The project has earned praise from across the music world. Bandcamp Daily described it as “a scorching album of revved-up traditionals,” while Rolling Stone wrote that Giddens has become “a foundational influence for a generation of younger Black roots musicians.”

Since the album’s release, Giddens has kept a relentless pace. She launched her inaugural Biscuits & Banjos festival in Durham, NC, which featured a reunion of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, then hit the road with her new group The Old-Time Revue, performing at venues including the Hollywood Bowl with guests Steve Martin and Ed Helms. She also reunited with Our Native Daughters (Amythyst Kiah, Leyla McCalla, and Allison Russell) for a rare set of shows.

Her work has expanded beyond performance. She and writer Kristina R. Gaddy recently published Go Back and Fetch It: Recovering Early Black Music in the Americas for Fiddle and Banjo, a book that shares nineteen examples of early Black Atlantic music from the 1600s through the 1800s. The book has already reached a wide audience, topping ethnomusicology new releases and going into a second printing. Giddens also joined Paul Simon onstage at Juilliard’s fall festival and will appear in an upcoming episode of Finding Your Roots with Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

Looking ahead, she will headline Carnegie Hall on May 8, 2026, as part of the United in Sound: America at 250 series. Touring continues as well, both with her own band and with the Silkroad Ensemble, where she serves as Artistic Director.

For now, What Did the Blackbird Say to the Crow remains the heart of this moment. With Robinson, Giddens has created a body of work that feels alive to its history while offering something immediate and present. The album, the mini-documentary, and the performance videos do more than preserve tradition, they invite us to sit, listen, and be part of it.