Guatemala-native, LA-based Gaby Moreno is fresh off of winning her first Grammy for Best Latin Pop Album — 2023’s X Mí (Vol. 1). Fortunately for all of us, her victory lap includes a stop at KCRW’s Annenberg Performance Studio for her long overdue first official live session with us (she made a guest appearance with Calexico in 2015, and has been a part of a few KCRW community events).
Moreno easily makes up for lost time, launching enthusiastically into her trademark melange of blues-rock en Spanglish, heartrending ballads, and a (literally) showstopping rendition of the Guatemalan anthem “Luna de Xelajú.” Her robust band Sebastian Aymanss (drums), Kimon Kirk (bass), Jim Oblon (guitar), Jebin Bruni (keys), Carmen Camerieri (trumpet), and Sylvain Carton (sax) bring the heat for a session of standouts from her freshly released LP Dusk and a few back catalog highlights. Plus, she catches up with longtime pal, KCRW DJ Raul Campos, about discovering the blues, winning the Grammy, and what she’d ask Ella Fitzgerald if the two could somehow sit down to tea together.
You can scrub to 02:04:47 to get right to the session. But we highly encourage listening to the full show guest hosted by Francesca Harding. Enjoy the latest from Helado Negro, electro-r&b upstart Chenayder, and a silky smooth 2023 collab from Terrace Martin & Alex Isley. Pro-tip: Catch Terrace Martin & Alex Isley live at the Novo on Friday March 22 by entering our ticket giveaway right now.
