The Songs of Slaves

Rhiannon Giddens

Songs of survival. Songs of hope. Songs of a better life. Songs of identity. Songs of despair. And, songs as warnings for fleeing slaves along the Underground Railroad. The songs enslaved people sang, and those they sang after gaining freedom, tell their stories. And, singer-songwriter Rhiannon Giddens is making sure their stories don’t die.

In an interview on the PBS series Fresh Air with Terry Gross, Giddens talks about her music and why telling these stories is so important. Although her music spans many genres, her album, “They’re Calling Me Home” is filled with songs based on the lives of the enslaved.  

With the most astonishing voice I’ve ever heard, Giddens is a joint Grammy Award Winner, composer, speaker and podcast radio talk show host.  I urge you to check out her music, and in particular, “They’re Calling Me Home.”
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​Giddens is also a writer, soon to publish a children’s book, “Build a House.” Preorder here.

Did you know? Harriet Tubman, the Moses of her People, used a traditional Negro Spiritual to warn slaves to get into the water to deter the scent-sniffing dogs on their trail?

“Wade in the water, wade in the water children
Wade in the water,
God's gonna trouble the water”