WMM Playlist from June 24, 2026

Posted on June 27, 2026 by Mark Manning

Wednesday MidDay Medley
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning

Wednesday, June 24, 2026

The Swallowtails + Brook Tuley + IVORY BLUE

Various Artists – “Main Title Instrumental (It’s Showtime Folks)”
from: Motion Picture Soundtrack to All That Jazz / Universal / Dec. 20, 1979
[WMM’s theme]

aja monet – “elsewhere (ft. Meshell Ndegeocello & Georgia Anne Muldrow)
from: the color of rain / drink sum wtr / May 22, 2026
[Composed by: aja monet. Produced by: Meshell Ndegeocello, aja monet and Justin Brown. Additional Production by: Chris Connors and Nico Segal. Executive Production by: aja monet, Daphne Kolader and Dr. Jatali Bellanton. Mixed by: Chris Connors at Concrete Sound, Brooklyn, NY. Mastered by: Alex DeTurk at The Bunker Studio, Brooklyn, NY. Recorded at: Living Room Studios, Los Angeles, CA. // the color of rain is a compositional tour-de-force of poetry, emotion, and resonance. Rain nourishes, blesses, and renews. It loves everything it touches. This album is the space between droplets. At the crux of rising fascism, aja monet offers a waking-dream intervention, amid the sinister reality of contemporary events. A prompt to look up at the sky within., the color of rain is an imbrication of familiar genres forged beyond category or definition. as one stride’s through the sequence of poems, each song shifts between musical perceptions of jazz, soul, hip hop, rhythm and blues. surrealism at it’s finest, a marvelous unleashing of the mind. the color of rain reminds us that poetry predates the very blueprints of genre. // This is an evolution from the intimate, live-café energy of aja monet’s Grammy-nominated debut album, when the poems do what they do. While she nods at the Black Arts Movement’s legacy and lineage, this sophomore album is a conjure to experiment and explore the interior. If the first album was a gentle altar call, then the second is an impassioned call to bare arms, a definitive guide to choose your weapon, wisely. If the pen is the sword, music sharpens or blunts the blade. // Live instrumentation anchors the record but it’s spirit surfaces in pre- and post- production with warped sonics, wayward voltas, and delicate investigations. Meshell Ndegecello conducts the illustrious cast of musicians while Justin Brown bolsters the prismatic vision. In true community organizing fashion, aja knows how to bring artists together, recruiting meaningful musical contributions from Burniss Travis, Josh Johnson, Daniel Mintseris, Jermaine Paul, Ambrose Akinmusire and Nico Segal. // aja monet recites poetry with verve and risk. what sets her apart as a poet is her vulnerable immersion in the music. Her vocal delivery is a rare art. she’s not just monotonously reciting words over a stubborn beat. aja’s tone, rhythm, and cadence interacts with music melodically and vice versa. her instincts as a touring bandleader are felt on this record as we bear witness to the mood and meter of her words. They lead these songs by refrain, invocation, or image. At times the urgency of what is said underscores the deliberate breaths of stillness. As we listen intently, we catch glimpses of aja singing throughout the color of rain. It’s a sonic collage of sounds and personas but most importantly—commands presence. // For the devoted lovers of poetry, there are breadcrumbs of metaphor and meaning embedded within and throughout her musical choices. ‘Say It With Your Chest,’ opens the color of rain as a sublime drumming mantra for courageous truth telling. “elsewhere” poetically grooves and glimmers in honor of Sly Stone’s memory–featuring soul-stirring vocals by Georgia Anne Muldrow, Novena Carmel, and Meshell Ndegeocello. The afro-punk drum and horn haunts in “hollyweird” as aja reports on the Los Angeles fires of 2025, smoldering of visceral descriptions. With synth finger paint on “withness” and trumpet sketches on several songs such as “skinfolk,” the album draws the listener close. And reaches an intense polyrhythmic rally in “for the congo.” aja tells us to “talk about the blood” repetitively. // Soaked by absurd and provocative vocal treatments, her poem, “song of myself” is a direct nod to thepoet Walt Whitman as aja ventures to confront the loose contradictions within a “self.” She straddles the world between that which makes sense and that of which our senses are tested. We don’t have to look far for the shattered ground that is paved of the illogical and magical, there’s a song called Melting Clocks. Which, if even a nod to Dali only in name, boasts a tempo that darts, transports, and moves as if time itself were being questioned. How do you listen when sound is being rearranged in front of you? This work makes us wonder about what we know to be true and stirs us to lean into the mystical unknown. The song extends with clever lyrical offerings from Mick Jenkins, Vic Mensa, and Josh Lane. // We are encouraged to consider the temporality of love as the color of rain renders a poetic ballad by way of, “Love is a Choosing,” featuring the fresh breeze of Mereba’s voice. While aja’s work sits in the knuckled terrain of advocacy and protest, it is without glamour and showmanship. “I do not trust a mouth that has never pronounced the word, sister,” a testament to the onus she responds to, that of care for dignity and equality, as it echoes in the lives of women. Sister is a verb. “To Sister.” This sentiment is realized with vocal breaths by Ganavya and hints of harp by Brandee Younger. It’s a real treat to hear the playful adlibs in “i know that i don’t know” and suspends us into a moment for humor and insight. the brave and daring bass steers the listener through the pressing depths that is “every media minute.” A poem that mirrors the moment. “working class musicians,” in its sonic landscape is unrelenting – rapturous jazz, hands and hums, chants that hold fort as propulsive tenors. Art is a labor. // A call to testify, imagine, and transmute, the color of rain is the hue of daring introspection. This album is aja monet’s refusal of convention and apathy. The final words of the closing song “indigo” encourages the listener not just to hear, but to drift, to wander, to go inward—to feel. Be the poem we need right now. // The rain exploding in the air is love. – sonia sanchez]

3.The Swallowtails – “Perspective”
from: Perspective / The Swallowtails / May 23, 2026
[Written: Mikala Petillo and Rachel Lovelace. Produced: Heidi Gluck. Performed: Miki P, Rachel Lovelace, Heidi Gluck, John O’Keefe. Engineered: Wills Van Dorn. Mixed: Jim Piller. Mastered: Paul Mahern. Photography: Lori Locke. Established in 2018, the band has released 2 full-length albums: Right Where We Are (2020) and The World Still Spins (2023). In 2024, the band wrote, produced, and self recorded their 5-song EP Lucky Penny (2024). The duo received the award Best Local Band in Kansas City by The Pitch Awards. In 2025 The Swallowtails were featured at Ozark Mountain Music Fest, Smoky Hill River Festival, and Boulevardia. They collaborated on a re-release of their single “Lucky Penny” with acclaimed Nashville-based fiddle player John Mailander, and they completed writing and recording their third full length album, PERSPECTIVE, backed and funded for over $21,000 by a Kickstarter campaign, and produced in collab-oration with Heidi Gluck. The album represents The Swallowtails’ most refined and intentional work to date.]

[The Swallowtails play a PERSPECTIVE – Album Release Show on Friday, July 31, 2026, at 7:30pm at 714 Main Street, Grandview, Missouri. More info at http://www.theswallowtails.com]

[Miki P plays Streetcar Sounds today June 24 at 1:00pm in The River Market Street Car Stop]

11:11 – Interview with Miki P. and Rachel Lovelace of The Swallowtails

Rachel Lovelace attended the Douglas Anderson School of the Arts and moved from Jacksonville Florida to Kansas City in 2015 to study at UMKC and UMKC Conservatory of Music in Jazz Studies/Performance. Rachel has worked at Kansas City Young Audiences, loves rock climbing, has a dog named Peanut and just got married. She has been a part of the Swallowtails from the beginning.

Miki P is a multi-instrumentalist & songwriter. She was born in Kansas City, KS. Miki P started playing guitar in middle school. She taught herself to play the drums, while listening to Mitch Mitchell, Keith Moon and Ringo Starr. Miki P performed “She Loves You” at her 7th grade talent show. In 9th grade she joined a teen-band called American Slim as drummer & vocalist, and wrote songs for their full-length album Irreplaceable released in 2017, followed by a single “Queen of Hearts” released April 11, 2018. Miki P has played Middle of the Map Fest, Crossroads Music Fest, Kauffman Stadium, Arrowhead Stadium, and The Nelson Atkins Museum of Art before officially ending in 2018. At 21, Miki P began work on her debut solo-record, DOME OF SWALLOWS, that was released August 2, 2018. She then formed Miki P and the Swallowtails.

Since 2018 The Swallowtails have now released three albums and two EPs, played hundreds of shows and festivals around the Midwest, and been awarded The Pitch Magazine’s ‘Best Of Kansas City’ for two years. They released their EP LUCKY PENNY on February 20, 2024. The duo has just released their new album PERSPECTIVE backed and funded for over $21,000 by a Kickstarter campaign, and produced in collaboration with Heidi Gluck. The album represents The Swallowtails’ most refined and intentional work to date.

Miki P and Rachel Lovelace thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Perspective / The Swallowtails / May 23, 2026

Written: Mikala Petillo and Rachel Lovelace
Produced: Heidi Gluck
Performed: Miki P, Rachel Lovelace, Heidi Gluck, John O’Keefe
Engineered: Wills Van Dorn. Mixed: Jim Piller and Mastered: Paul Mahern
Photography: Lori Locke

“At the core of The Swallowtails, you will find two musicians magnetized by a curiosity to connect and be understood. The genre-bending exploration between Miki P (guitar and vocals) and Rachel Lovelace (bassoon and vocals) has established the band as a premier act in Kansas City and naturally grown a large and loyal following as people connect with both the music and the musicians. The band’s sound is heavily influenced by rock, folk, pop, and classical music.”

Established in 2018, prior to Perspective, the band has released 2 full-length albums: Right Where We Are (2020) and The World Still Spins (2023). In 2024, the band redefined their sound as a duo and wrote, produced, and self recorded their 5-song EP Lucky Penny (2024). This pivot cemented the beginning of a new musical direction for the duo as collaborative songwriters and was recognized by fans and critics alike when they received the award Best Local Band in Kansas City by The Pitch Awards. NPR’s 90.9 The Bridge called their latest work, “A lovely confluence of pastoral folk and baroque pop, these songs evoke the understated but poignant movements that we all encounter throughout life – in celebration, struggle, regrets and realizations.”

2025 was a milestone year for the band. The Swallowtails’ act was featured at Ozark Mountain Music Fest, Smoky Hill River Festival, and Boulevardia. They collaborated on a re-release of their single Lucky Penny with acclaimed Nashville-based fiddle player John Mailander. Most importantly, they completed writing and recording their third full length album titled Perspective. Their latest work was backed and funded for over $21,000 by a Kickstarter campaign. Now in its final stages of production, Perspective is set for release in May 2026, with the first single releasing March 4th. Produced in collaboration with Lawrence, KS–based artist Heidi Gluck, the album represents The Swallowtails’ most refined and intentional work to date. Whether on record or onstage, the duo’s bond is unmistakable—songs that guide listeners back home to themselves, illuminating the inner worlds The Swallowtails so carefully build between artist and audience.”
.
The Swallowtails are: Miki P and Rachel Marie Lovelace are an acoustic folk rock duo based out of Kansas City, MO. They’ve been a band for 6.5 years. They’ve been completely independent from record labels and management. This approach has been the best way for them to have complete control of Their vision and truly find their sound. Despite going it alone, They’ve released two albums and two EPs, played hundreds of shows and festivals around the Midwest, and been awarded The Pitch Magazine’s ‘Best Of Kansas City’ consecutively for the last two years in a row!

Prior to Perspective the duo released “Lucky Penny (2025 version)” in August 2025. This was a new recording and new version of the band’s song “Lucky Penny” originally released as the title track from their February 20, 2024 5-song EP – LUCKY PENNY. This new version will be added as a bonus track on the bands. Up coming album PERSPECTIVE.

The independent acoustic band, experimenting in the rock/pop genres while performing on what are traditionally folk/classical instruments, enter a new era having produced the entirety of this project themselves, with the songwriting matter touching on life’s big changes, challenges, and the realizations that time will heal. // “Since becoming a duo, it was time for us to reinvent our sound again. The songwriting on the LUCKY PENNY EP was split between Rachel and Miki P, and this was Rachel’s debut release as a writer and singer. We spent all of January 2024 finishing the arrangements, recording and mixing the mini-record. It was a much needed release of energy for both of us, and we are definitely looking forward to adding these songs into our live sets and performing new material.” – Miki P, songwriter, singer and musician in The Swallowtails.

Est. in 2018, The Swallowtails are a Kansas City based musical duo comprised of musicians Miki P on guitar/vocals and Rachel Lovelace on bassoon/vocals. Their vision is to write honest, heartfelt songs that feel like you’re coming home to an old friend. As recording and performance artists, they have been showcased throughout Kansas City, performing at the Folly Theatre, Boulevardia Music Festival, The Kansas City Public Library as part of the 2023 Art in the Loop: Celebrate project, and most recently at Green Guitar Folk House opening for The Wildwoods. Their songwriting was awarded Best Song by a KC Band in 2023 by the Pitch Magazine for their tune “Take it Slow.”

Swallowtails embarked on their 4th year entering NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest featuring a song off the EP, called “I’m on Fire” posted to NPR’s official contest site. // The Swallowtails were recently approved as part of KCAIC Touring Artists Roster, through the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission.

Historically, on May 22, 2023 The Swallowtails released their 7-track EP THE WORLD STILL SPINS with Rachel Lovelace on bassoon, Adee Dancy on cello & vocals, and Miki P on guitar & lead vocals.

The Swallowtails play a PERSPECTIVE – Album Release Show on Friday, July 31, 2026, at 7:30pm at 714 Main Street, Grandview, Missouri.

Miki P plays Streetcar Sounds today at 1:00pm] in The River Market Street Car Stop

More info at http://www.theswallowtails.com

From their Kickstarter page:
The Perspective album (was) released in two parts. The first 5 songs were released in the Fall of 2025 digitally. The full album, including the first five released songs plus 6 more songs, was released in 2026 both digitally and physically.

Perspective as a concept was inspired by their friendship as bandmates, but more importantly friends. Having experienced seven years of life together, Miki and Rachel have had their fair share of ups and downs. They’ve laughed together, grieved together, hit some of their biggest professional achievements side by side, and supported each other through difficult life changes. This album is not only an ode to their friendship and foundation, but a reminder that: life is a matter of your perspective. They choose to revel in our lives, create art, sing songs and share our souls with the world!!

This is the first completely collaborative album they have written as a band. Writing credits are split evenly between the two of the, and you will hear both of them taking lead on certain songs and sharing harmonies. They feel like this project reflects their growth as songwriters in a way they’ve never been able to capture before, and we’re very proud of this collection of songs.

The Swallowtails challenged themselves with this project to work outside of what was familiar to then in previous recording sessions. For the first time ever they hired a producer, Heidi Gluck, an extremely talented and inspiring musician, to guide the feel of the album. Before recording in the studio, they met with Heidi to do what they call “pre-production sessions” where they reshaped their songs. They changed tempos, chords, lyrics, everything you could possibly do to create their songs best arrangements. During their time in the studio, Heidi kept them on track, wrote counter-melodies, and played bass and keyboard. This album continues to metamorphosize and evolve; the record is currently being created, re-arranged, recorded and visualized with the help and guidance of Heidi.

The Swallowtails decided to ask their friend Wills Van Doorn to engineer this project for them. Wills is a wizard at engineering, and is also a talented musician/songwriter himself. Comfort was really important to them for this record. They wanted to be somewhere they felt safe to be themselves and capture the collaborative energy with their producer Heidi. Wills did an excellent job facilitating this and they believe you can hear that on the record.

For the album cover, they asked Lori Locke to help the create the vision they saw for Perspective. They wanted it to play on the album title; the image being a matter of your perspective. After an amazing photo shoot with Lori, they printed the pictures and created a paper collage with real dried flowers (that they pressed themselves from a walk one day) and a vintage book Rachel purchased when they first started The Swallowtails. It was a group project that stemmed from Lori’s unique vision of painting their bodies and posing them in her studio!

There will be one bonus track on the Perspective album that is a call-back to a previously released song of theirs, Lucky Penny. The Swallowtails are re-releasing the song this summer as a single featuring The Swallowtails unbelievably talented friend John Mailander on violin. The band believes this re-release embodies the true spirit of the song, our friendship, and journey as musicians and producers into their next album cycle.

More info at http://www.theswallowtails.com

10:30

The Swallowtails – “Heart Is A Garden”
from: Perspective / The Swallowtails / May 23, 2026
[Written: Mikala Petillo and Rachel Lovelace. Produced: Heidi Gluck. Performed: Miki P, Rachel Lovelace, Heidi Gluck, John O’Keefe. Engineered: Wills Van Dorn. Mixed: Jim Piller. Mastered: Paul Mahern. Photography: Lori Locke. Established in 2018, the band has released 2 full-length albums: Right Where We Are (2020) and The World Still Spins (2023). In 2024, the band wrote, produced, and self recorded their 5-song EP Lucky Penny (2024). The duo received the award Best Local Band in Kansas City by The Pitch Awards. In 2025 The Swallowtails were featured at Ozark Mountain Music Fest, Smoky Hill River Festival, and Boulevardia. They collaborated on a re-release of their single “Lucky Penny” with acclaimed Nashville-based fiddle player John Mailander, and they completed writing and recording their third full length album, PERSPECTIVE, backed and funded for over $21,000 by a Kickstarter campaign, and produced in collab-oration with Heidi Gluck. The album represents The Swallowtails’ most refined and intentional work to date. ]

[The Swallowtails play a PERSPECTIVE – Album Release Show on Friday, July 31, 2026, at 7:30pm at 714 Main Street, Grandview, Missouri. More info at http://www.theswallowtails.com]

[Miki P plays Streetcar Sounds today June 24, at 1:00pm in The River Market Street Car Stop].

10:33 – Underwriting

10:34 – Unity Ticket Feature

Aaron Rhodes is a Kansas City based journalist, a promoter, singer songwriter, band leader, and founder of Shuttlecock Music Magazine a blog he started ten years ago, a month after graduating from High School.

Aaron writes, “I was eighteen, and I had a lot of fun just hitting the pavement and doing standard music blogging for a few years straight, multiple shows a week. I was doing photo galleries, write ups, concert reviews, interviews with artists. That’s what the website began as. // Currently it is mostly just where I keep my calendar of concert recommendations that I’ve never stopped updating, which has been the one constant part of a Shuttlecock, a weekly concert calendar that I curate. It’s really just anything I feel is worth checking out that week. Except no offense, no DJs and no cover bands.”

Aaron has written for several music publications including The Pitch, http://www.Bridge909.org, Flatland KC on KCPBS, and content manager at http://www.Do816.com. He has supervised the development of Shuttlecock from blog, to magazine, to website and now to Substack. https://aaronrkc.substack.com Aaron has also worked as a Talent Buyer & Marketer at Farewell KCMO, 6515 Stadium Dr, Kansas City, MO. Aaron was also a co-host of the music blog, “In My Head Ache” with Bill Brownlee. Through all of this Aaron’s been supported artists & bands thru features, podcasts, and live performances: http://www.shuttlecockmusic.com

Unity Ticket formed in early 2025 and originally featured Cole Billings (of Flooding) and Tyler Snowden (of Ten Times Fast and Perfume USA) but they both had to step back due to time constraints. But they both wrote some of the music on 1 or 2 songs each on the EP.

Last time Aaron was on WMM was when he was in the band Burning Bush. Burning Bush released their EP, Demo 2024 on May 8, 2024 with Aaron Rhodes on vocals; Harrison Hawkins on guitar; Daniel Evans on bass; Ethan Payton on drums. Recording, mixing, mastering by Alex Tunks. All songs written by Burning Bush. Instrumentals recorded on January 14, 2024 at The Space in KC, Missouri. Vocals recorded on Feb 10, 2024 at Alex’s in KC

UNITY TICKET, EP was released May 29, 2026. The new 5-piece band is made of: Aaron Rhodes on vocals, Cameron Birdsall on guitar, Keego Gross on Guitar, Booker Rohlf on bass, and Hayden Jensen on drums. UNITY TICKET was recorded at Soundstructure Rehearsal Studios in KCMO, and at at Flora House in KCMO. Lyrics written by Aaron Rhodes. Music written by Cameron Birdsall, Keego Gross, Booker Rohlf, Hayden Jensen.

UNITY TICKET play a benefit for the Midwest Innocence Project at Howdy, 6523 Stadium Drive, KCMO, on Thursday, June 25 with Perfume USA, Teazers, and Wheat State. More info at: https://linktr.ee/unityticketusa

https://aaronrkc.substack.com

UNITY TICKET – “Weakest Link”
from: Unity Ticket – EP / UNITY TICKET / May 29, 2026
[Vocals – Aaron Rhodes; Guitar – Cameron Birdsall; Guitar – Keego Gross; Bass – Booker Rohlf; Drums – Hayden Jensen. Instrumentals recorded at Soundstructure Rehearsal Studios in Kansas City, Missouri in January 2026. Vocals recorded at Flora House in Kansas City, Missouri in February 2026. Mixed at Casa De Shitbox in Kansas City, Kansas in February and March 2026. Mastered at Dead Air Studios in Amherst, Massachusetts in April 2026. // Recording engineers – Hayden Jensen (instrumentals) and Booker Rohlf (vocals). Mixing engineers – Keego Gross and Hayden Jensen. Mastering engineer – Will Killingsworth // Lyrics written by – Aaron Rhodes // Music written by – Cameron Birdsall, Keego Gross, Booker Rohlf, Hayden Jensen // Additional music writing – Tyler Snowden (track 4) and Cole Billings (tracks 2 and 3) // Band name logo / typography – Melvin Mauch / Album artwork (layout / editing) – Aaron Rhodes.]

Weakest Link 2:22
Lyrics written by – Aaron Rhodes

It seems like all you do is sit around and chain-smoke
And when you need to step up, you seem to always choke
You’re much more than bitch-made I
hope you’ve got a shrink
I suppose every crew has a weakest link

If this shit’s called DIY, then why don’t you just do it?
If you’re so much better than me, I’d like to see you prove it
You whisper to my friends that you want to fight
But when I beat your ass, they’d call me more than impolite

Take your ass back to Utah
Consider this song a wink
Try not flip your car next time you have a drink

Indecisive to a fault
Every thought you overthink
If you were the captain of this ship
We’d all be doomed to sink Every crew has a weakest link

UNITY TICKET – “Costume Contest”
from: Unity Ticket – EP / UNITY TICKET / May 29, 2026
[Vocals – Aaron Rhodes; Guitar – Cameron Birdsall; Guitar – Keego Gross; Bass – Booker Rohlf; Drums – Hayden Jensen. Instrumentals recorded at Soundstructure Rehearsal Studios in Kansas City, Missouri in January 2026. Vocals recorded at Flora House in Kansas City, Missouri in February 2026. Mixed at Casa De Shitbox in Kansas City, Kansas in February and March 2026. Mastered at Dead Air Studios in Amherst, Massachusetts in April 2026. // Recording engineers – Hayden Jensen (instrumentals) and Booker Rohlf (vocals). Mixing engineers – Keego Gross and Hayden Jensen. Mastering engineer – Will Killingsworth // Lyrics written by – Aaron Rhode // Music written by – Cameron Birdsall, Keego Gross, Booker Rohlf, Hayden Jensen // Additional music writing – Tyler Snowden (track 4) and Cole Billings (tracks 2 and 3) // Band name logo / typography – Melvin Mauch / Album artwork (layout / editing) – Aaron Rhodes.]

costume contest (1:29)
Lyrics written by – Aaron Rhodes

You did your hair just right
You got a sick back patch
You’ll be the most decked-out
All the other punks will stand no match

You’re living in a costume contest
And there is no prize
You’re living in a costume contest
Is it self expression or just a disguise?

Your clique all took the bait
But standing out won’t set you free
We might be at the same show
But know you’re nothing like me

You’re living in a costume contest
And there is no prize
You’re living in a costume contest
Is it self expression or just a disguise?
Living in a costume contest
And there is no prize
Living in a costume contest
And I’m so happy that I’m the one you despise

UNITY TICKET – “Last Incident”
from: Unity Ticket – EP / UNITY TICKET / May 29, 2026
[Vocals – Aaron Rhodes; Guitar – Cameron Birdsall; Guitar – Keego Gross; Bass – Booker Rohlf; Drums – Hayden Jensen. Instrumentals recorded at Soundstructure Rehearsal Studios in Kansas City, Missouri in January 2026. Vocals recorded at Flora House in Kansas City, Missouri in February 2026. Mixed at Casa De Shitbox in Kansas City, Kansas in February and March 2026. Mastered at Dead Air Studios in Amherst, Massachusetts in April 2026. // Recording engineers – Hayden Jensen (instrumentals) and Booker Rohlf (vocals). Mixing engineers – Keego Gross and Hayden Jensen. Mastering engineer – Will Killingsworth // Lyrics written by – Aaron Rhode // Music written by – Cameron Birdsall, Keego Gross, Booker Rohlf, Hayden Jensen // Additional music writing – Tyler Snowden (track 4) and Cole Billings (tracks 2 and 3) // Band name logo / typography – Melvin Mauch / Album artwork (layout / editing) – Aaron Rhodes.]

last incident (2:26)
Lyrics written by – Aaron Rhodes

Zero days since last incident
I ignored my friends, I threw a tantrum
I got jealous, it always happens
I really screwed up
Don’t feel too handsome

Reset the sign
I crossed another line
Acted up again
I’ll learn my lesson one day
But who knows when?
But who knows when?
But who knows?

Zero days since last incident
Young, dumb, and degenerate
Went and flipped my lid
Went and swung my fist
I can never seem to rid myself of this

Reset the sign
I crossed another line
Acted up again
I’ll learn my lesson one day
But who knows when?
But who knows when?
But who knows?

Zero days since (last incident)
Zero days since (last incident)
Zero days since (last incident)
It’s been zero days since

10:45

Brooke Tuley and the Moon Travelers – “Chase Me”
from: Chase Me / Brooke Tuley Music / May 7, 2024
[We’ve been a fan of the musical work of Brook Tuley from the incredible recordings shw had created with husband Mke Tuley and with Anna St. Louis for The Bloodbirds. We also loved the solo released of Anna St; Louis and other collaborators with the Tuley family. // Mike Tuley was o our show way back when the Grisly hand released their debut vinyl EP, SAFE HOUSE back in 2010. Many of the musicians on that album play on this new Brooke Tuley release. // Brooke wrote to me saying, “Chase Me had a quiet release in 2024 and, at the time, it felt a bit too personal to share more broadly. Since then, I’ve had some distance from it and feel ready to open it up and talk about it further. The project is very much a reflection of my process. It’s not a traditional album or release, but it’s honest, and that feels worth sharing. Alongside it, I’ve been working on a show at The Temple, and the release also includes an art and poetry book with a listening card. That format came together as a way to present the work in a more tangible, exploratory way.” // Recorded and produced by Mike Tuley in the Tuley home studio, in Kansas City. Brooke Tuley on vocals, guitar, songwriting; Mike Tuley on guitar, keys, percussion, engineering; Jimmy Fitzner on guitar; John Nichols on bass, Jon Kraft on drums; Mike Stover on pedal steel; Betse Ellis on fiddle; Rich Wheeler on saxophone. Cameos by Anna St. Louis, Kevin Morby, and Suzannah Johannes. Mixed and mastered by John Golden. Cover design by Anna St Louis and photography by Christopher Good. // Chase Me is a record about momentum—about holding on as life rolls by. Recorded in Brooke Tuley’s basement studio with longtime collaborators and friends, the album blends indie warmth and Americana textures with a quiet sense of clarity and resolve. // Built around guitar, voice, and restraint, the songs trace love and loss, motherhood and memory, and the pull between staying and letting go. Chase Me turns grief into melody and melody into light—work shaped by experience rather than urgency. // Alongside the album, Brooke created Chase Me: A Visual Collection of Art, Poetry, & Movement, a companion book developed with Kansas City artists that expands each song’s emotional landscape. // From basement demos to First Midnight and Chase Me, Brooke Tuley & The Moon Travelers craft folk-rooted songs shaped by Kansas City’s DIY spirit, tracing love, loss, and renewal. Info at: brooketuleymusic.com]

11:51 – Interview with Brooke Tuley

Brooke Tuley is a Kansas City songwriter, poet, educator, and multidisciplinary artist. Her latest release,Chase Me, is an art and poetry book with a listening card, bringing together music, writing, and visual art from collaborators across the Midwest. Rooted in themes of love, loss, and transformation, her work reflects a deep commitment to creative exploration and community. In addition to her artistic practice, Tuley runs a gifted center for children and recently founded a women-led art collective dedicated to shared studio practice and collaboration.

Brooke Tuley, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday Midday Medley

Brooke Tuley joins us in our 90.1 FM Studios to talk about her most recent release CHASE ME from Brooke Tuley and the Moon Travelers.

Chase Me was officially was released on May 7, 2024.

Brooke writes, “Chase Me had a quiet release in 2024 and, at the time, it felt a bit too personal to share more broadly. Since then, I’ve had some distance from it and feel ready to open it up and talk about it further. The project is very much a reflection of my process. It’s not a traditional album or release, but it’s honest, and that feels worth sharing.”

“Alongside it, I’ve been working on an art and poetry book with a listening card. That format came together as a way to present the work in a more tangible, exploratory way.”

Recorded and produced by Mike Tuley in the Tuley home studio, in Kansas City.

Brooke Tuley on vocals, guitar, songwriting;
Mike Tuley on guitar, keys, percussion, engineering;
Jimmy Fitzner on guitar;
John Nichols on bass,
Jon Kraft on drums;
Mike Stover on pedal steel;
Betse Ellis on fiddle;
Rich Wheeler on saxophone.

Cameos by Anna St. Louis, Kevin Morby, and Suzannah Johannes.

Mixed and mastered by John Golden.

brooketuleymusic.com

11:00 – Station I.D.

Brooke Tuley Discography

MMXIII by bloodbirds released May 1, 2015

No Trains Coming Through 04:50
Big Feelings 03:22
Did You Say 06:22
Modern Sympathy 05:51
Recovered Memory 04:25
Convalescence 05:31
Line Array 02:05
Round Moon 08:52

bloodbirds are: anna st. louis, brooke tuley, mike tuley

Live at Mills Records by bloodbirds- April 10, 2013 – released April 19, 2014

1.No Trains Coming Through – live 04:32
2.Line Array – live 01:40
3.BlueJeanAttack – cover of Retainers 02:41
4.Divorce Sea – live 04:17

[recorded at Mills Records in KCMO on August 10, 2013. mixed by mike tuley. available on a small-run of cassettes from Mills Recording Company. the cassettes include an additional song not available for download. // all forgotten/mumbled lyrics, missed-notes, and “songs” courtesy of bloodbirds, except “Blue Jean Attack” – originally by Retainers from the “teenage regrets” 7″ put out by Fashionable Idiots in 2006

First Midnight by Brooke Tuley released April 14, 2014
mixed and mastered by Mike Tuley

waves 01:41
only dust 04:08
about a well 05:20
hey, bluebird 02:17
black death speaks 05:32
old believers 02:44
moonless night 03:23
the living 04:10
she’s gone 02:28
apostle’s fossils 04:08

[First Midnight was written and recorded late at night on a four-track while Brooke was pregnant with her first son. Opening with an industrial hum and unfolding through ghostly vocals, lo-fi fuzz, and reverb-soaked textures, the album trades force for restraint—songs that drift like discordant lullabies. // Drawing from text, history, and spiritual practice rather than autobiography, the songs explore exile, plague, speculative worlds, and imagined futures. Originally released quietly on CD and cassette, First Midnight remains an origin document: work made in attention rather than for an audience. // From basement demos to First Midnight and Chase Me, Brooke Tuley & The Moon Travelers craft folk-rooted songs shaped by Kansas City’s DIY spirit, tracing love, loss, and renewal.]

Demo III by bloodbirds – released April 3, 2013

Line Array 02:45
NoNoNoNoNo 01:49
Slow Drains 05:44
Parasitic Twin 09:39

punk psychedelic Kansas City

Psychic Surgery by Bloodbirds released April 1, 2013

1.Divorce Sea 04:23
2.Bad Animal 04:15
3.Organ Donor 04:03
4.Sister 05:07
5.Patterned Sky 02:16
6.Estimation Is An Important Skill 05:12
7.Radiation 03:51
8.Psychic Surgery 03:00
9.Rings 04:03
10.Time Battle 04:59

principle tracking done at Junior’s Motel, additional recording at the Worst Place in the World, and House Tuley the 1st. recorded by Kirk Kaufman and Mike Tuley. mixed by Mike Tuley.

DUKH by bloodbirds – released February 10, 2012

Misfire 05:19
Revolver 04:43
Audit 06:51
Gespenst 08:05

recorded at the practice cabin and the worst place in the world. november 2011 – january 2012. with anna st. louis, brooke tuley, mike tuley

Covers by bloodbirds – July 30, 2012

World on a String – NY 02:07
Forming – Germs 03:16
What Goes On – VU 03:14

various covers recorded at various times when we became frustrated with our own music during recording.

