Why Music Matters With Jeff Miers

Hey there, music lovers! Welcome to Why Music Matters! Well, it’s 2026, and live music venues are struggling. The rising costs of everything have led independent music venues to face challenges relating to operational costs. Live Nation and Ticketmaster continue to operate a monopoly, and the result has been an absurd over-inflation of arena and concert hall ticket prices. We’ve come to accept premium & “dynamic pricing” schemes that charge between $500 and $900 per ticket for pit and floor seats at face value, and anywhere from $1500 to $5000 per ticket on the resale market, for major artists. This is bad news for independent venues, as folks who were previously consistent patrons are staying away, their entertainment budgets for the entire year being used up by attendance of a single Live Nation/Ticketmaster-controlled arena show, in some cases. If you’re a live music lover, a venue owner, or a musician, you be forgiven for thinking that the war is over, and the bad guys won. Good news is rare in this scenario, but I’ve got some to share on today’s episode. We’re focusing on Mohawk Place, a legendary Buffalo live music venue that, over several decades, provided a home and a hub for regional bands, a welcoming abode for long-serving cult artists, and a reliable stop for touring bands on their way up. Mohawk Place is, in a sense, emblematic of the city it lives in - like Buffalo itself, the club has been down, but it’s never fully tapped out. It’s gone dark, but it still stands. And now, it’s in the early days of a renaissance. Thanks in large part to today’s guests, veterans of the Buffalo music scene Sam Marabella, Ed Croft and Dan Reino, Mohawk Place has been granted a new lease on life. Join us as we talk Mohawk Place’s revival, and maybe learn something about how independent live music scenes in cities like Buffalo can survive, and even flourish, despite the odds… Welcome to Why Music Matters, Sam, Ed and Dan…

Hey there, music lovers! Welcome to Why Music Matters!

Today, we present another edition of our intermittent series “Generations,” focusing on families that have passed on their love of music from parents to children, and have created musical legacies in the process.

Today, I’m joined in the studio by the Weissman family - father Stu, and his sons, Ethan and Avery.

Music runs deep in this family. Dad Stu is a renowned jazz guitarist and music educator who remains highly active in the Western New York music scene. Stu is lovingly known as the king of hip guitar chord voicing in Buffalo. Whether he’s breathing new life into a tune from the Great American Songbook, re-harmonizing a standard, or helping a student unfold the beautiful mysteries of jazz harmony, Stu is the man.

Stu passed both his immense talent and his incredible ear to his sons.

Avery is a bassist and guitarist actively engaged in the Buffalo music community. He is a virtuoso, capable of tackling everything from blazing heavy metal to supple jazz, indie and alternative rock, and even pop.

Ethan is an incredibly inventive guitarist, audio engineer and producer, whose blend of jaw-dropping chops and memorable melodic lines makes him one of the most inventive guitarists to emerge from Buffalo over the past decade.

I studied jazz guitar with Stu in the 90s, and later, we shared innumerable precious times making music with our kids, who grew up together and jammed on a regular basis for years.

It gives me great pleasure to welcome to Why Music Matters Stu, Ethan and Avery Weissman!

Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.

I’m your host, Jeff Miers.

On today’s episode, I’m joined by author and founder of renowned indie label Big Deal Records Dean Brownrout.

Born in Buffalo, Dean spent 25 years in the music business, beginning as an enterprising teenager promoting his friends’ high school bands, moving into booking shows as the new wave/punk/post-punk took over legendary clubs like the Continental, moving to New York City with nothing but a dream and a one-way ticket, and finally - after years spent as a promoter, tour manager, and accidental expert on thrash metal, fulfilling his fantasy of starting his own record label, Big Deal.

Dean speaks candidly about his experiences in the record business, as recounted in his heartfelt and often hilarious tome, No Big Deal - an Amazon best-seller even today, 2 years after its release - his memories of promoting shows in Buffalo while still just a kid, his thoughts on booking the legendary club show that launched the career of Metallica, his fondness for the AM Radio gold he grew up with and the power-pop that he still adores, and how it felt to watch the record business succumb to the aggressive evolution embodied by the rise of the internet.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Dean Brownrout!
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Hey there, music lovers! Welcome to Why Music Matters!

Today, we kick off a special intermittent series called “generations,” focusing on families that have passed on their love of music from parents to children, and have created musical legacies in the process.

