[piano intro] - [Announcer] "Shaped by Sound" is made possible through support from Come Hear NC, a program of the North Carolina Arts Council within the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

♪ - "Shaped by Sound".

[clapper claps] - 13 North Carolina artists, their songs, their stories, this stage.

[upbeat rock music] ["Sucka For You"] ♪ Everybody say hey hey ♪ ♪ Say hey hey ♪ ♪ Yeah ♪ ♪ I saw you on the town looking real nice ♪ ♪ Had to come talk to you, yo ♪ ♪ Are you from around or in for the night ♪ ♪ Tell me who's keeping you ♪ ♪ I see it and I want it ♪ ♪ Trying to get to know you ♪ ♪ I'm taking a chance, a hell of a chance ♪ ♪ Cause I want you ♪ ♪ I ain't too proud to care ♪ ♪ I ain't too tired to stay up all night ♪ ♪ Got so much to prove, so much to do ♪ ♪ I'm a sucka for you, I'm a sucka for you ♪ ♪ I ain't too proud to care ♪ ♪ Ain't too proud, baby ♪ ♪ I ain't too tired to stay up all night ♪ ♪ Got me breaking the rules, so much to do ♪ ♪ I'm a sucka for you ♪ ♪ Is honey your name, oh you look sweet ♪ ♪ What kind of things you like ♪ ♪ Do you like to dance or wine and cheese ♪ ♪ Well, I'm just your type ♪ ♪ I see it and I want it ♪ ♪ Let me into your life ♪ ♪ Tonight is the night, let's get it right ♪ ♪ Cause I want you ♪ ♪ I ain't too proud to care ♪ ♪ I ain't too proud ♪ ♪ I ain't too tired to stay up all night ♪ ♪ Stay up all night ♪ ♪ I got so much to prove, so much to do ♪ ♪ I'm a sucka for you, I'm a sucka for you ♪ ♪ I ain't too proud to care ♪ ♪ Ain't too proud ♪ ♪ I ain't too tired to stay up all night ♪ ♪ Got me breaking the rules, so much to do ♪ ♪ So much ♪ ♪ So much to prove ♪ ♪ Every time I see you, I wonder what could we be ♪ ♪ Can you help ♪ ♪ And I can tell my heart to wait all morning naturally ♪ ♪ I ain't too proud to beg ♪ ♪ And I ain't too tired to stay up all night ♪ ♪ I got so much to prove, so much to do ♪ ♪ I'm a sucka for you ♪ ♪ I ain't too proud to beg ♪ ♪ I ain't too tired to stay up all night ♪ ♪ Ain't about that baby ♪ ♪ I got so much to prove, so much to do ♪ ♪ I'm a sucka for you ♪ ♪ I'm a sucka for you ♪ ♪ I ain't too proud to care ♪ ♪ Ain't too proud, baby ♪ ♪ I ain't too tired to stay up all night ♪ ♪ Stay up all night ♪ ♪ Got me breaking the rules, so much to do ♪ ♪ So much, so much, so much ♪ ♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪ ♪ I'm a sucka for you ♪ ♪ Sucka for you ♪ ♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪ ♪ I'm a sucka for you ♪ ♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪ ♪ You see me watching, you see me talking ♪ ♪ You see me clocking ♪ ♪ Oh my, oh my, oh my, oh my, oh my ♪ ♪ Everybody say hey hey ♪ ♪ Come on say hey hey ♪ ♪ Yeah ♪ ♪ Say hey hey ♪ ♪ Hey hey ♪ ♪ Hey hey ♪ ♪ Say hey hey ♪ ♪ Say hey hey ♪ ♪ Hey hey ♪ ♪ Oooh ♪ ["Sucka for You" fades] - Anthony Hamilton, thank you so much for being here.

Just so stoked to have you here.

- Thank you.

- So I wanted to start out with, you've said that if we want to know your music, it all begins in your childhood in Charlotte.

