Soundcheck

New York-based Sofia Rei is a Grammy-nominated vocalist, songwriter and producer from Buenos Aires, Argentina who was classically trained as a singer and fell in love with Brazilian music. Her new album, Antónima expands the concept of chamber music, looks to South American and Caribbean dance music (cumbia, candombe), and combines elements of Oya’s healing thunder and improvisation – all while flirting with jazz and experimental pop - as she and longtime collaborator and co-producer JC Maillard skillfully layer her voice and electronic sounds. Then there’s the all-star lineup of featured guest musicians on the album - many of them visionary Latin American women creators – who help Sofía Rei to celebrate future sounds. She and JC Maillard play in-studio. (- Caryn Havlik) Set list: 1. El Mundo Es Redondo (Anonimous) 2. Si Una Cae 3. Marciana

Alisa Weilerstein is more than just a virtuoso cellist; she is also a winner of the MacArthur Fellowship, the so-called “genius” award and is a master of connecting music of our time with core classical repertoire. She plays some of her series, "Fragments", in-studio.

Texas-born folk singer-songwriter Jana Horn lives in Brooklyn, NY now. Perhaps it was this lifestyle change that established the introspective and fragmented nature of her eponymous third album. The calm in her voice, guided by instruments that sound as though they follow their own communal continuous clock, softens the blow of her existential lyrics: “Seeing eternity as a quality of time / Done with my dying / I can breathe again”. Drifting between melancholy and optimism, Horn writes and performs conversationally, blurring the line between speech and song. The core team of musicians she opens her heart to play a big part in weaving the delicate and gentle atmosphere around her vocals, both in the studio and on the road. Two of those musicians, bassist Jade Guterman and drummer Adam Jones join us for the latest edition of Soundcheck with Jana Horn. Hear their performance and the artist’s interview with our host, John Schaefer. (- Sırma Munyar) Setlist: 1. Come on 2. It's alright 3. Designer

Mike Doughty is many things; a solo artist, founding bandmember of Soul Coughing and Ghost of Vroom, and a published writer – who not only wrote two memoirs but also an oratorio based on the biblical Book of Revelation that was staged at WNYC’s Greene Space. Simply put, Doughty has built a long-lasting career since his days of working as a doorman at the New York club, The Knitting Factory. On his way up, he embraced all aspects of the art of writing good songs, from welcoming “cowboy chords” when they come, to opening his mind up to the universe of avant-garde jazz – or even German grammar-inspired lyrics. Today, he is a storyteller who is honest with himself and transparent with his audience, composing and sharing new songs weekly with his patrons on Patreon while continuing to pour his heart out on the road, as he’s about to do so on his Solo Tour ’26, playing all over the United States. In the early days of this new adventure, Doughty joins our host, John Schaefer, with his collaborator, Andrew “Scrap” Livingston, for an intimate live performance and a warm chat for this edition of Soundcheck. (- Sırma Munyar) Setlist: 1. White Lexus 2. Mr. Bitterness 3. Light Will Keep Your Heart Beating in the Future

American folk singer-songwriter Annahstasia’s music career blossomed since the day she got kicked out of her teenage choir. Her voice didn’t blend homogenously with others, as it always meant to stand out. Today, with her soulful contralto register, she often gets compared to the greats like Nina Simone, Tracy Chapman, and Sade. But the way she utilizes her voice and songwriting melds a distinct brand of her own. As a storyteller, Annahstasia doesn’t worry too much about predictable song structures with repeatable sections. Instead, she invites her collaborators and listeners into her safe space to participate as a communal sonic atmosphere begins to take shape. Like an “energy doula”, she approaches the dynamics in her music with the utmost care, birthing not only words and musical notes but also volumes of emotion. Sometimes, her melodies and harmonies are tethered so tightly to silence that you might miss them if you’re not listening closely. Then, they burst out again, like a thunderstorm that came out of nowhere to grasp your attention and never let go. Offering an inimitable aural experience, Annahstasia performs a solo set at our Manhattan studios for this edition of Soundcheck, ahead of her sold-out four-night residency at Public Records in Brooklyn. Hear her latest anecdotes about her journey in the music industry and how she defends the art of live music recording in the age of bedroom pop productions. (- Sırma Munyar) Setlist: 1. Be Kind 2. Take Care of Me 3. Slow

