Vince Pearson

As part of an ongoing series, NPR's Rachel Martin talks to pianist Lara Downes about classical recordings of "Lift Every Voice" and "A Change Is Gonna Come," to mark Black Music Month and Juneteenth.

NPR's Rachel Martin spoke to the pianist about Phenomenal Women, the most recent mini-album in the series, in which Downes re-recorded the work of some deeply impactful female composers.

The duo, famed for enmeshing classical and hip-hop, looks back at America's past year and toward its near future on a new song, "Time to Shine."

After the comedian and cellist met on a flight, the two struck up a friendship and decided to release an album on which Murray sings and reads American classics accompanied by a classical trio.