Recently, Judith Hill made a return trip to KNKX, following her last visit from 2023. Once again, her backing band included her father Robert Lee “Pee Wee” Hill on bass and her mother Michiko Hill on keyboards.
In this three-song set, Hill proved to be a remarkably fluid guitarist, shifting between syncopated funk and stinging blues, while the band executed her complex arrangements seamlessly. She also gave a taste of the vocal pyrotechnics that got her on the television show "The Voice" in 2013.
With both parents well-known funk and jazz musicians in Los Angeles, California, Hill grew up in a house full of music-makers including singer-keyboardists Billy Preston and Sly and the Family Stone's Rose Stone, who was also a mentor.
Beyond her time on "The Voice," Hill has sung with Elton John, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson and Prince, who produced her 2015 album Back in Time. She was featured in the 2013 documentary "20 Feet From Stardom," which won both a Grammy and an Oscar.
Hill's most recent release, her fifth, was the autobiographical Letters from a Black Widow from 2024.
In the KNKX studios, Hill's band was tight yet relaxed in a way that only comes from years of playing together. Drummer Shadrack Oppong is the “new guy” who’s been with them for 2 years. He displayed remarkable ensemble and solo playing, utilizing a non-traditional set of cymbals, some of which were bent out of shape.
In our brief conversation that followed the set, Hill said that blues is the foundation of every song she does. She also explained her move from keyboards to guitar, which Hill finds to be more expressive. In her words: “You can’t bend a string on the piano."
Finally, Hill teased her next release, which brought cheers of anticipation from the studio audience.
Musicians:
- Judith Hill - guitar, vocals
- Michiko Hill - keyboards
- Robert "Peewee" Hill - bass
- Shadrack Oppong - drums
Songs:
- Runaway Train
- Flame
- I Can Only Love You by Fire
