good evening from los angeles. i'm tavis smiley. tonight, first up, a conversation with trombone shorty, discussing his album. it is called parking lot symphony. and then adam gibbs joins us for a conversation and performance from the solo album called "freedom highway." that's all coming up in just a moment.

troy andrews picked up his first trombone when he was 4 years old, when he was 8, he was leading his own band. at 10, he was touring the country. today in louisiana native is the band leader and front man of you know trombone shorty. and only the avenue, the new album marks date bu frefebut al. it is called "parking lot symphony." how you living? >> i'm doing good. >> good to you have back. you've been busy. you wrapped a tour with the red

hot chili peppers. >> yeah, we did three months with them. incredible. >> did you enjoy it? >> i wish quo have gone longer with them. we're still in a lot of music and learning a lot of things we can borrow from them. >> give me a sense of what that means, that sounds like when you're learning something from them? >> so every night when they came out on stage i would go out in front to see how they approach the stage, see at the beginning of the show they start to jam out. then they introduce the song. but they're just jamming and improvisation, so i'm learning how do to do that and the hit songs and also just they do thing fwookz back. they go back to jamming. so just watching them and how they control the crowd and entertaining. so i'm picking all those little things from them. >> so you've been out with the chili peppers and lenny kravitz. who else? >> zach brown band, country.

hall & oats. >> yeah. >> so when you get a chance to tour with individuals and groups that are that brilliant and that diverse, the whole thing is like a learning experience for you. >> everything is a learning experience for me. when i'm watching them on stage, i'm always just trying to see what they're doing, what i can learn, what can i take back and put into my music. even when we get off stage, i'm watching them. i get in the crowd. it is always a learning experience. that's the way my music sounds. i'm always trying to pick up things for the great people that are good in the genre of music so i can put that with what i'm doing. >> cool. >> when you get these invitations to go out again and in front for these groups and perform with them and they're this diverse, these individuals and groups, how do you know what is a right fit? how do you know that your stuff is going to work for lenny kravitz crowd or a chili peppers crowd. how do you know what is right for you and your band? >> you know, we -- i was aware of the band. and we're going out with. so if you watch all the shows, we play about an hour and 90 minutes to two hours. and throughout the show, we'll

go from you'll hear our influence of rock, you'll hear from r&b, folk or we just go out there and play. i think our mizic coming from new orleans, we get to be placed in different genres of music, different arenas of music. so we play blues festivals and jazz festivals, raggae. so the chili peppers, we did our rock set. so it's what we do. and sometimes we'll do -- we play before geo scott and then the next night we play in front of the fu fighters. it all works out for us. it's a blessing to be across all the bands like that. question play our music differently. if we have a rock song or playing before geo scott, i'm like thank for funk and r&b. we still do the same music. so we bring it in and rearrange our music. but it's still fun. it works out really well. >> you are gifted to do that.

you are blessed and gift tobd able to do that. that's what happens when you go in new orleans. you get a little bit of everything. it is that musical gumbo. >> that's right. just being able to be with -- even in new orleans, i grew up around the nefl brothers. that is a different style of new orleans music. and my father, we grew up in the brass band community. and then there is the rock side with cowboy mouth and people like. that i got a chance to play with all these people as a kid. i pull all that in there. and then also being on tour with lenny kravitz out of high school, that, i took that and put that back with the new orleans gumbo thing. and it's always just keeping my ears open and my mind open and learn and just to me music has no boundaries. i don't really know what to call certain types of music. it's just music to me. >> quincey said it's two types of music, good and bad. >> good and bad. that's it. that's what q says.

he's right about that. >> what is the joy -- i sense every time i see you or talk to through is a sub-lime joy that you get out of being on the road. now at some point you may not feel this way when you're 80 or 90. but there's a joy you get out of being on the road wlachlt is that for you? >> it feels great. i get a lot of invitations to play festival ands different clubs. and we just talked about touring, it just feels great for people to want me to perform for them and come in from new orleans, severing a joy. it's a big party. so when i play, even if some people never heard of us, once the music starts, i see them dancing, that's what keeps me going. we can just say from new orleans, they don't even know what we sound like and i found out that new orleans has its own fan base. so to see the people dance and forget about whatever it may be and music bring the unity to people all aren't world, that's what keeps me going to be able to share that with the world. and they give it right back to me. so it's just an incredible

feeling. >> yeah. >> talk about this new project. parking lot symphony. >> yeah, the debut on blue note records. >> great label. >> yeah, great label. it's really funky. it's a lot of fun. we did a -- redid a song by the meters called ain't no use. and a guy that wrote it, he actually in the studio that day when we were doing it. i didn't have no idea he was there. so we had his guitar that he used on that recording did he with them back in '77. >> that little intimidating when he's in the building? >> maybe for my guitar player. >> but not for you. >> not for me. it was crazy. the bass player we had on in tony hall, he sold that guitar to him years ago. we didn't know he was in the other room. we were doing this song. and he was like oh, man this is the guitar lee will use on it. and someone said leo is down stairs. i was like it's only right that we have him come play on his

