“I wasn’t told I shouldn’t listen to the Beatles. At the same time I was exposed to this incredible Motown music, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and all of that”: Living Colour’s Vernon Reid on inspirations, unsung heroes and the emotional power of a sample

Vernon Reid cups his hands to his ears to the crowd has he performs live at the at the Fremont Street Experience on April 18, 2025.

Listening to Vernon Reid manipulate the electric guitar and bend it to his will is a little like conversation with Vernon Reid, his quicksilver mind scooting from one idea to the next, from one musical reference to another, weaving a story together that tells you were he has come from, where he is going.

It’s a listless Friday afternoon and Reid says everyone in New York is “falling in love with their LLMs” and maxing out the local internet bandwidth, while we are here doing “regular business” on Zoom, talking music.