NIGHT RECORDINGS by bloodbirds – released December 15, 2011

Orbit Obit 04:36
Time Battle 05:00
Fear the Answer 06:53
Scraping 02:56

Brooke TuleyThanks for being with us on Wednesday Midday Medley
Info at: brooketuleymusic.com

11:24

Brooke Tuley and the Moon Travelers – “Beyond The Veil”
from: Chase Me / Brooke Tuley Music / May 7, 2024
[We’ve been a fan of the musical work of Brook Tuley from the incredible recordings shw had created with husband Mke Tuley and with Anna St. Louis for The Bloodbirds. We also loved the solo released of Anna St; Louis and other collaborators with the Tuley family. // Mike Tuley was o our show way back when the Grisly hand released their debut vinyl EP, SAFE HOUSE back in 2010. Many of the musicians on that album play on this new Brooke Tuley release. // Brooke wrote to me saying, “Chase Me had a quiet release in 2024 and, at the time, it felt a bit too personal to share more broadly. Since then, I’ve had some distance from it and feel ready to open it up and talk about it further. The project is very much a reflection of my process. It’s not a traditional album or release, but it’s honest, and that feels worth sharing. Alongside it, I’ve been working on a show at The Temple, and the release also includes an art and poetry book with a listening card. That format came together as a way to present the work in a more tangible, exploratory way.” // Recorded and produced by Mike Tuley in the Tuley home studio, in Kansas City. Brooke Tuley on vocals, guitar, songwriting; Mike Tuley on guitar, keys, percussion, engineering; Jimmy Fitzner on guitar; John Nichols on bass, Jon Kraft on drums; Mike Stover on pedal steel; Betse Ellis on fiddle; Rich Wheeler on saxophone. Cameos by Anna St. Louis, Kevin Morby, and Suzannah Johannes. Mixed and mastered by John Golden. Cover design by Anna St Louis and photography by Christopher Good. // Chase Me is a record about momentum—about holding on as life rolls by. Recorded in Brooke Tuley’s basement studio with longtime collaborators and friends, the album blends indie warmth and Americana textures with a quiet sense of clarity and resolve. // Built around guitar, voice, and restraint, the songs trace love and loss, motherhood and memory, and the pull between staying and letting go. Chase Me turns grief into melody and melody into light—work shaped by experience rather than urgency. // Alongside the album, Brooke created Chase Me: A Visual Collection of Art, Poetry, & Movement, a companion book developed with Kansas City artists that expands each song’s emotional landscape. // From basement demos to First Midnight and Chase Me, Brooke Tuley & The Moon Travelers craft folk-rooted songs shaped by Kansas City’s DIY spirit, tracing love, loss, and renewal. Info at: brooketuleymusic.com]

11:29 – Underwriting

Ivory Blue – “Echo”
from: Echo / IVORY BLUE / May 22, 2026
[New 10-song full length album from IVORY BLUE. Her third full length album. IVORY BLUE released the singles: “History” on April 3, 2026.,“afterglow” on February 20, 2026; “Forevermore” on November 28, 2025; and “Echo” on September 5, 2025. // Kansas City based artist, IVORY BLUE has a tendency of breaking through barriers that keeps her from saying what needs to be said, regardless of style. Bringing us hard hitting rock inspired ear candy like “Starlit Love Child” and “Control”, the idea of genre is only a tool IVORY uses to express her ability to communicate through music. // IVORY BLUE released the singles “Mirrors” on August 1, 2025; “Heartbeat” on March 28, 2025; “Rhythm of the Radio” on January 31, 2025 // “Exiled” on November 29, 2024; “Olé!” on October 4, 2024, Breathing Underwater” on August 9, 2024, “Bad Dreams”on June 7, 2024, “Batter Up” on April 22, 2024, “Flashback” on March 15, 2024, “Howl” on Feb. 16, 2024. // IVORY BLUE released their 2nd full length album, STARLIT LOVE CHILD, on Nov. 17, 2023. The 10-track album was in the top five of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2023, and in the “Best of” lists at 90.9 The Bridge and stations around the world. // On Oct. 27, 2023 IVORY BLUE released the single “Ghost of Life.” This single followed IVORY’s previous releases,”In A World Like This” from Sept. 22, 2023, ”The Best of Life” from Aug. 4, 2023 and “Control” from May 26, 2023. IVORY released the single “All Outta Love” on Feb. 24, 2023. // IVORY BLUE released the single “Starlit Love Child” on Oct. 28, 2022, “Red Light” on July 29, 2022. // IVORY BLUE released their full length debut album COMPOUND LOVE on Feb. 25, 2022. COMPOUND LOVE was in the Top 10 of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2022. For COMPOUND LOVE, IVORY BLUE served as songwriter, producer, vocalist and played all instruments with the exception of: Lester Estelle on drums, Klaartje Van Lue on piano, Craig Kew on bass, Lennon Bone on drums, and Marco Pascolini on pedal steel guitar. // IVORY BLUE released the single “Good Changes” on Oct 26, 2021. Ivory Blue released the singles: “Heavy,” “Bad Weather,” “It Must Have Been Me,” “Compound Love,” and “The Start” on December 14, 2021. // IVORY BLUE’s debut EP, Ready Get Set was released in June 2015. While the EP helped spread the word and give IVORY BLUE attention from regional radio and TV stations, a big break would come in 2017 when Ivory was among 1800 artists/bands that competed in neXt2Rock. Ivory won local & regional challenges and advanced to nationals in Los Angeles to win the top prize. // IVORY BLUE has played with The Band That Fell to Earth, Boulevardia, Crossroads Music Festival, Middle of the Map Fest, Westport Roots Festival, KCPT Screening of “Real Boy” at KC Public Library, and Kauffman Stadium. // Ivory Blue was born in 1986 in Peoria Illinois, as Devin James Miclettet. Ivory’s birth mother put them up for adoption at the age of four. Ivory speaks about how it was difficult to find trust in people offering their home to someone denied it for so long, Ivory lived with eight different families, before running away at 15. // Ivory has talked with us about how in their life they have turned to music to express pain. Ivory spent most of their childhood looking for a family. In 2010 Klaartje Van Lue saw Ivory performing in a YouTube video and contacted them, flying Ivory to Kansas City, and adopting Ivory into the Van Lue family. In 2011, Ivory settled in the Kansas City, MO area. During the past 10 years Ivory came out as “Non-Binary Transgender”, and then later as Trans-Female. // As a multi-instrumentalist, Ivory began refining their performance style, using digital looping pedals to stack harmonies and guitar parts live on stage, giving their solo shows the feel of a full band. Info at: http://www.ivorybluemusic.com]

[IVORY BLUE plays PERSPECTIVES at Lavender Studio, 12307 E. 47th Street Independence, Missouri, on Saturday, June 28 with November Ballard.]

11:34 – Interview with IVORY BLUE

We welcome back IVORY BLUE who after releasing multiple singles over the last two years has just released a new 10-song album titled, ECHO on May 22, 2026. ECHO is her third full length album. IVORY BLUE has a tendency of breaking through barriers that keep her from saying what needs to be said, regardless of style. IVORY BLUE released her 2nd full length album, STARLIT LOVE CHILD, on Nov. 17, 2023. The 10-track album was in the top five of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2023, and in the “Best of” lists at 90.9 The Bridge and stations around the world. IVORY BLUE released her debut album, COMPOUND LOVE on February 25, 2022. IVORY’s debut EP, Ready Get Set was released in June 2015. The EP helped give IVORY BLUE attention from regional radio and TV stations. In 2017 Ivory was among 1800 artists/bands that competed in neXt2Rock. Ivory won local & regional challenges and advanced to nationals in Los Angeles to win the top prize. IVORY BLUE has played with The Band That Fell to Earth, Boulevardia, Crossroads Music Festival, and Englewood Arts Center. More info at: http://www.ivorybluemusic.com

IVORY BLUE plays PERSPECTIVES at Lavender Studio, 12307 E. 47th Street Independence, Missouri, on Saturday, June 28 with November Ballard

IVORY BLUE, Thanks for being with us on WMM

IVORY BLUE released her 2nd full length album, STARLIT LOVE CHILD, on Nov. 17, 2023, It was in the top 5 of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2023. A free-spirited musician, IVORY BLUE has become an expressive multi-genre artist whose music is passionate rock, with a dash of pop hooks & a healthy dose of swagger. Since then she has released several new singles including: “Forevermore” on November 28, 2025; “Afterglow” on February 20, 2026; and “Echo” on September 5, 2025. “Echo” was #3 in WMM’s 50 Favorite Singles of 2025. These single will be part of Ivory’s upcoming third full length album ECHO to be released on April 24, 2026.

At the age of four, IVORY’s birth mother put her up for adoption. IVORY lived with eight different “foster parent” families, before running away at 15. Ivory turned to music to express her pain and personal story. In 2010 Klaartje Van Lue saw IVORY performing in a YouTube video. The Van Lue family adopted IVORY into their family. As a multi-instrumentalist, IVORY refining her style, using digital looping pedals to stack harmonies, giving tsolo shows the feel of a full band.

IVORY BLUE released the single “Mirrors” on August 1, 2025. //IVORY BLUE released the single “Heartbeat” on March 28, 2025. // IVORY BLUE released the single “Rhythm of the Radio” on January 31, 2025 // IVORY BLUE released the single “Exiled” on November 29, 2024. IVORY BLUE released the single “Olé!” on October 4, 2024, Breathing Underwater” on August 9, 2024, “Bad Dreams”on June 7, 2024, “Batter Up” on April 22, 2024, “Flashback” on March 15, 2024, “Howl” on Feb. 16, 2024.

IVORY BLUE was born in 1986 in Peoria Illinois, as Devin James Miclettet. At the age of four, IVORY’s birth mother put them up for adoption. Ivory speaks about how it was difficult to find trust in people offering their home to someone denied it for so long. IVORY lived with eight different “foster parent” families, before running away at 15. Ivory turned to music to express their pain and personal story. In 2010 Klaartje Van Lue saw IVORY performing in a YouTube video, captured from an open mike performance. Klaartje had moved to the United States from Belgium to marry her husband and then raise her son and daughter. Klaartje, a pianist and working mom, felt a connection, musically and maternally, sent a plane ticket for IVORY to fly to KC. The Van Lue’s adopted IVORY into their family. 10 years ago IVORY came out as “Transgender” helping to educate and to clear the pathway for a growing number of trans, queer, & non-binary musical artists who are part of KC’s diverse and collaborative music community.

IVORY BLUE released their full-length debut album COMPOUND LOVE on February 25, 2022. COMPOUND LOVE was in the Top Ten of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2022. IVORY BLUE released the video of their song, “Family Table” directed by Mikal Shapiro, on August 21, 2021. IVORY BLUE’s debut EP, READY GET SET was released in June 2015. While the EP helped spread the word and give IVORY BLUE attention from regional radio and TV stations, a big break would come in 2017 when IVORY was among 1800 artists/bands that competed in neXt2Rock. IVORY won local & regional challenges and advanced to nationals in Los Angeles, California to win the top prize.

IVORY BLUE has played Boulevardia, Kauffman Stadium, Crossroads Music Festival, The Middle of the Map Festival, The Westport Roots Festival, Apocalypse Meow, the KCPT Screening of “Real Boy” at The KC Public Library, The Viper Room (L.A.), ULAH with You Found Music, Arts In The Park, The Englewood Arts Center, MiniBar, recordBar, Lemonade Park, Davy’s Uptown Ramblers Club, Records With Merritt, The Tank Room, and many others. More info at: https://linktr.ee/ivorybluemusic

We welcome a friend of the show, IVORY BLUE, making her 19th appearance on this program. IVORY BLUE released the single “Mirrors” on August 1, 2025. //IVORY BLUE released the single “Heartbeat” on March 28, 2025. // IVORY BLUE released the single “Rhythm of the Radio” on January 31, 2025 // IVORY BLUE released the single “Exiled” on November 29, 2024; “Olé!” on October 4, 2024; Breathing Underwater” on August 9, 2024, “Bad Dreams”on June 7, 2024; “Batter Up” on April 22, 2024; “Flashback” on March 15, 2024; “Howl” on Feb. 16, 2024; and “Echo” on September 5, 2025; “Forevermore” on November 28, 2025; and “Afterglow” on February 20, 2026. “Echo” was #3 in WMM’s 50 Favorite Singles of 2025. These singles will be part of Ivory’s upcoming third full length album ECHO to be released on April 24, 2026.

IVORY BLUE thanks for being with us on WMM

IVORY BLUE released her 2nd full length album, STARLIT LOVE CHILD, on Nov. 17, 2023, It was in the top 5 of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2023. A free-spirited musician, IVORY BLUE has become an expressive multi-genre artist whose music is passionate rock, with a dash of pop hooks & a healthy dose of swagger. At the age of four, IVORY’s birth mother put her up for adoption. IVORY lived with eight different “foster parent” families, before running away at 15. Ivory turned to music to express her pain and personal story. In 2010 Klaartje Van Lue saw IVORY performing in a YouTube video. The Van Lue family adopted IVORY into their family. As a multi-instrumentalist, IVORY refining her style, using digital looping pedals to stack harmonies, giving tsolo shows the feel of a full band.

Ivory Blue thanks for being with us on WMM.

IVORY BLUE plays PERSPECTIVES at Lavender Studio, 12307 E. 47th Street Independence, Missouri, on Saturday, June 28 with November Ballard

For WMM, I’m Mark Manning. Thanks for listening!

11:53

Ivory Blue – “Don’t Hold Back”
from: Echo / IVORY BLUE / May 22, 2026
[New 10-song full length album from IVORY BLUE. Her third full length album. IVORY BLUE released the singles: “History” on April 3, 2026.,“afterglow” on February 20, 2026; “Forevermore” on November 28, 2025; and “Echo” on September 5, 2025. // Kansas City based artist, IVORY BLUE has a tendency of breaking through barriers that keeps her from saying what needs to be said, regardless of style. Bringing us hard hitting rock inspired ear candy like “Starlit Love Child” and “Control”, the idea of genre is only a tool IVORY uses to express her ability to communicate through music. // IVORY BLUE released the singles “Mirrors” on August 1, 2025; “Heartbeat” on March 28, 2025; “Rhythm of the Radio” on January 31, 2025 // “Exiled” on November 29, 2024; “Olé!” on October 4, 2024, Breathing Underwater” on August 9, 2024, “Bad Dreams”on June 7, 2024, “Batter Up” on April 22, 2024, “Flashback” on March 15, 2024, “Howl” on Feb. 16, 2024. // IVORY BLUE released their 2nd full length album, STARLIT LOVE CHILD, on Nov. 17, 2023. The 10-track album was in the top five of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2023, and in the “Best of” lists at 90.9 The Bridge and stations around the world. // On Oct. 27, 2023 IVORY BLUE released the single “Ghost of Life.” This single followed IVORY’s previous releases,”In A World Like This” from Sept. 22, 2023, ”The Best of Life” from Aug. 4, 2023 and “Control” from May 26, 2023. IVORY released the single “All Outta Love” on Feb. 24, 2023. // IVORY BLUE released the single “Starlit Love Child” on Oct. 28, 2022, “Red Light” on July 29, 2022. // IVORY BLUE released their full length debut album COMPOUND LOVE on Feb. 25, 2022. COMPOUND LOVE was in the Top 10 of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2022. For COMPOUND LOVE, IVORY BLUE served as songwriter, producer, vocalist and played all instruments with the exception of: Lester Estelle on drums, Klaartje Van Lue on piano, Craig Kew on bass, Lennon Bone on drums, and Marco Pascolini on pedal steel guitar. // IVORY BLUE released the single “Good Changes” on Oct 26, 2021. Ivory Blue released the singles: “Heavy,” “Bad Weather,” “It Must Have Been Me,” “Compound Love,” and “The Start” on December 14, 2021. // IVORY BLUE’s debut EP, Ready Get Set was released in June 2015. While the EP helped spread the word and give IVORY BLUE attention from regional radio and TV stations, a big break would come in 2017 when Ivory was among 1800 artists/bands that competed in neXt2Rock. Ivory won local & regional challenges and advanced to nationals in Los Angeles to win the top prize. // IVORY BLUE has played with The Band That Fell to Earth, Boulevardia, Crossroads Music Festival, Middle of the Map Fest, Westport Roots Festival, KCPT Screening of “Real Boy” at KC Public Library, and Kauffman Stadium. // Ivory Blue was born in 1986 in Peoria Illinois, as Devin James Miclettet. Ivory’s birth mother put them up for adoption at the age of four. Ivory speaks about how it was difficult to find trust in people offering their home to someone denied it for so long, Ivory lived with eight different families, before running away at 15. // Ivory has talked with us about how in their life they have turned to music to express pain. Ivory spent most of their childhood looking for a family. In 2010 Klaartje Van Lue saw Ivory performing in a YouTube video and contacted them, flying Ivory to Kansas City, and adopting Ivory into the Van Lue family. In 2011, Ivory settled in the Kansas City, MO area. During the past 10 years Ivory came out as “Non-Binary Transgender”, and then later as Trans-Female. // As a multi-instrumentalist, Ivory began refining their performance style, using digital looping pedals to stack harmonies and guitar parts live on stage, giving their solo shows the feel of a full band. Info at: http://www.ivorybluemusic.com]

[IVORY BLUE plays PERSPECTIVES at Lavender Studio, 12307 E. 47th Street Independence, Missouri, on Saturday, June 28 with November Ballard.]

Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now”
from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]

Next week, on Wednesday, July 1 we welcome John Lawrence Johnson, Jamogi, and Danny Fischer aka Warren Burns

You can find our playlists at: http://www.wednesdaymiddaymedley.org & http://www.kkfi.org
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM
http://www.instagram.wednesday_midday_medley

Thank you to KKFI Staff: Executive Director – Bess Wallerstein-Huff, Chief Operator – Chad Brothers, Director of Development & Communications – J Kelly Dougherty, Volunteer Coordinator – Darryl Oliver, and Office Manager Book Keeper – Shaina Littler.

THANK YOU to everyone who donated to KKFI’s Summer Fund Drive during WMM we had a total of 36 people donate a total of $3513.50. THANK YOU SO MUCH!

This radio station is more than the individual hosts of each individual radio show. It is a collective spirit of hundreds of people, setting aside ego, to work for the greater good of community building and the goal of keeping our airwaves, non-commercial, and open! Thank you to programmers who create content for over 85 locally produced radio shows & volunteers who made extra effort to keep our station alive.

Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information.
Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org

Wednesday MidDay Medley in on the web:
http://www.kkfi.org,
http://www.WednesdayMidDayMedley.org,
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM

Show #1153

WMM presents: The Swallowtails + Aaron Rhodes & UNITY TICKET + Brook Tuley + IVORY BLUE

Posted on June 19, 2026 by Mark Manning

Wednesday MidDay Medley
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning

Wednesday, June 24, 2026

The Swallowtails + Aaron Rhodes & UNITY TICKET + Brook Tuley + IVORY BLUE

At 10:10 Mark talks with Miki P (guitar and vocals) and Rachel Lovelace (bassoon and vocals) of The Swallowtails. Established in 2018, the band has released 2 full-length albums: Right Where We Are (2020) and The World Still Spins (2023). In 2024, the band wrote, produced, and self recorded their 5-song EP Lucky Penny (2024). The duo received the award Best Local Band in Kansas City by The Pitch Awards. In 2025 The Swallowtails were featured at Ozark Mountain Music Fest, Smoky Hill River Festival, and Boulevardia. They collaborated on a re-release of their single “Lucky Penny” with acclaimed Nashville-based fiddle player John Mailander, and they completed writing and recording their third full length album, PERSPECTIVE, backed and funded for over $21,000 by a Kickstarter campaign, and produced in collaboration with Heidi Gluck. The album represents The Swallowtails’ most refined and intentional work to date. PERSPECTIVE was released on May 23, 2026. The Swallowtails play a PERSPECTIVE – Album Release Show on Friday, July 31, 2026, at 7:30pm at 714 Main Street, Grandview, Missouri. More info at http://www.theswallowtails.com

At 10:35 Aaron Rhodes joins us to share new music from his band UNITY TICKET, and their new self titled EP released May 29, 2026. The new 5-piece band is made of: Aaron Rhodes on vocals, Cameron Birdsall on guitar, Keg Gross on Guitar, Booker Rohlf on bass, and Hayden Jensen on drums. UNITY TICKET was recorded at Soundstructure Rehearsal Studios in KCMO, and at at Flora House in KCMO. Lyrics written by Aaron Rhodes. Music written by Cameron Birdsall, Keego Gross, Booker Rohlf, Hayden Jensen. UNITY TICKET play a benefit for the Midwest Innocence Project at Howdy, 6523 Stadium Drive, KCMO, on Thursday, June 25 with Perfume USA, Teazers, and Wheat State. More info at: https://linktr.ee/unityticketusa

At 11:00 Mark talks with Brooke Tuley about her most recent release CHASE ME from Brooke Tuley and the Moon Travelers. Chase Me was officially was released on May 7, 2024. Brooke writes, “Chase Me had a quiet release in 2024 and, at the time, it felt a bit too personal to share more broadly. Since then, I’ve had some distance from it and feel ready to open it up and talk about it further. The project is very much a reflection of my process. It’s not a traditional album or release, but it’s honest, and that feels worth sharing. Alongside it, I’ve been working on a show at The Temple, and the release also includes an art and poetry book with a listening card. That format came together as a way to present the work in a more tangible, exploratory way.” Recorded and produced by Mike Tuley in the Tuley home studio, in Kansas City. Brooke Tuley on vocals, guitar, songwriting; Mike Tuley on guitar, keys, percussion, engineering; Jimmy Fitzner on guitar; John Nichols on bass, Jon Kraft on drums; Mike Stover on pedal steel; Betse Ellis on fiddle; Rich Wheeler on saxophone. Cameos by Anna St. Louis, Kevin Morby, and Suzannah Johannes. Mixed and mastered by John Golden. Info at: brooketuleymusic.com

At 11:30 we welcome back IVORY BLUE who after releasing multiple singles over the last two years has just released a new 10-song album titled, ECHO on May 22, 2026. ECHO is her third full length album. IVORY BLUE has a tendency of breaking through barriers that keep her from saying what needs to be said, regardless of style. IVORY BLUE released her 2nd full length album, STARLIT LOVE CHILD, on Nov. 17, 2023. The 10-track album was in the top five of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2023, and in the “Best of” lists at 90.9 The Bridge and stations around the world. IVORY BLUE released her debut album, COMPOUND LOVE on February 25, 2022. IVORY’s debut EP, Ready Get Set was released in June 2015. The EP helped give IVORY BLUE attention from regional radio and TV stations. In 2017 Ivory was among 1800 artists/bands that competed in neXt2Rock. Ivory won local & regional challenges and advanced to nationals in Los Angeles to win the top prize. IVORY BLUE has played with The Band That Fell to Earth, Boulevardia, Crossroads Music Festival, and Englewood Arts Center. More info at: http://www.ivorybluemusic.com

On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or
STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org

Show #1153

WMM Playlist from June 17, 2026

Posted on June 19, 2026 by Mark Manning

Wednesday MidDay Medley
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning

Wednesday, June 17, 2026

New & MidCoastal Releases + Jonathan Van Ness + The Forcefields + Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves + Warren Williams

Various Artists – “Main Title Instrumental (It’s Showtime Folks)”
from: Motion Picture Soundtrack to All That Jazz / Universal / Dec. 20, 1979
[WMM’s theme]

Nina Simone & HAAi – “That’s All I Ask (HAAi Remix)”
from: “That’s All I Ask (HAAi Remix)” – Single / Verve Records / June 12, 2026
[Verve Remixed continues its year of Nina Celebration with new single and compilation album. // Nina Simone’s catalog continues to inspire a new generation of artists with the release of “That’s All I Ask (HAAi Remix),” via Verve Records. The latest installment in the Verve Remixed series sees acclaimed producer, songwriter, and DJ HAAi reinterpret the beloved recording from Simone’s 1966 album Wild Is The Wind. // Through atmospheric electronic production anchored by Simone’s captivating vocal performance, HAAi casts “That’s All I Ask” in a new light. Stripping back the original instrumentation, she spotlights the emotional honesty at the heart of the recording, transforming the track into an intimate and haunting dancefloor experience. The original recording of “That’s All I Ask” has recently found renewed resonance as the soundtrack to the viral “My Odd Top 5” trend, where users share the unique moments and experiences that make life worth living. // As Verve celebrates its 70th anniversary this year, the label continues to spotlight its lasting impact on music and culture. New releases from the Verve Remixed series will arrive monthly through the fall, with a compilation album to follow, available digitally and on vinyl. Stay tuned for more info. Contri-butors across the campaign include HAAi, Mochakk, DESIREE, Austin Millz, dublon, Supershy, Antdot, and more, each offering their own take on Nina Simone’s timeless catalog. // HAAi is known for her dynamic, tempo-shifting DJ sets. In 2025 HAAi played over 100 shows across 5 continents, 30 countries, and 91 cities. She took to the biggest stages at festivals, such as Glastonbury, Sonar, and EDC Las Vegas, while also deliver-ing sets at local parties including Japan’s Rainbow Disco Club, Berlin’s RSO and Paris’ Iconic Rex Club, where she performed a year-long residency. In-between, HAAi was playing b2b’s with friends like KI/KI, Jennifer Cardini, The Blessed Madonna and Solomun. // 2024 saw the launch of UNiSON, her community focused party brand that featured surprise back-to-back sets with Boys Noize, DJ Boring and Romy, alongside a room programmed with emerging artists discovered via HAAi’s Submit to Play platform. UNiSON has become a platform for HAAi to uplift rising talent while creating an inclusive and boundary-pushing space for club Culture. // From her beginnings as a singer-songwriter in Western Australia to her rise as a globally renowned producer, songwriter, & DJ, HAAi continues to push boundaries with electronic music.]

The Milk Carton Kids – “Blinded and Smiling”
from: Lost Cause Lover Fool / Far Cry Records / April 24, 2026
[On their seventh studio album, Lost Cause Lover Fool (out now on Far Cry/Thirty Tigers), The Milk Carton Kids craft nine songs that, more than ever, invite listeners to lean in close and linger inside the small moments the record quietly magnifies. They share the new single “Blinded and Smiling.” // “This album is, at its core, a collection of songs about transformation,” Pattengale explains. “About the shifting terrain of consciousness and the stories we build to understand who we’ve been, who we are, and who we’re becoming. Each song takes a single moment, sometimes examined with microscopic closeness and sometimes viewed from a great distance, and lets it expand until it becomes an entire world. By enlarging small feelings until they’re inhabitable, the record looks for eternity not in the sweeping or monumental, but in the intimate specifics that usually pass too quickly to notice.” // Musically, the duo continues the subtle expansion of their palette. There’s banjo, drums, choral backing vocals, all pulling toward a unified center. Even as their arrangements grow richer, the goal remains the same. “As we’re adding more and more layers,” Ryan says, “we’re still drawn to the idea of a sound where the pieces give themselves up to the greater whole.” // Lost Cause Lover Fool doesn’t strain for relevance or make a spectacle of itself. It simply pauses long enough for the listener to step inside. It reminds us, gently but insistently, that the smallest moments are often the ones that last.]

Such Lovely People – “Opposite Eye Clean”
from: Opposite Eye Clean – Single / Such Lovely People / May 15, 2026
[Such Lovely People is a project founded in 2020 by songwriter Josh Dorrell (he/his). An established guitarist and vocalist, Josh has played in several bands and ensembles in the Midwest. Born in Kansas City but raised on wanderlust, he sought to devote his endless voracity to making good music that means more.]

Danielle Nicole – “Tug Of War”
from: Fireflies / Forty Below / August 24, 2025
[Recorded at Weights and Measures Sound Soundly. Award-winning blues and roots artist Danielle Nicole returns with Fireflies, her fourth solo album, arriving August 28, 2026 via Forty Below Records. Produced by Tony Braunagel and featuring Luther Dickinson, the album expands Nicole’s soulful blend of blues, R&B, and American roots music. // Danielle Nicole has spent nearly 25 years redefining what modern blues can be. Across a celebrated career that includes 10 Blues Music Awards and a Grammy nomination, the Kansas City native has continually pushed beyond genre boundaries while staying connected to the emotional core of her music. / On August 28, 2026, Nicole will release Fireflies, her fourth solo album and one of her most personal and expansive recordings to date. Released through Forty Below Records and produced by acclaimed drummer and producer Tony Braunagel, the album was recorded in Nicole’s hometown of Kansas City and reflects a period of growth, reflection, and artistic evolution. // While firmly rooted in the blues, Fireflies reaches into soul, R&B, and the broader traditions of American roots music. The album balances deeply reflective songwriting with moments of strength and empowerment, showcasing Nicole’s unmistakable voice and emotional depth. // Nostalgic highlights include “Take Me Back,” featuring North Mississippi Allstars guitarist Luther Dickinson, while tracks such as “Gaslight” and “Tug of War” deliver powerful messages of resilience and self-discovery. // The result is an album that honors where Danielle Nicole comes from while embracing where she is headed next. Richly textured, soulful, and fearless in its scope, Fireflies shines as another significant step forward in an already remarkable career. ]

[Danielle Nicole plays knuckleheads, 2715 Rochester Ave. KCMO, Saturday, June 20, at 8:00pm.

Car Microwave – “Toyota Tacoma”
from: Spirits Up Windows Down / Car Microwave / May 29, 2026
[Katie Boord – Lead Vocals/Acoustic Guitar; Kirsten Krier – Bass Guitar; Caitlyn Jacobs – Guitar; Parker Mason – Electric Guitar/Piano; Riley Rexford – Drum // There are so many people to thank for making this record possible. First off, a huge thank you to Caleb Fankhauser for persevering through studio changes and rolling with the punches to produce this album. It only took two years but we crossed the finish line dude haha. Couldn’t have done it without you! // Thank you to Rodd Fenton at Solstice Audio for mastering the record and always being a believer in our music. Your advice and encouragement is always appreciated and we’re better for knowing you. // “Jack Kerouac” was recorded at Levitate KC in Leavenworth, KS (gone but not forgotten!!). Thank you Aaron for letting us use that space! // The rest of the record was recorded in Riley’s parents’ basement. A huge thank you to them for letting us use that space all these years. We really became a band down there. // Album cover and promotional photos were shot and edited by Jeremy Nathan. SERIOUSLY book him for your band photos, y’all sleeping on this man. It was so dreary and gross the day we did the shoot but he worked his magic and we couldn’t be happier. // Thank you to our dear friend and #1 fan Adam Jones for letting us use his Mercury Grand Marquis for the shoot. May that thing run forever 🙏 // And finally thank you to every venue, every band, every promoter, and every listener that has ever trusted us with their time as we worked up and crafted these songs. We don’t and have never taken that for granted. // That’s all. See you in 3 years for the microwave themed album. // Car Microwave’s song, “Ford Crown Victoria” was pat of WMM 50 favorite Singles of 2025. Car Microwave are an indie rock band out of KCMO. Devout haters of Truck Oven! With Katie Boord on vocals; Caitlyn Jacobs on guitar, vocals; Kirsten Krier on bass; Parker Mason on guitar, and Riley Rexford on drums. The band released the single “Kiki’s Delivery Service (feat. Shotgun Wedding Singer)” on October 4, 2024. (Shotgun Wedding Singer is Adam Doyle and Ben Wendt).They released the album, PHOTO ALBUM on May 19, 2023. // Car Microwave is KC based indie rock band. Proud haters of Truck Oven™️]

7. Flutienastiness – “Sparkle Juice”
from: This Is Me / Flutienastiness Entertainment / October 28, 2020
[Jazz flutist, educator, band director, and band leader, Amber Underwood is a native of Kansas City and has been entertaining and performing music since the tender age of 8. Beginning her musical journey on the piano and soon after began playing classical flute. / While in college, Amber discovered Jazz and became intrigued with the art form inspired by musical influences of Bobbi Humphrey, Hubert Laws, Frank Wess, Herbie Mann, and Nestor Torres and found a love for the art form. At age 20, Amber graduated from Wichita State University with a Bachelor of Music in Flute Performance and by 23 she completed a Masters of Arts in Arts Administration and Music Business from the University of Missouri Kansas City Conservatory and continued her education with a second Master’s degree in Education and Teaching Music from Pittsburgh State University. / In the beginning of 2014, the Amber Underwood Project and later transformed into Flutienastiness and the SoulPatrol with the mission to showcase an instrument that is normally used as an auxiliary instrument in jazz but now as a solo instrument. Flutienastiness and the SoulPatrol is a modern and fresh take on smooth jazz and R&B sounds with a touch of Latin, Funk and Gospel. Flutienastiness and the SoulPatrol uses the rich tones and colors of the flute to interpret the various styles and genres of jazz. Amber has been a presence in the Kansas City jazz scene making a place and a voice for her instrument. Amber has opened for Kirk Whalum and has performed alongside a host of other artist. / Amber is our modern-day soul and contemporary jazz flautist and a force to be reckoned with. Her debut album, ‘This Is Me’ has gained International recognition and was name one of the Top 25 Jazz Albums of Kansas City in 2020. Amber has also appeared on jazz playlists and featured on various recordings from all genres. Amber ‘Flutienastiness’ Underwood is the future of contemporary soul jazz flute! // On October 28, 2020 Flutienastiness released the album THIS IS ME (part of WMM 120 Best recordngs of 2020). The album was produced, mixed, & mastered by Desmond “D. Professor” Mason for Out D. Park Productions. All flutes by Amber Underwood. All tracks were composed collaboratively between Amber & Desmond. Amber writes: “This is album is a touch of all my feelings, life journeys and a inside look into Amber ‘Flutienastiness’ Underwood as a person beyond the stage. More info at:www.flutienastiness.com.]