song and bless us with his talent. >> he just popped upstairs and did it. >> i said, man, we're recording ain't no use. he said i have to be on there. so he came up there and he did it. and we did a song by allen houston, here come the girls recorded by ernie kale. we put our twist on it. and the rest of it is all originals. but it was all fun. i was doing the album, i went in the studio by myself for two weeks off and on. i set up all the instruments and the circle. i just went from drums to bass to guitar and i just created everything before i let the band come in because i already knew i wanted to sound like. i had a picture of what i wanted to be and after i got that out the way, then i allowed the band to come in and see if they want to change anything, which way they will play. this but it was a lot of fun. >> yeah. >> it's a lot fun. >> you mentioned allen tucson. the death angel has been busy in the music community. so it's been a while since allen

pass add way. that hit me. that broke my heart. i know you knew him better than i d he's been a guest on the show a few times. being a new orleans native, that must have been a profound loss for the city. >> very pro found. he was on stage and fell bad or something right after. that i was actually in europe and i was just telling the crowd we were somewhere and i forgot which it is yishgs but his name was on the list to be there a week after we were there. i was just telling the people, y'all got a lot of new orleans people coming in the house and allen is going to be a great show. it was hard for us. he's a treasure to us. i learned a lot from him coming up. he always came and i'll just see him sneak onside of the stage and just smile and keep giving us encourage ment and different things. so that was very hard for us. he's a king to us. >> yeah. >> you said is that a moment ago that i love and i think it is true. which is that you can show up somewhere in the country and the

bar band from new orleans. >> that's right. you're going to get a crowd. you have that kind of reputation musically around the country and around the world? >> i think it's great. it's a wonderful thing from louie armstrong to fats domino and little wayne. we have so many people in the middle. you can hear all the influences each one of their music including my music and hear a little bit of down south or hip hop in there. i just think it's just a wonderful place. i don't know what america will be without new orleans and the music. i go home and i'm coming from the airport. i get closer to neighborhood. i see a kid playing i had trumpet or someone beating on a math book or practicing or some type of brass band down the street. music is a heartbeat and the way we live down there. so to have the respect of the world and people be excited about the city and what's coming from. that i get to represent that to

a certain extent. it's such a beautiful feeling. >> yeah. >> how is your mom doing? >> she's doing well. i'll tell her you said hello. >> i will. >> i told you, i came by. i was in new orleans about six weeks ago. i was in new orleans. and i was with a friend of mine. wb. >> yeah. >> so everybody knows wb. winston burns. i was with him in new orleans. i said did you talk to shorty lately? he said, no, i haven't, man. i said where is his house? let's go by and see. and he did a u-turn. i rolled to your house and you weren't home. i went to your momma house and she wasn't home. i just rang the doorbell. nobody was home. i was going to surprise you all and say what's up? but i got surprised. nobody was home. >> nobody. she would have laughed. that she loves your show and loves you. i did remember saying some man was there. she got it on her phone now. she can see who is at the door. she said some man came by, i couldn't get a clear picture of him. i'll let him know it was you.

>> it was me. >> now she's going to be upset she wasn't. there. >> trust me, i'll come back to new orleans as often as i can. >> come on down. >> i'll come back again, check on you and your mom yachlt you'll be in europe some. where maybe your momma can feed me something. >> she'll take you over to my grandmothers. >> everybody knows where to go, don't they? >> trombone shorty's new project is "parking lot symphony." i love this brother and love his music. you will too. if you never heard it, you're in for a treat. trombone shorty. glad to have you back. take care of yourself. >> the founding memberst grammy award country blues group. shez is out with "freedom highway." she recently launched her spring/summer tour in california before. our conversation though, let's take a look at her performance of the title track "freedom

highway" at sing sing correctional facilty. ♪ the freedom highway ♪ oh, yeah ♪ marching each and every day ♪ made up my mind that i won't turn around ♪ ♪ made up my mind that i won't turn around ♪ >> i remember reading about this in "the new york times" when you actually did this. why sing sing and tell me what the experience was like. >> i mean it was intense. it was an experience of a lifetime really. i'd been there to see one of the programs that carnegie had done working with the prisoners. i saw the result of that. there is a concert that they were working on all year and the prisoners saw them. they were singing their own songs and working with the

musicians from the outside. i was affected by a couple things, just the program which is amazing and also by the color of the people in that prison. i walked in and something that you know here but to feel it here and to see the results of our prison system and centuries of institution. >> by caller, you mean color. >> yeah. >> you know, a sea of that. and to see that, you know, it struck me. and became a song. i was no longer living in new york. but to bring my own show as just like, yes, you know, to bring what we are trying to say, the message that is in this record, the message that has been in my music the whole time could bring that to the inside and to the -- to have the experience with those guys.

