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Doe Paoro On World Cafe

In the 1990 book  Bound To Lead: The Changing Nature Of American Power, economist Joseph Nye introduces us to a term he coined; soft power. Soft power is the act of trying to change things through coercion and appeal rather than force and intimidation. In the book, Nye's talking about government and politics, but our guest today, Doe Paoro, writes intimately about the power dynamics of her personal relationships. And Soft Power is the name of her new album.

Soft Power is a departure from Doe Paoro's electronic influenced sophomore record, After. It was recorded live to tape as a band with less takes and a focus on the songwriting. The songwriting that examines control, loss, struggle and a woman's place in it. It's also empowering.  She's reclaiming and reasserting her independence in songs wrapped in R&B with piano and a pop sensibility,  so it's a beautiful listen as well.  

In addition to her music, Doe's also a yogi and talked to me a little bit about the art of silent meditation (She's done a 10-day retreat, more than once!) and her ETSY handcrafted shop where the hashtag #dontdoubtmywitchcraft comes into play.  If I were you, I would heed that statement.

The session starts off with "Cage of Habits," performed live. Hear the complete performance and our conversation in the player.

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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.