Rhiannon Giddens has released a cover of Bill Withers' “Just the Two of Us" featuring Sxip Shirey. The video, which you can watch here, features photos and videos taken by friends and family in quarantine, and workers in the UNC and NY-Presbyterian healthcare systems. Proceeds go to Global Giving’s Coronavirus Relief Fund. You can also watch her performance with Francesco Turrisi on The Bluegrass Situation's Whiskey Sour Happy Hour.
Rhiannon Giddens has released a new music video and recording of “Just the Two of Us,” her take on the Bill Withers classic. The video, which you can watch below, features photos and videos taken by friends and family in quarantine, and workers in the North Carolina UNC and NY-Presbyterian healthcare systems. The recording features longtime collaborator Sxip Shirey on harmonica and electronics. You can listen to and download the song here; proceeds go to Global Giving’s Coronavirus Relief Fund.
“We made this song in a very un-socially distanced time, a few years ago when our paths crossed in New York. It sat, untouched in our vaults since then. When Bill Withers passed, we suddenly remembered we had made this beautiful version of ‘Just the Two of Us,’ and thought it would serve as the perfect backdrop to the reality of where we are now—staying inside so that our healthcare workers have the best chance to fight this virus that cares nothing for the artificial divisions we have put up between us. So whether it's just the two of us, or just a few of us; whether the lockdown has been for months or it’s about to be lifted; Covid-19 is here for the foreseeable future, and the more we can be alone together now, the better the future will be.”
For more information on the Global Giving Coronavirus Relief Fund and to donate, visit globalgiving.org.
Giddens recently launched Art Is Alive: A COVID-19 Directory of Give and Take. The website collects and lists resources for artists and those willing to help them. It also has links and resources for fostering awareness, togetherness, and hope for the creative freelance communities affected by the pandemic. Art Is Alive lays out donation opportunities, sources of available funding, a full and ever-evolving list of official insights and information, as well as a breakdown of platforms offering at-home performance opportunities. The site aims to connect artists to fans in the current stay-at-home climate.
Rhiannon Giddens and Francesco Turrisi performed on epidose three of The Bluegrass Situation's Whiskey Sour Happy Hour last night. The series is hosted by Ed Helms and presented in partnership with Americana Music Association, to benefit MusiCares' COVID-19 Relief Fund and Direct Relief. "She is amazing," Helms says of Giddens, "a powerhouse in every sense of the word." They offered their takes on the songs "Last Night I Dreamed of Loving You" and "O Death." You can watch it here:
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