- Charlotte, it was a really relaxed childhood.

Things moved a little slow.

People weren't in a rush.

Everybody spoke to you whether, you know, you're driving by in the car or sitting on the porch.

It's a lot of family energy in the neighborhood.

Church was a really big part of my upbringing, church on Sundays and during the week.

Good food.

Lot of good food, lot of great cooking.

You know, the style of music that you hear me sing, it's something I heard coming up, whether it be the church or on a phono set, which is a old record player.

And it feels like home to me.

And so when getting in the studio and starting to think about my musical career, you wanna know like, man, what is my real picture?

What is the real texture of my story?

- Yeah.

- And so musically, this is what it sounds like because that's what I lived before I got to the music.

And so, it's Southern.

It's laid back.

It's Sunday morning.

And it's family.

- Yeah.

- And soul.

I had a lot of time, free time, to myself to dream.

And I always dreamed about being a singer.

I said to myself numerous of times, "I'm gonna be a famous singer."

And I didn't really know what fame was.

But I knew singing was the thing that I wanted to do.

And most of my life, if I wasn't playing with bees or ants or getting stung by wasps, I'd be dreaming about the next big song.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- I wanna transition into food for a second.

- Oh, man, let's do it.

[James and Anthony laugh] - What is it about food and a gathering that speaks to the same impulses, sort of, of where your music comes from?

- I think food is a way of expressing.

You know, some people eat when they're happy.

Some people eat when they're sad.

I think it's a comfortable place to be vulnerable.

And it brings people together.

Like, you know, you can say, "Hey, come over to the house and let's get together."

They'll say, "Okay, "you know, I'll see what's going on on Thursday."

"But come to the house, I'm cooking.

"Let's get together."

- It's different.

- "Oh, what time?"

So, you know, it's one of those things that food can make you extremely, extremely happy.

And, you know, it brings people out the house.

- Yeah.

- And gather.

It's that piece of soft linen that just kind of covers us all.

And it's just like, "Ah, these greens are so good.

"This chicken is so good.

"This, beef ribs, all of it is so good."

I'm able to just let go and enjoy the moment.

And it kind of opens your spirit up a little bit.

["Cornbread, Fish and Collard Greens"] ♪ Um um um ♪ ♪ Ah ah, um um ♪ ♪ Well well well well well ♪ ♪ I knew just what it had to be ♪ ♪ When I heard you say what you said to me ♪ ♪ To every dude in sight ♪ ♪ Look like you working up an appetite ♪ ♪ For the night, check it ♪ ♪ By then I just sat at the back ♪ ♪ Peeping you out, the way you act ♪ ♪ Every string attached ♪ ♪ You're getting outta line ♪ ♪ And I'm yanking you back in your place ♪ ♪ All is well and all is cool ♪ ♪ Stay in your place, don't be no fool ♪ ♪ We'll get along all right ♪ ♪ You look like the type that would try to bite ♪ ♪ Best off being a friend to me ♪ ♪ You don't want to offend me ♪ ♪ Better play it cool, don't know what I might do ♪ ♪ Cornbread, fish and collard greens ♪ ♪ I got what you need if you want it ♪ ♪ 'Cause I'm a pimp, girl ♪ ♪ If you want it, 'cause I'm a pimp, girl ♪ ♪ Cornbread, fish and collard greens ♪ ♪ I got what you need, I got what you need ♪ ♪ If you want it, I can rock your world ♪ ♪ If you want it, I put the juice in Jheri curl ♪ ♪ Now tell me do you really think ♪ ♪ You can walk around like your [beep] don't stink ♪ ♪ I'm on to you ♪ ♪ Oh baby girl I'm on to you ♪ ♪ Take it slow means change your speed ♪ ♪ If it's food for thought that you really need ♪ ♪ Better state your claim, get with it ♪ ♪ Stay in your lane, stop swerving ♪ ♪ Take a seat and sit in the back ♪ ♪ I don't appreciate the way you act ♪ ♪ You need to fix yourself ♪ ♪ Hurry up and go fix yourself ♪ ♪ Can't kill nothing, won't nothing die ♪ ♪ Everything's gonna pass you by if you don't wisen up ♪ ♪ Stop pressing your luck ♪ ♪ Cornbread, fish and collard greens ♪ ♪ I got what you need if you want it ♪ ♪ 'Cause I'm a pimp, baby ♪ ♪ If you want it, 'cause I'm a pimp, baby ♪ ♪ Cornbread, fish and collard greens ♪ ♪ I got what you need if you want it ♪ ♪ If you want it, if you want it ♪ ♪ If you want it, you can get it from me, yeah ♪ ♪ If you let me take you there ♪ ♪ Let me take you there, yeah ♪ ♪ Come on, get with it right now ♪ ♪ Oh oh oh oh oh ♪ ♪ Anything that you want, baby ♪ ♪ Whoa, whoa ♪ ♪ Cornbread, fish and collard greens ♪ ♪ I got what you need ♪ ♪ I got it, if you want it ♪ ♪ 'Cause I'm a pimp, baby ♪ ♪ If you want it, 'cause I'm a pimp, baby ♪ ♪ Cornbread, fish and collard greens ♪ ♪ I got what you need if you want it ♪ ♪ If you want it ♪ ♪ Cornbread, fish and collard greens ♪ ♪ I got what you need if you want it ♪ ♪ Give you what you want, I got it ♪ ♪ If you want it ♪ ♪ Cornbread, fish and collard greens ♪ ♪ I got what you need if you want it ♪ ♪ If you want it ♪ ♪ Cornbread, fish and collard greens ♪ ["Cornbread, Fish and Collard Greens" fades] - I'm kind of curious.

