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Michaela Anne's Voice Shines Like A Beacon, Bringing You Back Home

Michaela Anne performing at WXPN's Free At Noon Concert, recorded live for <em>World Cafe.</em>
Jamie Stow
/
WXPN
Michaela Anne performing at WXPN's Free At Noon Concert, recorded live for World Cafe.

Speaking to Michaela Anne feels a lot like listening to her music — she radiates a warmth that immediately makes you feel at home. For an artist who's spent her life constantly on the move, making wherever you are feel like home is an important skill. Michaela Anne's family moved constantly while her dad was in the Navy; by the time she graduated high school, she'd lived in 20 different houses. That life on the move is also one of a touring and recording musician.

A few years ago, Michaela Anne went from Brooklyn, N.Y., to Nashville, Tenn. to record her second album, Bright Lights and Fame. To make her latest album, Desert Dove, she took a trip to California. Desert Dove is a country album, but kind of like Michaela Anne's life, it doesn't stay settled in just one place. There are cinematic strings, there are nods to indie rock and honky-tonk and through all of it, Michaela Anne's voice shines like a beacon, bringing you back home.

In this session, Michaela Ann talks about her many homes, her many jobs and her many sounds. Hear it all in the player above.

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Since 2017, John Myers has been the producer of NPR's World Cafe, which is produced by WXPN at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Previously he spent about eight years working on the other side of Philly at WHYY as a producer on the staff of Fresh Air with Terry Gross. John was also a member of the team of public radio veterans recruited to develop original programming for Audible and has worked extensively as a freelance producer. His portfolio includes work for the Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site, The Association for Public Art and the radio documentary, Going Black: The Legacy of Philly Soul Radio. He's taught radio production to preschoolers and college students and, in the late 90's, spent a couple of years traveling around the country as a roadie for the rock band Huffamoose.
Raina Douris, an award-winning radio personality from Toronto, Ontario, comes to World Cafe from the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), where she was host and writer for the daily live, national morning program Mornings on CBC Music. She was also involved with Canada's highest music honors: hosting the Polaris Music Prize Gala from 2017 to 2019, as well as serving on the jury for both that award and the Juno Awards. Douris has also served as guest host and interviewer for various CBC Music and CBC Radio programs, and red carpet host and interviewer for the Juno Awards and Canadian Country Music Association Awards, as well as a panelist for such renowned CBC programs as Metro Morning, q and CBC News.