John J. Mellencamp, previously known as Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for his brand of heartland rock, which emphasizes traditional instrumentation. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008, followed by an induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2018.
Sufjan Stevens is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He has released ten solo studio albums and multiple collaborative albums with other artists. Stevens has received Grammy and Academy Award nominations.
Asthmatic Kitty Records is an American independent record label founded in 1999 by a community of musicians from Holland, Michigan led by Sufjan Stevens and his stepfather Lowell Brams. Some were Holland natives, and others had come to attend local colleges and universities. While the original Holland nucleus has dispersed across the country, the community has grown, with new artists and shared projects with other independent record labels. The Library Catalog Music Series, inaugurated in 2009, showcases instrumental music from a wide variety of musicians, with eighteen albums in print as of February 2013, and more scheduled for release. Asthmatic Kitty is now based in Lander, Wyoming, Atlanta, Georgia and Brooklyn, New York.
My Brightest Diamond is the project of singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Shara Nova. The band has released five studio albums and a remix album, five studio EPs and four remix EPs, and made several tours across the United States.
Ghost Brothers of Darkland County is a musical by John Mellencamp, Stephen King, and T Bone Burnett. It debuted at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, in 2012. A touring production began in late 2013 through the South and Midwest. A soundtrack was released featuring country, folk, and rock musicians.
Fol Chen is an American electronic band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 2009. The band is signed to Asthmatic Kitty Records and has released three full-length albums.
Rafter is the performing name of the American musician and producer Rafter Roberts. He also owns his own studio, Singing Serpent, in San Diego, California, United States.
The Working Hour is an alternative rock/power pop band originally from Indianapolis, IN led by members Andrew Riesmeyer and Peter Doherty. The duo met in middle school and started making music shortly thereafter. The name "The Working Hour" is the name of a Tears for Fears song and serves as a tribute to one of the band's earlier influences.
Paul Cantwell Mahern, also known as Paul Mahern, is an American rock and pop record producer, mixing and mastering engineer, singer, songwriter, professor, and yoga teacher.
Julianna Barwick is an American musician who composes using electronic loops. Her first album, The Magic Place, was released in 2011.
Sisyphus is the debut studio album by Sisyphus, a collaborative project between Serengeti, Son Lux, and Sufjan Stevens. It was released through Asthmatic Kitty on March 18, 2014. The project was commissioned by the Walker Art Center and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra's Liquid Music series to accompany an exhibition of the work of visual artist Jim Hodges, scheduled to run from February 14 through May 11, 2014.
Cecile Believe is a solo project by Montreal-based Canadian musician Caila Thompson-Hannant.
Plain Spoken is the 22nd studio album by American singer-songwriter and musician John Mellencamp. It was released on September 23, 2014 by Republic Records. Plain Spoken marks the first project of Mellencamp's new lifetime recording contract with Republic Records. The album's cover photo was taken by actress Meg Ryan.
Chris Schlarb is an American composer, songwriter, record producer, and guitarist. He is best known as the founder and leader of the Psychic Temple cult.
Sad Clowns & Hillbillies is the 23rd studio album by American singer-songwriter and musician John Mellencamp. It was released on April 28, 2017 by Republic Records. The album features significant contributions from Carlene Carter, who worked with Mellencamp on Ithaca, the movie he scored for Meg Ryan; she sang on the track 'Sugar Hill Mountain' for the soundtrack. Carter opened every show of Mellencamp's 2015–2016 Plain Spoken Tour.
Shannon LaBrie is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and pianist from Lincoln, Nebraska, United States, residing in Nashville, Tennessee, since 2008.
Roberto Carlos Lange, better known by his stage name Helado Negro, is an American musician. In 2019 he was awarded a United States Artists Fellow in Music and also the recipient of a 2019 Grants to Artists award in Music from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts. In 2015 he received a Joyce Foundation award.
Other People's Stuff is a compilation album of cover songs by American roots rock musician John Mellencamp. The collection was released by Republic Records on December 7, 2018. The album collects cover songs that Mellencamp previously recorded for various tribute albums, a documentary soundtrack and four of his own studio albums over the past 25 years. The album contains only one song not previously available—a 2012 studio recording of “Eyes on the Prize”, which was the album's only single.
Canterbury Girls is the fourth studio album by American duo Lily & Madeleine. It was released on February 22, 2019 through New West Records.
Plain Spoken: From the Chicago Theatre is a live album and concert video by American singer-songwriter John Mellencamp released on May 11, 2018 by Eagle Rock Entertainment. The concert with Mellencamp's voiceover, which was available on Netflix beginning February 1, 2018, captures Mellencamp's performing live at Chicago Theatre in Chicago, Illinois. Although it shares the title Plain Spoken with a 2014 Mellencamp studio album, this concert includes only two tracks from that previous effort, but it came from the tail end of Mellencamp's 2015-2016 Plain Spoken tour.