Like, what was it like for you to go from Charlotte to New York City?

- You know what?

The thought of it before I got there was even scarier.

And, you know, I tried to get enough money.

I was like, "I know it's gonna be expensive."

You know, you see New York on TV and it's like all this fabulous stuff.

When I got there and I saw all those buildings, I was like, "Wow, this has gotta be a magical place."

And the energy, the cars, the honking, the, you know, people moving around.

Man, it was just a different kind of beast.

And so I submerged myself into that energy and created a new drive for myself.

You know, I went up there smiling and speaking to everybody and that wasn't a cool thing to do.

- Yeah, there's a different sensibility up there, right?

You don't like say hello to people on the street.

- No, man; I thought that's what you do.

"Hey, hey."

This guy was like, "Do you know me?"

[James laughs] I said, "No."

He said, "But do you know me?"

I said, "No, I was just speaking."

He said, "Well, don't speak to me."

- All right.

- And I was like, "Oh."

And I had already known, don't look up.

If you are not from here, don't look up.

Because they'll know you're new and you could probably get taken advantage of.

So I never looked up, not when people were looking.

- Yeah, one of those early lessons.

So it seemed like when you went into New York City, you had all this like courage.

I wanna know a little bit about how faith kind of comes into this to your life.

Not just in, like, sort of like a religious sense but maybe in a sense of, like, self.

- The thing about faith is, you know, you have it and sometimes you lose it.

And there was a few times when I had faith that this is what I'm supposed to be doing.

And then getting there and realizing that even though it's something you're supposed to be doing, it's gonna take some, you know, some pushing through the doors to get to it, so.

But if you just believe in, like, you're in the right place and you're doing the right thing and making the right steps, it tends to keep you in a place of, you know, having a little solitude in your walk.

And, you know, you get your prayers in, early morning, midday, and at night, you know, and it keeps you grounded.

- Right.

- But you can't give up.

You can't give up on the unseen.