[Amber “Flutienastiness” Underwood plays the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art ,4420 Warwick Boulevard, KCMO on Thursday, June 18, at 6:00pm]

10:25 – Underwriting

Anjimile – “Waits For Me”
rom: You’re Free To Go / 4AD / March 13, 2026
[Anjimile also released the singles “Waits For Me on March 13, 2026 and “Like You Really Mean It” earlier this year. Today North Carolina based singer-songwriter Anjimile announces plans to release the full-length album You’re Free to Go, due out March 13, 2026 on 4AD. The announcement comes with the luminous lead single “Like You Really Mean It” which overflows with tenderness and vulnerability, accompanied by a beautiful video directed by Caity Arthur. // Anjimile shares: “I wrote this to make my girlfriend want to give me a kiss. We live about an hour apart, and I was just by myself thinking about her. Thinking about wanting a kiss. What could I do to get a kiss from my sweetheart? Write a song about it! Anyway, it worked.” // “Like You Really Mean It” comes after the November single “Auld Lang Syne II,” a tender note-to-self on resilience and hard-fought freedom, characterized by delicate finger-plucked strings, charming horn passages, and intimate vocal delivery, which Stereogum called “stunning” upon its release; a song Anjimile says was: “originally intended as something of a wedding present for my best friend, who got married a few years back.” // Contrasting the intricacy and complexity of The King, You’re Free to Go unfolds organically under the intuitive direction of producer Brad Cook (Waxahatchee, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Mavis Staples). The album’s songs bloom naturally, grounded in warm acoustic guitars, subtle synth textures, lush string arrangements, and delicate rhythmic layers. Collaborative efforts with musicians Nathan Stocker (Hippo Campus), Matt McCaughan (Bon Iver), and guest vocalist Sam Beam (Iron & Wine) – a personal hero of Anjimile whose music deeply influenced the album even before his involvement – cultivate an exploratory yet intimate atmosphere, perfectly aligned with Anjimile’s nuanced storytelling. // Anjimile (ann-JIM-uh-lee) Chithambo has forged a distinctive musical path characterised by unflinching introspection and deep honesty. Emerging from Boston’s vibrant indie scene while studying at Northeastern University, Anjimile captivated audiences with earnest songwriting, delicate sonic textures, and performances that felt like prayer and celebration. // Critical acclaim quickly followed; 2020’s Giver Taker, hailed by Rolling Stone as one of the year’s best albums, positioned him as a compelling voice exploring enduring themes of spirituality, identity, and liberation. With The King(2023), Anjimile intensified his examination of Black and trans existence amid personal and societal turbulence, reaffirming his courageous commitment to navigating discomfort as a means of liberation. // You’re Free to Go picks up where The King left off, but with its hands open wide – a central question being: what happens when you let go and let love in? // Crafted over years marked by transformation, the album traces vividly the profound complexities of change – from breakups to new love; deep grief and loss to renewal and rediscovery. “The past two years have been a deeply transitional point in my life,” Anjimile explains. On You’re Free to Go, he learns to trust life again. The album’s title symbolises Anjimile’s expansive perspective on love and personal freedom, influenced profoundly by his relationship with his partner and their joyful embrace of non-monogamy. He describes this dynamic playfully: “I view non-monogamy as setting out milk every night on your porch for the cats; they can come if they want,” – a reminder that connection thrives when it’s truly chosen and not confined and restricted by normativity. This same playfulness runs through “Rust & Wire” which captures the exhilaration of falling in love again and again (“ripen in the heat like wine”). // Elsewhere, You’re Free to Go explores heavier, darker truths; ‘Exquisite Skeleton’ hauntingly portrays the ache of familial estrangement and ‘Ready or Not’ the exhaustion of facing transphobia. “When I was a little girl, I wanted to be free… When I was a little boy, I wanted to be real.”, he disarmingly reflects on “Waits For Me,” a powerful reckoning on childhood identity. But even in its most searching moments, the record radiates light. // Each song holds space for healing – for turning pain into something tender, communal, and free. // Spirituality remains the heartbeat of Anjmile’s work. “Songwriting feels like a prayer, a plea, or a question,” he says. Across You’re Free to Go, sacredness feels alive and imperfect — a practice of breathing, wondering, forgiving. The album hums with that same sacred energy: messy and full of grace. // Throughout You’re Free to Go, Anjimile skilfully integrates a variety of musical inspirations to heighten the album’s emotional impact. Tracks such as “Turning Away” and “The Store” channel the raw and unadorned authenticity reminiscent of early Modest Mouse. The collaboration with Sam Beam on “Destroying You” adds a gentle warmth that beautifully complements Anjimile’s refined vocal expression. Melodically, the album evokes a subtle nostalgia for late-’90s alternative pop, seamlessly blending folk sensibilities into inviting, memorable hooks. Anjimile has notably evolved, adopting a more relaxed and expressive approach to his singing, partly due to his ongoing hormonal therapy – a transformative journey he embraces gladly. This newfound vocal depth amplifies the album’s emotional resonance, allowing him to express himself with greater authenticity. // As Anjimile prepares to share You’re Free to Go live, he envisions intimate performances that reinterpret rather than replicate the album’s recordings. He aims for the authenticity and vulnerability embedded in these songs to resonate deeply, emphasising, “This record feels very authentic to my life experiences. It’s about as close to getting to know me as you could ever get with a record.” // You’re Free to Go is a portrait of transformation — not as a wound, but as an opening. Richly textured, this collection of songs is an honest reflection of life’s fluctuations. It holds space for contradiction and finds liberation in tenderness. As Anjimile beautifully articulates, the album embodies “breathing into the question,” acknowledging that life’s most profound moments often come without clear answers, but rather exist in the gentle tension of uncertainty and discovery. In every note, Anjimile provides space for each listener to reflect and uncover their own truths, while gently reminding us that freedom isn’t the absence of pain, but the courage to love, to ask, to keep beginning again.]

Jamogi – “Storybook”
from: J’DAY / Jam Tunes / June 12, 2026
[J’Day is a celebration of growth, creativity, and self discovery. Three years in the making, the album represents the culmination of Jamogi’s journey through a wide range of genres, influences, and sonic landscapes. The result is a body of work that not only showcases his musical versatility but also reveals the many facets of his personality. // Produced alongside OceanLife Gianni, J’Day captures the energy, emotion, and moments that make life memorable. From the horn driven fanfare of “Go Big or Go Home” to the flirtatious blend of West Coast, Midwest, and Southern influences on “Back N’ Forth,” Jamogi demonstrates a clear understanding of both his sound and his audience. Tracks like “Do It to Me” transport listeners through different eras and musical inspirations, while songs such as “Storybook,” “Treasure,” and “Georgia Peach” reveal his romantic side through storytelling, heartfelt lyricism, and poetic imagery. // The album also features collaborations with a talented lineup of friends and fellow artists on tracks including “What’s It Gonna Be?” and “HOLLABACK,” adding even more personality and perspective to the project. // More than just a collection of songs, J’Day marks a defining moment in Jamogi’s artistic journey. It is a bold statement of who he is today and a testament to the creative vision he has spent years refining. Rich with personality, versatility, and heart, the project positions Jamogi for his next era and leaves listeners wondering where he’ll take them next. // Jamogi is also know as Byron Hyde a Kanas City based singer, songwriter, MC, producer, originally from Los Angeles, California.// Jamogi released the single “Georgia Peach (feat. Burgandy)” on September 5, 2025. Jamogi released Jamogi & The Jammers: Live at Flew The Coop Sessions (Flew The Coop Live) through Jam Tunes on April 11, 2025. // Jamogi released the single “Do It To Me” on March 28, 2025. // Jamogi released the single “Go Big or Go Home” on August 30, 2024, Jamogi released the single “Hot Block” on May 30, 2024. Jamogi released the EP, Star-Crossed Lover on March 3, 2023. Jamogi then released a “Star-Crossed Lover GALACTIC REMIX (feat. Watchman)” single on June 9, 2023.Jamogi previously released the AGE OF AQUARIUS EP on March 3, 2023, and the single “Celebration” on Dec. 9, 2022, and the single “Anymore” on May 6, 2022. // Jamogi played the ROCK IS BLACK—a celebration of Black artists in rock music, happening February 28, 2025 at 7:00 PM at the Zhou B Art Center, 1801 E 18th Street, KCMO. Rock is Black features: Malek Azrael & The Vibez, Jamogi and The Jammers, Stephonne, and Frankie Shorez & Mercy Fire. Kamogi and the Jammers played Boulevardia 2025]

10:33– Interview with Warren Williams

Warren Williams, host of Dub’s Groove Wednesdays 4:00pm to 6:00pm on 90.1 FM KKFI. Dub focuses on Old-School R & B, Funky Jazz, Latin, and Gospel music from the 60s and 70s and how different genres can fit together nicely. He heavily researches the music and artists and tells stories from that research and from his experiences working with artists and for record labels for many years. Warren worked in promotion at Elektra/Asylum Rcords in the 1970s and at Columbia Records into the 1980s. Wednesday, June 24, 2026 will be Dub’s last show as he wants to have more time to be with his family.

Warren Williams thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Warren Williams worked in Promotion at Elektra/Asylum Records from 1973 to 1976 in Los Angeles, California.

Elektra, along with its Nonesuch Records subsidiary, was acquired by Kinney National Services in 1970, which changed its name to Warner Communications (now Warner Music Group) in 1972. Soon afterwards, Kinney consolidated their label holdings under the Warner-Elektra-Atlantic umbrella. Holzman remained in charge of Elektra until 1972, when it merged with Asylum Records to become Elektra/Asylum Records; Asylum’s founder, David Geffen, headed the newly combined label. Holzman, in the meantime, was appointed senior vice president and chief technologist for Warner — ushering the company into home video and the first interactive cable system. Holzman also went on to acquire Discovery Records. In 1975, Geffen stepped down when he was told that he had a terminal illness; He later was revealed to have been falsely diagnosed. He was replaced by Joe Smith, who later went on to become CEO of Capitol Records.

Warren Williams worked in Promotion and A&R at Columbia Records from January 3, 1976 to 1983 in Los Angeles, California.

During this period, Columbia scored a Top 40 hit with the Pink Floyd single “Another Brick in the Wall”, and its parent album The Wall would spend four months at No. 1 on the Billboard LP chart in early 1980, but few in the industry knew that Dick Asher was in fact using the single as a covert experiment to test the extent of the pernicious influence of The Network – by not paying them to promote the new Pink Floyd single. The results were immediate and troubling – not one of the major radio stations in Los Angeles would program the record, despite the fact that the group was in town, performing the first seven concerts on their elaborate The Wall Tour at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena to rave reviews and sold-out crowds. Asher was already worried about the growing power of The Network, and the fact it operated entirely outside the control of the label, but he was profoundly dismayed to realize that “The Network” was in effect a huge extortion racket, and that the operation could well be linked to organized crime – a concern vehemently dismissed by Yetnikoff, who resolutely defended the “indies” and declared them to be “mensches”. But Dick Asher now knew that The Network’s real power lay in their ability to prevent records from being picked up by radio, and as an experienced media lawyer and a loyal CBS employee, he was also acutely aware that this could become a new payola scandal which had the potential to engulf the entire CBS corporation, and that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) could even revoke CBS’ all-important broadcast licenses if the corporation was found to be involved in any illegality.

The 1980s and sale to Sony – The structure of US Columbia remained the same until 1980, when it spun off the classical/Broadway unit, Columbia Masterworks Records, into a separate imprint, CBS Masterworks Records.

In 1988, the CBS Records Group, including the Columbia Records unit, was acquired by Sony, which re-christened the parent division Sony Music Entertainment in 1991.

“Dub’s Groove” originally aired on Thursday mornings 2:00am to 4:00am. The show moved to Wednesdays 4:00 to 6:00pm in 2023

Dub created a show featuring primarily old school RnB and funky jazz but I also gospel, Latin, reggae, and other World music.

Soulful music – primarily old school RnB and funky jazz with a focus on funky, rhythmic music. Anyone who appreciates soulful, rhythmic music. Because of the eras that the music is from, it will attract an older demographic but many young people appreciate old school music as well.

Warren heavily researches the music and artists and tells stories from that research and from his experiences working with artists and for record labels for many years. Warren has great passion for the music and the artists. A large majority of the music he plays is from Black and Brown artists. He has played over 3000 different songs on his shows.

Warren Williams thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Wednesday, June 24, 2026 will be Dub’s last show as he wants more time with his family.

10:49 – Interview with Jonathan Van Ness

Jonathan Van Ness, is a hairstylist, podcast host and television personality, Emmy Winner. Three times on New York Time’saaqq Bestseller list. He is best known as the grooming expert on the Netflix series Queer Eye, for his work on the web series parody Gay of Thrones, and for hosting the Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness podcast. He is also known for comedy tours.

Jonathan Van Ness plays Muriel Kauffman Theatre at The Kauffman Center for The Performing Arts Thursday, June 18, 2026, at 7:30 p.m.

Mark Interviews Jonathan Van Ness
Recorded Tuesday, June 16, 2026 at 7:00pm (Central) 9:00am (Tokyo) where Jonathan called U.S.]

The Jonathan Van Ness: Hot & Healed Tour is for ages 18+. Contains Mature Content.

Not all heroes wear capes, some wear heels. Patriarchy, misogyny, sexism, they don’t stand a chance when JVN comes to town. Come tear it all down with Jonathan Van Ness (Queer Eye, Fun & Slutty) for a night of stand-up comedy with a dash of see you next Tuesday. After being featured in an unfortunate pro-Trump campaign ad – “Kamala is for the they/them” – JVN had a lot of healing to do. What better place to do that than on stage with a great bag and fabulous hair? This hour can easily replace your core & cheeks workout (your face cheeks), making it a gift for both your mental and physical health. Come for the laughs – stay for the community, and the unapologetic queer joy.

From wikipedia:
Jonathan Van Ness was born March 28, 1987, to parents Mary Winters and Jonathan Lyle Van Ness, and raised in Quincy, Illinois. He said he comes “from a family of journalists”, being the sixth generation of his family-owned newspaper. This refers to broadcast and newspaper conglomerate Quincy Media and the company’s local flagship newspaper, the Herald-Whig; Van Ness’s mother is the vice president of Quincy Media, and he is a descendant of the Oakley family, which has controlled the company since the 1890s. Van Ness’s 9th great-grandmother, Patience Bacon Miller, was one of the founders of Northampton, Massachusetts, and was the first female surgeon in America. // When Van Ness was younger, he was sexually abused by an older boy at church, which laid the foundation for self-destructive behaviors. In his early teens, he used online chat to socialize with older men, and sometimes meet with them for sex. // Openly gay throughout his life, Van Ness experienced bullying for his femininity and natural flamboyance. He “endured years of judgment, ridicule, and trauma”. Of the time, Van Ness said, “Growing up I definitely put on every nail polish, every heel, every scarf – I definitely had my mom’s knockoff Hermès scarves in my hair and around my waist – those were my skirts, and I loved it. … But when I was really young, I had really femme-shamey, gender-shamey [reactions] when I would dress like that. When I would play with those things, I knew it needed to be … behind closed doors.” Although always comfortable in his gender expression and sexuality, he says it took time to navigate other people’s reactions. In response to the bullying, he used humor as a coping mechanism and relied on a small group of close friends for support. // Years later, in the late 2010s, he realized he was gender non-conforming and came out as non-binary. He uses they/them, he/him, and she/her pronouns. // Van Ness was the first male cheerleader at Quincy Senior High School and continued cheerleading in college at the University of Arizona, where he majored in political science. One month in his initial semester at college, he used his monthly allowance on cocaine and, too embarrassed to ask his parents for funds, turned to sex work. His addictions to sex and drugs increased to also include methamphetamine. His grades fell, and he lost his cheerleading scholarship; he dropped out after one semester to pursue hairstyling. // Van Ness trained at the Aveda Institute in Minneapolis. After graduating, he worked in Arizona for five years, before moving to Los Angeles in 2009. // In Los Angeles, Van Ness found a job as a personal assistant at Sally Hershberger Salon. One day in 2012, at age 25, he fainted in the salon while doing highlights for a client’s hair. Later at a clinic, he found out he was HIV-positive. He used the revelation to get clean from drug use and publicly shared his story, saying, “I want people to realize you’re never too broken to be fixed.” // He worked at MoJoHair and Stile Salon, both in Los Angeles, which he co-founded with Monique Northrop of Arte Salon in New York City. // In 2013, while dressing the hair of friend Erin Gibson, who worked for the comedy syndicate Funny or Die, Gibson asked Van Ness to perform his recap of a Game of Thrones episode for Funny or Die, which became the Gay of Thrones web series In 2018, Van Ness was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Short Form Variety Series for the series.
// Since 2015, Van Ness has hosted the weekly podcast Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness. His podcast took off upon the airing of the first Queer Eye episode. // Beginning in 2018, Van Ness has starred as the grooming expert on the Netflix revival of Queer Eye. // Van Ness’s memoir, Over the Top: A Raw Journey to Self-Love, was published in October 2019. His memoir discusses his past and how it helped sculpt his future. // In 2020, Van Ness released a picture book titled Peanut Goes for the Gold, which tells the story of a nonbinary guinea pig named Peanut and their adventures as a rhythmic gymnastics prodigy. Peanut is inspired by Van Ness’s own childhood pet. // In 2022 Van Ness released a collection of essays in a book titled Love That Story: Observations from a Gorgeously Queer Life. // Van Ness is non-binary. Although he has stated a preference for using the pronouns he/him, he has also used she/her and they/them interchangeably. He explained his gender in an interview with Out, saying, “Some days I feel like a man, but then other days I feel like a woman. I don’t really — I think my energies are really all over the place. Any opportunity I have to break down stereotypes of the binary, I am down for it, I’m here for it.” However, on his Instagram account, the pronouns displayed by order of preferences are they/he/she. // Van Ness lives and works in Austin, Texas and New York City. He has psoriasis, a chronic skin condition, and advises clients on skin care. In 2019, he revealed that he is HIV positive. // On April 4, 2019, Van Ness, Bobby Berk, Tan France, and Antoni Porowski visited Nancy Pelosi and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to discuss the Equality Act, a bill that would add sexual orientation and gender identity to the list of classes protected in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. On September 25, Van Ness announced his endorsement of Elizabeth Warren for president in 2020 based upon healthcare being a human right. // On June 23, 2020, Van Ness and Queer Eye costar Bobby Berk praised recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions that ruled that LGBT employment discrimination was a violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Van Ness described the ruling as “a great step in the right direction”. However, both of them still urged the United States Congress to pass the proposed Equality Act, which passed the House but ultimately stalled in the Senate following a filibuster. // In December 2020, Van Ness revealed that he had married his partner, Mark Peacock, earlier that year. // Bibliography — Over the Top: A Raw Journey to Self-Love (2019); Peanut Goes for the Gold (2020); Love That Story: Observations from a Gorgeously Queer Life (2022)

Jonathan Van Ness plays Muriel Kauffman Theatre at The Kauffman Center for The Performing Arts Thursday, June 18, 2026, at 7:30 p.m.

11:01 – Station ID

The Forcefields – “The Symphony Of All Things”
from: Symphony Of All Things / Frickin’ Awesome Records / June 6, 2026
[Debut 9-track album from The Forcefields is a cosmosonic collaboration between Julia Othmer and James T Lundie AKA Aayama & Max Forcefield. The Forcefields made their first debut with the presentation TRANSMISSION for the Charlotte Street Foundation series, In(SITE), highlighting local, regional, and national acts at pivotal points in their practices. In a multidisciplinary collaboration with artists Simon Huntley, Sarah Hearn, and Mikal Shapiro, Transmission was an exploration of cosmic vibrations and soundscapes in a stunning one-night-only production. // Julia Othmer grew up in Kansas City and studied at Columbia University in New York City. The child of European refugees, she draws from a broad and richly cultured palette of experience to create her intensely human yet otherworldly songs. Her piano-driven performances are a mesmerizing and superconscious fusion of raw power, vocal artistry and joy. She played many local KC clubs including Jardine’s and Bar Natasha. Julia moved to Los Angeles in 2006 to record her 1st album, OASIS MOTEL. When Julia started planning to record her second album she traveled all the way to England to work with producer James Lundie. On a dark night in North London, singer-songwriter Julia Othmer landed on the front steps of producer-composer James T Lundie. She had been introduced to his music production and fell so deeply in love with his sonic architecture, she transported herself across the proverbial pond from LA to the UK, and refused to leave until he listened to her songs. This began a deeply creative and inspired partnership both in music and in life. Together they have released (under Julia’s name) studio recordings, live recordings, short films to accompany their work, a multi-media performance experience, and multiple social and environmental justice initiatives. James T. Lundie married Julia in January of 2016, during the completion of the record. The album “Sound,” was released on April 12, 2019. Leading up to the 2020 presidential election Julia & James released Seeds (Vol. 1) in 2020, and SEEDS (Vol. 2) in 2022. In the midst of these releases Julia and James relocated to Kansas City. Last year in April of 2024 Julia and James unveiled their newest creation, THE FORCEFIELDS featuring, reimagined vintage synthesizers, video projections, one of a kind instruments. // In 2021 Julia and James relocated to KC, and they recently unveiled their newest creation, a new expanding sonic & visual aesthetic called THE FORCEFIELDS. Their sound is evolving into what is described as Annie Lennox hosting a full moon party with The Beach Boys and Portishead gathered round the fire. Their studio recordings feature James’ unique sonic tools, reimagined vintage synthesizers, audireting and distilling the essence of two of Julia’s previous songs.]

[The Forcefields play The Warwick Theatre, July 18]

11:06 – Interview with Julia Othmer, & James Lundie

Julia Othmer and James T Lundie aka Max and Aayama Forcefield of The Forcefields join us to talk about their debut 9-track album, Symphony Of All Things, released on June 6, 2026. The Forcefields is a cosmosonic collaboration between Julia Othmer and James T Lundie. The Forcefields made their performance debut with the presentation TRANSMISSION for the Charlotte Street Foundation series, In(SITE). Recently The Forcefields have been touring around the United Kingdom. The Forcefields will be performing LIVE in Kansas City on July 18 at The Warwick Theatre.

Max and Aayama Forcefield aka Julia Othmer, & James Lundie, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

For the past three months The Forcefields have been in Europe, touring the UK and France, including two performances at a 17th century chateau.

The Forcefields were hosted by UpCo Arts in England – an arts collective of activist/punks: photographer Casey Orr, painter Josh Sutton, and musician Boff Whalley (of Chumbawamba

The Forcefields have an upcoming show at the Warwick Theatre on July 18.

The Forcefields invite people to become members of the FORCEFIELDS, creating their own persona/name and being inducted into the The Forcefields Ledger of Frickin’ Awesomeness and our magical mystical question cards from the universe.

Our mission is to come together to raise the cosmic vibration

The Forcefields will be heading back overseas for more UK touring in the autumn.

Julia Othmer & James T Lundie join us to share new music from their project The Forcefields. Julia Othmer, is a graduate of Park Hill High School and studied at Columbia University in New York City. The child of European refugees, she draws from a broad and richly cultured palette of experience to create her intensely human yet otherworldly songs. Her piano-driven performances are a mesmerizing and superconscious fusion of raw power, vocal artistry and joy. She played many local KC clubs including Jardine’s and Bar Natasha.

Julia moved to Los Angeles in 2006 to record her 1st album, OASIS MOTEL. When Julia started planning to record her second album she traveled all the way to England to work with producer James Lundie. On a dark night in North London, singer-songwriter Julia Othmer landed on the front steps of producer-composer James T Lundie. She had been introduced to his music production and fell so deeply in love with his sonic architecture, she transported herself across the proverbial pond from LA to the UK, and refused to leave until he listened to her songs. This began a deeply creative and inspired partnership both in music and in life. James T. Lundie married Julia in January of 2016, during the completion of the record. The album “Sound,” was released on April 12, 2019.

Leading up to the 2020 presidential election Julia & James released Seeds (Vol. 1) on November 13, 2020. “Seeds” was Julia Othmer’s 3rd full length album and contained 10 live songs selected from her 30-day Songs of September Project, where Julia performed a different live cover of her favorite songs and broadcast the performance throughout the streaming social media platforms to inspire people to register and vote on November 3. From those songs Julia’s fans democratically selected their favorite tracks to be released together on “Seeds.” In March 20, 2022 Julia Othmer released SEEDS VOLUME 2, her 4th album, and second of live recordings from her 30-day “Songs of September Project”, where Julia covered songs of protest & hope, to inspire people to vote in 2020. In the midst of these releases Julia and James relocated to Kansas City.

In April of 2024 Julia and James unveiled their newest creation, THE FORCEFIELDS featuring, reimagined vintage synthesizers, video projections, one of a kind instruments. Together they have released studio recordings, live recordings, short films to accompany their work, a multi-media performance experience, and multiple social and environmental justice initiatives.

The Forcefields emerged from a woodland shed on England’s southern shores, blending mystic soundscapes with life force and mystery. Founders Julia Othmer and James Lundie, as alter egos Max and Aayama Forcefield, craft vivid live experiences with epic visuals and emotional, esoteric energy—imagine a full moon disco by a bonfire with Annie Lennox, Portishead, and The Beach Boys.

Inspired to take their collaboration to the next level, they are creating a new expanding sonic and visual aesthetic with their project: THE FORCEFIELDS.

Their sound is evolving into what is described as Annie Lennox hosting a full moon party with The Beach Boys and Portishead gathered round the fire. Their studio recordings feature James’ unique sonic tools, reimagined vintage synthesizers, audireting and distilling the essence of two of Julia’s previous songs, BRIDGE is a rhythmic, multi-layered and richly textured exploration of letting go and positive self realization.

Julia writes: Our first two singles: “Slip Away” and “Frickin Awesome Part Two” were kind of an EP called Bridge. Those songs were a Sonic Bridge between the work we had done under my name and what is now being created through the FORCEFIELDS.

Their sound is evolving into what is described as Annie Lennox hosting a full moon party with The Beach Boys and Portishead gathered round the fire. Their studio recordings feature James’ unique sonic tools, reimagined vintage synthesizers, audio gear and rebuilt, one-of-a-kind instruments, heard nowhere else in the world.

Their debut EP, BRIDGE, (released in 2024) was a sonic bridge between their previous work together and this new trajectory. Reinterpreting and distilling the essence of two of Julia’s previous songs, BRIDGE is a rhythmic, multi-layered and richly textured exploration of letting go and positive self realization. Julia & James premiered The Forcefields with a multi-media, live music experience called Transmission, February 23, 2024 in the Stern Theater at Charlotte Street Foundation, 3333 Wyoming St, KCMO.

The Forcefields released their 9-track debut album, Symphony Of All Things on June 6, 2026.

Julia Othmer, & James Lundie, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

The Forcefields will play The Warwick Theatre on July 18

More info at: http://www.theforcefields.com

11:24

The Forcefields – “Slip Away”
from: Symphony Of All Things / Frickin’ Awesome Records / June 6, 2026
[Debut 9-track album from The Forcefields is a cosmosonic collaboration between Julia Othmer and James T Lundie AKA Aayama & Max Forcefield. The Forcefields made their first debut with the presentation TRANSMISSION for the Charlotte Street Foundation series, In(SITE), highlighting local, regional, and national acts at pivotal points in their practices. In a multidisciplinary collaboration with artists Simon Huntley, Sarah Hearn, and Mikal Shapiro, Transmission was an exploration of cosmic vibrations and soundscapes in a stunning one-night-only production. // Julia Othmer grew up in Kansas City and studied at Columbia University in New York City. The child of European refugees, she draws from a broad and richly cultured palette of experience to create her intensely human yet otherworldly songs. Her piano-driven performances are a mesmerizing and superconscious fusion of raw power, vocal artistry and joy. She played many local KC clubs including Jardine’s and Bar Natasha. Julia moved to Los Angeles in 2006 to record her 1st album, OASIS MOTEL. When Julia started planning to record her second album she traveled all the way to England to work with producer James Lundie. On a dark night in North London, singer-songwriter Julia Othmer landed on the front steps of producer-composer James T Lundie. She had been introduced to his music production and fell so deeply in love with his sonic architecture, she transported herself across the proverbial pond from LA to the UK, and refused to leave until he listened to her songs. This began a deeply creative and inspired partnership both in music and in life. Together they have released (under Julia’s name) studio recordings, live recordings, short films to accompany their work, a multi-media performance experience, and multiple social and environmental justice initiatives. James T. Lundie married Julia in January of 2016, during the completion of the record. The album “Sound,” was released on April 12, 2019. Leading up to the 2020 presidential election Julia & James released Seeds (Vol. 1) in 2020, and SEEDS (Vol. 2) in 2022. In the midst of these releases Julia and James relocated to Kansas City. Last year in April of 2024 Julia and James unveiled their newest creation, THE FORCEFIELDS featuring, reimagined vintage synthesizers, video projections, one of a kind instruments. // In 2021 Julia and James relocated to KC, and they recently unveiled their newest creation, a new expanding sonic & visual aesthetic called THE FORCEFIELDS. Their sound is evolving into what is described as Annie Lennox hosting a full moon party with The Beach Boys and Portishead gathered round the fire. Their studio recordings feature James’ unique sonic tools, reimagined vintage synthesizers, audireting and distilling the essence of two of Julia’s previous songs.]

11:27 – Underwriting

Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves – “Outside”
from: Outside” – Single / Enigmatic Brunch Records / March 11, 2026
[Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves are a 7-piece dance punk band based in Kansas City, Missouri. Their music combines danceable rhythms, rockin’ guitar riffs, and upbeat melodies paired with the uncommon instrumentation of viola, keytar, and foley art. The band’s inception began in theatre school where lead vocalist Sara Bellum first met guitarist MC Burnie Beta, sound designer Theo Theta, and vocalist/keytarist Zesty Zeta. Although it took many years for the band to fully form, these friendships developed the ground-work of what the group would become. After meeting violist Gemma Gamma, drummer Delma Delta, and bassist Athen Alpha, the band was fully assembled in late 2024, began performing live in January 2025, and started recording in April 2025. With the departure of Athen Alpha to attend college at the end of 2025, the Brainwaves welcomed bassist/keys player Spencer Synapse to join the group. Just as their name emphasizes the brain, much of the Brainwaves’ music and art focuses on mental health and healing. With the belief that mental health is just as important as physical health, they wish to build a loving community with their art. // Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves played a single release show at The RINO 314 Armour Rd, North Kansas City, Friday, March 13, at 8:00pm with The 58 Overhead, and Katie & Michael.]

[Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves play Engelwood Arts, 10901 E Winner Rd., Independence, MO on Saturday, June 20, doors at 6:0pm show at 7:00pm. with Quiet Talk, and Velvet Fog]

11:33 – Interview with Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves

Sara Bellum (Ames King) – lead vocalist
Burnie Beta (Noah Bartelt), – guitarist/vocalist and
Zesty Zeta (Katie Schieferecke) – vocalist/keytarist]\
Theo Theta (Luke Rowe) – foley artist

We happily welcome founding members of the band Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves, a seven-piece dance punk band based in Kansas City, Missouri. Their music combines danceable rhythms, rockin’ guitar riffs, and upbeat melodies paired with the uncommon instrumentation of viola, keytar, and foley art. The band’s inception began in theatre school where lead vocalist Sara Bellum first met guitarist MC Burnie Beta, sound designer Theo Theta, and vocalist/keytarist Zesty Zeta. We jujst herad the band;s debut single “Outside” and in a few we will play the band’s new single “Manic Pixie Dream Girl.”

Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves play Engelwood Arts, 10901 E Winner Rd., Independence, MO on Saturday, June 20, doors at 6:0pm show at 7:00pm. with Quiet Talk, and Velvet Fog

Sara Bellum, Burnie Beta, Zesty Zeta and Theo Theta, Thanks for being with us on WMM

Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves are a 7-piece dance punk band based in
Kansas City, Missouri. Their music combines danceable rhythms, rockin’ guitar
riffs, and upbeat melodies paired with the uncommon instrumentation of viola,
keytar, and foley art.

The band’s inception began in theatre school where lead vocalist Sara Bellum
first met guitarist MC Burnie Beta, sound designer Theo Theta, and
vocalist/keytarist Zesty Zeta. Although it took many years for the band to fully
form, these friendships developed the groundwork of what the group would
become.

After meeting violist Gemma Gamma, drummer Delma Delta, and
bassist Athen Alpha, the band was fully assembled in late 2024, began
performing live in January 2025, and started recording in April 2025. With the
departure of Athen Alpha to attend college at the end of 2025, the Brainwaves
welcomed bassist/keys player Spencer Synapse to join the group.

Just as their name emphasizes the brain, much of the Brainwaves’ music and art
focuses on mental health and healing. With the belief that mental health is just as
important as physical health, they wish to build a loving community with their art.

