You can't get much more New York than Suzanne Vega. A lifelong resident of the Upper West Side, she's an alum not only of Barnard, but the High School for the Performing Arts and P.S. 163. She's been New York's ambassador to the world of folk music since her self-titled debut album twenty-five years ago. She immortalized Morningside Heights with the unbearably catchy "Tom's Diner" (which will still take you back to 1990 if you let it). She has relatives in Queens. She learned to drive at age 43. Starting at the Songwriters' Exchange in the Village in the early 80s, she had her Lincoln Center debut two weeks ago, as part of the American Songbook series, whose podcast series she hosts. She's still covering the New York map with songs: her last studio album, "Beauty and Crime," included songs set on the Upper West Side, Central Park South, Ludlow Street, and Ground Zero. more ›

Synonymous with folk music ever since her earliest days singing on college campuses in the 1960s, Joan Baez has never been one for silence. She's released dozens of albums featuring her distinctive voice over the course of her 50-year career and she's still an active performer, touring cross-country this summer before heading to Europe later this fall. more ›