiet but powerful vision of connection, compassion, and cultural memory—through song.

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Terri Lyne Carrington has spent her life behind the drums—and out in front. In this wide-ranging conversation, the Grammy-winning musician, educator, and activist reflects on her remarkable journey from child prodigy to visionary bandleader, and from mentee to mentor. She shares stories from her early gigs with jazz legends like Clark Terry and Buddy Rich, her formative years with Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, and her ongoing work shaping the next generation through the Berklee Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice.

We spoke on the occasion of We Insist 2025!, Carrington’s powerful new reimagining of Max Roach’s classic 1960 protest suite. But the conversation goes far beyond the music—it’s about legacy, leadership, gender equity, and the responsibility of artists to help create a more just and expansive world. As Carrington puts it, “Only an open hand receives.”

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pablopablo - born Pablo Drexler - is a Madrid-based singer, songwriter, and producer. The son of two acclaimed artists, Jorge Drexler and Ana Laan, here he talks about how he found his own voice, sound, and artistic identity.

His debut full-length album, Canciones en mi, is out now. The title is a bilingual play on words—“in E” (as in the musical key), and “in me”—and it perfectly captures the spirit of the record: introspective, expressive, and sonically bold.

Pablo shares the story of growing up in a small town outside Madrid with a big, multilingual worldview. We discuss his early experiments in music and production, his years studying abroad, and his time touring and collaborating with artists like C. Tangana. He opens up about stepping away from the Drexler name—on the advice of his father—to make space for his music to be heard on its own terms.

We dive deep into questions of identity, language, and legacy: Why does he now write exclusively in Spanish? What does it mean to create a sound that feels personal without being confessional? How do you balance the instinct to innovate with the desire to stay grounded?

Along the way, we talk about the emotional clarity that comes with pressure, the power of building a sonic world, and the beauty of embracing simple ideas and making them feel new.

At just 27, Pablo Pablo is already a Latin Grammy-winning artist, having contributed to major collaborations with Jorge Drexler, C. Tangana, and Nathy Peluso. But Canciones en mi is his proper introduction as a solo artist—and it’s a striking one.

This is a conversation about roots and branches, about staying true while branching out, and about what happens when you finally find the music that sounds like you.

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Twenty years ago, “Al otro lado del río" became the first Spanish-language song to win an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Written by Jorge Drexler in a single day while staying in Madison, Wisconsin, and recorded in a mix of home and studio settings, the song’s journey was as unexpected as its lyrics suggested.

At the time, it felt like an anomaly. This year, when “El Mal” from Amelia Perez won the same award, it barely registered as unusual. That alone says something about how much can shift in 20 years—culturally, personally, globally.

Here we revisit that historic night through conversations with Jorge Drexler, Ana Laan, Amanda Sidran, Ben Sidran, and the song’s co-producer: me. From the song’s humble origins, its Oscar nomination, and the moment when Drexler—barred from performing his own song during the ceremony—made a quiet but profound statement by singing his acceptance speech a cappella.

But this episode isn’t just about the song. It’s about the river crossings—literal and metaphorical—that define our lives. It’s about memory, and how we revise and re-tell our stories over time. It’s about fate, timing, music, and how small decisions can ripple outward in ways we could never expect.

It also looks at the aftermath: how the win transformed Drexler’s career, leading to 15 Latin Grammys and three Song of the Year awards by 2024, and how it marked a turning point for me, prompting me to move to New York and ultimately leading to the creation of The Third Story podcast.

But even in retelling the story, memory plays tricks—Jorge and I recall that night differently, highlighting a key theme of The Third Story: within every version of events, the truth always lies in the spaces between. This episode is an exploration of music, memory, and history—how a single event can reshape multiple lives in different ways.

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Legendary singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega looks back at her remarkable career — and forward to her new album, Flying with Angels, her first collection of original songs in nearly a decade.

From the moment she emerged in the 1980s with her self-titled debut and follow-up Solitude Standing, Vega has occupied a singular space in popular music. Known for her literate lyrics, calm delivery, and understated innovation, she became an unlikely pop star with songs like “Luka” — a devastating portrait of abuse — and “Tom’s Diner,” which began as an a cappella sketch and became a surprise dance hit, later used in the development of the MP3 format.

Vega discusses how those early hits shaped her identity, and how she’s maintained a relationship with her past work while continuing to evolve as an artist. She shares stories behind her biggest songs, her longtime collaborations (including with producer and ex-husband Mitchell Froom), and her connection to a vibrant downtown New York songwriting community that included figures like Jack Hardy and Fast Folk magazine.

She also reflects on the new material, including the haunting “Mariaupol,” inspired by the war in Ukraine, and “Rats,” inspired during the lockdown in New York. These songs mark a subtle shift for Vega: from her usual allegorical storytelling to more direct commentary and bearing witness to events in real time.

Along the way, the conversation touches on Lou Reed, Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan, motherhood, stagecraft, artistic responsibility, and the strange alchemy of simplicity and resonance. Vega shares anecdotes from her life on tour, her early performances (including a childhood appearance at Pete Seeger’s feet), and her unexpected intersections with technology and culture.

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www.wbgo.org/podcast/the-third-story

www.third-story.com
www.leosidran.substack.com
www.wbgo.org/podcast/the-third-story