FUV Live Sessions

Chicago-based band, Ratboys, joined midday host Alisa Ali at WFUV to talk about their latest album, Singin’ to an Empty Chair, how they fashioned both a genre-fluid and cohesive record from this collection of songs, their mission to dispel any negative myths about Ringo Starr, and how a therapy session inspired the title for this album. Songs: Anywhere, Penny in the Lake and What’s Right?

Australian singer, songwriter and musician Courtney Barnett played an exclusive show for WFUV at The Bitter End in New York City and sat down with FUV host Alisa Ali after the show to talk about her latest album, Creature of Habit, her songwriting process, what it was like to be the subject of a documentary, and how a picture of a praying mantis helped her finish the song that pulled the entire pr...

Stephen Sanchez returned to Studio-A in the Bronx to perform a live set from his latest album, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, and to talk to WFUV’s Alisa Ali about how Martin Luther King Jr. inspired the title track on this album, how he got his grandparents involved in the music videos, and what’s on the horizon for his inevitable third album. Songs: LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, SWEET LOVE and High

Langhorne Slim joined WFUV host Emma Philippas in Studio-A to talk about his 2026 album, The Dreamin' Kind, how his songwriting has evolved since starting a family, his Nashville-based network that he collaborated with to bring the songs and music videos from this project to life, and how being a creative person is like being an octopus with many tentacles to pull inspiration from. Songs: Rock N R...

Gypsy post-punk rock international collective Gogol Bordello joined Cavalcade host Paul Cavalconte in Studio-A to play a live set from their new album We Mean it, Man! and to talk about how this group of musicians came together in New York from all over the world, how the mantra of this album – that life is possible again – comes at the perfect time given global catastrophes and how this album emb...

In a special episode of FUV Live Sessions in front of a studio audience at Racket NYC, Jack Antonoff played an acoustic set featuring a few stripped down songs from Bleachers’ new album, everyone for ten minutes, and talked to WFUV host Alisa Ali about how the title of the album was born from a moment of accidental poetry with his iPhone, why he’s still optimistic about art even in the midst of AI...

WFUV favorite, Fantastic Cat, joined host Alisa Ali in Studio-A to talk about their new album, Cat Out of Hell, how this album gave the band an opportunity to record live in the studio together as opposed to building the layers apart, how they decide which individually written songs become full band songs, and the value in doing the things that feel “too dumb” or “too silly” because you never know...

Brooklyn's own They Might Be Giants brought their “The Bigger Show” tour to The Sheen Center in New York City for an exclusive show with WFUV’s members and the Johns sat down with FUV Host Benham Jones before the show to talk about their latest album, The World Is to Dig, how their songwriting process has changed throughout their catalogue and how different sonic influences from power pop to math...

Latin Grammy award-winner Silvana Estrada sat down with WFUV host Sam Sumpter to talk about her Sophomore album, Vendrán Suaves Lluvias, how she mulled over that title for a decade after reading a Sarah Teasdale poem, the spiritual experience a listener can expect at one of her live shows and the intersection of activism, art and her Mexican heritage. Songs: Dime, Flores and Como Un Pájaro

Whitney joined WFUV host Alisa Ali in Studio-A to play three live songs from their new album, Small Talk, and to discuss why it was essential to try something entirely different for this project, the impressive work ethic of Chicago musicians, and the not-so-small-talk themes that come up on this record. Songs: Back to the Wind, Dandelions and Won’t You Speak Your Mind

To celebrate the 100th episode of FUV Live Sessions, WFUV’s Music Director Russ Borris sat down with Iron & Wine ahead of an exclusive show at City Winery in New York City to talk about Sam’s latest album, Hen’s Teeth, what it was like to simultaneously work on two albums post-pandemic, why we’re all so obsessed with songs about relationships and the practice of sequencing songs for the fans who s...

In a special episode of FUV Live Sessions in front of a studio audience, The New Pornographers joined WFUV host Alisa Ali at The Bitter End in New York City to play songs from their new album, The Former Site Of, and to talk about how that title came to be, what it was like to focus on writing narrative songs for this record and how important it is to kill your darlings when a song simply isn’t wo...

Lindsey Jordan, also known as Snail Mail, joined WFUV host Alisa Ali to talk about her third full-length album, Ricochet, how a Charlie Kaufman movie inspired this mortality-themed project, how she came back a stronger singer after surgery to remove polyps on her vocal chords and how she achieved her goals to level up both her singing and guitar playing on this latest record. Songs: Dead End, Trac...

Irish singer-songwriter Dermot Kennedy joined WFUV’s Director of Audio, Meghan Suma, in Studio-A to talk about his third album, The Weight of the Woods, how his native country influenced this project, how valuable time away from creating can be for both an artist and their fans, and how meaningful it is to write lyrics from the perspectives of other people in his life. Songs: Lost, Blue Eyes and F...

Up-and-coming singer-songwriter Gatlin joined WFUV host Benham Jones in Studio-A to talk about her debut full length album, The Eldest Daughter, how other singer-songwriters from the early aughts impacted her musical palette, how childhood experiences with worship music influence her sound still to this day and how music can serve as a tool for protest in the queer community. Songs: Florida Man, I...

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: Fe...

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. Son...

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...

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 th...

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 L...

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 epi...

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...

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 expe...