Sara Bellum, Burnie Beta, Zesty Zeta and Theo Theta, Thanks for being with us on WMM

Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves play Engelwood Arts, 10901 E Winner Rd., Independence, MO on Saturday, June 20, doors at 6:0pm show at 7:00pm. with Quiet Talk, and Velvet Fog

11:50

Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves – “Manic Pixie Dream Girl”
from: “Manic Pixie Dream Girl” – Single / Enigmatic Brunch Records / June 17, 2026
[Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves are a 7-piece dance punk band based in Kansas City, Missouri. Their music combines danceable rhythms, rockin’ guitar riffs, and upbeat melodies paired with the uncommon instrumentation of viola, keytar, and foley art. The band’s inception began in theatre school where lead vocalist Sara Bellum first met guitarist MC Burnie Beta, sound designer Theo Theta, and vocalist/keytarist Zesty Zeta. Although it took many years for the band to fully form, these friendships developed the ground-work of what the group would become. After meeting violist Gemma Gamma, drummer Delma Delta, and bassist Athen Alpha, the band was fully assembled in late 2024, began performing live in January 2025, and started recording in April 2025. With the departure of Athen Alpha to attend college at the end of 2025, the Brainwaves welcomed bassist/keys player Spencer Synapse to join the group. Just as their name emphasizes the brain, much of the Brainwaves’ music and art focuses on mental health and healing. With the belief that mental health is just as important as physical health, they wish to build a loving community with their art. Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves played a single release show at The RINO 314 Armour Rd, North Kansas City, Friday, March 13, at 8:00pm with The 58 Overhead, and Katie & Michael.]

[Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves play Engelwood Arts, 10901 E Winner Rd., Independence, MO on Saturday, June 20, doors at 6:0pm show at 7:00pm. with Quiet Talk, and Velvet Fog]

Get Smart! – “Just For The Moment”
from: Action Reaction / Fever Records – Enigma / 1984
[Debut album by American Post-punk band Get Smart!, released on Enigma Records’ “Fever” imprint in 1984. / It was originally announced, in Nebraska’s “Capitol Punishment”, that the album would be released on the “Fresh Sounds” label, which had previously released the band’s debut single and the “Fresh Sounds” cassette, but the band eventually signed with the Philadelphia based “Fever Records” / The album was originally recorded by Michael McGee and produced by Taylor Ross at Media Sound in Oklahoma City. Ross then recruited Iain Burgess to remix the album for release at Chicago Recording Company in Chicago. // An earlier version of “Ankle Deep In Mud” had appeared on their debut single, “Numbers and Colours”, and an earlier version of “Black Mirror” has appeared on the “Sub Pop #7” compilation cassette. // All songs were written by the band, except for “Ankle Deep In Mud” which was written by Vance Lyons, and “Black Mirror” where the lyrics were written by Vance Lyons and the music was written by Get Smart!. (Vance Lyons had played with Marc Koch in a previous band called the Battling Tops.) // Side 1 and Side 2 were originally supposed to be reversed, as the album was supposed to start with “On And On” and then end with “You’ve Got To Stop” (i.e. it would start with “On” and end with “Stop”), but for some unknown reason this was reversed in the final product. // Get Smart! formed in Lawrence, KS in 1980. The group helped to solidify Lawrence as an alternative music hotbed and toured extensively, performing 300 shows in six years. They released a flexi-disc and Words Move, a 4-track EP in 1981. In 1983 they relocated to Chicago. Their first LP, “Action Reaction” was released in 1984. The band’s second LP, “Swimming With Sharks” was released in 1986. During seven years of relentless touring, Get Smart! earned a national reputation for intense live shows and edged their way onto college radio playlists with their first two LPs, Action Reaction (1984) and Swimming With Sharks (1986). In January, 1987, the band began work on their third album with seminal recording engineer, Iain Burgess. In 1990 Get Smart! Disbanded. These recordings were archived for 33 years until Get Smart! reformed in 2020 and released the album OH YEAH NO on November 17, 2020 with the aim of matching their live sound, the band commissioned Steve Albini to craft the final mixes with them. These six songs prove that the tension and inspiration shown on their first LPs was no idle promise. Get Smart! played a special Reunion Show, Saturday, November 6, 2021 at The Bottleneck, 737 New Hampshire St. Lawrence, KS with Pedaljets, Other Geese, Boy Soprano, and DJ Ray Velasquez. More info at: http://www.getsmartmusic.com]

[Get Smart play the recordBar, 1520 Grand, KCMO, Friday, June 19 with The Embarrassmen, and The Scriveners]

Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now”
from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]

Next week, on Wednesday, June 24 we welcome The Swallowtails and feature music from their new album “Perspectives”. Also Aaron Rhodes drops by to share a few tracks from his new band UNITY TICKET, and Brooke Tuley sits down to tell the story of her beautiful album Chase Me, and IVORY BLUE drops in to talk about her new album ECHO

You can find our playlists at: http://www.wednesdaymiddaymedley.org & http://www.kkfi.org
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM
http://www.instagram.wednesday_midday_medley

Thank you to KKFI Staff: Executive Director – Bess Wallerstein-Huff, Chief Operator – Chad Brothers, Director of Development & Communications – J Kelly Dougherty, Volunteer Coordinator – Darryl Oliver, and Office Manager Book Keeper – Shaina Littler.

THANK YOU to everyone who donated to KKFI’s Summer Fund Drive during WMM we had a total of 35 people donated a total of $3513.50. THANK YOU SO MUCH!

Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information.
Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org

Wednesday MidDay Medley in on the web:
http://www.kkfi.org,
http://www.WednesdayMidDayMedley.org,
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM

Show #1152

WMM presents New & Midcoastal Releases + The Forcefields + Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves + Warren Williams

Posted on June 16, 2026 by Mark Manning

Wednesday MidDay Medley
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning

Wednesday, June 17, 2026

New & Midcoastal Releases + The Forcefields + Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves + Warren Williams

Mark Plays More New & MidCoastal Releases from: The Forcefields, Danielle Nicole, Jamogi, Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves, Car Microwave, Such Lovely People, Amber “Flutienastiness” Underwood, BCR, Get Smart!, The Milk Carton Kids, Anjimile, Arlo Parks, and Nina Simone.

At 10:30 Mark talks with Warren Williams, host of Dub’s Groove Wednesdays 4:00pm to 6:00pm on 90.1 FM KKFI. Dub focuses on Old-School R & B, Funky Jazz, Latin, and Gospel music from the 60s and 70s and how different genres can fit together nicely. He heavily researches the music and artists and tells stories from that research and from his experiences working with artists and for record labels for many years. Wednesday, June 24, 2026 will be Dub’s last show as he wants to have more time to be with his family.

At 11:00 Julia Othmer and James T Lundie of The Forcefields join us to talk about their debut 9-track album, Symphony Of All Things, released on June 6, 2026. The Forcefields is a cosmosonic collaboration between Julia Othmer and James T Lundie. The Forcefields made their performance debut with the presentation TRANSMISSION for the Charlotte Street Foundation series, In(SITE). Recently The Forcefields have been touring around the United Kingdom. The Forcefields will be performing LIVE in Kansas City on July 18 at The Warwick Theatre.

At 11:30 Mark welcomes members of Sara Bellun and the Brainwaves, a seven-piece dance punk band based in Kansas City, Missouri. Their music combines danceable rhythms, rockin’ guitar riffs, and upbeat melodies paired with the uncommon instrumentation of viola, keytar, and foley art. The band’s inception began in theatre school where lead vocalist Sara Bellum first met guitarist MC Burnie Beta, sound designer Theo Theta, and vocalist/keytarist Zesty Zeta. We will feature the band’s new single “Manic Pixie Dream Girl.”

On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or
STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org

Show #1152

WMM Playlist from June 10, 2026

Posted on June 15, 2026 by Mark Manning

Wednesday MidDay Medley
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning

Wednesday, June 10, 2026

Wednesday MidDay Medley is Transmitting PEACE, LOVE & KKFI

WMM Plays More New & MidCoastal Releases + Say That Again

“Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks”
from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979
[WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]

Eggs On Mars – “Good Morning (I Love You)”
from: Good Morning (I Love You) / Enigmatic Brunch Records / March 3, 2026
[Eggs on Mars, a 4-piece soft psych pop band from KCMO. Brad Smith – lead vocals, guitars & piano; Doug Bybee – bass, keys, vocals on “Shooting Stars” & “Takes Time”; Joel Stratton – lead guitars & keyboards; Mason Potter – drums, percussion, & field recordings. All songs by Eggs on Mars. Words for “Takes Time” by Justin Longmeyer. Recorded by Joel Stratton in fall 2024/winter 2025 at Soundstructure Studios. Mixed by Doug Bybee & Joel Stratton. Mastered by Doug Bybee & Josh Johnson. Art Direction by Brad Smith. Graphic design, photography, CD layout, cassette layout by Doug Bybee. Info at: http://www.eggsonmars.bandcamp.com]

Kevin Morby – “Junebug”
from: Little Wide Open / Dead Oceans / May 15, 2026
[Kevin Morby’s 8th studio album. // From Kevin’s Bandcamp page: For Kevin Morby, the “little wide open” is the big sky, the small lives, it’s his origins in the Midwest, and every duty and modesty and familiarity and isolation: the land, the people, and the parts of that inside him. “There’s something unintentionally musical about the Midwest; cicadas chirping in the trees, a train passing, a tornado siren going off,” explains Morby. “If you listen, there are these almost ominous sounds taking place beneath the wide-open sky—its ugliness and its beauty and how the two are often working together simultaneously. And while the Midwest isn’t technically the badlands, it’s my badlands.” // Little Wide Open is the title of Kevin Morby’s eighth studio album, produced by Aaron Dessner. In the summer of 2024, Dessner had asked Morby to support The National at their London show in Crystal Palace Park. Shortly after, Dessner—who was on a hot streak, having produced albums for Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, and Gracie Abrams—reached out to Morby to say he’d love to produce his next album. They began recording at Aaron’s Long Pond Studio in Stuyvesant, NY, early in 2025 and finished in September of that year. // The album, which features a host of contributors such as Dessner—who plays multiple instruments across it—Amelia Meath, Andrew Barr, Justin Vernon, Katie Gavin, Lucinda Williams, Meg Duffy, and more, has been described by Morby as the third in a trilogy of releases, following 2020’s Sundowner and 2022’s This Is a Photograph, which catalogued his time in the Midwest after moving back to Kansas City. This time out, Dessner’s production elevates Morby’s recordings while never losing focus of the songs themselves. There’s a newfound confidence and clarity in both Morby’s writing and Dessner’s production that recalls Tom Petty’s 1994 classic Wildflowers. // Now primarily living in LA, the atmosphere that runs through Little Wide Open has changed somewhat from its predecessors. As Rachel Kushner writes of Morby in the album’s accompanying essay: “It’s about time, about feeling like he has shifted from nostalgia and the losing game, losing but beautiful, of holding onto the past. He has accepted that time is ceaselessly flowing, and you can’t stop it. Instead, he feels like he’s riding it. He’s riding passenger with time.” // Kevin Morby’s single “Beautiful Strangers’ was recently recorded by Mavis Staples for her 2025 album SAD AND BEAUTIFUL WORLD. Mavis Staples won a Grammy at the 68th Annual Grammys for Best American Roots Performance for her interpretation of Kevin’s song. Kevin released this song only as a single in 2016 in tribute to the victims of the Orlando Pulse shooting. Kevin Morby is pretty bowled over by the existence of this cover. Morby says. “It isn’t easy to put into words what it feels like having one of the best, most important vocalists and cultural figures of both the 20th and 21st century sing one of my songs.” // Kevin Robert Morby was born April 2, 1988. Kevin learned to play guitar when he was 10. In his teens he formed the band Creepy Aliens. 17-year-old Morby dropped out of Blue Valley Northwest High School, got his GED, and moved from his native KC to Brooklyn in the mid-2000s, supporting himself by working bike delivery and café jobs. He later joined the noise-folk group Woods on bass. While living in Brooklyn, he became close friends and roommates with Cassie Ramone of the punk trio Vivian Girls, and the two formed a side project together called The Babies, who released albums in 2011 and 2012. Kevin Morby began a solo career in 2013 releasing his debut album HARLEM RIVER on November 26, 2013. STILL LIFE, his 2nd album, was released in October 14, 2014. SINGING SAW his 3rd album was released April 15, 2016 and was in WMM’s 116 Best Recordings of 2016. His 4th album CITY MUSIC was released June 16, 2017 and was in WMM’s 118 Best Recordings of 2018. Kevin Morby released his 5th album OH MY GOD on April 26, 2019. On October 16, 2020 Kevin Morby released SUNDOWNER, his 6th release, #20 on WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2020. On October 8, 2021 Kevin Morby released A NIGHT AT the LITTLE LOS ANGELES (Sundowner 4-Track Demos) on Dead Oceans Records. On May 13, 2022 Kevin Morby released THIS IS A PHOTOGRAPH his 7th album as a solo artist, on Dead Oceans. It was #7 on WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2022. From http://www.rollingstone.com: “In January 2020, songwriter Kevin Morby witnessed his father collapse from a medical event while visiting his childhood home in Kansas. In a state of shock, the singer spent the evening looking at old family photos and fixated on an image of his father as a young man, looking, as Morby states, ‘full of confidence.’ The experience forced Morby to confront both the idea of mortality and the passage of time — and, after an extended sojourn in Tennessee, these reflections came together in the form of, This Is a Photograph. Produced by frequent Morby collaborator Sam Cohen, This Is a Photograph was primarily written in Memphis’ historic Peabody Hotel, where the singer-songwriter holed up in search of inspiration and self-realization amongst the city’s dark past.” On January 25, 2023 Kevin Morby released MUSIC FROM MONTANA STORY a 13 track film soundtrack. On May 26, 2023 Kevin Morby released MORE PHOTO-GRAPHS (A Continuum) on Dead Oceans Records. Throughout his 10 album releases Kevin has also released 25 singles. Kevin Morby played The Uptown Theater, 3700 Broadway,May 29, at 7:00 with Liam Kazar.]

SEYKO – “So Wonderful”
from: “So Wonderful” – Single / Groove King Records – Fat Beats / June 5, 2026
[“So Wonderful” wass written by Seyko. She told Michelle Bacon at The Bridge, that itstarted out as a possible Freedom Affair song (Seyko is one of the band’s three lead vocalists), but ultimately didn’t fit their second album thematically. So, she brought the song to a few bandmates Cole Bales for recording and production, Dave Brick on drums and Branden Moser on bass to release this as a solo single. // Seyko released the single “Anybody High: on Cecember 2, 2023 also through Groove King Re cords. And also Produced by Colby Bales of the band Black Light Animals and also a bandmate of SEYKO’s in The Freedom Affair. // Seyko released the single “What I Want” on June 23, 2023. //From http://www.seykomusic.com: Seyko has always found music to be a reflection of her innermost thoughts and feelings, a way of self-expression but even deeper than that. Music was always a life-giving, constant companion from the happiest moments to the darkest days. Music continues to be Seyko’s way of communicating with the world around her. // Seyko developed her musical talent during her formative years through church and school choirs, friendships that evolved into singing groups, and professional training through voice lessons and songwriting. Opportunities presented themselves, but Seyko also created opportunities for herself as she chased her dream to create and perform her own music. // The Freedom Affair and SUNU, two Kansas City bands Seyko performs and writes with, have solidified her place in the music scene and provide a solid foundation for beginning her solo career. Seyko’s singing and songwriting career has spanned twenty years, and it shows! Her creative growth has led to her being a well-respected artist in Kansas City, allowing her to participate in recording projects for fellow musicians and even singing background vocals for Michael Bublé at a live concert in 2022.]

[Seyko will be performing with SUNU for a free block party in downtown Lawrence, KS, on June 16 at 8 p.m., and with The Freedom Affair for FIFA Fan Fest KC on July 9.]

10:10 – Fund Drive Break #1  

We interrupt our regularly scheduled programming for just a few minutes to let our listeners know that we are currently in day 6 of our On Air Summer Fund Drive. This is where YOU can be involved! We are breaking into our prepared programming, to encourage YOU to please call us at 888-931-0901 or http://www.kkfi.org to make a donation in support 90.1 FM KKFI.

Joining me in the studio, we have some very special co-hosts:

Mará Rose Williams is The Star’s Senior Opinion Columnist. She previously was assistant managing editor for race & equity issues, a member of the Star’s Editorial Board and an award-winning columnist. She has written on all things education for The Star since 1998, including issues of inequity in education, teen suicide, universal pre-K, college costs and racism on university campuses. She was a writer on The Star’s 2020 “Truth in Black and White” project and the recipient of the 2021 Eleanor McClatchy Award for exemplary leadership skills and transformative journalism. Mará Rose Williams was the creator and host and producer of Voices of Kansas City an award winning special series created by the KC Star with KKFI.

Mara Rose Williams thanks for being our guest on WMM

D. Rashaan Gilmore is host of “Unbossed and Unbothered with D. Rashaan Gilmore,” on KKFI Saturday nights at 5:00pm. D. Rashaan Gilmore is a two-time Emmy Award winning host and producer of Flatland In Focus on Kansas City PBS. Rashaan Gilmore is the founder and CEO of BlaqOut, which was established in 2017 as a grassroots movement to organize and mobilize Kansas City’s Black LGBTQ+ community and develop a leadership core. Gilmore has previously managed multiple significant HIV/ AIDS awareness and prevention grants for the Kansas City CARE Clinic. D Rashaan has also served as the Senior Field Organizer for PROMO, Missouri’s statewide LGBT equality and advocacy organization. Rashaan’s stellar and innovative work led to his being the distinguished recipient of the 2020 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Equity Award. D. Rashaan spent 4 years as part of the team of host & Producers on KKFI’s program The Tenth Voice.

D. Rashaan Gilmore thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.

Also with us is Rev Dwight Frizzell is a Professor & Sound Head, at Kansas City Art Institute, in the Photography & Filmmaking Department with a Terminal Degree in Sound Design. Dwight is an internationally recognized artist whose work combines video, performance, installation, music, audio art, and writing. Frizzell’s work about his boyhood neighbor, Harry S. Truman, was featured in the Peabody-awarded “Lost and Found Sound” series broadcast on National Public Radio. Frizzell has produced an opera based on the life of Charles Darwin. In addition to his B.F.A. degree from KCAI, he holds a terminal fine arts degree in Sound Design from the UMKC. Dwight Frizzell, is a founder of the “groovy polyphonic jazz/dance” band, Black Crack Revue, now in their 43rd year. Dwight Frizzell is also served at First Editor, The Pitch, he is a founding member of the newEar contemporary chamber ensemble, and is host & producer of “From Arc To Microchip” heard on the fifth Thursday of each month on KKFI’s Thursday Night Special at 7:00pm on 90.1 FM.

BCR’s Celestial Mammals Solstice Show, at The Ship, 1221 Union Ave., KCMO, Saturday, June 20, at 6:00 to 9:00 PM – Celebrate the Solstice with BCR on the 50th Anniversary of the Black Crack Revue!

Dwight Frizzell, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

90.1 FM KKFI’s non-profit organization and governing body is the MidCoast Radio Project. MidCoastal is where we are, on the coasts of the Missouri and Kansas Rivers with a music community that spans the Kansas City Metro region and west to Lawrence and Topeka and south to Olathe and east to Columbia and North to St Joseph. Not necessarily the reach of our 100,000 watt signal but definitely the reach of our community.

WMM & KKFI are committed to featuring artists under-represented in other media, and that includes KC & Lawrence Arts & Music Community, where for 22 years we’ve shined a light on artists, music labels, recording studios, & venues.

Wednesday MidDay Medley was the first radio show to ever play the recordings of: Calvin Arsenia, Stephonne, Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear, Krystle Warren, The Black Creatures, The Shy Boys, The ACB’s, Miss Boating, Rev Gusto, Mommas Boy, The Salvation Choir, The Creepy Jingles, Ivory Blue, Miki P., Kai McGarry, Rude Cousin. We were the first to interview these artists live on the radio and bring their music to a wider audience.

10:18 – WMM Plays More New & MidCoastal Releases

TheBabeGabe – “Love Language”
from: HONEYPOP RELOADED / Seven Rings Media /Aug. 8, 2025
[New 4-track EP and follow up the HONEYPOP RELOADED released August 8, 2025 through Seven Rings Media. Honeypop Reloaded was one of two full length albums released in 2025 by TheBabeGabe, the other being HONEYPOP on Seven Rings Media released March 5, 2025, both with production by The Human. // After years of being the girl in the band, TheBabeGabe is stepping out, and standing ten toes down. As she dives into her solo career, Gabe brings the same sugary raps and addicting energy that she did as 1/3 of the alt-rap trio BLACKSTARKIDS. This time though, she’s telling her story, and forging a fresh start. The debut mixtape HONEY POP introduces the world to a young black girl from Kansas City that’s hungry for better things for herself and everyone who looks like her. Her energy is infectious, and you won’t want to be the one standing in her way, which becomes clear from the rowdy hook of the project’s lead single PSA. “It’s in my DNA, killing shit like every day, take this as a PSA, don’t give a fuck ‘bout what you say.” // With BLACKSTARKIDS, Gabe gained experience crushing a stage, opening on tour with The 1975, beabadoobee, Glass Animals, & more. That confidence shines through on braggadocios tracks like Only See Me, Pulse, and Pep Rally where she raps, “hoe shut the fuck up when I’m talking, got a pretty face but this mouth repulsive.” Pulling inspiration from future peers like Doja Cat & Tyler, The Creator, Gabe is quick to prove she isn’t restricted to one sound. There’s no shortage of variety with sticky hooks, soulful ballads, Janelle Monáe -esque pop hits, somber reflective cuts, and boomy west-coast kickbacks. // No song boasts this genre-bending ability better than the double track RIOT GRRL//DRAMA QUEEN. Starting with an inspirational pop-punk banger that could make any Olivia Rodrigo fan nod in approval, it soon turns to the emotional DRAMA QUEEN, seeing Gabe grapple with difficult changes and struggle to find the best way forward. Listening to Gabe can often feel like hanging with your bestie in that you’re getting both the yap sessions about the everyday as well as the venting about life’s drama and all its uncertainties. // These confessions, boasts, hooks, croons, screams, beats, and sounds all come together to create an extraordinary portrait of a young artist figuring it out. It’s an unfiltered showcase that sees Gabe pull back the curtain and step forward so you can meet her where she’s at. So when you listen, you’re seeing her for who she really is. And for many, that’s someone you can see yourself in. That’s TheBabeGabe. // TheBabeGabe was one-third of the Kansas City based BLACKSTARKIDZ Gen-Z upstarts BLACKSTARKIDS have released their sixth studio album Saturn Dayz on Sept. 20, 2024 through Dirty Hit Records and immediately followed with an 8-track 7th studio album HEAVEN ON URF, on Oct. 25, 2024 on Dirty Hit Records. Music writer Bill Brownlee talked with us about how the band created a double album, but the record company decided to release as two separate albums. The music from both albums relate to each other. Before the release of Saturn Dayz the band released their single and video “SOULMATEZ!” on August 30, 2024. “SOULMATEZ!,” is a magnetic, blissed-out bop that brings together pop, indie, and alt-rap, reminiscent of Dev Hynes-era Solange mixed with De La Soul. // The follow up to BLACKSTARKIDS’ acclaimed 2022 album CYBERKISS* which featured standout singles “CYBERKISS 2 U* ft. beabadoobee” and “SEX APPEAL,” SATURN DAYZ is an otherworldly, genre-crossing testament to their unrelenting artistry and is their most impressive work to date. PRESS HERE to pre-save SATURN DAYZ. // Putting out music at a prolific rate and making waves for their formidable songwriting and producing talents, as well as their endless energy and truly limitless sound, BLACKSTARKIDS have received critical acclaim from New York Times, MTV, UPROXX, Billboard, Alternative Press, SPIN, Ones To Watch, Rolling Stone France, The Line Of Best Fit, DIY, Coup De Main, and more. Blending garage rock with synth-punk and hip-hop to usher in a new surge of indie, such as on their beloved album Puppies Forever which features anthemic singles “ALL COPS ARE BASTARDS,” “JUNO,” and “FIGHT CLUB,” BLACKSTARKIDS are well on their way to indie stardom and have previously toured with the likes of The 1975, COIN, Glass Animals, beabadoobee, Christian Leave, GroupLove. // Incorporating each member’s wide-ranging influences into their blissful DIY sound, such as Toro Y Moi, NERD*, Smashing Pumpkins, Weezer, Outkast, Odd Future, and A Tribe Called Quest, BLACKSTARKIDS first captivated the internet with their “black coming of age trilogy” of projects Let’s Play Sports, Surf, and Whatever, Man that feature critically acclaimed singles including “BRITNEY BITCH” and “FRANKIE MUNIZ.” // Blackstarkids are phenomenon who came out of KC in 2020 became the soundtrack for the summer. Members include: TheBabeGabe, Deiondre, and TyFaizon (of the Drop Dead XX collective). The members have known each other since high school in Raytown, Missouri. Members met at Raytown South High School and formed the band in 2019. The group released its first album, Let’s Play Sports, on August 1, 2019. Blackstarkids then released their second album SURF through their own label Bedroom Records on February 28, 2020. Blackstarkids caught the attention of The 1975’s frontman Matty Healy and were then signed to The 1975’s management company and UK-based label Dirty Hit Records. They were featured in Clash Magazine. Blackstarkids then released, Surf Basement Demos on Dirty Hit Records on March 5, 2020. On Oct. 29, 2020, Blackstarkids released Whatever, Man on Dirty Hit Records, their third album release of 2020. Gabe, of Blackstarkids recently described the KC Music community to an interviewer, “The music scene here is really nice. There are a lot of bands who are super talented and do all types of genres. The jazz music here is really great as well. KC is honestly a hidden gem when it comes to music. I feel like you can meet an artist anywhere and anyplace in this city.”]

FlareThaRebel – “Dear City”
from: Dear City / Shafer Publishing / May 1, 2026
[Amplifying the tension between having love for one’s city while not dismissing its inequities, Dear City is a lyrical reflection of truth-telling and hometown pride. The album highlights commonalities experienced by many urbanites regardless of where they call home.  // In the weeks leading up to the album release concert, Flare has been releasing music video reels on social media featuring snippets of the new songs from Dear City. Filmed by Flaming Heart Productions, each reel features only the first verse or at most the first verse and chorus of each song, giving fans a taste of what’s to come and building hype for the album’s release. // Elevating the concoction further, Flare collaborated with bar owner, Bryan Ari, to film the music video reel of “Mixology” at Fern Bar. Flare turned the filming into a “fishbowl experience” inviting guests to watch him create the reel live while sipping cocktails of their own. Flare landed the scene, which involved rapping while mixing a cocktail and flaming an orange rind a precise moment within the song’s verse. The outcome? Confidently smooth – after about six takes and some hands-on coaching from Bryan Ari.// Career and love brought hip-hop MC Flare Tha Rebel™ back to his hometown of Kansas City, MO, which sparked a creative renaissance. As The Pitch noted, “As a member of hip-hop collective Anti-Crew, Flare Tha Rebel made quite an impact on the Kansas City hip-hop scene. After making the leap from KC to Chicago in the late ’00s, he’s now back…” His homecoming has proved fruitful – his track “Playground” was voted the Number 1 Song of 2022 by listeners of 90.9 FM The Bridge. Throughout his career, Flare has shared stages with heavyweights including Chance The Rapper, RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, Mac Lethal, Nappy Roots, and CES Cru. His most recent release is the locally acclaimed EP, “Summer You, Summer Me”, followed by his feature on the Kemet Coleman song “Android”. // Flare Tha Rebel aka Jeff Shafer is Executive Director for City Year Kansas City, an educational-equity nonprofit that places mentors/tutors in schools to keep kids on track to graduate. This was the job that brought Jeff back to KC, where he became Executive Director. ]

[FlareThaRebel hosts Music Maker Mondays presented by Manor Records Foundation, & Brewery Emperial on the First Monday of every month, 5:00pm-7:00pm (through August) at Brewery Emperial, 1829 Oak St. KCMO, to provide local music makers of all types – any genre, a laid-back, non-gig environment to connect, organize, and build community through a new monthly happy hour occurring on the first Monday of each month.]

Jamogi – “HOLLABACK (feat. Les Izmore)”
from: “HOLLABACK (feat. Les Izmore)” / Jam Tunes / May 15, 2026
[Jamogi is also know as Byron Hyde a Kanas City based singer, songwriter, MC, producer, originally from Los Angeles, California.// Jamogi released the single “Georgia Peach (feat. Burgandy)” on September 5, 2025. Jamogi released Jamogi & The Jammers: Live at Flew The Coop Sessions (Flew The Coop Live) through Jam Tunes on April 11, 2025. // Jamogi released the single “Do It To Me” on March 28, 2025. // Jamogi released the single “Go Big or Go Home” on August 30, 2024, Jamogi released the single “Hot Block” on May 30, 2024. Jamogi released the EP, Star-Crossed Lover on March 3, 2023. Jamogi then released a “Star-Crossed Lover GALACTIC REMIX (feat. Watchman)” single on June 9, 2023.Jamogi previously released the AGE OF AQUARIUS EP on March 3, 2023, and the single “Celebration” on Dec. 9, 2022, and the single “Anymore” on May 6, 2022. // Jamogi played the ROCK IS BLACK—a celebration of Black artists in rock music, happening February 28, 2025 at 7:00 PM at the Zhou B Art Center, 1801 E 18th Street, KCMO. Rock is Black features: Malek Azrael & The Vibez, Jamogi and The Jammers, Stephonne, and Frankie Shorez & Mercy Fire. Kamogi and the Jammers played Boulevardia 2025]

The Creepy Jingles – “Go Tell The Others”
from: Washed Up / Enigmatic Brunch Records / June 6, 2026
[New 11-track album was written by Jocelyn Nixon, and recorded, engineered, and mixed by Paul Malinowski at Massive Sounds Studios in Shawnee, Kansas, with Jocelyn Olivia Nixon on lead vocals, piano, rhythm guitar; Andrew Woody on bass; Nick Robertson on drums; and Wills Van Doorn on lead guitars. // Jocelyn Olivia Nixon is lead singer of the band The Creepy Jungles. Jocelyn told Nick Spacek of The Pitch, “that the songs she presents to her bandmates in The Jingles’ songs are poppier stuff, typically, while solo songs are more folky, mellow, weird, and lyrical. Solo work also gives her the opportunity to work with others outside the group. As Nixon explains, “It’s basically a tongue-in-cheek song making fun of hard right conservatives and social cliques who think only their way is ‘right.’” She said, “I felt like I needed something where I can be a bit more vulnerable and naked, I suppose,” the musician says. “I think because Jingles do rock n roll pop songs well, I think I’m kinda boxed in as an artist and singer. This is my way of saying I have many sides to myself as an individual and as an artist, and I can forge my own path and defy expectations.” Jocelyn Nixon’s next single, “Real Deal,” is due later this summer . // The Creepy Jingles released a series of 4 new singles in 2024 including “When Things Go Wrong” on February 23, 2024. // The Creepy Jingles are a Kansas City based, rock and roll band that both honors and defies convention. Led by singer / song-writer Jocelyn Olivia Nixon, a transgender wordsmith who charms with razor wit and dazzles with her lyrical acrobatics. The Creepy Jingles released their album, TAKE ME AT MY WORDPLAY on March 25, 2022 through High Dive Records. Paired up with lyrics centering on themes of identity, strained relationships, social media madness, meme magic, pandemic paranoia, paid off political pundits, backyard bullies and barking up the wrong tree. Everything and the kitchen sink or swim. No stoner left unturned. The Creepy Jingles released their Debut EP on High Dive Records on May 3, 2019. It was in the top ten of WMM’s 119 Best Recordings of 2019. ]

[The Creepy Jingles played a WASHED UP Album Release Show, Saturday, June 6, 2026, at The Greenwood Social Hall, with Heidi Gluck, and Lauren Lovelle & The Midnight Spliffs.]

