Dead After Death

August 1, 2026 • 5:00 AM ETThe Grateful Dead played its last show in 1995, but in the three decades since, the cosmic trail of music and folklore blazed by the band has found its way to new generations of musicians and fans.This summer marks a moment of transition in the Dead's long, strange trip: It's the first in many years where there is no clear center of the band's universe.Where does the Deadhead community go from here? Earlier this year, NPR Music's Isabella Gomez Sarmiento and Felix Contreras went out on the road in search of answers.

During this year's 'Days Between' -- August 1 (the date of Jerry Garcia's birth) through August 9 (the anniversary of his death) -- we are publishing a series of stories, interviews, podcasts and more about what keeps drawing people to the Grateful Dead, and how fans and musicians who cherish the band's legacy plan to carry it forward.NPR Music's resident Deadheads Felix Contreras and Isabella Gomez Sarmiento hit the road to interview musicians and fans to learn how the Grateful Dead and its fans built a legacy that has spanned generations, and to find out what comes next.Beginning Aug.1, NPR Music will publish a week-long list of stories and podcast episodes exploring the legacy and future of the Grateful Dead.

And we want to hear from you!Once in a while you get shown the light in the strangest places, if you look at it right.And if you get confused, just listen to the music play.

All Songs Considered host Robin Hilton has never been able to get into the Grateful Dead, so NPR Music's resident Deadheads, Isabella Gomez Sarmiento and Felix Contreras, try to help him hear what he's been missing.How did this one Grateful Dead song, released more than 20 years into the band's career, manage to break through to become a top-40 hit? Isabella Gomez Sarmiento joins NPR Music critic Ann Powers and editor Daoud Tyler-Ameen to discuss the Dead's brush with mainstream success....