Who was 24-Carat Black?
Hosts Joe Watson and Toby Brazwell take a hard look at legendary tracks of the past and present, connecting the dots on the music they sample and the songs that inspired them. Join us for Season 3, where Riffs takes a deep dive into the tragic world of 24-Carat Black, the band everyone has heard, but nobody has heard of.
Joe: Riffs on Riffs is back, but we’re doing things a little differently this season.: We’ll start with a musical savant with a vision and a dark side. A brilliant concept album ahead of its time. Add in teenage musicians with otherworldly talent honing their chops on the road, meeting Elvis, splitting their time between posh hotels and the backs of uhauls, and throw in a trip to jail for good measure.
Toby: Now, what if this resulted in an epic record that has been sampled by hip hop royalty, including Digable Planets, Nas, Eric B. and Rakim, Busta Rhymes, Kanye, Jay-Z, and Kendrick Lamar, just to name a few.
Joe: Now lets throw in a sad plot twist — what if these amazing talents never made a dime off of their own music, and what if the general public has never even heard of them?
Toby: I’d say you are talking about 24 Carat Black my friend!
Joe: Yessir! And in this 4-episode series of Riffs on Riffs, we will be digging deep into the history of this band and their incredible 1973 album, Ghetto Misfortune’s Wealth.
Toby: Tune in for interviews with band members Princess Hearne, Niambi Steele, and Jerome Derrickson, as well as with author Zach Schonfeld, who wrote a fantastic book about the band.
Joe: You’ll hear some never before told stories and learn about the impact and legacy of this amazing band.
Toby: Subscribe for free wherever you listen to podcasts.
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