I could think of no better way to kick this series off than to invite Linda Appleby and her daughter, Zuri Appleby, to the studio for a chat about the way that music has crossed generational lines in their family.

Linda is a renowned and highly lauded music educator and advocate for music and the arts all across Western New York. Here in Buffalo, Linda is seen as the Queen of our music scene - a scene that she helped to build through her work as a teacher, music director, and artist manager, and that she continues to foster through her consistent advocacy.

Zuri started her musical journey as a 5 year-old singing in church choirs, and deepened her commitment as she took up guitar at age 7, eventually settling on the bass, continuing the tradition started by her father, the renowned bassist and educator Rodney Appleby.

A mere 3 days after she graduated from the Buffalo Academy for Visual and Performing Arts, Zuri began her service in the Marine Corps, as the first female bassist of color to play in the USMC Band.

After completing her service, Zuri wasted little time making a name for herself in the civilian world, and became a member of Nick Jonas’ band in 2015. After moving to Los Angeles in 2016, Zuri began to accumulate some top-tier gigs, performing with the likes of Adam Lambert and Lizzo, with whom she would go on to complete two headlining world tours.

During their visit to the studio, Linda and Zuri discussed the pivotal role that music played in their family life, the importance of music education, and the need to carve out space for reflection and personal growth within the hustle and bustle of the music industry.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Linda and Zuri!

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Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.

I’m your host, musician and music journalist Jeff Miers.

On today’s episode, I’m joined by my friend, guitarist, vocalist, teacher and music promoter Aaron Ziolkowski.

One of the hardest working musicians on the Buffalo scene, Aaron is a member of the Little Mountain Band, Dead Alliance Buffalo, and Eberwine.

He also manages to fit in gigs as a solo artist, and as part of the rotating cast of musicians playing one-offs at specially curated shows within the broader jam-based community.

In all of these musical scenarios, Aaron shines as a stellar accompanist, one whose subtle, incisive rhythm guitar playing elevates ensemble improvisations toward the stratosphere.

He’s also one of the most soulful vocalists you’re ever gonna hear, whether he’s singing one of his own songs, or digging deep into Grateful Dead ballad or rustic funky number by The Band.

We talked about all of this and more during Aaron’s visit to 678 Main Studios.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Aaron Ziolkowski…

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Hello, music lovers!

Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.

I’m your host, musician and music journalist Jeff Miers.

On today’s episode, I’m joined by drummer, composer and educator John Bacon, Jr.

For several decades, John has been an artist operating at the center of the region’s jazz and new music scenes. Throughout that time, he has also been heavily involved in music academia, teaching percussion and jazz at Villa Maria College, the University at Buffalo, and SUNY Fredonia, and maintaining a roster of private drum students.

John is a drummer of great focus, virtuosity and intent. He also can swing like nobody’s business! He’s performed with the likes of Lester Bowie, Bobby Previte, Roswell Rudd, Bobby Militello and George Caldwell.

But it’s as a composer and bandleader that John has been perhaps most impactful. He’s been a consistently forward-looking creator, with a deep knowledge of jazz tradition, and a fearlessness that keeps him rooted in the present.

For his latest venture, John and his Star People ensemble will be joining creative forces with the John Lehrer Dance Company for Legacy in Motion: Miles Davis at 100, a program combining jazz and dance in celebration of Miles’ 100th anniversary. The show takes place at Artpark in Lewiston, NY, on July 17.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, John Bacon…

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Hey there, fellow music freaks!

Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.

I’m your host, musician and music journalist Jeff Miers.

For today’s episode, I had the pleasure of hanging out with my friend, the musician and music educator Eric Crittenden.

Critt, as he’s known throughout the Buffalo music scene, is a saxophonist, keyboardist and singer with deep roots in our region’s funk, soul, r&b and jam scenes. More significantly, in my view, he is one of the greatest band-leaders to call Buffalo home. Whatever the musical scenario, Critt has that elusive, difficult-to-define ability to elevate the proceedings by lending soulfulness, funkiness, and infectious enthusiasm. I know from personal experience that Critt can change the vibe among the musicians for the better as soon as he sets foot on the bandstand, before he even plays a note.

