Kira Grunenberg
@shadowmelody1.bsky.social
1.3K followers 160 following 170 posts
Music Journalist🎵📰 Words: DownBeat, No Depression, NPR Music, Bluegrass Situation, etc. | Asst. Editor Aromatica Poetica | Writer for Hire📝 | Hot Sauce 🌶️ | Hockey🏒| Puns ThrowtheDiceAndPlayNice.com
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shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Cheers to Lara Pellegrinelli for her study on the faculty gender gap in Jazz Studies, published today by the Berklee School of Jazz & Gender Justice.

So many fields of study, and thus, fields of work, are male dominated. Music, and jazz especially, are no exception.

www.berklee.edu/berklee-now/...
Study Reveals Stark Gender Gap in Jazz Education
A new report from the Berklee Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice and researcher Lara Pellegrinelli finds that male jazz faculty outnumber their female counterparts six to one.
www.berklee.edu
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Do you have a preferred pre-order platform? What helps YOU directly the most?
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Y’all, Jon has been hard at work writing & compiling this book for a while now & you absolutely should pre-order it.

Don’t know who Justin Townes Earle is? You’ll learn new things about someone who meant a whole lot to a whole lot of folks.

Pre-orders are CRUCIAL for authors. You know what to do.
jonbern.bsky.social
My biography of Justin Townes Earle will be released on January 13th, 2026, the week after what would’ve been his 44th birthday.

It’s called ‘What Do You Do When You’re Lonesome’

If you’d like to support a debut author, you can pre-order here:
www.hbglibrary.com/titles/jonat...
Graphic announcing the publication date of January 13, 2026 of a biography of Justin Townes Earle called 'What Do You Do When You're Lonesome'
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Countdown to the flood of op-eds on Taylor Swift’s new album in 3…2…1…
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
In this small, singular, very humid moment, I just want to say that I am grateful for the ability to make a glass of iced coffee. 🧊
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
I’m so furious and yet I feel like I just got the air punched out of me.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Katie Pruitt’s “Look the Other Way” still rings as accurate as ever.

Take care of one another. We can’t–no, we won’t, give up.

“The devil's wearing a suit and tie.
Swearin' on the Bible, there's a twitch in his eye, I guess
Every crook's got an alibi
As long as they got money to blow.”
Katie Pruitt - Look The Other Way (Lyric Video)
YouTube video by KatiePruittVEVO
youtu.be
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Thanks Jon! Means a lot.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
I love everything about it. The production and arrangements especially got me hooked right from the start.

The themes keep me coming back too. They’re simultaneously simple but so deep and personal.

(Personal note: I loved one particularly unique part of Andrew’s response about “Shape.” 😉)
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Looking for some peaceful late night music? @watchhouseband.bsky.social’s new’s album “Rituals” fits the bill.

While you’re listening, enjoy this candid conversation I had with Emily & Andrew all about it, as The Bluegrass Situation’s Artist of the Month.

thebluegrasssituation.com/read/watchho...
Watchhouse Found New 'Rituals' Amid the Push and Pull of Change - The Bluegrass Situation
We sat down with our Artist of the Month for a chat about growth, balance, and their new album, 'Rituals.'
thebluegrasssituation.com
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
The gender gap is staggering and the (extremely thorough) data is undeniable.

And don’t come at me about “merit” and “DEI.” There are PLENTY of well qualified folks who can and should be hired based on their abilities. And yet, stats like this in Lara’s study persist. THAT’S the problem.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Information provides awareness of areas that need improvement in a system or society. Awareness allows for addressing of those weaknesses. Addressing issues leads to betterment of a situation. And better situations mean happier communities.

Research is vital no matter what the topic!
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Cheers to Lara Pellegrinelli for her study on the faculty gender gap in Jazz Studies, published today by the Berklee School of Jazz & Gender Justice.

So many fields of study, and thus, fields of work, are male dominated. Music, and jazz especially, are no exception.

www.berklee.edu/berklee-now/...
Study Reveals Stark Gender Gap in Jazz Education
A new report from the Berklee Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice and researcher Lara Pellegrinelli finds that male jazz faculty outnumber their female counterparts six to one.
www.berklee.edu
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Taylor Swift regaining control over her first six masters isn’t the most important news of the day.

But I definitely wish it was.

Still, it’s a symbolic win for artists. Now the bar just needs to come way down so musicians who aren’t billionaires like Swift can control their IP too.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
I kept putting little bookmark flags in as I was reading and it’s to the point that if I showed it to you, you’d wonder why I didn’t just put a giant note flag around the whole book.

Me telling you to read Mood Machine IS the giant flag. Every chapter is informative.

In my top for the year 100%.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Mood Machine needs to be mandatory reading for collegiate music programs.

@lizpelly.bsky.social’s breakdown of Spotify’s manipulative practices and how it takes cues from other exploitative business models, is eye-opening and infuriating (in a good way).

*Everyone in music NEEDS to read this.
Cover art for the audiobook version of “Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify and the Costs of the Perfect Playlist” by Liz Pelly. The cover has several small squares of different colors lined up in a grid on a black background. The title text is in white, at the top left corner.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Hi! Just wanted to point out that there’s no alt text on this image. A summary of the section you’re highlighting would be helpful to those who can’t read the image.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
That was FAST.

All right, let’s see what happens…
yasharali.bsky.social
BREAKING

We have a Pope!!!
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
“Journalists are given the power to decide whose stories are told and whose are forgotten and that responsibility carries heavy consequences.”

- @kimkelly.bsky.social from “Fight Like Hell”

Kim’s book y’all. Read it in three days. The chapter on disability and labor got me emotional.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Sometimes we all could use a cat.

That’s me everyday but especially today.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
I will forever hold WAXnEGGS in my heart.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Properly celebrating May Day with floral tea and @kimkelly.bsky.social’s “Fight Like Hell,” read via #audiobook and borrowed from my local library using the #Libby app.

Only a few chapters in and learning a lot; also have so many questions forming as I read.
Screenshot of the audio player for Libby, the public library audio and ebook service. The cover for Kim Kelly’s book, “Fight Like Hell: The untold story of American labor,” sits behind a set of rewind, fast forward, and play buttons — each tinted in gray. A progress bar sits beneath the buttons to show where the reader is in a chapter. There is a smaller bookmark flag beneath a spot on the bar.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
Celebrating Easter & waking up to find out Pope Francis has died…very hard pill to swallow.

Pope Francis modeled living like Jesus his whole papacy, whether the super trad sect wants to acknowledge it or not.

May he rest in peace knowing he brought people from all walks of life closer to God.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
I’m looking at you #NYU

The optimist in me wants to believe Harvard is taking a hardline stance because MORALS.

The realist in me is thinking Harvard is looking over at Columbia and the continued self-inflicted obliteration of their reputation and thinking: “Let’s not do THAT.”
barackobama.bsky.social
Harvard has set an example for other higher-ed institutions - rejecting an unlawful and ham-handed attempt to stifle academic freedom, while taking steps to make sure students can benefit from an environment of intellectual inquiry, rigorous debate and mutual respect. Let’s hope others follow suit.
shadowmelody1.bsky.social
I realized y’all were talking about tattoos but then I had a depressing laugh over the fact that my original presumption sums up the state of Americans’ relationship to healthcare: “Is there a deal on that medical treatment?” 😑

Anyway, carry on.

(Also, yeah, wishing tattoos weren’t so $$$)