Allison Russell

It took Allison Russell nearly two decades and a number of notable folk outfits (Po’ Girl, Birds of Chicago, Our Native Daughters) before she stepped out solo with 2021’s Outside Child, but the accumulated experience helped produce a stunning debut that pulled together a ranging palette of folk and pop styles into an affirmative, poignant celebration of survival. The Canadian songwriter’s follow-up, The Returner, struck even more eclectic in sound and vision, garnering a Grammy and establishing her and her Rainbow Coalition Band as a powerful collaborative force stretching broadly beyond Americana. Kara Jackson opens. – Doug Freeman