FUV Live Sessions

Singer-songwriter and musician Billie Marten joined WFUV Host Kara Manning at The Bitter End in New York City ahead of an exclusive show for the radio station to talk about her latest album, Dog Eared, how important it was to do something different for this project, what it was like to work with producer Phil Weinrobe in Bed Stuy and how invaluable the collaborations were for this album. Songs: Feeling, Crown and Planets

Afie Jurvanen, AKA Bahamas, sat down with WFUV host Benham Jones in Studio-A to talk about his latest album, My Second Last Album, how playing music is the closest he gets to the flow state, the importance of feeling a sense of contentment in your career and the singer-songwriter renaissance he thinks is in motion across the industry. Songs: The Bridge, Shadows and Ready for a New Thing

Charley Crockett joined FUV host Alisa Ali in Studio-A to play some live tunes from his album, Dollar A Day, and to talk about why he was inspired to construct a trilogy project that includes this album, the struggles with the music industry early on in his career and how he persevered even though many things remain the same, and why the cowboy narrative is still evergreen in American culture. Songs: Tennessee Quick Cash, Ain’t That Right and El Paso to Denver

Jenn Wasner, known musically as Flock of Dimes, joined WFUV host Alisa Ali in Studio-A to talk about her latest solo project, The Life You Save, how she adds fictional elements to her songwriting to create universal messages, what it was like to self-produce this project and what’s next for her solo work and the many bands, projects and collaborations she works on regularly. Songs: Keep Me in the Dark, Long After Midnight and Not Yet Free

Multifaceted artist, painter, writer, singer, songwriter and musician Josh Ritter joined WFUV host Alisa Ali in the studio to talk about his latest album, ‘I Believe in You, My Honeydew,’ how he channeled and honored his muse by creating this project, why it was so important to record this album in a dark place surrounded by starry skies and how he still believes in the human spirit even during this time when it’s a bit dicey. Songs: Wild Ways, Truth is a Dimension (Both Invisible and Blinding) and Thunderbird

Singer, songwriter, musician and long-time friend of WFUV, Kathleen Edwards, joins FUV host Alisa Ali in Studio-A to talk about her latest album, Billionaire, what some of her early experiences in the music industry were like, the young woman who inspired this latest project and the production and collaborations that brought this album to life. Songs: Save Your Soul, When The Truth Comes Out and Little Red Ranger

Politically charged artist and social media sensation Jesse Welles joined WFUV host Kara Manning backstage at The Bitter End before an exclusive show to talk about the eight albums he has put out since 2024, what it’s like to make music that reflects the national zeitgeist and the icons he draws inspiration from like Joan Baez and George Carlin. Songs: Horses, Join Ice and Don’t Think Twice

In a special episode of FUV Live Sessions in front of a studio audience, Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy joined WFUV host Alisa Ali at The Bitter End in New York City to play songs from his latest solo album, Twilight Override, and to talk about why he made a triple album, how creativity eats darkness, and the importance of sitting with your imagination every single day. For the full video version of this episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIVMj-X8SnU Songs: Enough, Amar Bharati, Feel Free, Stray Cats in Spain, Throwaway Lines and Lou Reed Was My Babysitter

Neko Case joined WFUV host Alisa Ali backstage at The Sheen Center in New York City ahead of an exclusive performance for WFUV Marquee Members to talk about her latest solo album, Neon Grey Midnight Green, how human-made music will always surpass AI, the importance of writing love songs that don’t revolve around a heteronormative couple and an upcoming project that will bring Neko Case songs to a different kind of stage. Songs: Louise, Rusty Mountain and Wreck

Brooklyn-based singer, songwriter and producer Hannah Jadagu joined FUV Live Sessions’ Executive Producer, Meghan Suma, in Studio-A to talk about her Sophomore album, Describe, how much she loves finding the childlike state of play in the studio while she makes music, the layers of ethereal synths and vocal reverb signature to her sound and how difficult it is to get to the truth of the human experience in songwriting. Songs: Gimme Time, Doing Now and My Love

