WTMD returned to Canton Waterfront Park on August 6 for First Thursdays, presented by CFG Bank.
🎸 The schedule featured three massive talents on one stage. Due to inclement weather, the opening set by Icarus Phoenix was canceled.
Son Little’s curiosity about his ancestry guided him to his latest album, Cityfolk, a conscious reflection of his heritage that led the songwriter and multi-instrumentalist on a journey throughout the American South.
The West Coast-born, Northeast-bred musician speaks for those enduring tribulations about finding their place in the world. After his house in Atlanta flooded, he ended up recording in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, where he connected with Alabama Shakes’ Ben Tanner. “Just by showing up, it brought something out,” Son Little explains. “I realized, in moving here, that my mother’s people all came from this area, from South Carolina, Georgia. I thought a lot about how interesting it was that I would just sort of gravitate and migrate to a place where I had history.” He adds, “Sometimes the spirits will guide you to a place when you don’t even know you don’t know why you found yourself there.”
With a catalog that has amassed over 250 million streams, Little has sonically traveled practically everywhere, especially since the beginning of the 2020s. He’s toured with the likes of Black Pumas and Mumford & Sons, and made festival appearances at Newport Folk and Bonnaroo. Son Little, whose real name is Aaron Livingston, says, “My music has always had flashes of country, rock, and folk, as well as hip-hop, blues, and R&B. So, I’ve always struggled as an artist who kind of, I think, lives in the spaces between genres.”
His new single, “Whip the Wind,” grooves with Afro-Latin polyrhythms, its hook driven by a constant shaker and a silky synth melody that recalls early-1970s Stevie Wonder. But the song sticks to Little’s true form: despite its danceable feeling, the song is a call to recognize the human cost of power before it’s too late.
Late Night Thoughts is an acoustic-pop duo consisting of Brian Rauch and Michael Harlow, who originally formed the group while attending university in Waltham, Massachusetts, and later relocated to Brooklyn, New York.
Their music features a unique blend of folky singer-songwriter storytelling with polished pop production, rich vocal harmonies, and electronic beats. The bandmates first crossed paths in college, turning late-night jam sessions into a sound full of heart and harmony.
With songs that mix honest storytelling, accessible melodies, and timeless charm, they make music that’s built to bring people together.
Their song “Days Like This,” off this spring’s Coming Back Home EP, helped push the band’s message of relentless positivity to new and ever-widening audiences. The song went multi-viral on social media, received significant terrestrial radio support, and is fast becoming a crowd favorite at shows and festivals across the United States.
Led by Drew Danburry, Icarus Phoenix is from Baltimore, MD. The band originally formed in Missoula, Montana (2020) and has had multiple lineups, one of them playing Treefort Music Fest in Boise, ID (2021).
Danburry has independently toured and released records since 2002. He’s released over 400 songs, more than 20 albums, and has played 800+ shows worldwide. He’s accomplished this long list of achievements almost entirely DIY.
Illustration by local artist: Emilee Beeson | emileebeeson.com
WTMD’s First Thursdays are presented by The CFG Bank and Baltimore Public Media.
Photos by David LaMason.