10:29 – Underwriting

10:30 – Pledge Break #2

WMM Summer Fund Drive Team: Mara Williams, D. Rashaan Gilmore, Dwight Frizzell

So far this year in 2025 Mark conducted 42 Interview Segments with 72 special guests: Margaret Cho, David Brighton, Michelle Bacon, Chris Hudson, Dwight Frizzell, David Basse, D. Rashaan Gilmore, Calvin Arsenia, Sera Impala, FlareThaRebel, Shaun Crowley, Sara Swenson, Nathan Reusch, Charlie Burt, Mike Bland, Brad Smith, Mará Rose Williams, Sandra Draper, Jennie Ferguson, Scott Mize, Doug Hitchcock, Matt Kesler, Joelle St. Pierre, Diane Scott, Jade Osborne, Christena Graves, IVORY BLUE, Dandelion Lakewood, Rosie O’Brien, Sam Wright, Spencer Goertz-Giffen, Braden Young, Brent Kinder, Ed Wallerstein, Ian Byrne, Kian Byrne, Norm Dahlor, A.M. Merker, Jennifer Owen, Brad Cox, Krystle Warren, Michael B. Tipton, Kasey Rausch, Marcus Rattler, Hailes, Scott Moreau, Becky Barta, Allan Winkler, Taylor Bapp, Lava Dreams, Julie Bennett Hume, Amelia Rose, Alan & Janice Wasserman, Dedric Moore, Krysztof Nemeth, Ned Stacie, Francois, Peter Pain, Jesse Bartmess, Rachel Christia, Vi Tran, Darin Challacombe, Madeline Marak, Lori Buntin, Brodie Rush, Cody Calhoun, Liam Sumnich, Nate Hubert, Tim Jenkins, Jocelyn Olivia Nixon, Stephonne

Last year In 2025 Mark conducted over 175 interviews with 159 special guests:

Krystle Warren, elska, Michelle Bacon, Mike Dillon, Peregrine Honig, Malek Azrael, Joshua Luke, Izzy Vivas, Julie Bennet Hume, Doug Hitchcock, Diana Watts, Kevin King, Daniel Gum, Chris Garibaldi, Mark Henning, Ross Brown, Miquel Antonio, Daniel Cole, Paul Seiz, Cody Ryan Stapleton, Matt Muckenthaler, Nathan Reusch, Zach Lamun, Les Izmore, Charlie Colborne, Billy Belzer, T.A. Rell, Just Angel, Dylan Pease, Andy Wooden, Betse Ellis, Rachel Christia, Mikal Shapiro, Seth Davis, Evan Verploegh, Shanté Clair, Benjamin Baker, SEYKO, Cole Bales, Cody Calhoun, Noah Cassity, Kole Waters, Alex May, Stephonne, Danielle Anderson, Zach Hodson, Valerie Schurman, Joe Frogge, Fally Afani, Til Willis, Heather Pontonio, Jose Faus, Elizabeth Bettendorf Bowman, Chico Sierra, Zo E., Jaclyn Danger, Simon Huntley, J. Ashley Miller, Grace Broadhead, Jason Turk, Sandra Draper, Enrique Chi, Julia Othmer, James T. Lundie, Alber, Jennie Ferguson, Scott Mize, Matt Kesler, Shaun Crowley, Paul Jesse, Alex Wong, Jen Kiper, David Luther, Sergio Anthony Gonzalez, Jeremiah James Gonzalez, Katlyn Conroy, Chris Catterall, Cheyenne Jackson, Kate McCandless, Moksha Sommer, Jemal Wade Hines, Chris Haghirian, James McGee, Meighan Peifer, Michael McQuary, Joey Arias, Lonnie Fisher, Tara Fisher, Adee Dancy aka Sisterbot, Hadiza., Suzannah Johannes, Keelon Van, Alyssa Murray, Ernest Melton, Mará Williams, J.M. Banks, Beth Watts Nelson, Spencer Thompson, Amanda Davis, Derek Trautwein, Dedric Moore, Rachel Lovelace, Kai McGarry, Alicia McGarry, Sandra Draper, Steve Tulipana, Day Shepherd, Tirzah DeMeire, Keyon Monté, Lee Sampson, Joel Stratton, Jim Hubbell, TheBabeGabe, TyFaison, Mitzi McKee, Don Simon, Morgan Holcomb, Bill Sundahl, Rick Truman, Nick Carswell, Brody Lowe, Fritz Hutchison, Mark Ronning, Iona DeWalt, Nan Turner, Amy Steinberg, Pete Kuhn, Brandon Day, Flare Tha Rebel, Margo May, Jared Bond, Tim York, Rita Hanch, Brock Johnson, Howard Iceberg, Chad Brothers, Julie Bates, Andrew Morris, Bess Wallerstein-Huff, Christopher Ruiz, Wills Nan Doorn, Sondra Freeman, Steddy P, David George, Scotty Sharp, Ben Wendt, Brock Wilbur, Nick Spacek, Gabe Rivera, Sara Swenson, Tommy Capps, Dirk Liebert, Graham Stone, Barry Lee, Chuck Haddix, Judy Mills, and Bill Brownlee.

10:37 – WMM Plays More New & MidCoastal Releases

Betse Ellis – “The Traveler”
from: High Moon Order / Free Dirt / June 14, 2013
[Betse Ellis with: Jason Beers, Jonathan Kraft, Josh Mobley, Mark Smeltzer, Michael Stover, Mike West. Recorded at 9th Ward Pickin’ Parlor, Lawrence, KS. Recorded, mixed and mastered by Mike West. Produced by Mike West and Betse Ellis. 2nd solo release from renowned fiddler, Betse Ellis. Betse Ellis is originally from Fayetteville, Arkansas. Betse received her Bachelors of Arts in Music and a Bachelors of Arts in English, from the University of Missouri – Kansas City. For nearly 40 years Betse has been playing the violin and fiddle professionally and also working as a teacher of music. Betse was a founding member of the acclaimed internationally known band, The Wilders who released 10 albums. Betse is adept at the difficult technique of singing while playing the fiddle. Betse performs material, drawn from traditional American fiddle tunes, spirituals, original tunes, and her “personal old-time music”, influenced by avant-garde artists like Talking Heads, punk pioneers The Clash, and 19th century art music composer Gabriel-Mari. Betse has released two acclaimed solo records, and records & performs with the bands Little Miss Dynamite, and The Starhaven Rounders and with her husband, multi-instrumentalist Clarke Wyatt, as tBetse & Clarke.]

[Betse Ellis has making special appearances with The Poor Choices on Honky Tonk Tuesdays. at The Ship, 1221 Union Ave, KCMO in the Historic West Bottoms.]

Amber Gray, Ben Perowsky, Brian Drye, Chris Sullivan, Damon Daunno, Jenny Scheinman, Jessie Shelton, Liam Robinson, Lulu Fall, Marika Hugues, Michael Chorney, Nabiyah Be, Patrick Page & Shaina Taub – “All I’ve Ever Known (Live)”
from: Hadestown: The Myth. The Musical. (Original Cast Recording) [Live] / Parlophone / October 5, 2017
[Hadestown: The Myth. The Musical. (Live Original Cast Recording) is the cast album of the 2016 Off-Broadway production at New York Theatre Workshop. It was released digitally and on CD on October 6, 2017, through Ghostlight Records and Parlophone Records. A four-track EP containing live recordings of “Way Down Hadestown,” “All I’ve Ever Known,” “Wait For Me,” and “Why We Build the Wall” entitled Why We Build The Wall (Selections from Hadestown. The Myth. The Musical. Live Original Cast Recording) was released for digital retailers on October 13, 2016, in promotion of the album. The live album was recorded from the June 28 and 29, 2016 performances.[3] The recording does not contain every song from the production. It debuted at number 3 on the Billboard Cast Albums chart. // The musical Hadestown, written by American singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell and based on her 2010 studio album of the same name, has had two official cast recordings. In addition, various songs from Hadestown were re-recorded by Mitchell for her 2014 studio album Xoa, including the musical’s opening number “Anyway the Wind Blows” which had not appeared on the original concept album. The song “Why We Build the Wall” has been covered by a variety of artists, including English singer-songwriter Billy Bragg for his 2017 EP Bridges Not Walls, Ben Fisher, Ben Dunham, Lilli Lewis, and Robert Neustadt. // Hadestown is a musical with music, lyrics, and book by Anaïs Mitchell. It blends versions of two ancient Greek myths, Orpheus and Eurydice and Hades and Persephone, to explore enduring and contemporary themes such as poverty. // The original sung-through version of the musical was performed in Barre and Vergennes, Vermont, in 2006, followed by a tour in Vermont and Massachusetts in 2007. Mitchell, unsure about the future of the musical, turned it into a concept album, released in 2010. // In 2012, Mitchell met Rachel Chavkin, and the two reworked the stage version, with additional songs and dialogue. The new version of the musical, directed by Chavkin, premiered off-Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop (NYTW) on May 6, 2016, and ran through July 31. Following productions in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, and London, England, the show premiered on Broadway in 2019. The Broadway production received critical acclaim, and at the 73rd Tony Awards it received 14 nominations (the most that year) and won eight, including Best Musical and Best Original Score.]

Allison Russell – “Rainbows”
from: In The Hour of Chaos / Black Wonder LLC – Fantasy Records – Concord / July 10, 2026
[4x GRAMMY-nominated singer, songwriter, poet, activist, and multi-instrumentalist Allison Russell has announced her third studio album, In The Hour of Chaos, produced by Russell and Dim Star and arriving on July 10th via Fantasy Records. To mark the occasion she has shared her single “Cold April” featuring her tourmate Kara Jackson, Denitia and the Explore! Pop Choir. // Allison Russell just completed her second run on Broadway as Persephone in the 8x Tony Award winning musical Hadestown. She took over the role in November 2024 initially, after spending much of that year opening for Hozier on his Unreal Unearth Tour supporting his arena run on all US dates and throughout Europe. She made her Billboard Hot 100 debut thanks to their duet “Wildflower & Barley.” // Russell recently took the stage at the JUNO Awards to pay tribute to fellow Canadian, Joni Mitchell. The performance was a duet between her and Sarah McLachan who she will tour with throughout the summer. Dates kick off on July 1st in Franklin, TN. A full list of tour dates is below. // The accolades for Russell have been immense. Last year she was nominated for the Polaris Prize and named Billboard Women In Music Canada’s “Breakthrough Artist of the Year.” She has had 8 GRAMMY nominations and one win, earned three 2022 Americana Award nominations and a win for Album of the Year with subsequent nominations in 2023 and 2024, two International Folk Music Award wins, a 2022 Juno nomination for ‘Songwriter of the Year,’ and her first-ever Juno Award win for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year. Russell won three Canadian Folk Music Awards, two UK Americana Music Awards, and more. // Allison Russell on “Cold April” – Things are rough. Things have been rough before. “Cold April” is not laying out the grim facts of the moment. “Cold April” asks if we can let the music itself restore and recharge us. The act of singing with my sisters, Kara Jackson and Denitia, is a balm for my soul, and a wind at my back to keep on. And my daughter Ida’s Explore! Pop Choir?! Let them tell it: “Calling all birds from across the nation yeah we got a brand new murmuration we don’t have to fly in that old formation, no” Youth – and Love – will be served! // Kara Jackson recently collaborated with Gorillaz and was previously the US National, Youth Poet Laureate Denitia part of CMT Next Women Of Country series, member of Rissi Palmer’s Color Me Country program, and featured in Dolly Parton’s Threads: My Songs in Symphony concert. // // Allison Russell released The Returner, on September 8, 2023. The album was written and co-produced by Allison along with dim star (her partner JT Nero and Drew Lindsay) and was recorded over Solstice week in December 2022 at Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles, CA. It features Russell’s “Rainbow Coalition” band of all female musicians along with special guest appearances from the legendary Wendy & Lisa, Brandi Carlile, Brandy Clark, and Hozier. Allison Russell on The Returner: “My goal with The Returner – sonically, poetically, and spiritually – is a radical reclamation of the present tense, a real time union of body, mind, and soul. This album is a much deeper articulation of rhythm, groove, and syncopation. Groove as it heralds the self back into the body, groove as it celebrates sensual and sexual agency and flowering, groove as an urgent call to action and political activism. // In just a word, it’s funkier. But as is the history of anything funky, it’s never just a party. It is a multiverse of energies that merges the celebration and the battle cry. For while an embrace of the present tense is a celebration, it is equally an unquestioning leap into battle – cultural, political, environmental.” // Since the release of her debut solo LP two years ago Outside Child, Russell’s often devastating, deeply moving, cathartic celebration of survivor’s joy has become one of the most acclaimed albums of the past 10 years. Now comes the second chapter in her story, The Returner, a body-shaking, mind-expanding, soulful expression of liberation, love, and self-respect that serves as a fierce declaration of joy for all survivors that have made it to the other side. Allison, JT, and Drew built The Returner from the bottom up with a rhythm-first, genre-fluid approach. The improvisational energy of great female artists sparked the album’s fierce joy, and provided a wider canvas for Allison’s immense, unlimited talent. In all, the new album doesn’t just deliver on the promise of the last two years, it exceeds all reasonable (and unreasonable) expectations and affirms Allison Russell’s place among music’s most vital artists and The Returner, as one of 2023’s most essential recordings. // Allison Russell has spent her career in multiple bands, including Po’ Girl, Our Native Daughters, and Birds of Chicago. After a career spent as a gifted multi-instrumentalist, backing numerous other artists, she finally dared to release her solo project in 2021. “It’s an album of strength and affirmation, not victimization,” said The New York Times in their profile on Russell and Outside Child. Following the album’s release, Russell performed on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Ellen, Late Night With Stephen Colbert, CBS Saturday Morning, Austin City Limits, The Kelly Clarkson Show made her Opry debut and appeared at the Country Music Hall of Fame and performed at the 2022 GRAMMY’s Premiere Ceremony. // The accolades for Russell have been immense. In addition to her four GRAMMY nominations, she has earned three 2022 Americana Award nominations and a win for Album of the Year, two International Folk Music Award wins, a 2022 Juno nomination for ‘Songwriter of the Year,’ and her first-ever Juno Award win for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year. Russell received two 2021 Americana Awards nominations, won three Canadian Folk Music Awards, two UK Americana Music Awards, and more. She was recently nominated for Song of the Year and Artist of the Year for the 2023 Americana Awards. In addition, Russell has consistently used her newfound platform to elevate, educate and inspire; curating the history making Once And Future Sounds: Roots and Revolution set for the Newport Folk Festival in 2021 and mobilizing this year’s triumphant Love Rising All-Star benefit concert in support of LGBTQIA+ causes in Nashville – raising over $550,000 and calling national attention to Tennessee’s dangerous anti/trans and anti/drag laws. Russell has also announced a book deal with Flatiron/MacMillan for her debut novel, a memoir based on her life and the material that inspired Outside Child and The Returner. // All songs written by Allison Russell, JT Nero, and Drew Lindsay // Co-Producers: Dim Star and Allison Russell // Recorded by Brandon Bell at Henson Recording Studios (Los Angeles, CA) Assistant Engineer: Kelsey Porter. Mixed by Brandon Bell at The Cabin Studio (Nashville, TN). Mastered by Kim Rosen at Knack Mastering (Ringwood, NJ) // Allison Russell (vocals, banjo, clarinet), Elenna Canlas (keyboards/synth, backing vocals), Elizabeth Pupo-Walker (percussion), Chauntee Ross (violin, backing vocals) & Monique Ross (cello, backing vocals) aka SistaStrings, Ganessa James (bass, backing vocals), Joy Clark (guitar), Kerenza Peacock (violin), Larissa Maestro (cello, backing vocals), Lisa Coleman (piano), Mandy Fer (guitar, backing vocals), Meg Coleman (drums), Meg McCormick (guitar), Wendy Melvoin (guitar, bass), and Wiktoria Bialic (drums). Special guests Brandi Carlile, Brandy Clark, and Hozier provide backing vocals on “Requiem”. //We first saw Allison Russell as part of the band/duo with her partner JT Nero as, The Birds of Chicago at the 2014 International Folk Alliance Conference, where they were an Official Showcase Artist . More info at http://www.folk.org. Russell was born in Montreal to a Grenadian student and a Scottish-Canadian teenage single mother. Her mother struggled with postpartum depression and schizophrenia, and Russell was initially placed in foster care. Her mother regained custody of her after marrying a white-supremacist American expatriate. From the ages of 5 to 15, she was physically and sexually abused by her adoptive father. At the age of 15, Russell ran away from home, eventually moving to Vancouver in 1998. She attended Dawson College. // Russell was initially a member of the Vancouver-based Celtic folk band Fear of Drinking. // In 2003, Russell formed the band Po’ Girl with The Be Good Tanyas member Trish Klein. She recorded seven albums with the band: Po’ Girl (2003), Vagabond Lullabies (2004), B-side Recordings (2006), Home to You (2007), Deer in the Night (2008), Live (2009), and Follow Your Bliss (2010). Russell formed the music group Birds of Chicago with JT Nero in 2012. As part of Birds of Chicago, Russell released three studio albums, Birds of Chicago (2012), Real Midnight (2016) and Love in Wartime (2018). With the group, she also released a live album, Live from Space, and an EP titled American Flowers in 2018. In 2018, Russell joined the musical collective Our Native Daughters alongside fellow musicians Rhiannon Giddens, Leyla McCalla, and Amythyst Kiah In 2019, the group released the album Songs of Our Native Daughters under the Smithsonian Folkways label. Russell was also featured alongside the rest of the group in a Smithsonian Channel documentary titled Reclaiming History: Our Native Daughters. Info: http://www.allisonrussellmusic.com]

Ivory Blue – “History”
from: Echo / IVORY BLUE / May 22, 2026
[New 10-song full length album from IVORY BLUE. Her third full length album. IVORY BLUE released the singles: “History” on April 3, 2026.,“afterglow” on February 20, 2026; “Forevermore” on November 28, 2025; and “Echo” on September 5, 2025. // Kansas City based artist, IVORY BLUE has a tendency of breaking through barriers that keeps her from saying what needs to be said, regardless of style. Bringing us hard hitting rock inspired ear candy like “Starlit Love Child” and “Control”, the idea of genre is only a tool IVORY uses to express her ability to communicate through music. // IVORY BLUE released the singles “Mirrors” on August 1, 2025; “Heartbeat” on March 28, 2025; “Rhythm of the Radio” on January 31, 2025 // “Exiled” on November 29, 2024; “Olé!” on October 4, 2024, Breathing Underwater” on August 9, 2024, “Bad Dreams”on June 7, 2024, “Batter Up” on April 22, 2024, “Flashback” on March 15, 2024, “Howl” on Feb. 16, 2024. // IVORY BLUE released their 2nd full length album, STARLIT LOVE CHILD, on Nov. 17, 2023. The 10-track album was in the top five of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2023, and in the “Best of” lists at 90.9 The Bridge and stations around the world. // On Oct. 27, 2023 IVORY BLUE released the single “Ghost of Life.” This single followed IVORY’s previous releases,”In A World Like This” from Sept. 22, 2023, ”The Best of Life” from Aug. 4, 2023 and “Control” from May 26, 2023. IVORY released the single “All Outta Love” on Feb. 24, 2023. // IVORY BLUE released the single “Starlit Love Child” on Oct. 28, 2022, “Red Light” on July 29, 2022. // IVORY BLUE released their full length debut album COMPOUND LOVE on Feb. 25, 2022. COMPOUND LOVE was in the Top 10 of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2022. For COMPOUND LOVE, IVORY BLUE served as songwriter, producer, vocalist and played all instruments with the exception of: Lester Estelle on drums, Klaartje Van Lue on piano, Craig Kew on bass, Lennon Bone on drums, and Marco Pascolini on pedal steel guitar. // IVORY BLUE released the single “Good Changes” on Oct 26, 2021. Ivory Blue released the singles: “Heavy,” “Bad Weather,” “It Must Have Been Me,” “Compound Love,” and “The Start” on December 14, 2021. // IVORY BLUE’s debut EP, Ready Get Set was released in June 2015. While the EP helped spread the word and give IVORY BLUE attention from regional radio and TV stations, a big break would come in 2017 when Ivory was among 1800 artists/bands that competed in neXt2Rock. Ivory won local & regional challenges and advanced to nationals in Los Angeles to win the top prize. // IVORY BLUE has played with The Band That Fell to Earth, Boulevardia, Crossroads Music Festival, Middle of the Map Fest, Westport Roots Festival, KCPT Screening of “Real Boy” at KC Public Library, and Kauffman Stadium. // Ivory Blue was born in 1986 in Peoria Illinois, as Devin James Miclettet. Ivory’s birth mother put them up for adoption at the age of four. Ivory speaks about how it was difficult to find trust in people offering their home to someone denied it for so long, Ivory lived with eight different families, before running away at 15. // Ivory has talked with us about how in their life they have turned to music to express pain. Ivory spent most of their childhood looking for a family. In 2010 Klaartje Van Lue saw Ivory performing in a YouTube video and contacted them, flying Ivory to Kansas City, and adopting Ivory into the Van Lue family. In 2011, Ivory settled in the Kansas City, MO area. During the past 10 years Ivory came out as “Non-Binary Transgender”, and then later as Trans-Female. // As a multi-instrumentalist, Ivory began refining their performance style, using digital looping pedals to stack harmonies and guitar parts live on stage, giving their solo shows the feel of a full band. Info at: http://www.ivorybluemusic.com]

10:49 – Fund Drive Break #3

WMM Summer Fund Drive Team: Mara Williams, D. Rashaan Gilmore, Dwight Frizzell

We need KKFI Now More Than Ever. Where do listeners go to learn more about: Environmental issues, Immigration, Labor rights, Renters Rights, LGBTQIA issue, Urban Issues, Women’s Issues, Native American Issues, Understanding Isreal Palestine, Educational Issues, School Boards and Local Politics, our area Prison Population, Economic Issues, The Kansas City Visual & Literary Arts , The Performing Arts, Stadium Campaigns, National Headlines? Where do listeners go to hear: Jazz, Blues, Reggae, Classical, Hip Hop, Folk, Women’s Music, Indie Rock, Pop, Electronica, Punk…the answer is KKFI 90.1 FM Kansas City Community Radio. KKFI host 88 locally produce radio shows each creating weekly content to serve multiple communities of diversity across our listening audience.

10:57 – Station ID

10:57 – Say That Again

Say That Again – “I’m Alright”
from: “I’m Alright”- Single / Say That Again / March 6, 2026
[Say That Again were formed in early 2020 with Will Kuenne on lead vocals & rhythm guitar, Trecen Peeler on bass, Vinnie Cascone on drums, and Carlos Nunez on lead guitar. Their music is a fun blend of Alternative/Indie Rock and Bedroom Pop that’ll get your toes tappinc g. Say That Again released their last album Get Over it on Feb. 23, 2024. Say That Again released their debut EP “Flying Cars” in Dec.cc of 2021 and just released their first full-length album, “Get Over It” on Feb. 23, 2024. Info: linktr.ee/SayThatAgainKC]

[Say That Again play The Rino, 314 Armour Rd., NKC, on Saturday, June 13, at 8:00pm with LYXE, and The Working Class Zeros.]

11:00 – Interview with Say That Again

Will Kuenne, Vinnie Cascone and Carlos Nunez are three fourths of the KC based band, Say That Again and they join us live in our 90.1 FM Studios. Say That Again were formed in early 2020 with Will Kuenne on lead vocals & rhythm guitar, Trecen Peeler on bass, Vinnie Cascone on drums, and Carlos Nunez on lead guitar. Their music is a fun blend of Alternative/Indie Rock and Bedroom Pop that’ll get your toes tapping. Say That Again released their debut EP, FLYING CARS on December 13, 2021 and their full-length album, GET OVER IT on February 23, 2024. Recently Say That Again have released a string of new singles including “New Strokes” on May 30, 2025, “I’m Alright” on March 6, 2026, and “In Conversation” on May 15, 2026. Say That Again play The Rino, 314 Armour Rd., NKC, on Saturday, June 13, at 8:00pm with LYXE, and The Working Class Zeros. More info at: linktr.ee/SayThatAgainKC

Will Kuenne, Vinnie Cascone and Carlos Nunez thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

We just heard Say That Again’s song, “I’m Alright” one of several new singles the band has been releasing over the last year.

Say That Again were formed in early 2020 with

Will Kuenne on lead vocals & rhythm guitar,
Trecen Peeler on bass,
Vinnie Cascone on drums,
Carlos Nunez on lead guitar.

Say That Again play The Rino, 314 Armour Rd., NKC, on Saturday, June 13, at 8:00pm with LYXE, and The Working Class Zeros.

Trecen Peeler and Carlos Nunez thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

More info at: linktr.ee/SayThatAgainKC

11:09 – Say That Again

Say That Again – “In Conversation”
from: “In Conversation”- Single / Say That Again / May 15, 2026
[Say That Again were formed in early 2020 with Will Kuenne on lead vocals & rhythm guitar, Trecen Peeler on bass, Vinnie Cascone on drums, and Carlos Nunez on lead guitar. Their music is a fun blend of Alternative/Indie Rock and Bedroom Pop that’ll get your toes tappinc g. Say That Again released their last album Get Over it on Feb. 23, 2024. Say That Again released their debut EP “Flying Cars” in Dec.cc of 2021 and just released their first full-length album, “Get Over It” on Feb. 23, 2024. Info: linktr.ee/SayThatAgainKC]

[Say That Again play The Rino, 314 Armour Rd., NKC, on Saturday, June 13, at 8:00pm with LYXE, and The Working Class Zeros.]

11:12 – Fund Drive Break #4

WMM Summer Fund Drive Team: Mara Williams, D. Rashaan Gilmore, Dwight Frizzell

On May 13, 2026 – WMM recently celebrated 22 years on the radio.

As of this week WMM has done 1151 weeks, equal to 2302 hours of radio, over 18,000 hours of preparation, 3000 interviews, over 3000 guests, and nearly 25,000 songs, from thousands of musical artists. We have made it our mission to mix musical genres, playing with themes, diversity, equality, free speech, connecting artists and venues and listeners and communities. Wednesday MidDay Medley has proudly endeavored to help tell the story of our growing Kansas City area music community, “The Midcoast Sound,” as we like to call it. We have dedicated our WMM programming to New & MidCoastal Releases.

WMM has presented new formats in radio, with our “A Story In A Song” series, our shows featuring: Apocalypse Meow, Juneteenth, Power to The People Fest, Crossroads Music Fest, Folk Alliance International, Manor Fest, The Outer Reaches Festival, Boulevardia. KC Fringe Festival, Waldo Folk Series, Shuttlecock Music, The Folly Theatre, Owen Cox Dance Group, Bach Aria Soloists, KC Pride, our annual tribute shows to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., David Bowie, Iris Dement, Pioneers of Punk, LGBTQIA Themes, Black Lives Matter and interviews with Lily Tomlin, Laurie Anderson, Tommy Ramone, Sweet Honey in The Rock, Joey Arias, Cheyenne Jackson, Iris Dement, Flamy Grant, Members of Fanny, Regina Spektor, Regina Carter, Tom Miller, Nick Cave, Holly Near, Sam Harris, our annual 4-week special: WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of the Year.

KKFI’s Mission Statement: KKFI is the Kansas City area’s independent, noncommercial community radio station. We seek to stimulate, educate and entertain our audience, to reflect the diversity of the local and world community, and to provide a channel for individuals and groups, issues and music that have been overlooked, suppressed or under-represented by other media.

KKFI’s Philosophy Statement: KKFI is committed to diversity in programming and discourse and seeks to create a climate of mutual respect and collaboration among volunteers and staff.

11:20 – Sound Mandala opens tonight, 7:30pm at Unicorn Theatre on the Jerome Stage

Sound Mandala, a 100-channel system, constructed in the Jerome Stage at Unicorn Theatre 3828 Main St. Shows start today June 10 – August 1. Wed – Sundays at 7:30pm.

Dwight Frizzell – “Before The Big Band (Radio Edit) (feat. Brad Cox)”
from: Sound Mandala / Dwight Frizzell / June 10, 2026
[This music was created by Dwight Frizzell with piano solo by Brad Cox, piano longtones/overtones by Ben Choate and recording engineer Jacob Souders. Frizzell was among the first composers to publish music based on the physics of black holes on his Beyond the Black Crack LP (1976). Fifty years later, he is creating music inspired by the physics of the quantum void that created space-time in the nano-seconds before the Big Bang. Dedicated to Baikei Uehira, Sun Ra and Francois Bayle. // Notes by Dwight Frizzell: If there is a most mysterious mystery, the void of nothingness from which we came would be a contender—how we, along with everything else in this sprawling reality, was created from nothing. // Astro-physics is closing the gap in our understanding of nothingness by locating a void in the nano-seconds before the hot radiation we call the Big Bang. This Quantum Void of nothingness is a state of the lowest possible energy. Everything is slowed down to absolute zero.Yet this void is brimming with potential energy. Through an entirely spontaneous process due to quantum uncertainty, particles and anti-particles spontaneously pop into and out of existence. // The Quantum Void’s ground state is called a “quantum harmonic oscillator” where “non-vanishing vacuum expectation values” are created by spontaneous symmetry breaking. Our universe didn’t begin with a bang, but with a harmonic foundation of music from which sounding particles and anti-particles emerged by chance. // The piano was chosen for its one dimension strings that resonant with sympathetic overtones. In keeping with string theory and elemental energy states, a one-dimensional line can resonate into higher timbral dimensions and be temporally enfolded onto itself by creating time-pods composed of forward and backward moving timeframes. // Musique concrete techniques were also used on the piano recordings to realize the Void’s symmetry breaking process where particles and anti-particles spontaneously appear (and disappear) against the Quantum Void’s harmonic grounding. GRM’s Fusion, Grinder and Evolution software, and IRCAM’s TS was used. All sounds heard here were created from the piano. // Astro-quantum physics has developed a striking affinity with Kashmiri Tantra’s Doctrine of Vibration (Spanda). The Quantum Void, being outside our space-time, is very much like the Absolute or Universal Consciousness in Tantra, and it operates at the foundation of Reality in the same way the Quantum Void actively creates space-time. // The Doctrine of Vibration proposes that the Void is in a constant state of transformation and is full of vibration, yet from another point of view no change or movement occurs in this Absolute. Reality springs from stillness like the particles and anti-particles coming in and out of existence in the Quantum Void. Movement and rest in the Absolute presuppose one another. // The additional insight that Tantra offers to Cosmic Inflation theory has to do with consciousness being imminent in the universe. The freedom of consciousness to do what is impossible (according to reason) demonstrates, through our own experience, how the Absolute can at once be motionless yet full of activity, an astonishing realization at the fabric of reality both in quantum physics (as applied to the quantum void) and Kashmiri Tantra (as applied to the absolute and the movement of consciousness).// Stillness in consciousness is akin to the ground state of the Void– they may be one and the same. Tantra maintains the source of thought, including our understanding of past, present and future, stands outside of time. Consciousness is in an ever developing process in perpetual expansion. Our tiny part of the All, where we observe the flow of events around us and the feelings within us, is entangled with the All in the same way that the Quantum Void is entangled with the Universe. In Cosmic Inflation Theory, the Quantum Void is perpetually creating an infinity of parallel worlds. // To grasp reality in its completeness, we must go beyond thought and language which are only partial representations of reality. To experience this primordial source we pierce through the periphery of thought and plunge into the flash of thinking itself, and with it the emergence of the diversity we perceive in all the things in the world. The close contact between our senses and the Universal Consciousness revitalizes and animates our perceptions. // Unfettered awareness, free of rational thought and language, drifts from one mental object to the next. The transition between them involves a movement through a state of pure awareness outside of thought-forms and perceptions that is like the ground state of the Quantum Void. Music ©2026 Dwight Frizzell & Brad Cox]

[Sound Mandala plays The Unicorn Theatre, 3828 Main Street, KCMO opening Wednesday, June 10 and running into the KC Fringe Festival 2026, through August 1. Wednesday thru Sundays at 7:30pm]

11:24:30 – Interview with Dwight Frizzell

Rev Dwight Frizzell is a Professor & Sound Head, at Kansas City Art Institute, in the Photography & Filmmaking Department with a Terminal Degree in Sound Design. Dwight Frizzell, is a founder of the “groovy polyphonic jazz/dance” band, Black Crack Revue, now in their 43rd year. Dwight Frizzell is also host & producer of “From Arc To Microchip” heard on the 5th Thursday of each month on KKFI’s Thursday Night Special at 7:00pm.

Sound Mandala – For the summer of 2026, a 100-channel system has been constructed in the Jerome Stage at the Unicorn Theatre. New programs are being created. Shows will take place during the FIFA World Cup, starting today June 10.

Signal & Soul is the Sound Mandala at its most adventurous — a single evening that moves from hip-hop to the cosmos, from Beatles psychedelia to the quantum void, from beatboxing to Anton Chekhov. Buckle up. ~50 Minutes

Indie Spotlight From Challenger Artists – a new kind of show: five fantastic young bands from Challenger Artists, live in our 100-loudspeaker immersive theatre — where sound moves, swirls, surrounds and envelops you in ways never before experienced. Featuring: Mini Trees, the indie-alt pop project of LA-based songwriter Lexi Vega; Brooklyn duo TOLEDO; Valley Boy, whose collaborators include Sabrina Carpenter, Dua Lipa, and Troye Sivan; Midwest four-piece Post Sex Nachos, whose track “SOS” climbed to the SiriusXM Alt Nation Top 6; and Chicago indie act Capital Soiree. The musical groups providing songs for our INDIE SPOTLIGHT are managed by Challenger Artists, the artist management division of Mammoth Live (promoter for venues in Kansas City including Uptown Theater, Grinder’s, Record Bar and more). ~60 Minutes

The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari – One of cinema’s most haunting masterpieces gets the sonic treatment it has always deserved. The nightmarish 1920 German Expressionist landmark returns with a brand-new live score by Kansas City composer Thomas Newby and psychedelic chamber pop innovators The Green Zoo. Approximately 62 minutes. Presented through all 100 loudspeakers. The line between screen and sensation dissolves completely. – 62 Minutes

Sound Mandala is a one-of-a-kind immersive audio experience where 100 independent loudspeakers surround you—sound moving around you, above you, and through you. This isn’t surround sound. It’s something altogether different, carefully crafted by sound designers who spend hours mixing each piece moving the sound around you, above you, and beneath you.

11:27 – Underwriting

11:29 – WMM Celebrates New & MicCoastal Release

The Forcefields – “Border”
from: Symphony Of All Things / Frickin’ Awesome Records / June 6, 2026
[Debut 9-track album from The Forcefields is a cosmosonic collaboration between Julia Othmer and James T Lundie AKA Aayama & Max Forcefield. The Forcefields made their first debut with the presentation TRANSMISSION for the Charlotte Street Foundation series, In(SITE), highlighting local, regional, and national acts at pivotal points in their practices. In a multidisciplinary collaboration with artists Simon Huntley, Sarah Hearn, and Mikal Shapiro, Transmission was an exploration of cosmic vibrations and soundscapes in a stunning one-night-only production. // Julia Othmer grew up in Kansas City and studied at Columbia University in New York City. The child of European refugees, she draws from a broad and richly cultured palette of experience to create her intensely human yet otherworldly songs. Her piano-driven performances are a mesmerizing and superconscious fusion of raw power, vocal artistry and joy. She played many local KC clubs including Jardine’s and Bar Natasha. Julia moved to Los Angeles in 2006 to record her 1st album, OASIS MOTEL. When Julia started planning to record her second album she traveled all the way to England to work with producer James Lundie. On a dark night in North London, singer-songwriter Julia Othmer landed on the front steps of producer-composer James T Lundie. She had been introduced to his music production and fell so deeply in love with his sonic architecture, she transported herself across the proverbial pond from LA to the UK, and refused to leave until he listened to her songs. This began a deeply creative and inspired partnership both in music and in life. Together they have released (under Julia’s name) studio recordings, live recordings, short films to accompany their work, a multi-media performance experience, and multiple social and environmental justice initiatives. James T. Lundie married Julia in January of 2016, during the completion of the record. The album “Sound,” was released on April 12, 2019. Leading up to the 2020 presidential election Julia & James released Seeds (Vol. 1) in 2020, and SEEDS (Vol. 2) in 2022. In the midst of these releases Julia and James relocated to Kansas City. Last year in April of 2024 Julia and James unveiled their newest creation, THE FORCEFIELDS featuring, reimagined vintage synthesizers, video projections, one of a kind instruments. // In 2021 Julia and James relocated to KC, and they recently unveiled their newest creation, a new expanding sonic & visual aesthetic called THE FORCEFIELDS. Their sound is evolving into what is described as Annie Lennox hosting a full moon party with The Beach Boys and Portishead gathered round the fire. Their studio recordings feature James’ unique sonic tools, reimagined vintage synthesizers, audireting and distilling the essence of two of Julia’s previous songs.]

