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Little Folkies — Songs for Spring/Songs for Summer
Little Folkies is a multi-award-winning early childhood folk music program for parents, teachers, and kids ages 0-5. Developed by acclaimed musician and educator Irena Eide, the songbook features a joyful treasury of original and traditional folk songs to inspire singing and movement.
Songs for Spring and Songs for Summer, the final two installments of four seasonal volumes of music, salutes the seasons with spirited folk songs about communing with the living world around us. Whether listened to at home, in the classroom, out-of-doors, or on the move, these fun-loving folk songs encourage sharing and discovery, and nurture everyone’s love of music and play. A 4-CD edition of the entire series will be available from Smithsonian Folkways on January 23, 2026.
Listen to Songs for Spring HERE
Listen to Songs for Summer HERE
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The Seldom Scene — Remains to Be Scene (March 14)
“The Seldom Scene’s old-school ‘newgrass’ still feels timeless” –The Washington Post
Since forming in 1971, The Seldom Scene has remained quintessential bearers of the bluegrass tradition, releasing nearly two dozen albums that cast a wide net for inspiration and repertoire. Remains to Be Scene is no exception, delivering stirring takes on bluegrass standards and providing their signature interpretations on deep cuts from the likes of The Kinks, Bob Dylan, and Jim Croce. The album is the first to be released since the passing of founding member and trailblazing banjo player Ben Eldridge, who contributes impassioned liner notes to the release.
Listen HERE
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The Rolling Stones feat. Steve Riley — “Zydeco Sont Pas Salés” (June 27)
“This might just be the loosest, rawest Stones recording since Exile on Main St.” –The Guardian
To celebrate the centennial birthday of the “King of Zydeco” Clifton Chenier, The Rolling Stones joined forces with a supergroup of Louisiana musicians, including Cajun accordionist Steve Riley, longtime Chenier drummer Robert St. Julien, and producer CC Adcock for a limited-edition 7" of Chenier’s “Zydeco Sont Pas Salés,” with Mick Jagger singing entirely in French. The Stones pay tribute to one of their musical heroes by capturing the whole-hearted euphoria of Chenier’s performances, turning the accordion-driven classic into a rapturous rock‘n’roll anthem. Alongside Arhoolie Records, Folkways also announced Clifton Chenier: King of Louisiana Blues and Zydeco, the first box set ever devoted to the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winner, arriving February 6, 2026.
Listen to “Zydeco Sont Pas Salés” HERE
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Julian Kytasty — Songs of Truth: Music and Song from the Kobzar Tradition of Ukraine (August 1)
Julian Kytasty is celebrated around the world as a master of the bandura. This plucked-string instrument has become a symbol of Ukraine through its association with the deep tradition of the kobzari. On Songs of Truth: Music and Song from the Kobzar Tradition of Ukraine, he brings expressive clarity and vibrancy to this centuries-old repertoire through skillfully retold historical epics, timeless philosophical songs, biting satire, and joyful dance tunes. Songs of Truth is the second release in the Sound Communities series in collaboration with the Centre for Sound Communities at Cape Breton University.
Listen HERE
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Meklit — A Piece of Infinity (September 26)
“An adventurous, welcoming, interconnected record…” –KEXP
On her Folkways debut, internationally celebrated vocalist and cultural strategist Meklit reimagines traditional Ethiopian folk songs through the lens of diaspora, collaboration, and personal storytelling. Sung in Kambaata, Amharic, Oromo, and English, the album brings Ethio-jazz, indie rock, harp, krar, and synthesizers into vivid conversation. Featuring harpist Brandee Younger and flutist/saxophonist Camille Thurman, A Piece of Infinity is as much a work of cultural reclamation as it is a shimmering musical statement, one shaped profoundly by Meklit’s experience as an immigrant, an educator, and a mother.
Listen HERE
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Los Originarios del Plan — ¡Puritito Michoacán! (October 31)
Led by harpist Leonel “La Chona” Mendoza Acevedo, Los Originarios del Plan are one of the West Coast's best kept musical secrets. The arpa grande (big harp) style has thrived in diasporic communities of agricultural workers and music fans in western Mexico, California and Washington. From backyard family gatherings to the stage at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles, the group provides an essential sonic link to the homeland of these groups of immigrants. On ¡Puritito Michoacán! they perform corridos, sones planecos, canciones rancheras, and more from their vast repertoire of traditionals and standards.
Listen HERE
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