Forging in Concert

Black Mountain Radio

Joe Raposo had a gift for imbuing simple concepts—letters, numbers, colors—with rich emotion through music. In 1969, he received a call from a friend to be the music director for a new children's TV show. And so Sesame Street found its sound. In the first part of this episode, essayist Chris Arnold looks back on the life of a man who created a sound that echoed the world children saw and heard outside their windows. Consult the pages of The Believer to read the unabridged version of this essay.

Later, producer Vera Blossom tells the story of the Kim Sisters. She looks into the political circumstances that transported the Kim Sisters from performing in their home country just after the American–Korean War all the way to the early days of the Las Vegas Strip.

Rasar Amani began rapping in 1999. A talented lyricist and emcee, he performed in venues around the world. In 2015, he formed The Lique, creating explosive meldings of hip-hop, funk, rock and jazz. Last fall, Rasar passed away unexpectedly. In the last segment, one of his bandmates, Jeremy Klewicki pays tribute to him. The Lique’s third album, Imposter Syndrome, released this winter, commemorates Rasar’s 36th birthday.

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