Rhiannon Giddens

Singer-musician Rhiannon Giddens calls off Kennedy Center show, citing Trump takeover

1:44pm February 26, 2025

by Hillel Italie, Associated Press

Award-winning singer-musician Rhiannon Giddens has become the latest artist to call off an appearance at the Kennedy Center, which has been in upheaval since President Donald Trump forced out the center's leadership and was elected chair of the board of trustees.

Rhiannon Giddens is the latest artist to cancel Kennedy Center gig

5:34pm February 25, 2025

Folk musician Rhiannon Giddens said on social media that she has moved her May concert — originally scheduled for the Kennedy Center — to a different venue in Washington, D.C.

Beyoncé accepts the Innovator Award at the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards on April 1. Her new album is "Carter Country" and it features a banjo on the hit song "Texas Hold 'Em." At right: a gourd banjo was an early American incarnation of an instrument that originated in Africa and was played by African Americans.

The banjo is a star of Beyoncé's new album. Turns out it has African roots

11:55am April 05, 2024

by Aaron Cohen

In "Texas Hold 'Em," the singer is accompanied by a banjo. It's often thought of as a quintessential Americana instrument. But the history of the banjo tells a different story.

Arts & Music

UNCG alumna Rhiannon Giddens awarded Pulitzer Prize in Music

10:50am May 09, 2023

by Neal Charnoff

Rhiannon Giddens, who studied music as a graduate student at UNC Greensboro, will receive the 2023 Pulitzer Prize in Music for the opera “Omar,” which she co-wrote with Michael Abels.

Tenor Jamez McCorkle, who debuted the title role in the opera Omar, by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels, which received its world premiere on May 27 in Charleston, S.C., at Spoleto Festival USA.

The debut of 'Omar,' a thoroughly American opera

12:20pm June 07, 2022

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

Composers Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels have brought a true story to the opera stage: the life of Omar Ibn Said, a Senegalese Muslim scholar who was enslaved and brought to the Carolinas.

Queue Listen Now

Pops Staples, Rhiannon Giddens, Mavis Staples and Patterson Hood of Drive-By Truckers perform on Mountain Stage.

Music & Culture

'Why Am I Treated So Bad' Special On Mountain Stage

2:14pm September 18, 2020

by Adam Harris

Hear a special episode of Mountain Stage featuring Pops Staples, Rhiannon Giddens, Sweet Honey in the Rock, Paula Cole and more singing about the experiences of African Americans.

Our Native Daughters is featured on this week's The Thistle & Shamrock.

Music & Culture

The Thistle & Shamrock: Banjo Roots And Branches

12:20pm September 04, 2020

Hear how the migration of the banjo from its African roots to the heart of American music crosses over to sit within the Celtic sound.

Music & Culture

Amythyst Kiah Brings Commanding And Connecting Voice To Winston-Salem

7:00am March 06, 2020

by Eddie Garcia

Queue Listen Now

Arts

Rhiannon Giddens, Frank Johnson To Get Americana Award

1:51pm August 07, 2019

by Kristin M. Hall, Associated Press

Grammy-winning folk singer and musician Rhiannon Giddens and the late Frank Johnson, the leader of a 19th-century black brass band, will be the first recipients of the inaugural Legacy of Americana

Music & Culture

Tanger Center Books Greensboro Opera Performance With Rhiannon Giddens

12:12pm September 12, 2018

by Neal Charnoff

Greensboro's Steven Tanger Center for the Performing Arts isn't scheduled to open for another year and a half. But the venue has lined up a local favorite for its first booking.