I asked him about this ability, and about his musical roots, his thoughts on how music scenes evolve and how they fail to evolve, his belief in the importance of musical mentorship, and what he believes is the real meaning of ‘success,’ when it comes to a living a life in music.

If you know Critt, you know he calls things as he sees them, eloquently, incisively, and fearlessly.

If you don’t know him… well, you’re about to get to know him over the next hour. Fasten your seatbelts.
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Welcome to Why Music Matters, Eric Crittenden…
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Hello, music lovers!

Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.

I’m your host, musician and music journalist Jeff Miers.

Recording today’s episode was a real treat for me. Having Alex Khoury, Cody Tarbox, Seth Bykowski and Colin Gray - who are known collectively as Witty Tarbox - in the studio with me, with instruments in hand and plenty of stories to tell, felt like one of those cool spontaneous backyard hangs around the fire-pit. A moment you didn’t see coming, but that arrived with an air of familiarity. Like, we’ve all been here before, even though we just met.

As you’ll hear, these four musicians are a band of brothers, a group of guys who found their musical tribe when they met each other, and allowed a unique, rootsy, rustic, and rockin’ sound to develop organically. They come from different backgrounds, and possess widely varied skill sets, but when they lock in together, something magical that is well beyond the sum of its parts emerges.

The band recently travelled to the fabled Dreamland Recording Studios, just outside Woodstock, NY, to track what became their new album, Midnight Sun. We talked about that experience, and the guys performed some of the material that emerged from those sessions live here at 678 Main Studios. What emerged is one of my favorite episodes of the podcast to date.

So make yourself comfortable, pour yourself a cold one if you’re so inclined, and come hang with us for a little while.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Witty Tarbox…

Ep 53: The iconic guitarist and composer talks SatchVai Band, his earliest inspirations, and his plans for the future

Hello, music lovers!

Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.

I’m your host, musician and music journalist Jeff Miers.

Today’s guest is one of the most critically lauded and commercially successful rock guitarists of his generation. Since the 1987 release of his second album, the evergreen Surfing with the Alien, Joe Satriani has been nominated for 15 Grammy Awards and sold more than 10 million albums.

And he did all of this with a body of work that is almost exclusively instrumental. Taking a page from the book of the late Jeff Beck, Satriani blended a penchant for memorable melodies, intense and ambitious arrangements, and considerable virtuosity, in the process, becoming the best-selling instrumental rock guitarist of all time.

For his latest venture, Satriani has teamed with one of his oldest friends and collaborators - another legend, who also happens to be a former student of Satriani’s - the great Steve Vai, to form The SatchVai Band. (For our listeners here in Buffalo, NY, you’ll have the opportunity to catch this powerhouse in action at Kleinhans Music Hall on Tuesday, May 12.)
During our chat, Joe - who also happens to be one of the nicest guys I’ve ever encountered in the music business - reflected on his earliest musical inspirations, the importance of jazz in the development of his musical imagination, why the SatchVai Band puts a perma-grin on his face, and his passion for the soon-to-be-released first studio album from that band.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Joe Satriani…

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Hello, music lovers!

Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.

I’m your host, musician and music journalist Jeff Miers.

Today’s guest is a long over-due one. I’ve known Todd Eberwine for a couple decades by this point, and during that time, I’ve been witness to some purely transcendent moments in concert clubs and bars and outdoor venues, courtesy of his guitar playing and skills as both band-leader and lightning rod for face-melting, dynamic jams.

The kind of moments where you forget where you are, forget what you were doing before the show, stop worrying about what you have to do tomorrow, and fully inhabit the moment, the here and now.

That’s a tall order for an instrumentalist to fill. But Todd is seeking those moments at every gig. He’s taken me there when I’m out front in the audience, just along for the ride as a fan. And he’s done it when I was playing alongside him on the stage, too.

Todd is a seeker, and because of that fact, he’s had an interesting life so far. His creative wanderlust has led him through tenures in some truly fantastic bands - Dive House Union was one of those bands, a true soul-rock powerhouse. Soul Roach was another.

His long strange trip has led him to a relatively new ensemble, one that trades beneath his last name, and features a cast of characters known and loved by veterans of the Buffalo and Western New York music scene.

During our chat, Todd talks about that band, Eberwine, and what it means to him. He looks back on what led him here, and looks ahead toward what’s next. And he shares some interesting thoughts on why music matters to him, and matters a helluva lot.

