The Progressive Underground: A tribute to The Foreign Exchange
Listen to “The Progressive Underground” with host Chris Campbell every Saturday from 6-8 p.m. ET on Detroit Public Radio 101.9 WDET.
The Foreign Exchange founders Phonte Coleman and Nicolay Rook established the group in 2004 and have since expanded into a musical ensemble, a record label and a musical movement that has changed the direction of progressive soul and conscious hip-hop.
This week was a special The Foreign Exchange (TFE) tribute edition of The Progressive Underground as we celebrated the group founded by Phonte Coleman and Nicolay Rook back in 2004. We chronicled their rise from a groundbreaking duo to a game-changing music ensemble with a burgeoning record label and music movement redefining the sound of progressive soul and conscious hip-hop while providing a multifaceted platform for independent artists.
We played tunes from the TFE catalog as well as individual works of its members such as Phonte, Matthijs Nicolay Rook, Zo! aka Lorenzo Ferguson, Carmen Rodgers and Tamisha Waden, while also mining cuts from artists on the TFE record label like Sy Smith, Bemyfiasco and YahZarah St. James. Plus, some TFE-adjacent artists like Eric Roberson (the king of independent soul), Maurice Pirahnahead Herd & Tee Diviniti Smith, Tall Black Guy Productions and many more! We give TFE and their family tree their flowers and celebrate them for the musical movement that they are.
See the playlist below and listen to the episodes on-demand for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.
The Progressive Underground Playlist for Nov. 16, 2024:
- “Milk & Honey” – The Foreign Exchange
- “Brave New World” – The Foreign Exchange
- “Take Off The Blues (feat. Darien Brockington)” – The Foreign Exchange
- “Make Me Fool (feat. Jesse Boykins)” – The Foreign Exchange
- “Right After Midnight (feat. Sy Smith)” – The Foreign Exchange
- “So What If It Is” – The Foreign Exchange
- “We Are On The Move (feat. Eric Roberson)” – Zo!
- “Role Play (feat Bilal)” – Leron Thomas
- “We Can Fly” – Nicolay
- “Sweet Love (feat. Jeanne Jolly)” – The Foreign Exchange
- “The Answer” – The Foreign Exchange
- “If This Is Love (feat. YaZarah)” – The Foreign Exchange
- “Flight of the Blackbyrd (4Hero Remix) [feat. Phonte]” – Zo!
- “Love Come Save The Day” – YaZarah
- “Flowers” – Sy Smith
- “Close To You” – Art Nap
- “Pretty Little Love (feat. Lola Violet)” – BeMyFiasco
- “Saturday Night (feat. Carlitta Durand)” – Nicolay
- “Wonderluv” – Darien Brockington
- “Lifetime” – Bain
- “Follow (feat. Carlitta Durand)” – Phonte
- “The Beauty of Life (feat. Carmen Rodgers)” – Pirahnahead & Diviniti
- “Lifelines (feat. Dornik)” – Zo!
- “Body” – The Foreign Exchange
- “The Brightest Star (feat. Phonte & Carmen Rodgers)” – Nicolay
- “Why Do You Keep Calling Me?” – Sy Smith
- “Don’t Wanna Be Your Lover” – BeMyFiasco
- “Hold My Hand (feat. Phonte/Muhsinah & Darien Brockington)” – Zo! & Tall Black Guy
- “Funk in the Hole (Nicolay Remix)” – Roy Ayers
- “No More Waiting (feat. Creative Theory)” – Nicolay
- “Better” – The Foreign Exchange
- “Something” – Phonte & Eric Roberson
- “Count to Five” – Zo!
- “Asking for a Friend” – The Foreign Exchange
- “Sun Rings/Uprising” – Nicolay
- “All The Kisses (feat. Paris & Amber Strother of KING)” – The Foreign Exchange
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