By the age of 20, Esperanza Spalding had already performed at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony for President Obama. But the 5x Grammy-winning bassist, singer, and songwriter says her meteoric rise wasn’t about her being a musical “prodigy” - but a lifelong love affair with her instrument.
In this episode, Esperanza joins Guy to recount her lightning bolt moment watching cellist Yo-Yo Ma on Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood that sparked her obsession with the bass, how she became disillusioned with music at the Berklee College of Music, and the vulnerable 77-hour livestream where she let fans witness her entire album writing process in real time. She also shares her experience collaborating with her music hero, the legendary Milton Nascimento, on their new album, “milton + esperanza.”
You can get your hands on the new album here: https://esperanzaspalding.bandcamp.com/album/milton-esperanza
Listen to this episode on the go:
🟣Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/esperanza-spalding-on-the-suffering-of-songwriting/id1640546593?i=1000668122725
🟢Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5Redlv0Ca31jel8ifzjRqj?si=Y1O7cQHYQ4uySZHxrffs6A
Chapters:
(00:00:00) Intro
(00:06:45) Early musical inspiration from Yo-Yo Ma
(00:33:35) Performing for President Obama
(00:35:15) Live streaming her album creation
(00:53:17) The pain and beauty of songwriting
(01:02:24) Collaborating with Milton Nascimento
Mentioned in this episode:
• Esperanza Spalding’s album Emily's D+Evolution - https://music.apple.com/album/emilys-d-evolution/1443285598
• Esperanza Spalding's album Radio Music Society - https://music.apple.com/ke/album/radio-music-society/1440957542
• Fall In, song by Esperanza Spalding - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W79Z2fxFLi8
• Judas, song by Esperanza Spalding - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7fWzV-fo4Y
Connect with Esperanza:
• 💻Website: https://esperanzaspalding.com/
• 📺Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@EsperanzaSpaldingTV
• 📸Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/esperanzaspalding/
• 🎵TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@esperanzaspalding
Connect with us:
•💻Website: TheGreatCreators.com
•📸Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thegreatcreatorspodcast and https://www.instagram.com/guy.raz
• 🎵TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@guyraz