The duo called Dalava has put out three albums based on old Czech, specifically Moravian, folk songs, sourced from melodies transcribed over 100 years ago by the great- grandfather of Dálava's singer, Julia Úlehla. Their latest record, Understories, uses symbolic birds and stories to set a series of progressively darker, more experimental arrangements that seem to cast those songs adrift in both time and place. Julia Úlehla and guitarist Aram Bajakian (Lou Reed, John Zorn) explore magic and realism, harnessing the intense emotion in the body memory of ancestral connections as they perform in-studio. -Caryn Havlik Set list: 1. Escape Velocity 2. Entanglement 3. Side Real Time

Canadian indie rock collective The New Pornographers has a history that spans almost three decades. Leaving nine albums behind, the band enters a new era with The Former Site Of, which, as always, centers on frontman A.C. Newman’s introspective songwriting, studying self-destructive tendencies and character building with power pop soundscapes in the backdrop. While writing the new batch of songs, some of which originated prior to the creation of the previous record Continue as a Guest, Newman looked for ways to not “ruin them with lyrics”; sporadically revisiting demos, muting and unmuting the vocals, looking to achieve symbiosis between the story and its music. As A.C. Newman puts it, “Being a musician… It’s easy to lose sight of why you do it” and get sidetracked by the business side of the job. Remembering the purest reasons why lies in the writing process that leads to words like: “The thing about fortune / It does no favors / And it's form fitting / You barely know that it's there” (Pure Sticker Shock). Newman pays a visit to our studios with bandmember Kathryn Calder, accompanied by session musicians Lilah Larson and Adam Minkoff for a special live performance and an eye-opening interview. (- Sırma Munyar) Setlist: 1. Votive 2. Pure Sticker Shock 3. Spooky Action 4. The Former Site Of

Martin Hayes is one of the great Irish fiddlers of our time, and one of the things that makes his playing so distinctive is the way he incorporates elements of jazz and contemporary classical music. Hayes is a founding member of the Irish-American supergroup The Gloaming, and he’s led a couple of ensembles, the Martin Hayes Quartet and the Common Ground Ensemble, that include musicians from the New York new music scene. Guitarist Kyle Sanna, for example, is part of the Common Ground Ensemble, who are part of a St Patrick's Day 2026 concert at Carnegie Hall and he joins Martin Hayes to play a few tunes, in-studio. Set list: 1. The Wild Geese/Lord Leitrim 2. Port An Deoari/My Mary Ann 3. The Golden Castle/Mikey Callaghans

The young Mexican singer-songwriter Humbe is no stranger to posting short clips of his songs on TikTok. He feeds on the transparency between his artistic universe and the fans that flock to it like a moth to a flame. His authentic brand of soul, contemporary R&B, and Latin dance music triggers the algorithm time and time again, connecting with audiences across the globe. The latest album, Dueño del Cielo, marks another milestone in his artistic exploration, “looking into the sky when there’s nothing left on the ground”. Filled with religious imagery, voice memos of lived experiences, and dreamy depictions of the chemistry behind human emotions, the album combines Humbe’s candid lyricism with impressively passionate vocal performances. Humbe’s 2026 tour is ongoing with dates in North America, South America, and Europe. He takes a break from the road to play a stripped-down set with his band at our Manhattan studio. (- Sırma Munyar) Setlist: 1. Harry Stamper 2. Fantasmas 3. Morfina

The singer and songwriter Niia has spent much of her career confounding expectations. She’s done smoky versions of old jazz standards as well as original songs that draw on dance music, hip hop and R&B, and live The self-dubbed "goth jazz princess" is something of a provocateur, with her sensual music "living in the tension between control and collapse". Niia and her band play some of the songs from her latest release, V, in-studio. Set list: 1. Pianos & Great Danes 2. fucking happy 3. Maria in Blue

Songs by composer and producer Emily Wells inhabit the spaces between art-pop and neoclassical chamber music. Wells and the Metropolis Ensemble perform new music in-studio.

Drummer and composer Marcus Gilmore carries on the creative openness of his drum elders and underscores the drum set as melodic instrument as augmented by Sunhouse Sensory Percussion. (From the Archives, 2019).

Samora Pinderhughes is a singer, songwriter, and multimedia artist. His music exists at the intersection of jazz, hip hop, and community activism, and often deals with issues like racism, the prison system, and music as a place for healing - like The Healing Project(Opens in a new window). Samora’s current project is a residency at the Museum of Modern Art that includes his film Real Talk and a series of live performances. The overall exhibition is called Samora Pinderhughes: Call And Response, and it brings Samora back to our studio and our piano. Set list: 1. Hold That Weight 2. For those lost, for those taken 3. Grief