Freedom Highway

AlbumFeb 24 / 201712 songs, 49m 55s
American Folk Music
Popular Highly Rated

Freedom Highway, Rhiannon Giddens' follow-up to her highly praised solo debut album, Tomorrow Is My Turn, includes nine original songs she wrote or co-wrote, a traditional tune, and two civil rights–era songs. She co-produced the album with multi-instrumentalist Dirk Powell in his Louisiana studio, with the bulk of recording done in wooden rooms built prior to the Civil War, over an intense eight-day period. "Giddens emerges as a peerless and powerful voice in roots music," Pitchfork exclaims. It's a "rich collection," says NPR; "hope comes back to life in Giddens' music."

7.6 / 10

Rhiannon Giddens emerges as a peerless and powerful voice in roots music on her second solo album, a record that traces the power of African-American song from 200 years ago to today.

8.5 / 10

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Rhiannon Giddens has always been keenly aware of the arc of American history -- the Carolina Chocolate Drops, the 2000s band she once led, was designed as a critique of the darker moments of Americana -- but Freedom Highway, her second solo album, puts her intent into perspective.

9 / 10

Rhiannon Giddens has been turning heads with her talent — and opening hearts and minds with her vibrant storytelling — for several years. Wh...

(Nonesuch)

Rhiannon Giddens’s Freedom Highway, is awash with history, with stories carried down through bloodlines.

80 %

Giddens blends folk, gospel, blues, Dixieland jazz and hip-hop into a seamless whole.

RHIANNON GIDDENSFreedom Highway ****Nonesuch

8 / 10