we had a work shop with them that day. we did one of their songs. >> it was a rough day. >> it is interesting. we got to hear this project. the lyrical contact whether one considers that so much of your writing here was taking from slave narratives and turning it into song. tell me about that process. >> it was really intense. you know? part of carolina chocolate draw, i've always been into the history. and doing this historical music and playing instruments like this this is a replica of a bank yoe from 1858. what was 1855? what was the fim like for us? and so going back and reading about the civil war, reading about, you know, the circumstances and read bgt atmosphere and then just reading the stories was really profoundly affecting to me. what i wanted was a way to tell those stories but i'm a

musician. and they wanted to become songs. i didn't have a choice really. i started playing the bank yoe and the first one came out. i read the story and the book and it became a song. and i found kind of my mission. you know, it's always been around the sorts of things. but my particular why i'm here, you know, what i do that no one else is doing and the way i'm doing it is connecting the past to the stories and bringing them into the now. in a way that is different. if it sparks somebody to read a book or just think about what happening today,here are millions of people held in slavery today. it's a way to connect -- it's like an emotional short cut. you know, you can read a book and kind of feel it up here. but a song can go straight to the heart of the matter. and the best way to do that is pick one story and to get in that person's mind and to have

empathy for that person and then, you know, it spreads to the whole thing. >> i haven't had a chance to kauch on tour. i'm curious to know, hopefully i'll see, i'm curious to know what the audience response is given the material on this project? how is the awed yns taking this in? what is the show like? >> it's interesting. we've done europe and australia and now we're just starting here. >> you don't know yet. state side. >> it is really -- we did a stagecoach festival and the country music festival. you know, i'm not holding anything back. we're just doing what we do. and i think people -- it's heavy stuff. you know? >> it s that's why i'm asking. >> you know, i put it in the context of a show. so it's not all that. it has to be these moments of really intense emotion and then you go to a dance song. then you go to -- because it's like that's going to bring the experience. it's not just slavery. the african-american experience is this myriad, you know, array

of highs and hoes just like anybody else. and so, you know, presenting it in the context of that i think makes it more powerful because it's, you know, you get to that song and you're like whoa. and then, okay. we're doing some other parts. and then we get back to this, you know, really intense stuff. and i think that seems to serve it well. you just try to reach people in the best way that you k my issue is mostly that i haven't been able to reach much of the black community. the black press ignored the chocolate drops ignored most of what i've done. you know, trying to put us at our rightful place and genesis of american music with the black string men music, there is so much work that needs to be done there. that's been my frustration is the makeup of the audience is mostly -- and i love -- everybody comes to the show, i love. but, you know, now i'm like ok, how -- this is at the heart of american music. and we did.

this it's frustrating to me because i'm on an educational mission too. y'all really, we need to understand a lot more about why things are happening now if we look in the city. we dig into the city. we get in there. we bring our allies in there and say how can we make something of this? how can we understand why 60 years it was the most popular form of music. why is that at the heart of every american genre that comes after it. it's in every american entertainment and this is reflection of what is happening in the culture. and so what is now happening in the culture, you can understand all of it. and it is happening in our culture. it is happening. but i'm like i'm out there doing the work. write an article. like you know what i mean? this is a beautiful thing. we need to embrace the beauty of this time too. yes, i'm going on. i'm passionate about it.

>> i read it before. it is a butful thing and you're beautiful and what you're doing is but f her latest project is called freedom highway. her name, of course, reanna gid ens. catch her on tour this summer. now she's going to grace us with some playout music from the project. glad to you have back. have a great summer. love seeing you on "nashville." >> i wrote a song on that too. you have to bring this. >> you spread the word on tv. >> doing my best. >> thanks for watching. keep the faith as always. good night from l.a. and here comes rihanna. ♪ ♪ julie

julie won't you run ♪ ♪ i see down beyonder the soldiers will come ♪ ♪ julie oh, julie can't you see the devil's come to take you far from me ♪ ♪ mistress oh, mistress i won't run ♪ ♪ because i see down beyonder soldiers are come ♪ ♪ mistress oh, mistress i do see and i'll stay right here until they come for me ♪ ♪ julie oh, julie you won't go ♪ ♪ leave this house and all you

know ♪ ♪ julie oh, julie don't leave here ♪ ♪ leave us who love you and all you hold dear ♪ ♪ mistress oh, mistress i will go ♪ ♪ leave this house and all i know ♪ ♪ mistress oh, mistress i will leave here with what family i got left for they're all i hold dear ♪ ♪ julie oh, julie won't you lie ♪ ♪ if they find that chunk of gold by my side ♪ ♪ julie oh, julie tell them men ♪

♪ that chunk of gold is yours my friend ♪ ♪ mistress oh, mistress i won't lie ♪ ♪ if they found that chunk of gold by your side ♪ ♪ mistress oh, mistress that chunk of gold ♪ ♪ is what you got when my children you sold ♪ ♪ mistress oh, mistress don't you cry ♪ ♪ the price of staying here is too high ♪ ♪ mistress oh, mistress i wish you well ♪ ♪ but in leaving here i'm lefaving hell ♪

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