Midnight Lightning

Kristin Hersh began playing guitar at age 9 and by the time she was 14 she’d talked her friend Tanya Donelly into starting a band. They called themselves “Throwing Muses.” After the band broke up Kristin wrote many solo albums, started the rock band 50FOOTWAVE, and wrote two memoirs. Kristin is also the mother of four sons. In this episode we discuss her mental health misdiagnosis, having a baby and a new record at age 19, her son’s kidnapping and both homeschooling and unschooling her kids out on t

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 bandmate and playing shows with her babies on her back.

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 Interfaith Gospel Choir and for her collaborations with a variety of Portland blues, jazz and gospel groups. LaRhonda is the mother of two daughters. In this episode we discuss surviving breast cancer with the support of her community, her musical beginnings in the church, and the challenges of raising two children while legally blind

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. China sings in 9 languages. In this episode we discuss her unusual upbringing in Boston, touring with Pink Martini, postpartum depression and her dreams for future projects.

Singer-songwriter and Portland native Tahirah Memory has collaborated with musical heavyweights including kd lang, Esperanza Spalding and her father, Grammy-winning trumpeter Thara Memory. Tahirah artfully maintains a strong relationship with her daughter while dividing her time between creating music and touring as a backup singer. In this episode we discuss Tahirah’s upbringing in a musical household, single motherhood, and the support she receives from family and friends while out on lengthy tours. 

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. In this episode we discuss teenage motherhood, being raised in a religious household, touring with babies, having children 17 years apart and the complexities of identity and ambition.

Born and raised in Indiana, Sara Lund started drumming at age 11. 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 from the 90's to 00's, long before women were a staple in rock bands. In this episode we discuss watching Shelia E open for Prince, being a tomboy outside of the Riot Grrl scene, the challenges of co-parenting with another touring musician and Sara’s love of music and motherhood

Rhiannon Giddens is a vocalist, banjoist and fiddler from Greensborough, North Carolina. Her music draws from old-time, gospel, celtic, folk and jazz. She's won Grammys with the Carolina Chocolate Drops, the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence, and a MacArthur Genius Grant. She is cast member of the TV show “Nashville” and also the mother of two young children. We discuss touring for 200 days with a baby in a minivan, life in Ireland, music as activism and how motherhood has changed her creative approach.

Amanda Bergman hails from the Swedish countryside. 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 performed at the Polar Music Prize Ceremony. Now 29, she and her musician partner Petter Winnberg are new parents to a 5 month old named Flora. We discuss swedish maternity leave, sleep deprivation, running a farm, and differing cultural expectations for mother musicians as compared to fathers.

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, and Sufjan Stevens. She’s the mother of 7 year old Cozzie. We discuss artistic fear vs freedom, touring 60% of the year, how Shara organizes her time, being present for her child, and the dedication required to pull it all off.

Daughter of country music icon Johnny Cash and a musician parent herself, she’s won multiple Grammys, had two gold records, and in 2015 was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. She’s also a great writer, with work appearing in the New York Times, Mother Jones and Rolling Stone. We discuss growing up as a child of a touring musician, how she structured her time when her kids were young, touring with the Carter Family, maternal guilt, and gun control activism as an extension of motherin

Meshell Ndegeocello's music spans genres, from funk to soul to jazz to hip-hop and rock. Credited for sparking the neo-soul movement, she and has received 10 Grammy nominations. Currently working on a new album and scoring the music for the TV series Queen Sugar. The mother of two son's, Solomon and Atticus, we discuss raising her first son as a single mother working nightclubs in DC, and her second much later in life. We also talk about the value of saying no and the importance of choosing a good partner.

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 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 responsibilities with a creative husband and how motherhood has deepened Corin's work.

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 Sam Cooke, Simon and Garfunkel, Sonny and Cher, Ike and Tina Turner and so many more. Throughout her career, she was also a single mother of three children. In this episode we discuss her experiences playing in the LA jazz clubs in the 50s, how music was a lifeline, and how she balanced her demanding studio schedule with raising three child

Over the course of ten solo albums and many tours, 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. Laura talks to her co-producer, Joe Wong, about her own story. Topics include: partnership, parenthood, musicianship, fear and love. Season One of Midnight Lightning premiers January 3, 2018 with legendary bass player Carol Kaye.