If our conversation sounds like a couple of longtime friends riffing on their love of music, their favorite bands, and just how awesome Jamiroquai is - well, that’s because that’s exactly what it is.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Todd Eberwine…
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Hello music lovers, and welcome to another edition of Why Music Matters. I’m your host, music journalist and musician Jeff Miers.

On today’s episode, I spend some time with Buffalo-born singer Cami Clune.

Many of you will remember Cami from season 19 of NBC’s The Voice, which originally aired in 2020. Cami grabbed headlines with her performance during the season, eventually going on to the semi-finals, and finishing in the Top 9.

Since then, Cami has been recording and performing throughout the Western New York region. She recently released her 7th single, and is in the process of preparing an EP of new music for release in the late spring.

Hockey fans have had ample opportunity to take in Cami’s talents this year - this NHL season, which marks the first time the Buffalo Sabres have clinched a playoff position in 15 years, is also Cami’s first as the team’s Official National Anthem Singer. Coincidence? Maybe. But fans have certainly noted that Cami’s pre-game performances have fired up the fans on the home ice and added to the excitement surrounding the team.

During our chat, Cami talks about her love for the Sabres, her life in music, and her hopes for the future.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Cami Clune!
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Hello music lovers, and welcome to another edition of Why Music Matters. I’m your host, music journalist and musician Jeff Miers.

Today is a special day for the Why Music Matters team - we’re celebrating our 50th episode. And as we do so, I’d like to thank all of you for listening and for your continued support. We’re just getting started, and we’ve got some exciting new ventures planned for the future. Thanks for coming along on the ride.

A special episode demands a special guest, and today, we’ve got one, in the form of UB Professor of Music Jon Nelson.

I’ve known Jon for a long time, and have always been impressed and inspired by his love for music, as both a musician and an educator. Whether as co-founder of Pausa Art House, a vibrant home for jazz and contemporary chamber music in Buffalo; as a founding member of the renowned Meridian Arts Ensemble and leader of the brave and daring Genkin Philharmonic; or as an educator eager to push the envelope of the traditional with the student ensembles he leads at the University at Buffalo, Jon has been a tireless advocate for contemporary music.
Jon’s latest project involves the arrival of an archival recording of the Merdian Arts Ensemble performing at the home of the late, great composer, guitarist and iconoclast Frank Zappa. “The Zappa House Concert” documents Jon and the ensemble’s 1996 performance for an audience of Zappa, his family, and a group of close friends, all recorded in Zappa’s home studio, the Utility Muffin Research Kitchen, using a single microphone.

During our discussion, Jon tells us all about the experience, and he details what Zappa’s work has meant to him throughout his musical journey.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Jon Nelson!

You can find The Zappa House Concert through meridianartsensemble.com or bigroundrecords.com
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Hello music lovers, and welcome to another edition of Why Music Matters. I’m your host, music journalist and musician Jeff Miers.

Today, my guests represent a cross-generational journey through the ever-evolving world of jazz.

Alex McArthur is a singer and storyteller whose resume reads like that of a musician three times her age. A winner of multiple JazzBuffalo Vocalist of the Year awards, Alex brings a distinct soulfulness to any music she lends her voice to, whether she’s singing something she wrote herself, or flexing her interpretive muscles on the works of legends like Ella Fitzgerald, Stevie Wonder, and Mavis Staples.

Alex is joined today by a man who has acted as a significant mentor in her musical journey.

Pianist George Caldwell is credited by Alex as, quote, “the first person I ever attempted to sing jazz in front of, and the person who encouraged me to explore vocal jazz and improvisation in the first place.”

In his role as Director of the Student Jazz Ensembles and Music Piano Performance Instructor at the University at Buffalo, George has employed his decades of experience as a Grammy-winning professional musician to help mold the musical imaginations of countless young artists-in-the-making.

Those decades of experience include tenures with the Count Basie Orchestra, the Duke Ellington Orchestra, tap dancer and choreographer Saivon Glover, R&B legend Ruth Brown, and right here in Buffalo, the awe-inspiring Star People, a Miles Davis Repertory Ensemble.

Currently, Alex and George are in the midst of performing Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill, a recreation of Billie Holiday’s final performance, with Alex inhabiting the role of Lady Day, and George acting as Musical Director.