["Charlene"] ["Charlene" continues] ♪ Woke up this morning, found a letter that she wrote ♪ ♪ She said she's tired that I'm always on the road ♪ ♪ Too hard to swallow being alone ♪ ♪ She needs someone at night that she can hold ♪ ♪ She must have told me a thousand times or more ♪ ♪ Silent cries I used to ignore ♪ ♪ God knows I love her, didn't mean to hurt her ♪ ♪ Baby, I'll be ♪ ♪ Sitting here waiting on you to come home again ♪ ♪ Waiting on you, baby, yeah ♪ ♪ I won't leave ♪ ♪ I promise I'll be here until the very end ♪ ♪ And I'll be by your side ♪ ♪ To protect you and to love you and to be with you for life ♪ ♪ Come on home to me, Charlene ♪ ♪ She knows I really love this old music thing ♪ ♪ Since I was a child, it's been my dream ♪ ♪ I can support her, treat her and spoil her ♪ ♪ You know, buy her the finer things ♪ ♪ But I forgot about loving her ♪ ♪ Damn the money, diamonds and pearls ♪ ♪ What about the hard days she had with the baby ♪ ♪ All she needed is for me to love her ♪ ♪ Baby, I'll be ♪ ♪ Sitting here waiting on you to come home again ♪ ♪ I'll be waiting ♪ ♪ I won't leave ♪ ♪ I promise I'll be here until the very end ♪ ♪ Said I promise I'll be here ♪ ♪ By your side to protect you and to love you ♪ ♪ And to be with you for life ♪ ♪ Come on home to me, Charlene ♪ ♪ Whoa oh oh oh ♪ ♪ Promise I can't live without her ♪ ♪ Oh oh oh oh oh ♪ ♪ God knows I need and I love her ♪ ♪ Oh oh ♪ ♪ But you see sometimes that I hurt so bad ♪ ♪ That she's gone away ♪ ♪ Oh oh oh oh oh ♪ ♪ God knows I pray ♪ ♪ That she'll come home one day ♪ ♪ In my life, O Lord, oh oh oh ♪ ♪ Baby, I'll be here ♪ ♪ Baby, I'll be here ♪ ♪ Sitting here waiting on you to come home again ♪ ♪ Sitting here and waiting now ♪ ♪ I won't leave, I won't ever leave ♪ ♪ Promise I'll be here until the very end ♪ ♪ I'll be here for life ♪ ♪ By your side to protect you and to love you ♪ ♪ Say I won't go nowhere ♪ ♪ Come on home to me, Charlene ♪ ♪ Sometimes I cry ♪ ♪ Charlene, if you're listening, would you call on me ♪ ♪ 'Cause my heart is aching without you, baby ♪ ♪ Call me ♪ ♪ See about me, baby ♪ ["Charlene" fades] - When people come on the show, we're thinking about, like, how music shapes us as people, how does it create communities, how does it influence our daily lives.

And so we like to ask people who come on the show, "How are you shaped by sound?"

- I think it gives me a confidence.

I think there's a song that you can hear, man, and you're not having a great day and you're about to go into an interview or, you know, meet somebody for the first time and you put on some music, man, it just gives you a different kind of feeling.

You know, puts a cape around you sometimes.

And, you know, it just gives you something to theme your life behind.

And it's almost like there's a hidden friend in a song, you know, somebody to walk with you.

Like, these lyrics are walking with me.

And we gonna come there and we gonna go ham.

[laughs] - It almost feels like those friends can evolve with you too.

Right?

- Absolutely.

- And that makes it even more special?

- Absolutely, absolutely.

- As I was doing some initial just, you know, work and review of you and your life... - [laughing] Oops.

- You know, I kept on seeing the story about, you know, your grandmother talking about you singing into the spatula in the kitchen.

- Yeah.

- I wanted to know, you know, for the kid in Charlotte right now that's singing into a spatula, what would you tell them?

- Sing louder.

Grab the spoon, grab a fork.

Keep doing it; and eventually, it's gonna happen for you.

You know, that you're gonna have the right thing in your hand and singing the right song, and somebody's gonna hear you.

And it's gonna change your life.

