Every 1st of the month, we’re creating a roundup of our favorite tracks, projects, and music videos that were released by Minnesota artists from that previous month. 

Keep our favorite tracks in one place with “Carbon Sound’s 1st of the Month” Spotify playlist. Expect an updated 1st of the Month Playlist on……every 1st of the Month.  Mark your calendars accordingly.

Through Zora’s remarkable visual, production, and writing skills on “videogurl,” you truly believe her when she says “I’m the new sound and you’re just living in my world.” She is a prime example of what it looks like to craft and build an entire world through your music, all while creating suspense for what’s to come. “videogurl” is a single from Zora’s upcoming sophomore album, 

, set to release on January 17, 2025. - John Kueppers

Liberian-Minnesotan fusion artist Kokou Kah and Minneapolis-based artist/producer Lazerbeak team up with new release “Love Is Therapy”. With a light plucky percussion sample in the beginning of the track, the second you hear the beat come in, you’re instantly hooked. Kokou Kah’s smooth melodies guide you throughout the song and create a floaty yet bright atmosphere. Leaning heavily into his Liberian roots, the danceable rhythms and unique collaboration is what really shines out here. - Nikhil Kumaran

Minneapolis born and raised Tall Paul is an Anishinaabe and Oneida artist who has been performing nationally and internationally since 2013. Mostly known for being an MC, Tall Paul also facilitates creative writing workshops for Native youth. Just in time for Spooky SZN, he recently released the track “Zombies Ate My Natives”, displaying his lyrical talent while not letting us forget about important historical lessons. - Natalia Toledo

"Price Going Up" doesn't waste any time. The beat is urgent while Qmoe's delivery is confident and relaxed. It's an anthemic track, hard not to feel hyped listening to it. - Julian Green

Check out our interview with L.A. from last February 

MaLLy, Last Word - The Sweetest of It All 

EuphoriasRoom - Players Club (Official Music Video)

All Four Coaches INSTANTLY Turn for Cameron Wright's Magnetic Performance | The Voice | NBC

Viberate: Season I — Libations 4 Nipsey Cypher

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Author

John Kueppers

Natalia Toledo

Nikhil Kumaran

Julian Green built and manages the music library for Carbon Sound and oversees content creation.  


Julian Green

Highlighting Carbon Sound’s Favorite Minnesota made tracks, projects, and music videos released over the month of October, 2024.


best minnesota music from october graphic

Carbon Sound's 1st of the Month

NORFSIDE

I SHOULD CALL THEM

SETLIST EP

There It Goes

The Sweetest of It All

Paranoia

Mati - prey (Official Video)

Lerado Khalil - Playmaker

Bugz Lyfe

home series: dazzle

home series: kema

Puff - Artist Spotlight (Performance)

Minnesota Music Releases to check out from October 2024

Dammntc stopped by to talk to Carbon Sound’s host Sanni about the beginnings of his music career making “type beats,” how reaching out to producers led to collaborations G Herbo, Yeat, and other artists, and a whole lot more.


The Message - Dammntc

sanni brown and dammntc posing for a photo together

Dammntc Interview: From type beats to working with artists like Yeat, G Herbo, and more

Dammntc - Ley Go (feat. Yeat) (Extended Video)

"Miss My Dawgs" | FREE | NBA YoungBoy x Lil Boosie Type Beat | 2017 | [Prod. Too Cool Beats]

¡ <3 SACH!E

sach!e - not sorry (feat. xF3bruaryx) [Official Music Video]

Close Friends 4 Now

Live Fast (Speed Up Versions)

Interview: Dammntc on The Message

Luzia Fuchsia is a DJ, organizer, and graphic designer based in Minneapolis. Viewing DJing as a form of sonic collage, they manipulate genres to blend them into something new.

We chatted with Luzia Fuchsia about their background and intentions for the mix. Read a transcript of the interview, edited for length and clarity, below:

I started about two years ago. I was inspired by the community of queer and trans DJs throughout the world. I just got in touch with a lot of them online and they inspired me to get my own decks and start creating sounds. 

After I got my first set of decks, I started just hosting my own little things. After a couple years of doing that, I gained the confidence to throw myself into what I really dreamed of, which was doing cave raves and stuff. Then from there, people started asking me to do stuff.

How would you describe the music you play?

I love to think of DJing as like sonic collage or even like Sonic architecture. I love pulling from all different cultures, sounds, and ideas from around the world and combining them. I especially take influence from the UK Jungle scene and Arca.

What are we going to hear from you today?

I'm gonna play a wide variety of everything. I hope to get a little experimental with it and bring in what’s been playing in my head lately.

I would say all the work that I'm doing ties into the fight for liberation for oppressed people throughout the world and giving more people a voice. There are a lot of people who have really important voices that I want to share with the world and uplift.

