Studio 6A Archives - KUT & KUTX Studios

Who says hip-hop can’t move a crowd at 8 in the morning? Definitely not Mariah Parker, the Athens, Georgia rapper-songwriter-activist who performs as Linqua Franqa. It’s been half a decade since Linqua Franqa shared their self-titled debut, which has been their sole full-length to date. But for good reason; they’ve been busy! On top of parenting, Parker’s been plugging away as County Commissioner in Athens, engaging the community, and true to their stage name, self-researching the heck out of linguistics. Between juggling all that, it’s nothing short of remarkable that Linqua Franqa’s managed to record their sophomore LP Bellringer, out April 22nd. This baker’s dozen of bangers doubles as a vehicle for Parker’s never-ending social commentary as well as an exhibition of their cutting-edge artistry. Last Saturday Linqua Franqa stopped by Studio 6A for SXSW and teased a few of Bellringer‘s lead singles. But they also kept the momentum going strong despite backpedaling to the album closer off Linqua Franca, “Gold Bike”.

Congrats, we all survived another SXSW! There were some uncertainties going into the fest’s first physical iteration in two years, but it’s safe to say that the city pulled it off in a way that felt pretty dang close to the pre-pandemic days. While we take a much needed breather, KUTX will recap some of the best recordings collected at our Studio 6A showcases, starting today with airwave favorite Cimafunk. This Cuban-born singer (and his stellar backing band) proved that they truly can move a crowd and get heads bobbing any time of day, 9AM in the case of last Wednesday. Cimafunk brought the bari sax and trombone onstage well before noon and doled out some sweet Caribbean-style caffeine with a high-energy set that included “Caramelo”!