- Yeah, I always wanna close with, you know, is there anything else that you would like to add to this conversation that I haven't had a chance to ask you?

- Just, I'm grateful and I'm so happy to be a part of this North Carolina legacy.

PBS has been around for a long time, since I was a child.

And my kids will look back and see, like, "Hey, we did some great things together."

So I thank you all.

- Thank you for being here.

We are the grateful ones here.

Thank you so much for coming in.

And for the whole band to come in, incredible.

We are so excited.

And it's been such a wonderful time.

So thank you so much.

- I appreciate you.

And thank you all out there for listening and giving me somewhere to sing.

["Fine Again"] ♪ Ooh ooh ♪ ♪ Yeah ♪ ♪ Oh oh oh oh oh ♪ ♪ We'll be, we'll be yeah ♪ ♪ I've been seeking survival ♪ ♪ It seems like my whole life long ♪ ♪ And I've been working so hard ♪ ♪ And it feels like it's all gone wrong ♪ ♪ Time lonely, need someone to push me to help me through ♪ ♪ Make my way through the clouds to the sun ♪ ♪ I gotta make do ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ Fine again ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ We all will be ♪ ♪ Fine again ♪ ♪ Fine again, yeah ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ I see people waiting for answers ♪ ♪ To questions no one knows ♪ ♪ And drinking Joes ♪ ♪ Only thinking, "Oh Lord, whole life blown" ♪ ♪ May we pass out hugs to the thugs to heal our soul ♪ ♪ And blue collar suffering, O Lord, heal us all ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ Be fine ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ We're gonna make it through ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ Oh yeah, we'll be fine, we'll be fine ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ Hey, hey, yeah ♪ ♪ We'll be all right ♪ ♪ I can't wait to see the brighter picture ♪ ♪ We'll be okay ♪ ♪ Everybody ♪ ♪ Sunlight will shine ♪ ♪ Will shine ♪ ♪ Past the storm ♪ ♪ Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh ♪ ♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪ ♪ Say every every everybody ♪ ♪ Say yeah yeah yeah yeah ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ I know it will ♪ ♪ I know it'll get better ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ You don't have to drink yourself to sleep at night ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ You don't have to stumble over your problems, no ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ See everybody needs to hug ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ The whole world, the whole world needs something ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ Oh oh oh oh oh oh ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ Soon we'll be fine ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ Yeah, we'll be fine ♪ ♪ There'll be hugs for thugs ♪ ♪ And there'll be smiles for children ♪ ♪ Children ♪ ♪ There'll be hugs for thugs ♪ ♪ And there'll be smiles for children ♪ ♪ Oh oh oh oh ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ We all will be ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ♪ Fine again ♪ ♪ We'll be fine again ♪ ["Fine Again" fades] [low peaceful music] - [James] Thanks for joining us on "Shaped by Sound".

If you'd like to hear more of our discussion from today, you can find it over on our website, pbsnc.org/ShapedbySound.

Or you can find it on the PBS app.

♪ So you choose to lose someone who loves you ♪ ♪ And a real good friend ♪ ♪ For a bottle of gin, a bottle of sin ♪ ♪ You picked a fine time to leave me, Lucille ♪ ♪ Now I'm sitting at the top of the hill ♪ ♪ Now my heart is broken and I'm all alone ♪ ♪ And I don't know what to feel ♪ ♪ Since you've been gone, gone away ♪ ♪ I overheard somebody say ♪ ♪ They saw you crying in a bar last night ♪ ♪ With a blackened eye, a blackened eye ♪ ♪ I know mistakes I made ♪ ♪ But it's time to trade him ♪ ♪ For another that will treat you right, treat you right ♪ ♪ You picked a fine time to leave me, Lucille ♪ ♪ Now I'm sitting at the top of the hill ♪ - [Announcer] "Shaped by Sound" is made possible through support from Come Hear NC, a program of the North Carolina Arts Council within the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

[peaceful ambient music]