A huge part of my DJing is about my transmasculine and non-binary identity and appreciating the fluidity of the world in my sounds, art, music and existence. I think that DJing and collage in general is one of my favorite medium  because it really reflects the fluidity that I see in the world. I see myself in it

Stay tuned for new mixes on Carbon Sound every other Wednesday. If you’re a DJ and want to be considered for the series, email a mix of yours to jgreen@mpr.org.

A genre-defying mix from a Minneapolis up-and-comer.


Luzia Fuchsia (10/30/24)

Techno, Jungle, and more from Luzia Fuchsia | Carbon Sound

Photographer

Nick Greseth

The critically-lauded rapper was joined by rising artist Baby Rose.


@ngreseth / Nick Greseth for MPR

Photos: Vince Staples gives a powerful performance in Minneapolis

The joyous, celebratory show was a testament to the icon’s legendary status.


Steven Cohen for MPR

Review: Stevie Wonder in Minneapolis

Review: Stevie Wonder spreads love and calls for peace in Minneapolis

“Them niggas who get the wrong impression of expression

Then the question is, "Big Boi what's up with Andre?

Is he in a cult? Is he on drugs? Is he gay?

When y'all gon' break up? When y'all gon' wake up?"

- OutKast’s “Return of the ‘G’” (1998)

When you’ve done just about everything, what more is there to do? André 3000 has won six Grammys, sold 20 million records, and has been famous longer than I’ve been alive. In one of the most notable left turns in music history, he decided to continue his legacy by playing the flute. 

, an album of ambient, abstract soundscapes that showcase his fascination with the flute and all its variations. It’s a stunning work; simultaneously  dreamlike, confrontational, and meditative. The album was critically lauded, receiving an 8.3 review score from Pitchfork and landing on numerous end-of-year best-of lists. Now, André 3000 is bringing his new ethos to live audiences. However, he is not playing songs from the album. He’s not really even playing songs. He’s just playing.

On Saturday night in Minneapolis, André brought the experience to the Fillmore. Originally booked for the Northrop Auditorium on the University of Minnesota campus, the show’s venue change was unexplained and last-minute. The floor of the Fillmore was filled with foldable chairs instead of the usual standing room only. 

The night began with opener serpentwithfeet. Fresh off of releasing his album 

 earlier this year, he set the tone for the night’s experimentation. Donning a bomber jacket gown that gave him two extra arms, he sang beautifully and even read a passage of Toni Morrison’s 

A mature crowd filled the seats of the venue. Preshow conversations overheard around me considered the direction Andre 3000 would take. A group in front of me – who seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the Fillmore’s signature strawberry lemonade margarita shaker – wished out loud for a flute cover of “Int’l Players Anthem.”

If you’ve had a pulse for the last century, you have undoubtedly felt André 3000’s effect on music and pop culture. This is the man who made us all shake it like a Polaroid picture. He let all of us know that the South has something to say. A progenitor to rap’s current class of eccentrics like Young Thug and Playboi Carti, André 3000’s work as an artist has made it easier for all of us to be ourselves. 

With that being said, his current direction isn’t so much of a left turn as it is logical progression. A sense of play and whimsy has permeated all of his work — 

he made a show for Cartoon Network, after all.

 Letting his artistic spirit guide him, he invited all of us to go along with him on the journey. He understands that many will be disappointed with the new direction, but marches on nevertheless.

But that’s about it. Saturday night’s show wasn’t a show that was meant to be enjoyed, much less understood. Take for example this highlight of the night: In the middle of performing, André began a spirited monologue. The language he spoke was unclear, but he spoke with so much fervor that the audience gleaned that there must be a profound revelation being shared. Directly after finishing his diatribe, he revealed that it was all gibberish and jokes that we probably thought were deep. It was pretty funny, but I can’t help but wonder if this sentiment is the guiding principle of his latest work: Just playing around with the audience and what we expect from him, seeing how far we are willing to follow along.

From what I saw on Saturday night, many people are willing to go on that journey. People scatteredly clapped and exalted during the show. Some people fell asleep. A few people looked kind of pissed.

tour is meant to be experienced and seen. Instead of playing tracks from the album, André and his band improvised an extended jam. There were movements and swells, wistful oases to catch a breath, charming dialogues with the audience. But there were no songs. There was only a bath of sound. Pounding pulses from the drum kits; huffs, howls, and breaths from André; swirling arpeggios and drones from the keys. The crisp, powerful sound in the venue added to the experience, as did creative choices of lighting.

Saturday’s show. Mostly because I don’t believe that this is a work meant to be enjoyed. This was a work meant to be experienced. At times I really did feel it — the drones and pulses paired with André’s abstract playing sounded directly from a sci-fi movie soundtrack. Other moments, I began to feel the length of the show, wished there was some sort of structure to the evening, and considered the merit of paying to watch a bunch of men play with themselves. This was a creative statement from a man hellbent on shirking audience expectations throughout his storied career. I appreciate it for that reason, but your mileage may vary.

