Rhiannon Giddens and Justin Robinson have unveiled “Marching Jaybird” from their forthcoming album of North Carolina fiddle and banjo music What Did the Blackbird Say to the Crow (April 18 / Nonesuch Records). As part of their long-awaited reunion on this album, “Marching Jaybird” finds the duo revisiting a recording by influential guitarist and singer Etta Baker, one of their musical heroes and a key inspiration for making this new album.
The instrumental track, with Giddens and Robinson both on banjo, was recorded at Baker’s Morganton, NC home. The two longtime friends and collaborators experienced an extraordinary moment at Baker’s home while recording when her son, Edgar Baker, offhandedly mentioned that his mother had recorded “Carolina Breakdown” in her yard, and that a Carolina wren ended up on the recording. Robinson and Giddens were delighted to hear him tell this story, as that very recording had been their inspiration to record What Did the Blackbird Say to the Crow in the way they did — preserving place in music. The duo recorded Baker’s version of “Marching Jaybird” in the living room, as shown in the video, with Baker’s son listening.
“This was a magical moment for Justin and me,” Giddens says. “Walking into Etta Baker’s house, which is frozen in time, looking just like it did when she was alive, very much reminded us of women in our families; sitting in her living room and recording this piece we learned from her playing, was pretty profound.”
Today Giddens also announced a number of new dates on her Rhiannon Giddens & The Old-Time Revue tour–featuring Robinson and four other string musicians, including multi-instrumentalist Dirk Powell. On June 18 they will headline the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, joined by special guests Our Native Daughters– in their first performance since 2022–as well as Steve Martin, Ed Helms, and more. Additional shows in July have been added to the itinerary as well; see below for the full list.
Giddens also shared more details about Biscuits & Banjos –– revealing the remaining artist performances and panel lineup –– her first festival, which takes place April 25-27 in downtown Durham, NC. Curated by Giddens, Biscuits & Banjos highlights the deep roots and enduring legacy of Black music, art, and culture while fostering community and storytelling. The sold-out festival will feature a much-anticipated Carolina Chocolate Drops reunion, their first performance together in more than a decade. The newly unveiled additions include Amythyst Kiah, Angela Wellman, Bittersweet Brass Band, Buffalo Nichols, Charly Lowry, Dasan Ahanu, Gabrielle and Danielle Davenport, Hannah Mayree, Joseph Johnson, Dr. Lalenja Harrington, Michael Twitty, Niwel Tsumbu, Piedmont Blues Preservation Society, Shana Tucker, Shorlette Ammons, Sùle Greg Wilson, Toni Tipton-Martin, Dr. Tressie McMillan Cottom, Yasmin Williams, and more.
The panels include:
Black Voices in Country Music: A Conversation with Rhiannon Giddens, Rissi Palmer, and Alice Randall
Let the Church Say Amen!: Ritual, Storytelling, and the Oral Tradition with Dasan Ahanu and Dr. Lalenja Harrington
Intentional Community: Celebrating Black Voices in Festivals and Live Events with Holly G, Brandi Waller-Pace, Rissi Palmer, and Dr. Dena Ross Jennings
The Art of the Biscuit A Conversation with Michael Twitty and Toni Tipton-Martin, supported by Biscuitville
Biscuits & Banjos is a non-profit, community responsive festival. Funding for Biscuits & Banjos is made possible in part by the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, the National Endowment for the Arts, North Carolina Humanities, the Danielle Rose Paikin Foundation, the Harper House Music Foundation, the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation, Warner Music Group & Blavatnik Family Foundation Social Justice Fund (a sponsored project of Moore Impact), Duke Arts, Duke Community Affairs, 21c Museum Hotel, Biscuitville, the City of Durham, Durham County, Discover Durham, North Carolina Arts Council, Durham Arts Council, American Tobacco Campus, Blue Ridge Music Center, Sugarlands Distilling Company, Bull City Burger and Brewery, Proximity Brewing Company and other generous individual donors, sponsors, civic, and community partners. On the state’s partnership, Secretary Reid Wilson said, “The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources is excited to help sponsor Rhiannon Giddens’ new Biscuits & Banjos festival in 2025. The festival will give North Carolinians an opportunity to immerse themselves in our state’s vibrant music and arts, rich history, and diverse culture. Music provides common ground for all of us, and we’re proud to be a part of this innovative event.”