11:33 – Fund Drive Break #5

WMM Fund Drive Team: Mara Williams, D. Rashaan Gilmore, & Dwight Frizzell

We make radio shows that cover: The Folly Theater, Extemporaneous Music and Arts Society, Lotus Pool Records, KC Rep, Outer Reaches Fest, Owen/Cox Dance Group, No Divide KC, recordBar, Lawrence Arts Center, Manor Records, The Rino, KC Blues Society, KC Star, Lawrence Music Alliance, MixMaster Music Conference, Kosmic City Records, Midwest Music Foundation, Artists Thrive!, KC Gift, Juneteenth, Power to The People Fest, The Record Machine, Whim Theater, Lemonade Park, Crossroads Music Festival, The Ship, The Black Box Theatre, Amplify Lawrence, Quindaro Ruins, Queer Narratives Fest, Art in the Loop, The film: “I’m So Glad” documenting the KC Gospel Music, KC Fringe Festival, Make Music Day, Boulevardia, Arts in The Park, UMKC Conservatory of Music, The Crossroads Hotel, High Dive Records, Greenwood Social Hall, KC Folk Fest, Manor Fest, Center Cut Records, KKFI Band Auction, Charlotte Street Foundation, Women’s History Month!, University of Missouri at Columbia, Lawrence Public Library, I Heart Local Music, Black History Month, Bach Aria Soloists, Folk Alliance International, Martin Luther King Jr., Tribute to David Bowie, Tribute to Iris DeMent, the music of Palestine and Gaza

11:41 – WMM Celebrates New & MicCoastal Release

Margaret Cho – “You Can Be You (feat, Garrison Starr)”
from: Lucky Gift / Clownery Records / February 14, 2025
[Margaret Cho’s 3rd music album. She released In Transition in 2013, and American Myth in 2016. // Produced and co-written with Garrison Starr and Roger Rocha. Acoustic Guitar Garrison Starr and Margaret Cho. Background Vocals Kate Willett. // Stef Rubino, Feb 18, 2025, http://www.autostraddle.com – In her over 30-year queer career, Margaret Cho has managed to leave her mark on just about every mainstream creative endeavor we have available to us as artists. Since beginning her career as a stand-up comedian in the early 1990s, Cho has grown to be one of our most prolific multi-hyphenate artists, constantly working across genres and willing to share her creative pursuits with her fans and the general public. Over the last 30 years, she’s gone on several comedy tours and recorded many comedy specials and albums; she’s been in films and on TV; she’s co-produced podcasts, written books, and recorded and written her own music. She has also collaborated with other musicians like Fiona Apple, Grant Lee Phillips, Ben Lee, Andrew Bird, Ani DiFranco, Tegan and Sara, and Patty Griffin. // Her first two albums of original songs, Cho Dependent and American Myth, were released to critical acclaim in 2010 and 2016 with the former earning her a Grammy nomination in 2011 for Best Comedy Album. Both of those albums featured Cho’s signature style of finding ways to laugh at the more traumatizing aspects of her life while also finding new phenomena to poke fun at and lambast a little, hence being labelled as musical comedy albums. After a nearly nine year hiatus from music production, she released her newest album Lucky Gift last week on Valentine’s Day. // Cho, a self-proclaimed music lover, collaborated with musicians Roger Rocha and Garrison Starr to both write most of the tracks and produce and compose the album, which is less comedic than the previous two albums and more of an interesting examination of the last few years of Cho’s life, her personal losses, the political atmosphere in the U.S., and the kinds of music that move her the most. // The album’s opening title track, “Lucky Gift,” is undoubtedly the biggest song on the record in terms of composition and the places Cho has to take her voice in order to match the power-pop energy of the fast-paced drums, stomping electric acoustic guitar and double-neck mandolin, and celebratory background harmonies. Although the song is brand new, its structure, rises and falls, and ever-present tambourine feel especially reminiscent of late-1990s and early-2000s pop hits. In it, Cho sings to her lover, “Thought I’d lose you but I haven’t / The worst thing I been through never happened / I could look at you and live / You are such a lucky gift.” // Then, in what feels like one of the hallmark qualities of Cho’s sense of humor, just a few songs later, we get this one’s companion in “90s Sisyphus,” a song about breaking up with the lover in “Lucky Gift.” The composition of “90s Sisyphus” feels equally nostalgic, only its led by the fuzzy power chords of an electric guitar and punchy drums with a jangly, gleaming synthesizer just above it, all rounding out the late-1990s rom-com feel of the song. Whereas “Lucky Gift” was an ode to new love, “90s Sisyphus” gives us her feelings after the fall: “You got me so unbound / And I hate you now / Love’s most bitter refrain / Spit it up and taste it again.” / Two tracks on the album, “Funny Man” and “Baked Bread,” serve as informal eulogies for two of Cho’s friends who passed away since the recording and release of her last album. The first, “Funny Man,” is a crisp, percussive piano- and horn-section-driven track about the late, great Robin Williams and the difficulty of being the kind of comedian who uses humor as a coping mechanism for the trauma they’ve experienced, Cho singing at the chorus, “Weren’t we lonely / Weren’t we sad / Weren’t we beautiful / Weren’t we bad.” “Baked Bread” was written to honor Cho’s friend Gerri Lawlor, and its composition plays with the conventions of both pop-rock and country through its thumping bassline and twangy guitar hooks. This song is not quite as straightforward as “Funny Man” is. Instead, it is imbued in metaphor and what seems like very personal recollections of Cho’s life with Lawlor. That doesn’t make it difficult to listen to by any means, but it does feel a little less accessible than many of the other tracks on the album. // Another pair of tracks, “Wheels of Gold” and “Melinda,” address Cho’s 10-year struggle to finally get sober from opiate addiction, though the positionalities of the speaker on both of the tracks are completely different, with “Wheels of Gold” focusing on the feelings of being “in love” with drugs while “Melinda” sets its sights on the experience of recovery. The compositions of each track also help set the tone for their speakers: “Wheels of Gold” rivals that of “Lucky Gift” with the soaring orchestral swell of the electric organ leading the track whereas “Melinda” is much more lowkey, instead featuring slow, glassy acoustic guitars and some subtlety emotive violin. // Being that the long-out Cho has always fearlessly and publicly stood up for queer and trans people, it’s no surprise there’s a track on the album written specifically for queer and trans youth and dedicated to Nex Benedict. Through brightly composed acoustic guitars and glittering keyboards, Cho delivers an uncomplicated anthem for queer and trans youth reminding them that they’re free to be who they are even if the world tells them they’re wrong. Cho sings, “All I know is I’ve had enough / So I’m sending this message up / And you can be you / You can be you / You can be you / And that’s what’s true.” In a recent interview about the album, Cho said “You Can Be You” is one of her favorite tracks on the album explaining that “it’s an opportunity to establish a ‘queer elder’ understanding and a relationship to the younger community.” // While her first two music albums take the opportunity to incorporate more of Cho’s humor, Lucky Gift is an album of serious writing and musical composition that occasionally has some glimmers of Cho’s humor poking through. Although it is starkly different from a lot of the work she’s done, the album serves as yet another example of Cho’s talent. Where many artists this far into their careers might feel comfortable resting on the signatures and routines they’ve built, Cho proves once again that she’s consistently and successfully evolving, not just to keep up with the times but to show how vital it is to keep uncovering new parts of yourself as time goes on. In that way, Lucky Gift is just helping us get to know Cho in a completely different way than we’re used to and is a fun, welcome addition to Cho’s incredible repertoire.

[Margaret Cho brings her new show, “Choligarchy” to The Folly Theater, 300 West 12th, KCMO, on Saturday, June 16, at 7:30pm. ]

Radkey – “Ready To Burn”
from: “Ready To Burn” – Single / Little Man Records / May 22, 2026
[To single from upcoming New Album Bedroom Sand to be released on July 14, 2026Radkey released the EP Victory on July 30, 2025. It was part of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2025. // single “Falling Out of Grace” on October 24, 2025. Radkey released the single “Victory” on March 28, 2025. On September 23, 2022 Radkey released the single “Better Than This.” The band released “Games (Tonight)”: on January 28, 2022 on Little Man Records. Isaiah, Dee, and Solomon Radke of the critically acclaimed rock trio Radkey joined us live in our 90.1 FM studios on September 5, 2018. Radkey was formed in 2010 in St. Joseph, where the brothers were raised. The family moved to Kansas City. The band has released multiple full-length recordings. In 2021 Radkey was featured in Dave Grohl’s van-touring documentary film, WHAT DRIVES US. Radkey released GREEN ROOM on Little Man Records on November 27, 2020. On Green Room the band serve as their own producers. Radkey released DARK BLACK MAKE UP in 2015 and DELICIOUS ROCK NOISE in 2016 — plus multiple EPs and singles, and were part of a MasterCard advertising campaign on digital billboards in NYC along with a national television commercial that aired during the 2018 Grammy Awards that brought the band to the attention of Jack White who asked the band to tour with him. In 2018 the band went back on the road with The Damned throughout the United States. In December they went back into the studio to record with producer Bill Stevenson of the California punk rock group Descendents. In early 2019 they played shows in Amsterdam and Stockholm. In 2018 the band released “Basement,” “St. Elwood,” “Rock & Roll Homeschool,” as well as several other singles. On February 22, 2019, Radkey released “No Strange Cats…P.A.W.” a 7-song EP is essentially a collection of the band’s most recent singles. It comes after the January 11, 2019 release of No Strange cats…Spiders – EP a 6 song EP of several new songs mixed with several singles from late 2018.]

[Radkey plays Bottleneck, 737 New Hampshire St., Lawrence, KS. Friday, June 12, w/Godzillionaire.]

11:47 – Pledge Break #6

WMM Summer Fund Drive Team: Mara Williams, D. Rashaan Gilmore, Dwight Frizzell

On February 28, 1988 folks from the Kansas City Community launched onto our airwaves KKFI 90.1 FM with hopes that through community radio we could help build our community, make it a better place, for our future, for those that follow and take our place. Today 37 years later 90.1 FM offers 100 radio programs, and 85 of these programs are locally produced, locally sourced, locally researched, locally presented by passionate and dedicated members of our Kansas City Community. Bucking all trends of commercially owned media, at KKFI, Diversity and Inclusion are part of our mission. Telling the stories of people who are under-represented is our mission. In a world where national corporations have purchased almost all local TV & Radio stations, KKFI has fought hard to remain free, locally loyal, a voice for those not repented in the corporately owned & cloned stations, or the rightwing talk, church owned christian stations, that proliferate the frequencies, through all of this, KKFI has worked hard to keep a little slice of the public airwaves alive for all of the people in our collective communities.

With shows locally produced about Native People, LGBTQIA People, Women, Working People, Black People, Ecological People, People in Prison, Stories of Middle Eastern and Latinx, KC Tenants, Understanding Israel Palestine, Economics For The People, Local elected leaders, Creatives, Artists, Poets, Musicians, Teachers, Theatre People, Dancers, Writers, Environmentalists, Historians, Activists, Survivors, KKFI’s News, Public Affairs, Arts & Culture programs go the distance with every show to represent and report of what is going on in our world here in Kansas City and the surrounding metro in our 80 mile radius of signal, and even farther on line digitally.

KKFI offers music shows produced by steadfast representatives from the diverse Music Community of Kansas City: Jazz shows 7 days a week hosted by professional Jazz Musicians; Reggae Shows throughout the week hosted by Reggae Royalty, Folk and Americana shows all week long hosted by folk musicians with decades of performances; Blues shows hosted by women & men who dearly love and live in KC’s enduring and nationally recognized blues community. Music shows that celebrate Independent, Local, Alternative, Soul and R&B, Punk, Hip Hop, Electronic, Vinyl Only, Glam Rock, New Wave, Rockabilly, Tejano, Classical, K-Pop, LIVE!, Gospel, New!, World, Experimental, Old-Timey, House, Country, Heavy Metal, and so much more. Every show is produced, engineered and hosted by a real live person on the other end of the telephone.

90.1 FM is a miracle in broadcasting because hundreds of volunteers and active members keep it alive with their passion for the possibilities of radio, our most accessible media, available online, but also over the airwaves from our 100,000 watt tower that we own as a station and non-profit membership based organization.

Please help us survive. Reports show that 1 to 10 percent of listeners actually give back and donate in support of community radio. With your donation, YOU are the funder of something 100 other people will enjoy (for free) because of your donation. You are helping to build our community. – Please donate. Thank you!

For Mará Williams, D. Rashaan Gilmore, Dwight Frizzell, I’m Mark Manning. Thanks for listening! Thank you to everyone for donating!

11:54 – WMM Plays More New & MidCoastal Releases

Field Daze – “Circles”
from: “Circles” – Single / Field Daze / June 5 2026
[Produced, mixed, and mastered by Ian Dobyns at Element Recording Studios. Field Daze released the singles: “Shade of Blue” on April 3, 2026, “Hula Girl” on March 3, 2026, “Hate Me” on March 9, 2026, “Melona 99” on March 8, 2026. // Field Daze, is an Indie Rock/Dreampop band, originated in KCMO when Rodd Fenton & Dan Camino responded to a Facebook call to start a Dreampop band. Their collaboration led to the creation of early demos. Shortly after, they were joined by Tracer Cauy, Kyer Lasswell, & Beau Harris, solidifying the band’s lineup. // Their magnetic sound quickly found a home in the KC music community, playing The Rino, The Ship, and The Bottleneck. Field Daze’s live performances became synonymous with an immersive musical experience, drawing in crowds with their captivating melodies. // Currently, the band channels their creativity by recording homegrown tracks within Rodd Fenton’s personal studio, honing their craft and evolving their unique sound. More Info at: http://www.fielddazekc.com

[Field Daze play Wednesday Wave on the Grinder’s Patio, tonight, June 10, 6 – 9:00pm, hosted by Joshua James & The First Aid Kit, w/ Maddie Lai & comedy from Reagan Rose, & Mitchell Harmon.]

Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now”
from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]

Next week, on Wednesday, June 17 We welcome Sara Bellum and the Brainwaves and feaure their new single, “Manic Pixie Dream Girl”. And we talk with Warren Williams host and producer of 90.1 FM’s Dub’s Groove who will be doing his last show on June 24.

You can find our playlists at: http://www.wednesdaymiddaymedley.org & http://www.kkfi.org
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM
http://www.instagram.wednesday_midday_medley

THANK YOU to everyone who donated to KKFI’a Winter Fund Drive during WMM we had a total of 49 individuals donated $3924.00 going way over our show goal!

Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information.
Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org

Wednesday MidDay Medley in on the web:
http://www.kkfi.org,
http://www.WednesdayMidDayMedley.org,
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM

Show #1151

WMM Playlist from June 3, 2026

Posted on June 5, 2026 by Mark Manning

Wednesday MidDay Medley
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning

Wednesday, June 3, 2026

WMM presents: David Brighton of David Brighton’s SPACE ODDITY + Jocelyn Olivia Nixon + Stephonne

“It’s Showtime Folks”
from: Motion Picture Soundtrack to All That Jazz / Universal / Dec. 20, 1979
[WMM’s theme]

The Forcefields – “The Symphony Of All Things”
from: Symphony Of All Things / Frickin’ Awesome Records / June 6, 2026
[Debut 9-track album from The Forcefields is a cosmosonic collaboration between Julia Othmer and James T Lundie AKA Aayama & Max Forcefield. The Forcefields made their first debut with the presentation TRANSMISSION for the Charlotte Street Foundation series, In(SITE), highlighting local, regional, and national acts at pivotal points in their practices. In a multidisciplinary collaboration with artists Simon Huntley, Sarah Hearn, and Mikal Shapiro, Transmission was an exploration of cosmic vibrations and soundscapes in a stunning one-night-only production. // Julia Othmer grew up in Kansas City and studied at Columbia University in New York City. The child of European refugees, she draws from a broad and richly cultured palette of experience to create her intensely human yet otherworldly songs. Her piano-driven performances are a mesmerizing and superconscious fusion of raw power, vocal artistry and joy. She played many local KC clubs including Jardine’s and Bar Natasha. Julia moved to Los Angeles in 2006 to record her 1st album, OASIS MOTEL. When Julia started planning to record her second album she traveled all the way to England to work with producer James Lundie. On a dark night in North London, singer-songwriter Julia Othmer landed on the front steps of producer-composer James T Lundie. She had been introduced to his music production and fell so deeply in love with his sonic architecture, she transported herself across the proverbial pond from LA to the UK, and refused to leave until he listened to her songs. This began a deeply creative and inspired partnership both in music and in life. Together they have released (under Julia’s name) studio recordings, live recordings, short films to accompany their work, a multi-media performance experience, and multiple social and environmental justice initiatives. James T. Lundie married Julia in January of 2016, during the completion of the record. The album “Sound,” was released on April 12, 2019. Leading up to the 2020 presidential election Julia & James released Seeds (Vol. 1) in 2020, and SEEDS (Vol. 2) in 2022. In the midst of these releases Julia and James relocated to Kansas City. Last year in April of 2024 Julia and James unveiled their newest creation, THE FORCEFIELDS featuring, reimagined vintage synthesizers, video projections, one of a kind instruments. // In 2021 Julia and James relocated to KC, and they recently unveiled their newest creation, a new expanding sonic & visual aesthetic called THE FORCEFIELDS. Their sound is evolving into what is described as Annie Lennox hosting a full moon party with The Beach Boys and Portishead gathered round the fire. Their studio recordings feature James’ unique sonic tools, reimagined vintage synthesizers, audireting and distilling the essence of two of Julia’s previous songs.]

[The Forcefields have been playing shows in France and UK and will be coming back to KC this summer.]

Boards of Canada – “Deep Time”
from: Inferno / Warp / May 29, 2026
[Laced with occult imagery and enigmatic samples, the Scottish duo’s immersive new album—their first in 13 years—offers some of the most captivating music of their career.- Pitchfork // Boards of Canada are a Scottish electronic music duo consisting of brothers Mike Sandison and Marcus Eoin, active since 1986. The duo’s work, largely influenced by 1970s media, incorporates vintage synthesiser tones, manipulated analog equipment, samples, and hip hop-inspired beats. Critics have described their music as exploring themes related to nostalgia, childhood memory, science, environmental concerns, and esoteric subjects. // After releasing several early EPs, the group signed to Warp Records in 1998 and released their debut album Music Has the Right to Children to widespread critical acclaim; it is now considered a landmark album in electronic music. This was followed by their second studio album Geogaddi (2002), which adopted a darker tone and references to religious cults and the occult. Their third studio album The Campfire Headphase (2005), emphasized more organic instrumentation and conventional song structures. After a seven-year hiatus, the duo returned with their fourth studio album Tomorrow’s Harvest (2013), which drew inspiration from film scores. A thirteen-year hiatus followed before the release of their fifth studio album Inferno (2026). // Boards of Canada have been regarded as “one of the best-known and best-loved electronic acts” of their era. They are credited as a pioneering group in the intelligent dance music (IDM) and hauntology movements. The duo have been described as cryptic and reclusive; they have made extensive use of subliminal messaging and unconventional promotional methods, and rarely grant interviews or appear publicly, having not performed live since 2001. // Inferno is the fifth studio album by Scottish electronic music duo Boards of Canada, released on 29 May 2026 by Warp. It is the duo’s first studio album in thirteen years, following Tomorrow’s Harvest (2013). An electronic and ambient album described as IDM and hauntology, the album was noted as the duo’s response to a darker zeitgeist, with allusion to biblical themes, spirituality, and the occult. Recorded at Hexagon Sun studio in Pentland Hills, Scotland, its instrumentation contains guitars, live drums, and synths, adopting a live sound and prominently including sampled vocals. Members Mike Sandison and Marcus Eoin are credited on the album as instrumentalists and sound designers, with all production and writing on a majority of the album’s tracks credited solely to Sandison. // The Skinny wrote that the first half contained prominent voice sampling, while the second half focused more on synths. The Wall Street Journal reports that around half of the album’s tracks are solely instrumentals. Much of the album alludes to biblical themes, spirituality, and the occult. The album was recorded at the duo’s Hexagon Sun studio in Pentland Hills, Scotland. // The instrumentation of Inferno features guitars, live drums, heavy synths, adopting a live sound. The music of the album has been compared to that of Brian Eno, the Avalanches, and Mogwai. “Prophecy at 1420 MHz” has live drums and guitar, “Hydrogen Helium Lithium Leviathan” is based on heavy synths, and “Somewhere Right Now in the Future” takes a dream pop style. “Naraka”, named for the Sanskrit term for “Hell”, has droning synths, “Memory Death” contains buzzing flies and what has been described as an inhaling chime or beeping, and “Into the Magic Land” has been described as post-rock. “Deep Time” features strings and tympani, “Arena Americanada” takes on an early IDM style with heavy synths, and “I Saw Through Platonia” is based on a recording of the human heartbeat. // Of the voice sampling prominent in the album: “Prophecy at 1420 MHz” features the voice of Islamic scholar Seyyed Hossein Nasr describing God as “the ultimate resonance”, “Age of Capricorn” begins with references to the Antichrist and Osama bin Laden, transitioning into a sample of a Christian sermon, and “Father and Son” contains a conversation from the 1971 film The Jesus Trip in which a man declares to his father that he loves the Lord “more than any physical being”. “Naraka” features Hare Krishna chanting, “The Word Becomes Flesh” features a woman describing embryo development, “All Reason Departs” features a sampled recording quoting Aleister Crowley, and “The Process” features words from a female synthesised voice transitioning from panic to babble.]

TheBabeGabe X The Human – “FUTURISTIC LOVERS”
from: HONEYPOP / Seven Rings Media / March 5, 2025
[One of two full length albums released in 2025 by TheBabeGabe, the other being HONEYPOP Reloaded on Seven Rings Media released August 8, 2025. March 5, 2025, both with production by The Human // After years of being the girl in the band, TheBabeGabe is stepping out, and standing ten toes down. As she dives into her solo career, Gabe brings the same sugary raps and addicting energy that she did as 1/3 of the alt-rap trio BLACKSTARKIDS. This time though, she’s telling her story, and forging a fresh start. The debut mixtape HONEY POP introduces the world to a young black girl from Kansas City that’s hungry for better things for herself and everyone who looks like her. Her energy is infectious, and you won’t want to be the one standing in her way, which becomes clear from the rowdy hook of the project’s lead single PSA. “It’s in my DNA, killing shit like every day, take this as a PSA, don’t give a fuck ‘bout what you say.” // With BLACKSTARKIDS, Gabe gained experience crushing a stage, opening on tour with The 1975, beabadoobee, Glass Animals, & more. That confidence shines through on braggadocios tracks like Only See Me, Pulse, and Pep Rally where she raps, “hoe shut the fuck up when I’m talking, got a pretty face but this mouth repulsive.” Pulling inspiration from future peers like Doja Cat & Tyler, The Creator, Gabe is quick to prove she isn’t restricted to one sound. There’s no shortage of variety with sticky hooks, soulful ballads, Janelle Monáe -esque pop hits, somber reflective cuts, and boomy west-coast kickbacks. // No song boasts this genre-bending ability better than the double track RIOT GRRL//DRAMA QUEEN. Starting with an inspirational pop-punk banger that could make any Olivia Rodrigo fan nod in approval, it soon turns to the emotional DRAMA QUEEN, seeing Gabe grapple with difficult changes and struggle to find the best way forward. Listening to Gabe can often feel like hanging with your bestie in that you’re getting both the yap sessions about the everyday as well as the venting about life’s drama and all its uncertainties. // These confessions, boasts, hooks, croons, screams, beats, and sounds all come together to create an extraordinary portrait of a young artist figuring it out. It’s an unfiltered showcase that sees Gabe pull back the curtain and step forward so you can meet her where she’s at. So when you listen, you’re seeing her for who she really is. And for many, that’s someone you can see yourself in. That’s TheBabeGabe. // TheBabeGabe was one-third of the Kansas City based BLACKSTARKIDZ Gen-Z upstarts BLACKSTARKIDS have released their sixth studio album Saturn Dayz on Sept. 20, 2024 through Dirty Hit Records and immediately followed with an 8-track 7th studio album HEAVEN ON URF, on Oct. 25, 2024 on Dirty Hit Records. Music writer Bill Brownlee talked with us about how the band created a double album, but the record company decided to release as two separate albums. The music from both albums relate to each other. Before the release of Saturn Dayz the band released their single and video “SOULMATEZ!” on August 30, 2024. “SOULMATEZ!,” is a magnetic, blissed-out bop that brings together pop, indie, and alt-rap, reminiscent of Dev Hynes-era Solange mixed with De La Soul. // The follow up to BLACKSTARKIDS’ acclaimed 2022 album CYBERKISS* which featured standout singles “CYBERKISS 2 U* ft. beabadoobee” and “SEX APPEAL,” SATURN DAYZ is an otherworldly, genre-crossing testament to their unrelenting artistry and is their most impressive work to date. PRESS HERE to pre-save SATURN DAYZ. // Putting out music at a prolific rate and making waves for their formidable songwriting and producing talents, as well as their endless energy and truly limitless sound, BLACKSTARKIDS have received critical acclaim from New York Times, MTV, UPROXX, Billboard, Alternative Press, SPIN, Ones To Watch, Rolling Stone France, The Line Of Best Fit, DIY, Coup De Main, and more. Blending garage rock with synth-punk and hip-hop to usher in a new surge of indie, such as on their beloved album Puppies Forever which features anthemic singles “ALL COPS ARE BASTARDS,” “JUNO,” and “FIGHT CLUB,” BLACKSTARKIDS are well on their way to indie stardom and have previously toured with the likes of The 1975, COIN, Glass Animals, beabadoobee, Christian Leave, GroupLove. // Incorporating each member’s wide-ranging influences into their blissful DIY sound, such as Toro Y Moi, NERD*, Smashing Pumpkins, Weezer, Outkast, Odd Future, and A Tribe Called Quest, BLACKSTARKIDS first captivated the internet with their “black coming of age trilogy” of projects Let’s Play Sports, Surf, and Whatever, Man that feature critically acclaimed singles including “BRITNEY BITCH” and “FRANKIE MUNIZ.” // Blackstarkids are phenomenon who came out of KC in 2020 became the soundtrack for the summer. Members include: TheBabeGabe, Deiondre, and TyFaizon (of the Drop Dead XX collective). The members have known each other since high school in Raytown, Missouri. Members met at Raytown South High School and formed the band in 2019. The group released its first album, Let’s Play Sports, on August 1, 2019. Blackstarkids then released their second album SURF through their own label Bedroom Records on February 28, 2020. Blackstarkids caught the attention of The 1975’s frontman Matty Healy and were then signed to The 1975’s management company and UK-based label Dirty Hit Records. They were featured in Clash Magazine. Blackstarkids then released, Surf Basement Demos on Dirty Hit Records on March 5, 2020. On Oct. 29, 2020, Blackstarkids released Whatever, Man on Dirty Hit Records, their third album release of 2020. Gabe, of Blackstarkids recently described the KC Music community to an interviewer, “The music scene here is really nice. There are a lot of bands who are super talented and do all types of genres. The jazz music here is really great as well. KC is honestly a hidden gem when it comes to music. I feel like you can meet an artist anywhere and anyplace in this city.”]

[TheBabeGabe plays KC Pride Sat, June 6, 5:15pm Main Stage, Theis Park, KCMO ]
[Jamogi plays KC Pride Fest Sat, June 6, 1:30pm Main Stage, Theis Park , KCMO]
[Malek Azreal plays KC Pride Fest Sat, June 6, 6:50pm Main Stage, Theis Park, KCMO ]

ALQ3MY – “3 Amigos”
from: 3 Amigo- Single / Dark Matter Syndicate / August 24, 2025
[ALQ3MY is a genre-blurring R&B trio born out of Kansas City, Missouri, made up of three dynamic vocalists: Ayron Alexander, DeMazjé, and Tah’Lure. Each member brings a unique element-Ayron’s soul-drenched storytelling, DeMazjé’s emotional rawness and range, and Tah’Lure’s polished performance and creative direction. Together, they fuse vulnerability with power, blending nostalgic harmonies, modern production, and spiritual undertones into a sound that feels both ancient and futuristic. // Inspired by the mystique of alchemy and the chemistry of brotherhood, ALQ3MY crafts music that’s cinematic, sensual, and deeply personal. Their songs reflect the journey of transformation-of self, love, and artistry-with lyrics rooted in truth and melodies built to move both heart and body. Whether they re performing live, stacking harmonies in the studio, or pushing boundaries visually, ALQMY isn’t just a group-they’re a movement reshaping what R&B from the Midwest sounds like. // Ayron Alexander is a Virginia-bred, by way of the Midwest, R&B singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose voice is rooted in neo-soul and theatrical passion. After singing in church cheir and performing with a Christian rock band, he discevered his true sound and has since built a dedicated social media following. 119K+ TikTok fans have loved his original tracks including “COLLISIONS,” solidifying his reputation as a powerful and emotionally honest artist. // Now as one-third of ALO3MY, Ayron brings songwriting finesse, vocal depth, and a flair for storytelling that rounds out the group’s sonic identity. His digital presence-filled with inspiring quotes, uplifting messages, and snippets from musical theater-speaks to his mission of using music as a gateway to connection and healing. With his heartfelt artistry and stage-ready energy. Ayron is poised to channel that creative spark into ALQMY’s next wave of fresh, soulful music. // DeMazjé is a rising R&B vocalist and performer from Kansas City, known for his soul-stirring voice and captivating stage presence. With a natural gift for melody and emotion, he brings a raw, heartfelt energy to every performance, blending classic soul with modern-day storytelling. Though new to releasing music, his reputation in the city speaks volumes-he’s a well-respected singer and creative force who’s made waves at major local events like KC PrideFest. // Now one-third of the emerging R&B group ALQMY, DeMazjé steps into a new chapter, joining forces with fellow vocalists Ayron Alexander and Tah’ Lure to create a sound that’s magical, bold, and deeply emotional. With a growing online presence and a strong foundation in live performance, he’s poised to become one of the Midwest’s most magnetic new voices in R&B. // Tah’Lure is a California-born, Kansas City-raised R&B singer. songwriter, and creative powerhouse who’s lived and performed across Atlanta. Omaha, and Tampa. Known for his rich vocals. captivating stage presence, and bold choreography, he’s a multi- hyphenate artist with deep roots in performance and personal style. Whether he’s commanding a stage, directing a creative shoot, or slaying as a master loctician, Tah Lure brings undeniable passion and polish to everything he touches.// Now stepping forward as one-third of the rising R&B trio ALQMY, Tah’ Lure fuels the group with his signature mix of soul, movement, and vision. His vocal tone glides between smooth and raw, weaving real-life emotion into every harmony and verse. With a growing online presence and local aeclaim-including a nomination for Best Male Vocalist-Tah Lure is poised to lead this new era of Midwest R&B with undeniable star power. More info at http://www.alq3my.com ]

[ALQ3MY play VCMN’s Lawrence Pride Kick Off Party, Friday, June 5, at 9:00pm, at Lucia, 1016 Massachustts St., Lawrence, KC w/ Lava dreams, Nova, Romeo, Big Body Caprice, and Kansas Campbell.]