The English band Dry Cleaning joined UKNY host Kara Manning in WFUV’s Studio-A to talk about their 2026 album, Secret Love, the process of recording an album in multiple different cities at a number of different recording studios across the globe, how the emotional quality of the music can impact the songwriting and the role of songwriting and music in political activism. Songs: Hit My Head All Day, Evil Evil Idiot and Joy

The band Elbow joined UKNY host Kara Manning in WFUV’s Studio-A for the first time in 14 years to celebrate their 2025 EP, Audio Vertigo Echo: Elbow EP5, which was a follow-up to their 2024 album, Audio Vertigo, and the band talked about why they love playing New York City, the decision to make an album rooted in joyful distraction during a difficult time, and the importance of veteran artists taking up-and-coming musicians under their wings and lifting them up. Songs: Her to the Earth, The Seldom Seen Kid and Magnificent (She Says)

Jazz duo Rachael & Vilray sat down with WFUV’s Cavalcade host Paul Cavalconte to talk about their latest album, West of Broadway, how the two college friends came to collaborate years later, their mutual affection for showtunes and Great American Songbook standards and the beauty in blending contemporary humor and wit with classic sounds. Songs: Off Broadway, Is It Jim? and My Key to Gramercy Park

Matt Quinn of Mt. Joy joined WFUV host Alisa Ali backstage at City Winery ahead of a special event for the radio station to talk about the band’s most recent album, Hope We Have Fun, the self awareness that has evolved as the band’s success has grown, the unique collaborations that made this album a reality and the process of taking a real-life story and turning it into a song. Songs: Highway Queen, Pink Lady and Lucy

Brooklyn-based band, Nation of Language, commuted to the Bronx to play a live set in Studio-A and talk to WFUV host Alisa Ali about their latest album, Dance Called Memory, the difference between making music and showing it to other people, the importance of following your instincts without worrying about what listeners might like or not like, and the opportunity to work with Subpop Records. Songs: Inept Apollo, Under The Water and Silhouette

Indigo De Souza joined WFUV host Alisa Ali in Studio-A to talk about her fourth studio album, Precipice, how important it is to be truthful and authentic during the songwriting process, the familial relationship between her touring team and the value in talking openly about mental health struggles. Songs: Not Afraid, Be Like The Water and Crying Over Nothing

In this episode of FUV Live Sessions, WFUV host Sam Sumpter weaved her way through the backstage of Forest Hills Stadium in Queens to get a chance to talk to Brittany Howard of the beloved band, Alabama Shakes – the two caught up about the band getting back together again, the new music they’ve put out in 2025 and how they’re better than ever because they took some time away to grow. The songs in this session were recorded live at Red Rocks in Colorado and Forest Hills Stadium in New York City. The music was recorded, mixed and mastered by Shane Haase. Photo by Brantley Gutierrez. Songs: Gimme All Your Love, Another Life and This Feeling

Nigerian singer-songwriter, Obongjayar, joined WFUV host Kara Manning in Studio-A to talk about his Sophomore album, Paradise Now (which was also released as a deluxe album titled Paradise Now & Forever the week before this session dropped), his first United States tour and playing Newport Folk Festival, how important it is to be authentic and to let the people you collaborate with be themselves, and where the cadence of his native language appears in his songwriting. Songs: Prayer, Sweet Danger and Jellyfish

Britpop band, Pulp, released their first album in 24 years, More, and Jarvis Cocker of the group chatted to UKNY host Kara Manning about the project, how he approached the band with the idea to do another album, how his lyrical writing process has changed over the course of his career and why radio is so essential to culture, music and artists across the board. Songs: Tina, Grown Ups and Slow Jam

English indie-rock band, Wolf Alice, caught up with WFUV host Kara Manning at The Power Station in New York City to talk about their latest album, The Clearing, how it feels to be the only band in the history of the Mercury Prize to be nominated for all their albums, what’s different about making music in their thirties versus making music in their twenties and the importance of making music both independently and then being able to come back together and turn it into an album. Songs: The Sofa and Leaning Against The Wall