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Maya De Vitry, 'How Bad I Wanna Live'

In 2022, one of the ultimate acts of resistance is simply embracing our existence. That realization came after listening to Maya De Vitry's "How Bad I Wanna Live," from her third solo album, Violet Light. Maya takes the experience of her own harrowing hike on a washed-out trail abutting a severe cliffside and turns it into an anthem for continuation.

In just under three minutes of mid-tempo Americana — that seemingly could have sprung from the songbook of Richard & Linda Thompson in their heyday — De Vitry fends off mortality wielding nothing more than generosity, spirit and the soaring harmony she sings with Shelby Means and Joel Timmons of Sally & George. Whether you have been in danger of leaving the earth suddenly, like De Vitry was, or have like so many simply been cracking under the strain of recent events, this song is the perfect soundtrack for uncorking that emotion and (defiantly) loving life again.

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Joe Kendrick
Joe Kendrick grew up far off in the woods at in rural Stanfield, NC, where he acquired his first Sony Walkman, listened to both AM and FM radio from Charlotte, went to Nascar races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, attended a small Baptist church, read Rolling Stone, subscribed to cassette clubs, and played one very forgettable season of high school football. From there, Joe studied Journalism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was able to fulfill his dream of being a disc jockey at WXYC. He volunteered at WNCW soon after graduation.