Cheery – “Concept Of Love”
from: Bliss / Spirit House Records / March 20, 2024
[Leading up to the Bliss album release on March 20 , 2024, Cheery released three singles in 2023, from her new home in Liverpool, England, United Kingdom. “True Lover” on July 19, 2023 // “90210 Poster” on August 16, 2023 // “Bliss” on September 20, 2023. All three singles came with fabulous new music videos . Cheery is the “Dream Pop” music project of musician and singer and songwriter Katlyn Conroy, who was formerly based in Lawrence, Kansas. moved 4000 miles away to get married and relocate in Liverpool, England. When she was still based in Lawrence, Kansas, As Cheery, Katlyn released the single “Concept of Love” and b-side, “Vulture” on August 3, 2021, written and performed by Katlyn Conroy, and engineered and mixed by Eric Davis. Katlyn Conroy released SAPPHIRES funder her previous moniker and band, La Guerre through The Record Machine on January 20, 2015. It was #10 on WMM’s 115 Best Recordings of 2015. Katlyn Conroy was also part of the critically acclaimed band, Cowboy Indian Bear. She was the recipient of the 2013 Pitch Music Award for Best Singer-Songwriter. With over 20 years of live performance experiences she has performed alongside Daniel Johnston, Florence and The Machine, Grizzly Bear, Sara Barielles, Why? and more. Katlyn Conroy joined us on WMM on March 4, 2015 and August 26, 2015. More info at: http://www.cheery.bandcamp.com or https://linktr.ee/HearCheery ]

[Cheery plays Birdies, 202 West 18th, KCMO, for First Fridays, June 5, at 7:00pm]

Shakey Graves – “Time Flies”
from: Fondness, Etc. / Dualtone Music Group / May 15, 2026
[Shakey Graves, one of America’s most inventive DIY musicians and singer-songwriters, released his new, highly anticipated home-recorded album, Fondness, Etc. For his fifth record, a woozy work of avant-garde folk and trippy time travel, Graves returns to making music first for himself, now rebalanced through family and fatherhood. Fully embracing change, whether graceful or not, for us all it is an inevitability. Out now, on Secret Identity / Dualtone Record. // On his fifthness, Etc., Graves reflects on the quiet grief and gratitude that come with growing up. Featuring nine lived-in songs with a folk-leaning intimacy, the album wrestles with the tension between holding onto who you’ve been and making room for who you’re becoming, as time and the people in our lives inevitably reshape us. Produced by Graves and captured on a pair of tascam tape machines in a focused one-month stretch in his home studio, the enchantingly lo-fi LP was shaped with the help of assorted musical artifacts, including a possibly haunted 1932 Gibson guitar that survived a bunker fire in World War II. Speaking on the recording process, Graves says, “The endless options of digital recording can be deadly for my creativity. The urge to add, tinker, and perfect is nearly impossible for me to resist, and I easily get lost in the sauce. Catching the foundation of a song on tape means that you have to commit to a sound and accept what might initially be seen as mistakes.” // “When the Love Is New” with its driving tulsa sound beat and brooding alt rock vocal delivery reflects on the nature of the heart. “Time Flies,” is a standout timeless track and a moving cover of Frankie Sunswept’s wistful love song featuring a sonically decadent string quartet. “On My Own” an intimate portrait written about the looming threat of separation with hooky riffs and restrained vocal refrain, partially recorded on Graves’ porch at home, with acclaimed makeshift couch drums and guest performers birds and wind. Closing with “No Place To Be,” Graves imparts timeless folk wisdom over restrained guitar and vocals, making us feel at home even when we feel ruddless in the turbulent waters of life. // Emerging from Austin’s DIY scene as a one-man band armed with a guitar and suitcase kick drum, Graves (who’s also a former actor) built a devoted following through breakthrough releases like Roll the Bones, relentless touring, and imaginative fan-first experiences, a spirit that continues here with a song-first, folk-rooted record grounded in intimacy, imperfection, and quiet emotional clarity.]

[Shakey Graves plays The Truman, 601 East Truman Rd., KCMO, on Friday, June 5, 2026]

The Soul Activators – “Sunset”
from: Sunset – Single / The Soul Activators / March 28, 2025
[The Soul Activators are a 7-piece Kansas City Funk band with Latin rhythms, punchy guitars and beautiful vocal harmonies, specializing in all original funk music. The heart and soul of the band is their explosive percussion. This multi-racial, multi-gender, intergenerational collective reflects the true heart of America’s diversity. Their music is more than entertainment—it’s a message of hope, freedom, and transformation. Known for their high-energy shows, The Soul Activators deliver lyrics that inspire justice, unity, and love. They don’t just play music… they ignite change. Instagram – @thesoulactivators]

[The Soul Activators play the Charlotte Street Block Party – Saturday, June 6, 1:00 to 4:00pm, at 3333 Wyoming, KCMO with Barter Boat sailing in from Minneapolis, Dub Vendors, plus artists collective, games food, and popsicles.]

10:30 – Underwriting

The Creepy Jingles – “Vow Down”
from: Washed Up / Enigmatic Brunch Records / June 6, 2026
[Earlier this year Jocelyn Olivia Nixon shared with us the unreleased single “fight for your say” for our March 4, 2026 radio show. // Last year Jocelyn Olivia Nixon released the single, “YOU AIN’T RIGHT! YOU MUST BE WRONG!” on May 2, 2025. Jocelyn Olivia Nixon is lead singer of the band The Creepy Jungles. The Creepy Jingles are getting ready to release a new alum called WASHED UP coming this spring. Jocelyn told Nick Spacek of The Pitch, “that the songs she presents to her bandmates in The Jingles’ songs are poppier stuff, typically, while solo songs are more folky, mellow, weird, and lyrical. Solo work also gives her the opportunity to work with others outside the group. As Nixon explains, “It’s basically a tongue-in-cheek song making fun of hard right conservatives and social cliques who think only their way is ‘right.’” She said, “I felt like I needed something where I can be a bit more vulnerable and naked, I suppose,” the musician says. “I think because Jingles do rock n roll pop songs well, I think I’m kinda boxed in as an artist and singer. This is my way of saying I have many sides to myself as an individual and as an artist, and I can forge my own path and defy expectations.” // The Creepy Jingles released a series of 4 new singles in 2024 including “When Things Go Wrong” on February 23, 2024. // The Creepy Jingles are a Kansas City based, rock and roll band that both honors and defies convention. Led by singer / song-writer Jocelyn Olivia Nixon, a transgender wordsmith who charms with razor wit and dazzles with her lyrical acrobatics. The Creepy Jingles released their album, TAKE ME AT MY WORDPLAY on March 25, 2022 through High Dive Records. Paired up with lyrics centering on themes of identity, strained relationships, social media madness, meme magic, pandemic paranoia, paid off political pundits, backyard bullies and barking up the wrong tree. Everything and the kitchen sink or swim. No stoner left unturned. The Creepy Jingles released their Debut EP on High Dive Records on May 3, 2019. The release was in the top ten of WMM’s 119 Best Recordings of 2019. ]

[The Creepy Jingles play a WASHED UP Album Release Show, Saturday, June 6, 2026, at 7:00pm at The Greenwood Social Hall, 1750 Belleview Ave, KCMO with Heidi Gluck, and Lauren Lovelle & The Midnight Spliffs.]

10:33 Interview with Jocelyn Olivia Nixon

Jocelyn Olivia Nixon of The Creepy Jingles joins us to talk about her band’s new 11-track album WASHED UP, released May 22, 2026, through Enigmatic Brunch Records. The Creepy Jingles are a Kansas City based, rock and roll band led by Jocelyn Olivia Nixon, a transgender wordsmith who charms with razor wit and dazzles with her lyrical acrobatics. The Creepy Jingles released their album, TAKE ME AT MY WORDPLAY on March 25, 2022 and their self-titled debut EP on May 3, 2019, both through High Dive Records. Blending Brit-pop hooks, garage rock grit, surf shimmer, psychedelia, and sharp-witted storytelling, The Creepy Jingles deliver energetic, genre-defying performances packed with humor, heart, and lyrical acrobatics. The band’s colorful songwriting and beautifully chaotic rock and roll have made them one of KC’s most inventive live acts.

The Creepy Jingles play a WASHED UP Album Release Show, Saturday, June 6, 2026, at 7:00pm at The Greenwood Social Hall, 1750 Belleview Ave, KCMO with Heidi Gluck, and Lauren Lovelle & The Midnight Spliffs.

Jocelyn Olivia Nixon thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

WASHED UP was written by Jocelyn Nixon, and recorded, engineered, and mixed by Paul Malinowski at Massive Sounds Studios in Shawnee, Kansas, with Jocelyn Olivia Nixon on lead vocals, piano, rhythm guitar; Andrew Woody on bass; Nick Robertson on drums; and Wills Van Doorn on lead guitars.

The Creepy Jingles line up originally included “Drummer Nick Robertson charges the group forward with a fiery fueled obsidian backbeat. Andrew Woody on bass guitar; Rounding out the band is Guitarist Travis McKenzie who generously spins a holographic spectrum of color that lift the catchy Brit pop melodies that effortlessly dance about the rapidly changing landscapes of New York Garage Rock and 60s/70s folk music. “

The Band line-up for the Washed Up album includes:

Jocelyn Olivia Nixon on vocals, piano, and guitar
Wills Van Doorn on guitar
Andrew Woody on bass
Nick Robertson on drums

The new tracks were recorded and mixed by Paul Malinowski.
Mastered by Zack Hames

The Creepy Jingles social Media Links
Facebook @CreepyJingles
Instagram @thecreepyjingles
http://www.highdivekc.com/bands/the-creepy-jingles

Jocelyn Olivia Nixon wrote this on Facebook on February 27, 2026

Right before I started my band, I had taken 2 years off from the stage to put my life in order after transitioning. I felt it was important to honor such a huge experience. I was nervous to be my true self on stage and talk and sing loud for the first time in my life and it was because I feared judgement and acceptance. It took me a long time just to accept myself then I had to do it under a spotlight on stage and awkwardly transition in public working retail.
I faced challenge after challenge
I sang don’t let me go
because I knew I was gonna lose people.
I knew it would be hard.
But I also knew I was strong.
I got over that fear because I knew I deserved a better me.
That the people that loved me deserved a better me.
I’ve faced discrimination at work.
I’ve had to defend myself in spaces where I have had no allies. I advocated for myself when no one would, but that taught me so much.
I learned to trust my own inner voice above all else.
I learned to get comfortable trying to find my way in the dark. To speak up when I knew it would win me no favors. I had to be real and get real because for too long in my life I ignored that voice that told me to fit in and just get along. Make everybody happy. Get in line and shut up but I couldn’t keep up the charade.
I transitioned because I was unhappy. I was so depressed. I was losing hope to live because I was living an illusion. I
hated pretending or feigning that I was ok just to make others feel more comfortable. I resented being told I should make do and accept things as they were and be who they wanted me to be. I didn’t want to be a fraud to myself so I did the scary thing and decided to take care of me and be honest. To truly be brutally honest with myself and with others. To be the one to
Say the thing that no one was saying. Not to cause waves but because it had to be said. To me my truth was always more important than me being liked or being accepted. Even before transitioning
being me has always made me enemies
And It has lost me support
But I can look proudly at myself when I see my reflection in the mirror. I can say I truly know myself and I won’t compromise my authenticity because someone feels threatened by my truth.
In embracing myself, imagine my surprise
that It has also attracted many amazing friends, allies, and colleagues that I dearly treasure.
I’m so thankful to the local music community kc/ Lawrence for supporting me as a person and a musician/ artist. You’ve given me a space where I not only feel accepted but celebrated and I’m fortunate that we have real leaders in this community who give everyone a fair shake especially when you don’t fit the mold. You have always vouched for me and championed us as a band. I’m grateful for every opportunity and every stage I’ve stepped on. Thank you for letting me be me and allowing me to share my soul with you.
transitioning saved my life
The Creepy Jingles, my songs they are my refuge. Making music / writing words is my outlet to deal with all the complex feelings and experiences I’ve gone through. It helps me to make sense of a crazy world that is determined to misunderstand me.I’m just trying to alchemize all my pain into something beautiful.
This is my therapy. This is my joy.
Operating in authenticity isn’t easy.
Sometimes you make the right choice for you and that draws opposition from people who are scared and don’t understand.
Sometimes confusion breeds hatred.
Today I woke up thinking it was just another day.
It was not.
I had no idea my whole foundation was gonna immediately be ripped out from under me.
I have challenges ahead
I have obstacles
But we all have hills to climb
and roads to hoe.
We persist despite the horrors
Roughly about 1800 transgender Kansans were affected by this cruel decision of the Kansas state legislature, to invalidate such a small and vulnerable minority of their own constituents. The message is clear. We are not welcome.
I might not have a big platform
but I got – a platform
and while I do
While I have air in my lungs and blood in my heart, I WILL FIGHT
No one tells me who I am
I ask that you speak up and stand up with us if you value your own autonomy and you see injustice in the world today.
To do the right thing especially when it’s the hard and scary thing.
My name is Jocelyn Olivia Nixon.
I am a singer
I am a songwriter
I am a transwoman.
I am a human being
I am an indomitable spirit
I am not settling to survive
I am aiming to thrive
If you have a transgender family member and they are scared right now please let them know they are not alone. I’m here for them if they need to talk or need an ear and I have a song or two for them if they need some small comfort or distraction.
It’s the least I could do.
It’s who I was born to be

The Creepy Jingles played an Album Release Show at Replay Lounge in Lawrence, KS on Friday, May 29, with Thimstr, Teri Quinn and The Coyotes

The Creepy Jingles opened for Hello Biplane for their KC Album Release show at The Brick, 1727 McGee St., KCMO, on Friday, April 10 with The Kansas City Bear Fighters

The Creepy Jingles played miniBar, 3810 Broadway, KCMO on Friday, February 6, 2026 with Joel vs Joel, Eradicats, and Juliette Frost.

Artists on Enigmatic Brunch Records:
Joel vs Joel
Eggs On Mars
Wills Van Doorn

Enigmatic Brunch Records is a Midwestern small-batch record label. We’re a baby label junior!
enigmaticbrunch@gmail.com

10:42

The Creepy Jingles – “Go Tell Others”
from: Washed Up / Enigmatic Brunch Records / June 6, 2026
[New 11-track album was written by Jocelyn Nixon, and recorded, engineered, and mixed by Paul Malinowski at Massive Sounds Studios in Shawnee, Kansas, with Jocelyn Olivia Nixon on lead vocals, piano, rhythm guitar; Andrew Woody on bass; Nick Robertson on drums; and Wills Van Doorn on lead guitars. // Jocelyn Olivia Nixon is lead singer of the band The Creepy Jungles. Jocelyn told Nick Spacek of The Pitch, “that the songs she presents to her bandmates in The Jingles’ songs are poppier stuff, typically, while solo songs are more folky, mellow, weird, and lyrical. Solo work also gives her the opportunity to work with others outside the group. As Nixon explains, “It’s basically a tongue-in-cheek song making fun of hard right conservatives and social cliques who think only their way is ‘right.’” She said, “I felt like I needed something where I can be a bit more vulnerable and naked, I suppose,” the musician says. “I think because Jingles do rock n roll pop songs well, I think I’m kinda boxed in as an artist and singer. This is my way of saying I have many sides to myself as an individual and as an artist, and I can forge my own path and defy expectations.” Jocelyn Nixon’s next single, “Real Deal,” is due later this summer . // The Creepy Jingles released a series of 4 new singles in 2024 including “When Things Go Wrong” on February 23, 2024. // The Creepy Jingles are a Kansas City based, rock and roll band that both honors and defies convention. Led by singer / song-writer Jocelyn Olivia Nixon, a transgender wordsmith who charms with razor wit and dazzles with her lyrical acrobatics. The Creepy Jingles released their album, TAKE ME AT MY WORDPLAY on March 25, 2022 through High Dive Records. Paired up with lyrics centering on themes of identity, strained relationships, social media madness, meme magic, pandemic paranoia, paid off political pundits, backyard bullies and barking up the wrong tree. Everything and the kitchen sink or swim. No stoner left unturned. The Creepy Jingles released their Debut EP on High Dive Records on May 3, 2019. The release was in the top ten of WMM’s 119 Best Recordings of 2019. ]

10:44 – More Interview with Jocelyn Olivia Nixon

Jocelyn Olivia Nixon of The Creepy Jingles joins us to talk about her band’s new 11-track album WASHED UP, released May 22, 2026, through Enigmatic Brunch Records. WASHED UP was written by Jocelyn Nixon, and recorded, engineered, and mixed by Paul Malinowski at Massive Sounds Studios in Shawnee, Kansas, with Jocelyn Olivia Nixon on lead vocals, piano, rhythm guitar; Andrew Woody on bass; Nick Robertson on drums; and Wills Van Doorn on lead guitars. The Creepy Jingles are a Kansas City based, rock and roll band led by Jocelyn Olivia Nixon, a transgender wordsmith who charms with razor wit and dazzles with her lyrical acrobatics. The Creepy Jingles released their album, TAKE ME AT MY WORDPLAY on March 25, 2022 and their self-titled debut EP on May 3, 2019, both through High Dive Records. Blending Brit-pop hooks, garage rock grit, surf shimmer, psychedelia, and sharp-witted storytelling, The Creepy Jingles deliver energetic, genre-defying performances packed with humor, heart, and lyrical acrobatics. The band’s colorful songwriting and beautifully chaotic rock and roll have made them one of KC’s most inventive live acts.

Jocelyn Olivia Nixon thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

From The Pitch KC June 19, 2019 Nick Spacek: “Jocelyn Olivia Nixon was part of the band Abracadabras, that was active around Kansas City from 2006 to 2009 or so. Nixon fronted the band, which also included brothers Collin and Kyle Rausch, who now play in the pop act Shy Boys. “

Jocelyn Olivia Nixon told Nick Spacek in an article published in The Pitch KC on June 19, 2019, “That was, like, the first band,” Nixon says. “I’d been writing songs since I was probably about 22, and that was our first band together. So it was like we all grew up together … Once I went to Austin, I felt like it was time for me to stand on my own.”

“I’d left [Kansas City] to work on my marriage,” Nixon continues. “My wife at the time was offered a job and I figured, Yeah, Austin, great music city. I should see what happens. A music city like Austin was the silver lining in moving away from my band.”

The marriage hit the skids a few years in, but Nixon continued writing music. She released a solo project called English Major, a divorce record of sorts. Five years in, though, everything finally seemed to come to a head.

“The traffic, the cost of living — our rent went up $750,” Nixon says. “It was almost impossible to stay. I was like, Why am I killing myself to do this? I was also starting to come to terms with my own personal identity, and it blew into this existential crisis, where I was like, I can’t keep this bottled up anymore.”

Being “bottled up” was Nixon acknowledging her recent transition into life as a woman, a process she’d started early during her time in Austin.

“Tweezing my eyebrows, laser hair removal, therapy, going out more in femme,” she says — but largely abandoned after her marriage fell apart and she stepped into a new relationship. But the desire to transition hadn’t gone away; Nixon was just burying it.
“I was depressed to the point where I kind of — there’s that line in ‘Yer Blues,’ where John Lennon’s like, Feel so suicidal/ Even hate my rock & roll.’ I was like, ‘Oh, I get that line,’”

Nixon says. “I didn’t ever feel like I was going to commit suicide, but I had this fantasy of faking my death and becoming a new person, which was all sort of leading me to transition, but I was just miserable and I just didn’t want to be around it.”

She decided to leave Austin and return to KC, though moving back home as she transitioned wasn’t something Nixon was initially eager to do. “I thought it was scarier to move back,” she says. But then she realized that, as she says, “I needed to do this in front of the people I grew up with, and have those tough conversations, and tell them who I really am and how I really feel. It felt like the most honest way to do things, and it felt like the most authentic way to bridge my past to my present.”

Nixon started hormones and came out as a woman after she moved back home to KC. She says everyone’s been cool about it — tons of support.

“When I came out, I felt stupid, because I was like, ‘I should’ve done this sooner,’” she says. “An immediate weight lifted off of me, just from carrying the weight of that consuming all my mental faculties at all times. It just shot my nervous system.”

Nixon had quit playing music toward the end of her time in Austin, and she gave herself a few years during her transition to “get my head right and heal from a breakup, and also, approaching this new phase in my life,” as she puts it. But she kept writing songs.

She started jamming with Nick Robertson, a drummer. Then they brought in Travis McKenzie, a former Abracadabras guitarist, and the Creepy Jingles were born. They played around for a few years and then, last year, began recording what would become their debut self-titled EP.

“We took it slow, doing it like, once a week, and then once fall rolled around, we were like, ‘Let’s record some things,’” Nixon says. They took the music to Ross Brown, another Shy Boy, who recorded & mixed the EP in his basement. Collin Rausch ended up playing bass.

“It was kind of like a little family reunion,” Nixon says of reuniting with old bandmates.

Nick Spacek wrote: The EP was released on High Dive Records at the beginning of May. It’s confident and exuberant, a Kinksy mishmash of Britpop garage rock”.

She says. I felt like I had to adopt a mask or a character to protect myself a little bit onstage. Now it feels very me, and I’m very comfortable.”

The Creepy Jingles self titled debut EP was released on High Dive Records on May 3, 2019
Ross Brown of (Shy Boys and Full Bloods) recorded & mixed the EP at escape Pod Audio.
Mike Nolte Mastered the recordings at Eureka Mastering. EP credits give special thanks to: Collin Rausch and Kyle Rausch of Shy Boys

The Creepy Jingles released the stand alone single, “Throwing In The Femme Fatale” on Nov. 18, 2021. As lead singer Jocelyn Olivia Nixon, who is a transgender woman, told 90.9 The Bridge, “This is one of those songs we wanted to make space for and share because it was a favorite little oddball of ours, it’s a bit outside the box of what we normally do.” Nixon continued, “I wrote it to appear vague enough where it could be about a song, idea or a person that gets stuck inside your crawl space,” the song was about her own mindset before transitioning. “…This overwhelming thought about showing the world who I really was, because I couldn’t ignore it anymore.”

From FALLY AFANI, I Heart Local Music (June 22, 2019) “The Creepy Jingles are really throwing us for a loop. Like, we know garage rock is supposed to sound raw and a little loose. But The Creepy Jingles are so on point with their craft, we’re not entirely comfort-able with picturing them as some laid back group of rockers. Every. Single. Note. Is. Perfect. When The Creepy Jingles play, it sounds like they practice every single day. They don’t miss a single thing! Every note in every song is spot on, we haven’t heard a group of rockers this tight with their performance in ages. When they hit the Replay for their album release show Thursday night, it was hard to look away. Jocelyn Olivia Nixon runs a tight ship with this group. They began the set with her pounding away at the keys, leaving a throbbing urge for more of their exciting rock noise. Then, when they fully dove into their impeccable guitar work, the audience was also treated to her gnarly-as-hell vocals. The growls, the screams, the RAWNESS of it all brings out our most primal emotions.”

Jocelyn Olivia Nixon is Community Organizer at Bandwaggn Kansas City
Jocelyn Olivia Nixon is Singer/ Songwriter/ Guitar/ Keys at The Creepy Jingles
Jocelyn Olivia Nixon is Singer-songwriter at English Major
Jocelyn Nixon Studied Filming/Directing/Acting/writing at The Art Institute of Austin
Jocelyn Nixon Studied Studied Broadcasting & Film at University of Central Missouri
Jocelyn Nixon Studied Studied Creative Writing in English at Missouri State University
Jocelyn Nixon went to Blue Springs South High School

Jocelyn Olivia Nixon thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

10:54

The Creepy Jingles – “All Because of You”
from: Washed Up / Enigmatic Brunch Records / June 6, 2026
[New 11-track album was written by Jocelyn Nixon, and recorded, engineered, and mixed by Paul Malinowski at Massive Sounds Studios in Shawnee, Kansas, with Jocelyn Olivia Nixon on lead vocals, piano, rhythm guitar; Andrew Woody on bass; Nick Robertson on drums; and Wills Van Doorn on lead guitars. // Jocelyn Olivia Nixon is lead singer of the band The Creepy Jungles. Jocelyn told Nick Spacek of The Pitch, “that the songs she presents to her bandmates in The Jingles’ songs are poppier stuff, typically, while solo songs are more folky, mellow, weird, and lyrical. Solo work also gives her the opportunity to work with others outside the group. As Nixon explains, “It’s basically a tongue-in-cheek song making fun of hard right conservatives and social cliques who think only their way is ‘right.’” She said, “I felt like I needed something where I can be a bit more vulnerable and naked, I suppose,” the musician says. “I think because Jingles do rock n roll pop songs well, I think I’m kinda boxed in as an artist and singer. This is my way of saying I have many sides to myself as an individual and as an artist, and I can forge my own path and defy expectations.” Jocelyn Nixon’s next single, “Real Deal,” is due later this summer . // The Creepy Jingles released a series of 4 new singles in 2024 including “When Things Go Wrong” on February 23, 2024. // The Creepy Jingles are a Kansas City based, rock and roll band that both honors and defies convention. Led by singer / song-writer Jocelyn Olivia Nixon, a transgender wordsmith who charms with razor wit and dazzles with her lyrical acrobatics. The Creepy Jingles released their album, TAKE ME AT MY WORDPLAY on March 25, 2022 through High Dive Records. Paired up with lyrics centering on themes of identity, strained relationships, social media madness, meme magic, pandemic paranoia, paid off political pundits, backyard bullies and barking up the wrong tree. Everything and the kitchen sink or swim. No stoner left unturned. The Creepy Jingles released their Debut EP on High Dive Records on May 3, 2019. Was in the Top 10 of WMM’s 119 Best Recordings of 2019. ]

Octo Octa – “Eighth Intention (Turn The Wheel)”
from: Sigils For Survival / T4T LUV NRG/ April 30, 2026
[Written and Produced by Maya Bouldry-Morrison. Mastering by Carl at TruTone. Artwork by Hope Morrison. Layout by João Ervedosa // Acclaimed producer, DJ, and dancefloor healer Octo Octa (Maya Bouldry-Morrison) announces her fourth full-length album, Sigils For Survival. Following 2013’s Between Two Selves, 2017’s Where Are We Going?, and 2019’s Resonant Body, the new record marks a decade since Maya publicly came out as transgender in November 2015. // “As an autobiographical artist, I set out to write an album that would be a milestone for this past decade of joy and sorrow,” Maya explains. “Sigils For Survival is my attempt to encapsulate the intentions and techniques that I used to move through life into a spell.” // For each of the record’s eight tracks, Maya drew a sigil. Each is a personal symbol intended to “bind magic to the song and seal its intention.” These drawings appear throughout the physical edition’s design. Maya’s sister, New York artist Hope Morrison, incorporated each sigil into her original paintings, which comprise the album’s vivid artwork. Hope Morrison, whose imagery translates the sigils’ energy into vivid form; the layout was designed by João Ervedosa. // Created entirely on hardware instruments and later mixed in Logic, Sigils For Survival captures the tactile immediacy of live performance. Maya preserved the feel of MIDI-clock drift and off-grid recording, letting her machines interact in the rhythmic pocket, rather than confirming them to a click. Alongside her signature deep, ecstatic electronics, the album features hand-played dulcimer, hand-pan, and recorder. Her voice also returns, carrying spells of love, protection, and transformation. // Across Sigils For Survival, Octo Octa channels the ecstatic house lineage into an intimate ritual space. The music speaks of immediacy, play, and communion — of magic as method, love as survival, and sound as spellcraft. // The album closes with a poem Maya wrote while finishing the record:
I commit my voice to complete this spell
An artifact binding the seal
Pushing the incantation to turn again
In effort now to heal
Alchemical messages spun in song
Wheel open the door
Ten years of finally living life
I’ll fight to conjure more

Sigils For Survival is both a document of ten years lived fully and an invocation for the next chapter — a glowing testament to music’s power to protect, transform, and set the spirit free. ]

11:00 – Station ID

Stephonne – “Papa John”
from: “Papa John (radio edit)” – Single / Glory Blue Music / May 20, 2025
[“Stephonne is reimagining what it means to be a Black musician in Kansas City, disrupting outdated narratives with music that celebrates fluidity, theatricality, and freedom. Their art is multidimensional, relentless, and ambitious, drawing inspiration from other pockets of pop music.” – Lyrical Odyssey // May 20th, 2026 (New York, NY): Fearless alternative/genrequeer singersongwriter, producer and multi-disciplinary artist Stephonne has debuted their new single, “Papa John”. A funky pop art joyride of sexual liberation, they delivers us a sonic smorgasbord. Innuendo laden and cheeky, Parliament meets Doja Cat on a Studio 54 dance floor. Over a percolating beat and playful bass synth, grit, guts and go-go simmer. “Papa John” is inimitably Stephonne. Their artistic voice here is singular, however lushly layered, and the freest we’ve heard it yet.// “In the age of A.I. it’s more important than ever to show up as perfectly imperfect and as fully as possible. Listening to this song is like freebasing me. You’re experiencing me at my purest, loosest, most raw, and in full-on play mode. Every part of creating this song was fun. It felt like a celebration and still does. I’m excited to party with everybody. Right now, we need humor and joy. We need to dance and free ourselves. Revolution can be sexy. It may even be necessary. In the midst of so much pain, it’s easy to forget about pleasure. We aren’t just here to procreate. Please be safe and get tested, but don’t forget to spice up your life. Food is not the only thing that’s better with seasoning, sis. That goes for all of us, no matter the countless ways we separate ourselves. We have more in common than we don’t. God and sex are two of the biggest things we do. God used it to create my gay ass just like He used it to create you. Can we move on to something important? You know, like stopping WWIII and A.I. armageddon? Persecuting LGBTQ people won’t stop either of those or those in power from coming for you next. Unclench, folks. Life is so much more enjoyable. The gays can show you how, honey! We can also show you how to survive, thrive, and persevere because we continue to through it all.” – Stephonne // Stephonne takes the helm as songwriter, producer, and artist again. Recent collaborator, Joseph Price (Third Son) adds his assist to amplify the Kansas City native’s potent lyricism and musical instincts. We’ve stepped into an electronic era, but “Papa John” is still punk. Full of humor and audacity, it also recalls and reimagines funk and disco. “Papa John” will live rent free in your head, long after first listen and leave you hungry for Stephonne’s next delivery .// On February 13, 2026 Stephonne released “Bloody Mary” Written, Produced, and Engineered by Stephonne Singleton, Co-Produced, Mixed and Mastered by Joseph T Price. // On August 15, 2025 Stephonne released “Worship at the Chappell: Co-written with Shawn M. Stewart and produced with Patrick Meagher, the song is a declaration of power, pleasure, and pride—a sonic celebration of being fully and freely oneself. “Worship at the Chappell” is a bold, genre-bending anthem from Kansas City artist Stephonne—an electrifying fusion of disco, pop, and gospel spirit. Inspired by fellow Missouri native Chappell Roan, the track transforms the dance floor into a sanctuary for queer joy, spiritual liberation, and unapologetic self-love. With soaring vocals, provocative lyrics, and infectious grooves, Stephonne delivers a soulful sermon for the marginalized. // Stephonne describes himself as the lovechild of Prince & Billie Holiday. He grew up in KCK and received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music from Benedictine College, and Masters in Entertainment Business from Full Sail University. Stephonne is a 2023 winner of the Charlotte Street Generative Performing Arts Fellows. // Stephonne is an Alternative/Genrequeer singer-songwriter, cultural producer, and generative performing artist from Kansas City, MO. They synthesize music, written/spoken word, performance and visual art/media into an inimitable art. They share their struggles, triumphs, and journey to self-love through multidisciplinary performance and have sent audiences on visceral and experiential journeys through a multitude of music and video releases since 2015. Bold new 2025 singles and videos continue to push boundaries! New experiences, both sonic and visual, await us from the upcoming sophomore LP, STEPHONNE. // Singer, songwriter, actor, model, artist, activist – Stephonne Singleton keeps very busy, serving as a board member of KC Folk Fest, organizing tribute shows, playing: music festivals, Charlotte Street Foundation, Lemonade Park, Lawrence Pride, Manor Records, Midwest Music Foundation, The AIDS Service Foundation of KC, InterUrban ArtHouse, Crossroads Music Fest, The Black Box, The Folly Theatre, and West 18th Street Fashion Show. Stephonne released his EP SIS: Side B on June 24, 2022. Stephonne released the single “I” on August 21, 2024. Stephonne released the single “I think its Gonna Be Alright” I April 2025. Stephonne released the single, Forgive Me, Father (Sinead O’Connor) on May 21, 2025. // More info at: http://www.stephonne.com]

11:03 – Interview with Stephonne

Stephonne returns to discuss his new single, “Papa John” released May 20, 2026. Stephonne released “Bloody Mary” on February 13, 2026 written, produced, & engineered by Stephonne Singleton, co-produced, mixed and mastered by Joseph T Price. Stephonne released “Worship at the Chappell” On August 15, 2025. Co-written with Shawn M. Stewart and produced with Patrick Meagher. Inspired by fellow Missouri native Chappell Roan, the track transforms the dance floor into a sanctuary for queer joy, spiritual liberation, and unapologetic self-love. Stephonne describes himself as the lovechild of Prince & Billie Holiday. He grew up in KCK and received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music from Benedictine College, and Masters in Entertainment Business from Full Sail University. Stephonne is a 2023 recipient of the Charlotte Street Generative Performing Arts Fellows.

“Stephonne is reimagining what it means to be a Black musician in Kansas City, disrupting outdated narratives with music that celebrates fluidity, theatricality, and freedom. Their art is multidimensional, relentless, and ambitious, drawing inspiration from other pockets of pop music.” – Lyrical Odyssey

Stephonne thanks or being with us on WMM

May 20th, 2026 (New York, NY): Fearless alternative/genrequeer singersongwriter, producer and multi-disciplinary artist Stephonne has debuted their new single, “Papa John”. A funky pop art joyride of sexual liberation, they delivers us a sonic smorgasbord. Innuendo laden and cheeky, Parliament meets Doja Cat on a Studio 54 dance floor. Over a percolating beat and playful bass synth, grit, guts and go-go simmer. “Papa John” is inimitably Stephonne. Their artistic voice here is singular, however lushly layered, and the freest we’ve heard it yet.

