Jaxx Liberty The Soul of American Music, Live & Unfiltered

Jaxx Liberty

The Soul of American Music, Live & Unfiltered

Latest Articles

Off the Books, On the Tape: The Underground World of Bootleg Jazz and Blues Recordings
Artist Profiles

Off the Books, On the Tape: The Underground World of Bootleg Jazz and Blues Recordings

Long before streaming algorithms decided what you'd hear, a shadow economy of tape traders, private pressers, and obsessive collectors was quietly preserving the wildest, rawest performances jazz and blues ever produced. These unofficial recordings exist in a legal gray zone, but for many fans and historians, they're the most honest documents American music has ever generated. We dig into the bootleg underground and find out what the major labels never wanted you to hear.
Raided, Reinvented, Resilient: The Unbreakable Story of the American Jazz Club
Live Music & Venues

Raided, Reinvented, Resilient: The Unbreakable Story of the American Jazz Club

From hidden basement rooms where bootleg gin flowed and Prohibition agents knocked on the door, to today's battle against skyrocketing rents and streaming algorithms — American jazz clubs have always found a way to survive. This is the story of how they did it, and what it's going to take to keep the lights on.
Pressed for Truth: How to Tell a Real Jazz Record from a Clever Fake
Live Music & Venues

Pressed for Truth: How to Tell a Real Jazz Record from a Clever Fake

The vinyl revival has been a beautiful thing for jazz and blues fans — but it's also opened the door to a flood of counterfeits and unauthorized pressings that are quietly draining collectors' wallets. We dug into the bootleg epidemic hitting the vintage record market and talked to authentication experts about how to protect yourself before you buy.
Stolen Notes: The Long Legal Shadow Over America's Blues and Jazz Legacy
Artist Profiles

Stolen Notes: The Long Legal Shadow Over America's Blues and Jazz Legacy

Behind some of the most celebrated recordings in American music history lies a tangle of courtrooms, contracts, and contested rights that would make your head spin. The legal battles over blues and jazz recordings have shaped — and in many cases, damaged — the legacies of the artists who built this country's musical foundation.
Needles, Nostalgia, and New Ears: Why Gen Z Is Spinning Jazz on Wax
Live Music & Venues

Needles, Nostalgia, and New Ears: Why Gen Z Is Spinning Jazz on Wax

Something unexpected is happening in record stores across America — teenagers and twenty-somethings are flipping through jazz bins and walking out with Coltrane. The vinyl revival has found an unlikely front line, and it's reshaping how a whole new generation stumbles into the deep end of American music.
Grooves and Generations: How Young Record Collectors Are Keeping Jazz and Blues Alive
Artist Profiles

Grooves and Generations: How Young Record Collectors Are Keeping Jazz and Blues Alive

Something unexpected is happening in record stores, estate sales, and online collector forums across America — Gen Z and millennials are digging deep into jazz and blues vinyl with a passion that surprises even longtime collectors. It's not just a format preference; it's a full-on cultural reclamation. And the musicians paying attention are responding in ways that could reshape these genres for the next generation.
Asphalt and Ancestry: Following the Roads That Built American Music
Live Music & Venues

Asphalt and Ancestry: Following the Roads That Built American Music

Long before streaming playlists and algorithm-driven recommendations, American music traveled by foot, freight train, and two-lane highway. The routes connecting New Orleans, Memphis, and Chicago didn't just move people — they moved sound, culture, and a living, breathing musical tradition that still echoes today. Grab your keys and your curiosity, because these roads are still out there.
Mud, Memory, and the Mississippi: How the Delta Blues Found Its Way to Your Town
Live Music & Venues

Mud, Memory, and the Mississippi: How the Delta Blues Found Its Way to Your Town

The Delta blues didn't die with its originators — it packed its bags and kept moving. From juke joints in Clarksdale to festival stages in Chicago and beyond, a new generation of players is carrying the torch with calloused hands and open ears.
When Legends Collide: The Jazz Studio Sessions That Changed Everything
Artist Profiles

When Legends Collide: The Jazz Studio Sessions That Changed Everything

Some of jazz's most electrifying moments didn't happen on stage — they happened when two giants walked into the same room with a shared mission and zero guarantees. We're looking back at the collaborations that rewired the genre and asking what made them catch fire.
She Sang First: The Unsung Women Who Gave American Music Its Soul
Artist Profiles

She Sang First: The Unsung Women Who Gave American Music Its Soul

Long before rock and roll had a face or pop music had a formula, a handful of Black women stood at the microphone and invented American sound from scratch. Mamie Smith, Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith, and their peers didn't just perform — they built an entire cultural architecture that the rest of the music world has been borrowing from ever since. It's past time we gave them their flowers.
Dim Lights, Deep Cuts: America's Best-Kept Jazz Rooms Are Still Swinging
Live Music & Venues

Dim Lights, Deep Cuts: America's Best-Kept Jazz Rooms Are Still Swinging

Chain restaurants have live music now. Airport bars have live music now. But if you want the real thing — the kind of jazz that makes you forget to check your phone — you have to know where to look. We found the rooms where it's still happening every single night, no gimmicks required.