The show, a MusicalFare production, is running at Shea’s Smith Theatre in Buffalo’s Theatre and Entertainment District, through February 15. (You can learn more about the production and purchase tickets through musicalfare.com.)

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Alex McArthur and George Caldwell!

Hey there, music-lovers.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.

I’m your host, Jeff Miers.

Today, I’ve got an old friend stopping by 678Main Studios.

I’ve known Greg Klyma for more than three decades. During that time, I’ve watched him evolve from an aspiring songwriter and bandleader performing during Open Mic Nights at Nietzsche’s in downtown Buffalo, into a seasoned touring artist with more than a dozen album releases to his credit.

Taking a page from the book of greats in the folk, old school country, and singer-songwriter schools, Greg hit the road in the late 90s, and he hasn’t looked back since. Along the way, he’s played his songs to rooms full of strangers who’d soon become friends, honed his craft as a performer and writer, and learned a thing or two about our country as the tires of his ‘apartment-on-wheels’ passed over its varied terrain.

If you know Greg, you already know - he’s a gifted and passionate raconteur, one who is always ready with a song and a story to go with it. His love for music is deep and boundless. And during today’s episode, he offers us some insight into both the roots of that love, and the way it has evolved over time’s passage.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Greg Klyma…

Hey there, everyone.

I’d like to welcome you to a special edition of the podcast - a joint creation between Why Music Matters and The Buffalo History Museum.

This episode, which we’ve named 12/8/80 (In the Name of Love), was created with my good friend Anthony Greco, Director of Exhibits at The Buffalo History Museum, and creator and host of the Museum’s podcast.

The episode explores an evening that changed the world for the worse. And it turns out that there’s an interesting Buffalo angle to the story of this tragic night.

On December 8, 1980, as a then-unknown band called U2 played to a sparse crowd as they opened for the power trio Talas at Stage One, just outside Buffalo, the world was upended by the murder of John Lennon.

Lennon’s death transformed an ordinary evening into a defining moment in music and cultural history. This episode tells the story of that night.

I’d like to thank Anthony Greco for his outstanding work on this joint venture. And shout-outs are in order to Willie Nile and Billy Sheehan, both of whom were kind enough to share their memories of that fateful evening with me. Additional thanks to WKBW in Buffalo, who shared with us an excerpt of their 2017 interview with Bruce Moser - a Buffalo promoter and dear friend who played a significant role in breaking U2 in the American Northeast, way back in 1980.

Bruce passed away in 2020. This joint podcast is dedicated to his memory, with thanks for all he gave - to Buffalo, and to the world. We all miss you, Bruce.

Thanks for joining us. Take it away, Anthony Greco…

Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.
I’m your host, Jeff Miers.

Today, my guest is Evan Laedke, a musician with an impressively broad skill-set, one that has made him a first-call keyboardist for a wide variety of WNY bands, one-off gigs and sessions.

Currently playing keys for Tsavo Highway, the Little Mountain Band, and others, Evan somehow found time in his busy schedule to take on the role of Music Director at Third Space, a 4,000 sq. foot, 2-story cafe, art gallery and entertainment space.

Evan and his partner, owner Chelsea Mae, opened their ‘dream come true’ in the historic Sidway Building at 777 Main St. in Buffalo, last December. In the time since, he’s poured his considerable passion for our city’s music scene into making Third Space into a home-away-from home for regional artists, bands, poets and comedians.

During our chat, Evan told me about his life in music, his early inspirations, and his hopes for Third Space going forward.
Welcome to Why Music Matters, Evan Laedke!
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Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives. I’m your host, Jeff Miers.

Today, my guest is podcaster and Western New York music historian Greg Hennessey.

Through his weekly podcast, In the Flamingo Lounge with Rockabilly Greg, Hennessey shines a necessary light on Buffalo music, celebrating our region’s rich musical history, and honoring the best of the current generation of bands and artists living and working in Western New York.

Greg served on the Buffalo Music Hall of Fame’s Board of Trustees for 11 years, and is currently the Vice President of the Sportsmens Americana Music Foundation board. That’s where I got to know Greg, in my role as executive director of the SAM Foundation. Greg’s passion for Buffalo music has been a great asset to the Foundation’s music education and community outreach mission.