Produced by Giddens and Joseph “joebass” DeJarnette, What Did the Blackbird Say to the Crow finds Giddens and Robinson playing eighteen of their favorite North Carolina tunes: a mix of instrumentals and tunes with words. Many were learned from their late mentor, the legendary North Carolina Piedmont musician Joe Thompson, one of the last musicians of his era and his community to carry on the southern Black string band tradition. Giddens and Robinson also recorded outdoors at Thompson’s Mebane, NC home, as well as the former plantation Mill Prong. They were accompanied by the sounds of nature, including two different broods of cicadas, which had not emerged simultaneously since 1803, creating a true once-in-a-lifetime soundscape.
“With the assaults on reality going on in the world today, we wanted to offer another kind of record, like walking back onto a gravel or dirt road while a stampede goes the other way,” Giddens says. “With the cicada choir, this record could’ve only happened at a certain time in the last 120 years. We doubled down on place, time, realness, and old-fashioned front porch music. It’s a reminder that another way exists, with music made for your community’s enjoyment and for dancing–not solely for commercial purposes.”
What Did the Blackbird Say to the Crow Track List:
Rain Crow
Brown’s Dream
Hook and Line
Pumpkin Pie
Duck’s Eyeball
Ryestraw
Little Brown Jug
Going to Raleigh
Country Waltz
Molly Put the Kettle On
Fly Around My Pretty Little Miss
John Henry
Love Somebody
Ebenezer
Old Joe Clark
Old Molly Hare
Marching Jaybird
Walkin’ in the Parlor
Tour Dates:
April 25-27 – Durham, NC – Biscuits & Banjos
April 30 – Asheville, NC – The Orange Peel
May 2 – Miami, FL – Miami Beach Bandshell
May 3 – Atlanta, GA – The Eastern
May 4 – Birmingham, AL – Jemison Concert Hall @ Alys Robinson Stephens Center
May 7 – Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium
May 8 – Cincinnati, OH – Memorial Hall
May 9 – Chicago, IL – Thalia Hall
May 11 – Washington, DC – The Anthem
May 13 – Grand Rapids, MI – St. Cecilia Music Center
May 15 – Toronto, ON – Koerner Hall at The Royal Conservatory of Music
May 16 – Toronto, ON – Koerner Hall at The Royal Conservatory of Music
May 17 – Ottawa, ON – National Arts Centre, Southam Hall
June 15 – Napa, CA – Uptown Theatre
June 16 – Ventura, CA – Ventura Theater
June 18 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Bowl (with Our Native Daughters, Steve Martin, Ed Helms, Leyla McCalla, Amythyst Kiah and Allison Brown)
June 19 – San Diego, CA – The Observatory North Park
June 21 – Berkeley, CA – Zellerbach
June 23 – Seattle, WA – The Moore Theater
June 26 – Montréal, QC – Théâtre Maisonneuve @ Montreal Jazz Festival
July 11 – Tucson, AZ – Fox Tucson Theatre
July 12 – Flagstaff, AZ – Pepsi Amphitheater
July 14 – Santa Fe, NM – Lensic Performing Arts Center
July 18 – Sonoma, CA – Green Music Center
July 19 – Navarro, CA – Redwood Ramble
July 21 – Saratoga, CA – The Mountain Winery
July 25 – Boise, ID – Egyptian Theater
July 28 – Boulder, CO – Chautauqua Park
July 29 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre
July 31 – Vail, CO – Vilar Performing Arts Center