The fully improvised, all-instrumental set from André 3000 and his band gave the audience an intentional experience of highs and lows.


courtesy The Oriel Company

Review: André 3000 and band play with themselves

Each week, we add new music, older tracks, which are known as “Gold adds”, and tracks that might not fit our general format, but still deserve a place in rotation because they serve our mission of showing the depth, breadth, and influence of Black musical expression - These are known as “Variety adds.”

. If you make music and want it considered for rotation, 

 If you want to give feedback directly, reach out to me at jgreen@mpr.org.

Tune in to hear our host Sanni B. live on The Message from 10 AM to 1 PM Monday through Thursday!

Keep all these tracks in one place with the 

 Spotify playlist. This playlist is updated weekly with all the new adds. When that playlist is cycled with new tracks, the tracks live forever on the 

 playlist. That playlist contains all of the music that we've added since the week of July 11, 2022 in chronological order of when it was added. All of the tracks available on Spotify, at least.

All of the tracks added to rotation on Carbon Sound the week of Oct. 21, 2024.


Image for New on Carbon Sound Spotify playlist

New on Carbon Sound

Old on Carbon Sound

New Music on Carbon Sound - Week of October 21, 2024

Real Girl is a DJ based in Minneapolis. She’s a resident for Jumpsuit, a monthly party at Black Hart of Saint Paul and a member of the PIVOT collective. As a DJ and event curator, she centers the experience of the queer and trans community to ensure safe, inclusive dancefloors.

We chatted with Real Girl about her background and intentions for the mix. Read a transcript of the interview, edited for length and clarity, below:

I got my start DJing in college. I really liked going to dance parties, and all of the DJs and people throwing them started graduating. So, me and all my friends who like to party taught ourselves how to DJ so that we could keep the keep the party going.

How has being a DJ changed your relationship to music?

It's definitely made me have a broader appreciation for it. As a casual like dance floor enjoyer, you understand the music through a certain lens. As somebody that plays it for a living, I have much more of an understanding of the roots of it all — the different genres and from different cities and different labels. You definitely end up having a better understanding of what all goes into making dance music. It's not just getting wasted and going partying. There are people that are really pushing the envelope of what came before them.

What have been some of your most gratifying moments as a DJ?

I think some really gratifying moments have just been when I can tell that I'm really connecting with the dancers, because, as I said, like I started partying as a dancer. Being able to curate a sound that resonates with somebody that just wants to go and move their body and connect with those around them has been so beautiful. 

We're going to hear a lot of UK garage. I think it's going to be a lot of like wubs and a lot of dubby stuff. I just really like UK garage. I find it to be a dance floor unifier in a lot of ways. All the techno heads can definitely get down to it, and then all the people that maybe need a lyric or some kind of melody to latch on to also really like it. It sort of meets everybody in the middle.

Carving out spaces where marginalized individuals can feel comfortable, safe, and let their guard down. I know a lot of us move through the world with a lot of like guards up and a lot of looking out for the next harm, I guess. As a trans DJ, I want to be able to make a space safe for people to come and completely be themselves; To have a good time and not feel like they're being watched when they're on the dance floor or anything like that. No judgment. All fun, all love.

Energetic UK Garage and dubstep (the real kind!) from a rising Minneapolis DJ. Now including full track IDs.


UK Garage and Dubstep from Minneapolis DJ Real Girl.

Real Girl (10/16/24)

Woman with curly hair smiles brightly in polaroid

UK Garage from Real Girl | Carbon Sound

Carbon Sound talked with André Cymone about the life and legacy his late mother, Bernadette Anderson, known to many as “Queen Bernie” and “The Mother of the Minneapolis Sound.”


Andre Cymone Interview

Interview: André Cymone on the life and legacy of his mother, the Minneapolis Sound, and more

Neda Kellogg sat down with Carbon Sound’s host Sanni and talked all things Project DIVA International: an organization that has been helping Black girls on their path towards self-discovery for 17 years now.


Neda Kellogg sat down with Carbon Sound’s host Sanni and talked all things Project DIVA International: an organization that has been helping Black girls on their path towards self-discovery for 17 years now.

The Message - Neda Kellogg

Neda Kellogg poses for her polaroid photo

Neda Kellogg and Sanni Brown posing for a photo 

Stories

Minnesota Music Releases to check out from October 2024

Interview: Dammntc on The Message

Luzia Fuchsia (10/30/24)

Get the Carbon Sound app

Photos: Vince Staples gives a powerful performance in Minneapolis

Review: Stevie Wonder spreads love and calls for peace in Minneapolis

Review: André 3000 and band play with themselves

New Music on Carbon Sound - Week of October 21, 2024

Connect with Carbon Sound

Real Girl (10/16/24)

Interview: André Cymone on the life and legacy of his mother, the Minneapolis Sound, and more

Interview: Neda Kellogg on The Message

See more stories →