Brace yourself, because Grace Cummings will blow you away

When I heard today’s guest for the first time, I did a double take at my speakers because her voice is just incredible — she’s like a force of nature. Her name is Grace Cummings; she’s from Melbourne, Australia; and a little while ago, she came halfway around the world and performed in front of a live World Cafe audience. She also had a conversation with me about her new album, Storm Queen, how she discovered her voice and what “America” means to a person who grew up in Australia. Plus, she taught me and the audience a great Australian piece of slang, which you’ll get to learn, too, later on in this session. We begin with her live performance of her song “Heaven.” Brace yourself, because she will blow you away.

Hear the complete session in the audio player above, and watch the performance via NPR Music Live Sessions.