Rhiannon Giddens

On 22 September 2026 Rhiannon Giddens will perform at SPOT/De Oosterpoort in Groningen. A singer, multi-instrumentalist and incisive musical storyteller, she moves effortlessly between folk, old-time, bluegrass, country, blues, gospel, jazz and a touch of Celtic. With banjo and fiddle at the forefront, she traces the thread between African-American string-band traditions and the broader roots narrative, always attentive to the origins and journeys of songs.

Giddens broke through with Sankofa Strings and as a co‑founder of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, with whom she helped revive forgotten repertoires. Since then she has taken detours and pursued collaborations: The New Basement Tapes, solo albums such as Tomorrow Is My Turn and Freedom Highway, and duo work with Francesco Turrisi on There Is No Other and They’re Calling Me Home. With You’re the One she returned to her own songs, while together with Michael Abels she co-wrote the opera project Omar, which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music.

On stage she presents new work alongside traditionals and reworkings. Expect stories that feel immediate, melodies that linger, and a sound that keeps the line between archive and the present porous.