Midnight Lightning

As the daughter of touring musicians, Ruth Ungar was introduced to the musical life at a young age. Ruth is now an accomplished singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. She’s best known for work with the folk band The Mammals. Ruth also has two children, Willy and Opal, and co-runs a bi-annual music festival called The Hoot. In this episode we discuss van breakdowns while touring with school-aged children, being married to her...

LaRhonda Steele’s musical journey started in Oklahoma where she sang a solo in church for the first time at age 13. LaRhonda is best known for her leadership of the Portland Oregon Interfaith Gospel Choir and for her collaborations with a variety of Portland blues, jazz and gospel groups. LaRhonda heads her own project, "The LaRhonda Steele Band,” and is also the mother of two daughters. In this episode we discuss surviving breast ...

When not on tour in faraway countries like Turkey, Lebanon, Greece and Japan, China Forbes lives in Portland, Oregon with her 9-year old son Cameron. Best known for her vocal work with the retro lounge band Pink Martini, China began her artistic career studying visual art at Harvard and later working as an Off-Broadway actress. She has also released two albums under her own name and is working on a third. China sings in 9 languages...

Singer-songwriter and Portland native Tahirah Memory developed a passion for music at a young age. With humble beginnings singing along to R&B records at home, Tahirah grew up to become a highly sought-after vocalist. She has collaborated with musical heavyweights including kd lang, Esperanza Spalding and her father, Grammy-winning trumpeter Thara Memory. Tahirah also recently released her debut album, "PRIDE". Now age 38, Tahirah ...

Raised in Alaska by orchestra teachers, Annalisa Tornfelt is a fiddler, guitar player, singer-songwriter and teacher living in Portland, OR. She’s recorded with the Portland Cello Project, spent years touring in Black Prairie and her bluegrass band Bearfoot, and has collaborated with countless NW musicians. She is also a mother to Darian, age 17, and Rose, age 1. In this episode we discuss teenage motherhood, being raised in a reli...

Born and raised in Indiana, Sara Lund started drumming at age 11 and playing in bands shortly thereafter. As a teenager she moved to Olympia, Washington and was soon known as one of the “heaviest drummers in town.” She toured and recorded with the rock band Unwound throughout the ’90s and early ’00s, long before women were a staple in rock bands. Sara now lives in Portland, OR and plays in the Corin Tucker Band, Hungry Ghost and th...

Rhiannon Giddens is a vocalist, banjoist and fiddler from Greensborough, North Carolina. Rhiannon’s music draws from old-time, gospel, celtic, folk and jazz. She's won Grammys with her string band the Carolina Chocolate Drops, she won the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass, and she won a recent MacArthur Genius Grant. She’s a cast member of the TV show “Nashville” and is also the mother of two young children, ...

Amanda Bergman hails from the Swedish countryside and began her professional music career in 2010. She’s a member of the Swedish band Amason and has collaborated with The Tallest Man on Earth and Lykee Li. In 2016 Amanda released her first solo album, “Docks”, and also performed at the Polar Music Prize Ceremony. Now age 29, she and her musician partner Petter Winnberg are new parents to a 5 month old baby named Flora. In this epis...

Shara Nova graduated from the University of North Texas with a BA in vocal performance and went on to compose works for opera, youth choirs and her own baroque pop band, My Brightest Diamond. She has recorded as a guest vocalist with David Byrne, Laurie Anderson, The Decemberists, Sufjan Stevens and The Blind Boys of Alabama, and she’s collaborated with visual artists Matthew Ritchie and Matthew Barney. She’s also the mother of 7 y...

Corin Tucker is best known for her role as singer, songwriter and guitarist for the band Sleater-Kinney. She’s also made albums under her own name and has collaborated with members of REM on a new project called “Filthy Friends.” She’s also the mother to two children, Marshall and Glory. In this episode we discuss the early days of the riot grrrl scene in Olympia, being mentored by Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth, balancing responsibilit...

Carol Kaye was a member of the “Wrecking Crew”, a group of top notch session musicians who played on many of the hit records of the 60s and 70s. Carol recorded with Simon and Garfunkel, Sonny and Cher, Ike and Tina Turner, Quincy Jones, Barbara Streisand, JJ Cale and many, many more. Carol accidentally became a studio musician when she was invited to record with Sam Cooke in 1957. She went on to play on over 10,000 recording sessio...

Over the course of ten solo albums, countless tours, and some high-profile collaborations, Laura Veirs has built a loyal audience and garnered the respect of critics and peers alike. Still, as the mother of two young boys, she struggles to juggle her responsibilities to her family and the demands of her art. This struggle led Laura on a quest to see how other musician mothers navigate through life and to document their stories for ...