Fridays at work have become quiet days since summers hours started. By 3 pm most people have cleared out. Today, my side of the building is even quieter than the normal summer Friday. Both the other editors took yesterday and today off. My (I say “my” not in a possessive way, but in a I-love-this-girl-and-am-so-lucky-to-work-with-her sort of a way) art director works from home on Fridays with her sweet little boy Niko. The other kids magazine art director is on vacation this entire week.

So I’m sitting in my office, desperately trying to make a dent in my towering stack of manuscripts, with my music cranked up almost too loud for work. I follow this music blog called Some Velvet Blog (he works for WXPN radio in Philadelphia). He posted a review of an artist named Lissie and her upcoming album Catching a Tiger (out on August 18) a few days ago. I listened to the song in his post, listened to the the songs on her web site, and then to the NPR World Café show she played on. I have a new girl crush. She’s labeled as Americana and blues, but I think there’s a little rock in there. And maybe some Dixie Chicks?

Anyway, please do yourself a favor and at least listen to these two songs. I know this is the second girl with a strong voice I’ve posted about, but it’s so refreshing to hear girls stepping up and away from the coffeeshop/guitar/singer-songwriter genre. I can’t get enough.

This first song is called “Cuckoo.”

This one is “Oh Mississippi.” I got chills when I heard her sing it on that NPR World Café show I mentioned up there.