Spend any time in the Flamingo Lounge with Greg, and the dude’s love for rockabilly in general - and the seminal early work of Elvis Presley in particular - becomes immediately apparent. He also counts artists like Buddy Holly, Wanda Jackson and the Stray Cats among his favorites, and we talked about all of them during this episode.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Rockabilly Greg!
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Hey there, music lovers.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.

I’m your host, Jeff Miers.

Today, I’m excited to welcome back to Why Music Matters my friends Elliott Hunt and Chris Lillis, two fifths of the rising indie-alternative band Letter To Elise.

The last time Elliott and Chris sat down with me here at 678 Main Studio, we talked about their earliest influences, their lives in music, and their then-just released collaboration with Robby Takac of the Goo Goo Dolls and the Buffalo Bills Mafia - a rousing interpretation of the Killers’ anthem ‘Mr. Brightside.’

In the time since, Elliott, Chris and Letter to Elise have released a new EP, Risen from Rust, and are in the midst of recording a full-length album they hope to release in the spring.

Elliott and Chris are also fresh off an incredible experience - the two teamed to bring their harmony-heavy sound and estimable spirit to the current season of NBC’s The Voice, where they represented their city and the Buffalo sound with a performance that landed them a spot on 'Team Reba.'

During our chat, we touched on some details from the duo’s run on The Voice, what the experience taught them, why Letter To Elise is proud to be a band of brothers, and the new opportunities their appearance on the national stage has earned them.

Welcome back to Why Music Matters, Elliott and Chris from Letter to Elise.

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Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.

I’m your host, Jeff Miers. Let’s start today’s podcast with a little anecdote.

The text from my friend Jennifer Brazill, President of the Borderland Festival, arrived about 18 months back.

“Are you interested in producing, mixing and mastering an album for a reggae-based band from Micronesia, through a grant from National Geographic?”

“Um… well, *** yes, I’m interested. Details???”

Thus began a journey that culminated in a performance at the Borderland Festival on Saturday, September 13, when founding members of the band Ulithian Vibes traveled from Guam and Hawaii to Western New York, to be joined by a cast of Buffalo musicians for their first international public performance.

It was immediately following this performance at Borderland that today’s podcast was recorded.

During this episode, you’ll hear Jerry, Konner and Kira - three of the singers who form the Ulithian Vibes collective - along with manager and project coordinator Samantha Stollenwerck, who travelled from Germany to oversee the band’s visit to Buffalo, discuss the way their group formed as a means of preserving the culture and traditions of the island of Ulithi for future generations, through a marriage of music and storytelling.

We also discussed the Ulithian Vibes album. You can find that album, which you’re hearing excerpts from in the background right now, wherever you stream music.

I hope you’ll get a sense of why I fell in love with the band’s story and its music, and how much being involved in this project has meant to me, and to my colleagues as well.

I have a feeling you’ll fall in love with it, too.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, Ulithian Vibes.
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The iconic independent artist talks about the importance of ‘showing up’ in these unprecedented times

Hey there, music lovers.

Welcome to Why Music Matters, a podcast where we examine the power and influence that music can wield in our lives.

I’m your host, Jeff Miers.

Today’s episode is a very meaningful one for me, because it features a musician, poet, activist, and independent music icon whose life’s work was an inspiration for the creation of this podcast.

If anyone can stand as a representative of 'why music matters', it’s Ani DiFranco.

Over the course of nearly 35 years and the release of 23 albums, DiFranco has carved a path that is wholly her own. A dyed-in-the-wool independent artist, Ani has never taken the knee, steadfastly refusing to follow trends or bend to the will of self-appointed tastemakers and music industry gatekeepers, all while crafting a body of work that speaks truth to power, spits fire, and embraces the beauty found in simplicity, in equal measure.

When I spoke with Ani, she was enjoying a brief break in her current tour, supporting her brilliant, groundbreaking newest album, Unprecedented Shit. That tour brings Ani back home to Buffalo on August 31, at the Terminal B Amphitheater on the Outer Harbor, for her first hometown gig since 2016.

During our chat, we talked about the new record; about the disturbingly strident march toward authoritarianism in this country and around the world; about the importance of, in Ani’s words, showing up for the job at hand; and about music’s unerring ability to speak to what is good and true in all of us.

It’s an absolute honor to welcome Ani DiFranco to Why Music Matters…