“In the age of A.I. it’s more important than ever to show up as perfectly imperfect and as fully as possible. Listening to this song is like freebasing me. You’re experiencing me at my purest, loosest, most raw, and in full-on play mode. Every part of creating this song was fun. It felt like a celebration and still does. I’m excited to party with everybody. Right now, we need humor and joy. We need to dance and free ourselves. Revolution can be sexy. It may even be necessary. In the midst of so much pain, it’s easy to forget about pleasure. We aren’t just here to procreate. Please be safe and get tested, but don’t forget to spice up your life. Food is not the only thing that’s better with seasoning, sis. That goes for all of us, no matter the countless ways we separate ourselves. We have more in common than we don’t. God and sex are two of the biggest things we do. God used it to create my gay ass just like He used it to create you.

Can we move on to something important? You know, like stopping WWIII and A.I. armageddon? Persecuting LGBTQ people won’t stop either of those or those in power from coming for you next. Unclench, folks. Life is so much more enjoyable. The gays can show you how, honey! We can also show you how to survive, thrive, and persevere because we continue to through it all.” – Stephonne

On February 13, 2026 Stephonne released “Bloody Mary” Written, Produced, and Engineered by Stephonne Singleton, Co-Produced, Mixed and Mastered by Joseph T Price.

11:12

Stephonne – “Bloody Mary”
from: “Bloody Mary” – Single / Glory Blue Music / February 13, 2026
[Rebellious genre-queer singer-songwriter, producer and multi-disciplinary artist Stephonne has debuted their new single, “Bloody Mary”. The slinky alt-electronic/pop track drips with erotic esotericism. It’s influenced by bands like Portishead, Garbage, She Wants Revenge, and Erotica – Bedtime Stories era Madonna. Stephonne writes, “I was playing Angel in RENT and heard about D’Angelo’s passing right before Halloween. The cast finally had a break from back-to-back shows and my sadness drove me to create that night and remember the power of Voodoo. 25 years later and that album’s energy is still just as potent. I turned on the Devil’s Pie documentary and this track fell from the heavens. “Bloody Mary” was also birthed from my love of witches, New Orleans, Anne Rice’s vampires, and 90s alternative music and nostalgia. I’m telling a story in a new way where I don’t have to choose between being gothic, nerdy, or provocative. I get to be all of those things and more on this record. There’s some very inspiring art coming from artists like JMSN, Slayyyter, and Charli xcx that gives me hope we are finally ready to let our freak flags fly at full mast again. Thank God!” // “Bloody Mary” plays like a Tarantino directed erotic thriller that injects dance floor fever and grunge edge. The clever wordplay and melody we’ve come to expect from Stephonne don’t take a backseat to theatricality here. All three drive Stephonne’s purpose-driven production and vocal power to new heights. Slick, cinematic, dangerous and glossy, this track a must-listen. // Stephonne writes, “Electronic music has helped me take up more space as an artist. I’ll always pledge allegiance to rock music, but I’ve loved experimenting more, letting go, and trusting the music as I hear it first. Listeners are getting more of me in every aspect of my releases and that feels good. I’m understanding my assignment more clearly, sonically, and I’m excited to showcase that through new visuals and LIVE!” // Lyrical Odyssey writes: “Stephonne is reimagining what it means to be a Black musician in Kansas City, disrupting outdated narratives with music that celebrates fluidity, theatricality, and freedom. Their art is multidimensional, relentless, and ambitious, drawing inspiration from other pockets of pop music.” // Stephonne describes himself as the lovechild of Prince & Billie Holiday. He grew up in KCK and received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music from Benedictine College, and Masters in Entertainment Business from Full Sail University. Stephonne is a 2023 winner of the Charlotte Street Generative Performing Arts Fellows. // Stephonne works to synthesize music, written/spoken word, performance and visual art/media into an inimitable art. They share their struggles, triumphs, and journey to self-love through multidisciplinary performance and have sent audiences on visceral and experiential journeys through a multitude of music and video releases. // Stephonne keeps very busy, serving as a board member of KC Folk Fest, organizing tribute shows, playing: music festivals, Charlotte Street Foundation, Lemonade Park, Lawrence Pride, Manor Records, Midwest Music Foundation, The AIDS Service Foundation of KC, InterUrban ArtHouse, Crossroads Music Fest, The Black Box, The Folly Theatre, and West 18th Street Fashion Show. Stephonne released his EP SIS: Side B on June 24, 2022. Stephonne released the single “I” on August 21, 2024. Stephonne released the single “I think it’s Gonna Be Alright” on April 2025. Stephonne released the single, Forgive Me, Father (Sinead O’Connor) on May 21, 2025. Stephonne released the single, “Worship at The Chappell” co-written with Shawn M. Stewart and produced with Patrick Meagher, the song is a declaration of power, pleasure, and pride—a sonic celebration of being fully and freely oneself. “Worship at the Chappell” is a bold, genre-bending anthem from Kansas City artist Stephonne—an electrifying fusion of disco, pop, and gospel spirit. Inspired by fellow Missouri native Chappell Roan, the track transforms the dance floor into a sanctuary for queer joy, spiritual liberation, and unapologetic self-love. With soaring vocals, provocative lyrics, and infectious grooves, Stephonne delivers a soulful sermon for the marginalized. // Stephonne was on WMM on Sept 10, 2025 before his run in RENT playing Angel for Music Theatre Heritage. http://www.stephonne.com]

11:16 – More Interview with Stephonne

Stephonne thanks for being with us on WMM

Stephonne Singleton keeps very busy, serving as a board member of KC Folk Fest, organizing tribute shows, playing: music festivals, Charlotte Street Foundation, Lemonade Park, Lawrence Pride, Manor Records, Midwest Music Foundation, The AIDS Service Foundation of KC, InterUrban ArtHouse, Crossroads Music Fest, The Black Box, The Folly Theatre, and West 18th Street Fashion Show. Stephonne released his EP SIS: Side B on June 24, 2022. He also released the single “I” on August 21, 2024. Stephonne is a 2023 winner of the Charlotte Street Generative Performing Arts Fellows. More info at: http://www.stephonne.com

Stephonne Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Along with your work with KC Folk Fest, you have also worked with Charlotte Street Foundation, Lemonade Park, Lawrence Pride, Manor Records, Midwest Music Foundation, The AIDS Service Foundation of KC, InterUrban ArtHouse, Crossroads Music Fest, The Black Box, The Folly Theatre, and West 18th Street Fashion Show.

Stephonne is a 2023 winner of the Charlotte Street Generative Performing Arts Fellows.

Each Charlotte Street Generative Performing Artist Award receives an unrestricted cash grant of $10,000, recognition by Charlotte Street at the time of the award announcement and throughout 2023. The 2023 Charlotte Street Generative Performing Artist Awards recognize two exceptional artists in the fields of dance, theatre, music, opera, sound art, performance art, multimedia performance, spoken word, puppetry or hybrid performance-based forms. Along with Stephonne Singleton and Tiara Nicole was the other recipients of the 2023 Generative Performing Artist Awards. Since 1997, 29 performing artists and 106 visual artists in the Kansas City region have received this highly regarded award.

All of the 2023 Charlotte Street Award Fellows were selected through competitive processes beginning with open calls for applications from artists based in the five-county Kansas City Metro Area. Artist selections were made by a panel of jurors consisting of renowned and qualified arts professionals. Jurors participated in interviews, presentations, and studio visits, resulting in the selection of 10 finalists for the Generative Performing Artists Awards and 12 finalists for the Visual Artist Awards.

Stephonne’s Statement:

As a generative performance artist and musician, my music is a result of radical and unconditional love that I have for my life and human connection. That love persists, despite living in a world that relishes my artistic contributions but not the color of my skin nor my queerness. It is within this relentless predicament that I find myself, my melodies, and my lyrics. I share my struggles, triumphs, and journey to self-love through performance. I create music and live experiences that break through the boxes of race, gender, social status and genre so that others may see their reflection in my art. All of my musical influences come together to create something inimitable but familiar. Music has always understood me and It is through music that I continue to define and understand myself. I want my audience to feel accepted and understood by my art, to feel seen – and then to better understand themselves and those around them.

Stephonne Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

More info at: http://www.stephonne.com

11:25

Stephonne – “Worship at the Chappell”
from: “Worship at the Chappell” – Single / Glory Blue Music / August 15, 2025
[Co-written with Shawn M. Stewart and produced with Patrick Meagher, the song is a declaration of power, pleasure, and pride—a sonic celebration of being fully and freely oneself. “Worship at the Chappell” is a bold, genre-bending anthem from Kansas City artist Stephonne—an electrifying fusion of disco, pop, and gospel spirit. Inspired by fellow Missouri native Chappell Roan, the track transforms the dance floor into a sanctuary for queer joy, spiritual liberation, and unapologetic self-love. With soaring vocals, provocative lyrics, and infectious grooves, Stephonne delivers a soulful sermon for the marginalized. // Stephonne describes himself as the lovechild of Prince & Billie Holiday. He grew up in KCK and received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music from Benedictine College, and Masters in Entertainment Business from Full Sail University. Stephonne is a 2023 winner of the Charlotte Street Generative Performing Arts Fellows. // Stephonne is an Alternative/Genrequeer singer-songwriter, cultural producer, and generative performing artist from Kansas City, MO. They synthesize music, written/spoken word, performance and visual art/media into an inimitable art. They share their struggles, triumphs, and journey to self-love through multidisciplinary performance and have sent audiences on visceral and experiential journeys through a multitude of music and video releases since 2015. Bold new 2025 singles and videos continue to push boundaries! New experiences, both sonic and visual, await us from the upcoming sophomore LP, STEPHONNE. // Singer, songwriter, actor, model, artist, activist – Stephonne Singleton keeps very busy, serving as a board member of KC Folk Fest, organizing tribute shows, playing: music festivals, Charlotte Street Foundation, Lemonade Park, Lawrence Pride, Manor Records, Midwest Music Foundation, The AIDS Service Foundation of KC, InterUrban ArtHouse, Crossroads Music Fest, The Black Box, The Folly Theatre, and West 18th Street Fashion Show. Stephonne released his EP SIS: Side B on June 24, 2022. Stephonne released the single “I” on August 21, 2024. Stephonne released the single “I think its Gonna Be Alright” I April 2025. Stephonne released the single, Forgive Me, Father (Sinead O’Connor) on May 21, 2025. // Stephonne was on WMMon Sept 10, 2025 before his run in RENT playing Angel for Music Theatre Heritage. More info at: http://www.stephonne.com]

11:27 – Underwriting

David Bowie – “Young Americans – Single version”
from: Young Americans / RCA Records / March 7, 1975
[Young Americans is the ninth studio album by the English musician David Bowie, released on 7 March 1975 through RCA Records. A departure from the glam rock style of previous albums, the record showcased Bowie’s interest in soul and R&B. Music critics have described the sound as blue-eyed soul; Bowie himself labelled the album’s sound “plastic soul”. // Recording sessions began at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia in August 1974, after the first leg of Bowie’s Diamond Dogs Tour. The record was produced by Tony Visconti, and includes a variety of musicians, such as the guitarist Carlos Alomar, who became one of Bowie’s most frequent collaborators, and the backing vocalists Ava Cherry, Robin Clark and then-unknown singer Luther Vandross. As the tour continued the setlist and design began to incorporate the influence of the new material. The recording sessions continued at the Record Plant in New York City at the tour’s end. A collaboration between Bowie and John Lennon yielded a cover of Lennon’s Beatles song “Across the Universe” and an original, “Fame”, during a January 1975 session at Electric Lady Studios, produced by Harry Maslin. The album’s cover artwork is a back-lit photograph of Bowie taken by Eric Stephen Jacobs. // Young Americans was Bowie’s breakthrough in the US, reaching the top 10 on the Billboard chart; “Fame” became Bowie’s first number one hit single. Bowie continued developing its sound on Station to Station (1976). Young Americans has received mixed critical reviews on release and in later decades; Bowie himself had mixed feelings about the album. However, the album proved influential, as Bowie was one of the first white artists of the era to overtly engage with newly emerging black musical styles; other British artists followed suit. The album has been reissued multiple times with outtakes, and was remastered in 2016 as part of the Who Can I Be Now? (1974–1976) box set. // David Bowie released his eighth studio album Diamond Dogs in May 1974. His final album in the glam rock genre, it contained two songs, “Rock ‘n’ Roll with Me” and “1984”, that exhibit elements of funk and soul, which predicted the musical direction for Bowie’s next project. While his interest in soul music dated back to his mod days in the mid-1960s, he began listening to soul records extensively and incorporating soul material into his live sets. In July, towards the end of the first leg of his Diamond Dogs Tour, he performed covers of the soul songs “Knock on Wood” by Eddie Floyd and “Here Today and Gone Tomorrow” by the Ohio Players for shows in Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania; these shows were recorded and released on the live album David Live in October 1974. Bowie had grown tired of the tour’s lavish set-pieces and theatricality and was ready to fully embrace black soul music. // In early 1974, Bowie met the funk guitarist Carlos Alomar, an Apollo Theater session musician who had played with James Brown, Chuck Berry and Wilson Pickett. One of Bowie’s favourite records was Brown’s Live at the Apollo (1963), so meeting a musician who played at the Apollo meant a lot to him. Alomar had never heard of Bowie when they met, but they immediately connected and formed a working relationship that would last almost 15 years; Alomar became Bowie’s guide into American black music. // While in Pennsylvania, Bowie visited Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia to work on recordings with the American musician Ava Cherry.Sigma Sound was the home of Philadelphia soul and the favourite studio of the writer-producer duo Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff; the two had co-founded Philadelphia International Records, the home of many well-known black American musicians. At the end of the first leg of the tour, Bowie returned to New York City to mix David Live, listening to various black albums in preparation for his return to Sigma Sound. // Young Americans features backing vocals from Luther Vandross (pictured in 1985), a then-unknown singer from New York City. For the backing band, Bowie wanted to hire MFSB (“Mother Father Sister Brother”), Sigma Sound’s house band of over 30 session musicians. Due to conflicting schedules, all members were unavailable except the percussionist Larry Washington, so Bowie went to New York City for further recruitment. Mike Garson (piano), David Sanborn (saxophone) and Pablo Rosario (percussion) were retained from the Diamond Dogs Tour, while Earl Slick was replaced by Alomar on guitar. At Alomar’s suggestion, Bowie hired Andy Newmark, a former member of Sly and the Family Stone, and Willie Weeks of the Isley Brothers to replace Tony Newman and Herbie Flowers on drums and bass, respectively. The producer Tony Visconti joined the project immediately after Bowie informed him of Weeks’ involvement;[1][9] Visconti co-produced much of Bowie’s work for the rest of the decade. Cherry, Alomar’s wife Robin Clark, then-unknown singer Luther Vandross, Anthony Hinton and Diane Sumler performed backing vocals for the sessions.

[David Brighton’s SPACE ODDITY, The Quintessential David Bowie Tribute Experience, presented by The Folly Theater, Friday, June 5, at 7:30pm. For more information you can visit: http://www.follytheater.org]

11:32 – Interview with David Brighton

David Brighton brings SPACE ODDITY, The Quintessential David Bowie Tribute Experience, presented to The Folly Theater, this Friday, June 5, at 7:30pm.

Brighton, the leader & founder of SPACE ODDITY has been portraying David Bowie since 2001 and has garnered praise from some of Bowie’s closest companions over the years.

Harry Maslin, the producer of David Bowie’s YOUNG AMERICANS and STATION TO STATION albums has said that, “David Brighton has the voice, moves and look to actually step in for David Bowie if he were unavailable and few would ever know. Experiencing Space Oddity made for a truly remarkable evening”

Brighton’s credits include performing side by side with David Bowie himself in the TV commercials for Vittel Mineral Water and for Reality – Bowie’s CD. Brighton has performed as a resident cast member of the world famous Legends In Concert – the Las Vegas production show. He was also cast to portray David Bowie in the Warner Brothers feature film, The Watchmen. He also appeared as David Bowie on VH-1 television as well as in international pop star Shakira’s concert video.

David Brighton and his amazing band deliver a stunning note-for note theatrical concert event… transporting today’s audiences back in time through some of the most exciting moments in the history of Rock music. Space Oddity – The Quintessential David Bowie Tribute Experience is a live, multi-media spectacle that takes you on a musical journey through the constantly metamorphosing career of Rock and Roll’s most celebrated innovator. For more information you can visit: http://www.follytheater.org

David Brighton Thanks for being with us on WMM

Bowie is not the first celebrity David has portrayed, he also played George Harrison.

Bowie fans have such deep and personal feelings about their musical hero. Mark: “For me personally as a queer kid growing up in a small town in Nebraska, Bowie was the crack in the sky and the hand reaching down to me, allowing me to accept myself in a world that didn’t always feel accepting.” These are the shoes David steps into when he performs Bowie.

The first David Bowie song David Brighton ever heard was “Panic in Detroit” from Aladdin Sane

David Brighton talked about being a “Bowie kid”: “I heard him on the radio, and there was nothing like that. It was, like you said earlier, he’s just completely unique. He worked with also some of the greatest musicians on the planet, and he is a true collaborator with his musicians. If you listen to albums with Mick Ronson on them, Mick was an enormous part of the music. Mike Garson, Trevor Bolder, and the rest; they’re all completely contributing, and each different band does the same. So, it’s a really fascinating body of work. So yes, I was always [a ‘Bowie kid’]–once I heard it, I was in. I went back and bought all the records that were before I knew about them.”

Being a ‘Bowie kid’ is a feeling that really only fellow ‘Bowie kids’ understand.

David Brighton: “Where I live, [there are] so many musicians [for whom] Bowie is one of their favorites. And I suppose when I first discovered him, I might have been one of the few, you know, but I don’t know. I’ve analyzed it, you know; what is it about whoever we gravitate toward musically? It’s not just the music that we gravitate toward, it is something subconscious or primal or something going on under the surface that attracts us to certain things and characters. And what is it? And I think with Bowie, it’s the sense of alienation, perhaps, and overcoming that. You don’t think about that consciously when you’re just listening or watching, but it’s woven into the fabric of what he did. It’s like this space-age rock and roll alien, Ziggy Stardust. I mean, what does all that mean? And I think it, like I said, it ties in this whole sense of alienation and perhaps overcoming it and finding connection, human connection. But anyway, it’s an interesting community. I just know so but like I said, in LA I just know so many people love Bowie and always did.”

David Brighton worked with David Bowie himself on a 2003 Vittel bottled water commercial.

David Brighton makes several costume changes through the show as you take the audience through the many different identities of Bowie: Ziggy, The Thin White Duke, Let’s Dance, …

David Brighton wears almost exact replicas of some of Bowie’s various costumes from across many of his eras.

David Brighton has said that when he is on stage as Bowie he tried not to think, but concentrate more on the flow..

Mark Manning: “Doing Bowie is not easy. Kansas City has a Bowie Tribute band who gather to do huge concerts around the time of Bowie’s Birthday every year. Their 12 piece band has two lead vocalist to cover Bowie’s arc of music. The lyrics are challenging, the music is challenging.”

Brighton has performed worldwide on bills with some of the biggest acts the world has known, including: Morrissey, Elton John, Devo, Smash Mouth, Stevie Wonder, Kenny Loggins, Three Dog Night, Chicago, Little Richard and Barry Manilow. Brighton has performed at events for Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver… Brooke Shields, Dustin Hoffman, Sylvester Stallone, Jay Leno, David Foster, Catherine Zeta Jones and Michael Douglas, Barbara Streisand, Quincy Jones, Nicholas Cage… to name a few.

David and the Space Oddity band have been performing throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, and Europe – having just returned from touring Finland, Germany, Estonia, Belgium, France, The Netherlands, Spain, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Portugal, Israel, New Zealand and China…

“David Brighton’s charisma keeps the audience mesmerized and his vocals are flawless… His likeness to Bowie is eerie… The crowd actually gasped in amazement as he took the stage… you wondered if it wasn’t really Bowie himself…What Brighton and band give is nothing short of the opportunity to go back in time…” – The LA Review

David began his musical career as a professional guitarist…playing lead guitar with a number of popular recording artists. His stint as a sideman began with a phone call from Kevin Dubrow from Quiet Riot. Dubrow tapped David to replace Randy Rhoads.

David also enjoyed portraying George Harrison around the world with a number of the world’s top Beatle groups, including: Rain, The Stars of Beatlemania, The Fab Four, 1964, Twist And Shout, Classical Mystery Tour, and When We Were Fab.

“David Bowie has worked with David Brighton…What does that tell you about the credibility of a tribute artist?” -Las Vegas Review Journal

SPACE ODDITY BAND MEMBERS

PAUL NELSON on Lead Guitar / Vocals
Paul’s original songs have been featured on television and in films, including the Academy Award winning – The Usual Suspects, HBO, Showtime, CBS and ABC. Paul also toured with surf legends Jan and Dean. With Space Oddity, Paul brilliantly reproduces some of rock music’s greatest guitar players’ feel and sounds (including Mick Ronson, Robert Fripp and Stevie Ray Vaughn) and the vocal stylings of vocalists as diverse as Freddie Mercury (Under Pressure) and Mick Jagger (Dancing In The Street).

SWITCH 0n Lead Guitar / Background Vocals
Switch is an award-winning guitarist and recording artist from Winnipeg Canada. He studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music before traveling to Hollywood to enroll at the Guitar Institute of Technology. He graduated first class honors where the school dubbed him a “Success Story.” A sought after session and touring musician, Switch has appeared with many major artists, including; Nancy Sinatra, Gene Loves Jezebel, The Bay City Rollers and Berlin.

TRENT STROH on Bass Guitar / Background Vocals
Trent Stroh is a highly respected multi instrumentalist/vocalist who toured and recorded with for six years with Eddie Money. He also toured with the classic acoustic/pop/rock super group America, Nancy Sinatra and pop hit makers, Air Supply. Trent has made numerous TV appearances on ABC, NBC, BBC and can be heard on many commercial jingles as well. Trent’s uncanny ability to reproduce the otherworldly bass lines in David Bowie’s music makes him the perfect choice for Space Oddity.

DANA DECKER on Bass Guitar / Background Vocals
Dana Decker is a highly regarded music professional who has toured with the Pussy Cat Dolls, Toni Basil and Vonda Shepard. In addition to his work as a touring musician, he has worked as an arranger, producer, musical director, recording artist and an instructor. Dana’s uncanny ability to reproduce the otherworldly bass lines in David Bowie’s music makes him the perfect choice for Space Oddity.

MONICA SCHNEIDER on Keyboards / Vocals / Percussion
Monica has been performing since the age of eight. She started out working in musical theater; touring the US with various theaters/companies, and is a long time member of the Troubadour Theatre Company. She was a principle vocalist in one of the longest running shows in Las Vegas – Ballys’ Jubilee, and performed as a singing and dancing member of the Satin Dollz with the Jive Aces. Monica has also regularly lent her background vocal skills to members of such legendary groups as The Sweet, Quiet Riot, Survivor, The Who, and many others.

JENNIFER BLACKWELL 0n Keyboards / Vocals / Percussion
Jennifer Blackwell has an extensive background in voice, music, dance and theater. She has had the fortune of combining her passions of performing and traveling the globe while working for some of the industry’s top companies…. Including: Tokyo Disneyland, Princess Cruise Lines, Disney Cruise Lines and the Hilton Hotel in Osaka, Japan. When she is not touring with this amazing troupe of musician/performers, she can be found performing at the Disneyland Resort in multiple roles, as well as being a facilitator and trainer for the Disney Youth Education Series.
‘
BROOKE LAMBKIN on Keyboards / Vocals / Percussion
Since her teens, award winning vocalist/keyboardist/songwriter, Brooke Lambkin has been working with some of the music industry’s top professionals. As a songwriter and a singer, she has performed with groups that opened for Cheap Trick, Pat Benatar, Fleetwood Mac and others. She performed for Disney and has sung on several records, including her own.

TY DENNIS on Drums
Ty was hand picked by rock legends Robby Krieger and Ray Manzarek, to replace drumming icon Stewart Copeland, in their reformed version of The Doors, known as The Doors of the 21st Century. Ty also spent time drumming for the The Motels (featuring Martha Davis), Firebug, Chuck Negron (Three Dog Night), and has shared the stage with Alice Cooper, Alex Lifeson, Richie Sambora, and Ian Astbury (The Cult) . Ty’s TV appearances include the Carson Daly Show, The Craig Kilborn Show, MTV Japan, PBS’s Front & Center, VH1 Classics, and VH1′s ‘Decades Live’.

RYAN BROWN on Drums
Ryan brings his signature versatility to Bowie’s wide ranging catalog. A seasoned, in-demand live and session player, Ryan has toured the world with Frank Zappa’s son Dweezil’s, Zappa Plays Zappa, and can be heard on recordings by David Bowie, Foreigner, Bo Bice, Clay Aiken, Hannah Montana, Circus Diablo, Nick Lachey, Jesse McCartney, Heather Graham, Suzie McNeil as well as many other recording artists. He also played on numerous Hans Zimmer’s movie soundtracks – including Kung Fu Panda and The Dark Knight. Ryan has made numerous television and movie appearances as well.

“David Brighton is brave. To put on a David Bowie act is dangerous. To emulate such a musical genius, a one-of-a-kind persona, is artistic suicide. You either nail it or die. There is no grey area. Brighton and his band arrived in Montreal on Thursday evening. Music is a big deal in this city. Concert-goers forking out their dough are pretty knowledgeable. Brighton is ripe for criticism. Miss a note, flub a lyric – the artist may as well head across the street and cry to a Transgender person at Club Cleopatra. Brighton and his band practically nailed it from the get-go. Brighton’s uncanny resemblance…along with his perfect Bowie moves and voice, filled with the right pitches and tones for all of Bowie’s catalogue….made the most vigilant Bowie fan sit up straight. It was a celebration of Bowie’s genius. There was something for every generation and Brighton (and his band) emulated Bowie to perfection in each one. Paul Nelson (guitar/ vocals), Switch (guitar/vocals), Trent Stroh (bass/vocals), Ryan Brown (drums/percussion) and Brooke Naughton (Vocals, Keyboards, Percussion) performed like aliens. Superhero efforts in duplicating the Bowie sound. The entire ‘night out’ was a history lesson in music. No matter the decade, Brighton made it obvious. Bowie was a flower. A performer ahead of his time as a musician, a songwriter and an actor both on stage and off. David Brighton is a seed from that flower. Firmly planted and displaying his beauty through voice, charisma and an obvious love for Bowie. David Brighton is proof. THERE IS LIFE ON MARS.” – Rick Keene Music Scene.

David Brighton Thanks for being with us on WMM

David Brighton’s SPACE ODDITY, The Quintessential David Bowie Tribute Experience, presented by The Folly Theater, is this Friday, June 5, at 7:30pm. For more information you can visit: http://www.follytheater.org

11:49

David Bowie – “Changes”
from: Hunky Dory / RCA – (Rykodisk – Virgin – Sony – EMI – Columbia ISO) / Dec. 17, 1971
[After Bowie’s third studio album, The Man Who Sold the World was released in the United States through Mercury Records in November 1970. The album sold poorly but fared better both critically and commercially in the US than in the UK. It was played on American radio stations frequently and its “heavy rock content” increased interest in Bowie. The critical success of the album prompted Mercury to send Bowie on a promotional radio tour of the US in February 1971. The trip inspired him to write tribute songs for three American icons: artist Andy Warhol, singer-songwriter Bob Dylan and the rock band the Velvet Underground, more specifically their singer Lou Reed. After the tour, Bowie returned to his apartment in Haddon Hall, Beckenham, where he recorded many of his early 1970s demos, and began writing. According to his then-wife Angela, Bowie had spent time composing songs on piano rather than acoustic guitar, which would “infuse the flavour of the new album”. In total, he composed over three-dozen songs there, many of which would appear on Hunky Dory and its follow-up album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. // Hunky Dory is the fourth studio album by the English musician David Bowie, released in the United Kingdom on 17 December 1971 through RCA Records. Following the release of his 1970 album, The Man Who Sold the World, Bowie took time off from recording and touring. He settled down to write new songs, composing on piano rather than guitar as on earlier tracks. Following a tour of the United States, Bowie assembled a new backing band consisting of guitarist Mick Ronson, bassist Trevor Bolder and drummer Mick Woodmansey, and began to record a new album in mid-1971 at Trident Studios in London. Future Yes member Rick Wakeman contributed on piano. Bowie co-produced the album with Ken Scott, who had engineered Bowie’s previous two records. // Compared to the guitar-driven hard rock sound of The Man Who Sold the World, Bowie opted for a warmer, more melodic piano-based pop rock and art pop style on Hunky Dory. His lyrical concerns on the record range from the compulsive nature of artistic reinvention on “Changes”, to occultism and Nietzschean philosophy on “Oh! You Pretty Things” and “Quicksand”; several songs make cultural and literary references. He was also inspired by his stateside tour to write songs dedicated to three American icons: Andy Warhol, Bob Dylan and Lou Reed. The song “Kooks” was dedicated to Bowie’s newborn son Duncan. The album’s cover artwork, photographed in monochrome and subsequently recoloured, features Bowie in a pose inspired by actresses of the Hollywood Golden Age. // Upon release, Hunky Dory and its lead single “Changes” received little promotion from RCA who were wary that Bowie would transform his image shortly. Thus, despite very positive reviews from the British and American music press, the album initially sold poorly and failed to chart. It was only after the commercial breakthrough of Bowie’s 1972 follow-up album Ziggy Stardust that Hunky Dory itself became a commercial success, peaking at number three on the UK Albums Chart. Retrospectively, Hunky Dory has been critically acclaimed as one of Bowie’s best works, and features on several lists of the greatest albums of all time. Within the context of his career, it is considered to be the album where “Bowie starts to become Bowie”, definitively discovering his voice and style.]

[David Brighton’s SPACE ODDITY, The Quintessential David Bowie Tribute Experience, presented by The Folly Theater, is this Friday, June 5, at 7:30pm. For more information you can visit: http://www.follytheater.org]

. Joe Jackson – “It’s Different For Girls”
from: I’m The Man / A&M / October 5, 1979
[“It’s Different for Girls” is a song by Joe Jackson appearing on his 1979 album, I’m the Man. The song has since become one of his most successful singles, being the highest charting Joe Jackson single in the UK. Covers have been recorded and released by several artists. // “It’s Different for Girls” contained lyrics that feature Jackson “deliberately turn[ing] clichés on their head” in that, while originally sounding as if the song would suggest that the male protagonist was looking for sex and his female partner was looking for love, the opposite is revealed to be the case. Jackson later said on the song’s lyrics: It was something that I heard somewhere that struck me as a cliché. The sort of thing that someone might say. And again, I thought, What could that be about? And that maybe the idea was to turn it on its head and have a conversation between a man and a woman and what you’d expect to be the typical roles are reversed. So that was the idea of that. — Joe Jackson, Songfacts, 2012 // Taken from the Gold-certified 1979 album I’m the Man, “It’s Different for Girls” was Joe Jackson’s biggest UK chart single, peaking at #5 in the UK Singles Chart and #101 in Billboard. The song was backed with another track from I’m the Man, “Friday,” in Britain, but in America, a live cover of the Chuck Berry song “Come On” was used instead. // I’m the Man is the second album by English musician Joe Jackson, released in October 1979. Released shortly after Jackson’s breakthrough debut, Look Sharp!, I’m the Man saw Jackson continue the style of his earlier album. Singles from the album included “I’m the Man” and “It’s Different for Girls”, the latter of which was his biggest UK chart single, peaking at number five on the UK Singles Chart. // I’m the Man was re-released in 2001 with one bonus track, a live version of “Come On”. “Come On” was originally released as the B-side to Jackson’s single “I’m the Man”, also issued in October 1979.]

[Joe Jackson and his band play their Hope and Fury Tour 2026 at The Uptown Theater, 3700 Broadway, KCMO on Tuesday, June 9, at 8:00pm.]

Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now”
from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]

Next week, on Wednesday, June 10 members of the band Say That Again join us to share their newest singles.

Also joining Mark as special co-hosts for the entire show are: Mará Rose Williams of The Kansas City Star. She has served as a member of the Star’s Editorial Board and is an award-winning columnist. She was a writer on The Star’s 2020 “Truth in Black amd White” project, and the recipient of the 2021 Eleanor McClatchy Award for exemplary leadership skills and transformative journalism. Mara Rose Williams was the creator host and producer of Voices of Kansas City and award winning special series creatred by the KC Star with KKFI.

Also joining us is D. Rashaan Gilmore host pf “Unbossed and Unbothered with D. Rashaan Gilmore,” on KKFI on Saturdays at 5:00pm. D. Rashaan Gilmore is a two-time Emmy Award winning host and producer of Flatland In Focus on KCPBS. D Rashaan is Founder and President/CEO at BlaqOut KC, which seeks to organize and mobilize the black, gay community in Kansas City and develop a leadership core. Gilmore has previously managed multiple significant HIV/ AIDS awareness and prevention grants for the KC CARE Clinic.

And Rev Dwight Frizzell is a Professor & Sound Head, at Kansas City Art Institute, – Photography & Filmmaking Dept. with a Terminal Degree in Sound Design. Dwight is an internationally recognized artist whose work combines video, performance, installation, music, audio art, and writing. Frizzell’s work about his boyhood neighbor, Harry S. Truman, was featured in the Peabody-awarded “Lost and Found Sound” series broadcast on National Public Radio. Frizzell has produced an opera based on the life of Charles Darwin. In addition to his B.F.A. degree from KCAI, he holds a terminal fine arts degree in Sound Design from the UMKC. Dwight Frizzell, is a founder of the “groovy polyphonic jazz/dance” band, Black Crack Revue, now in their 43rd year. Dwight Frizzell is also an Arif, with Moorish Orthodox Church, and served at First Editor, The Pitch, he is a founding member of the newEar contemporary chamber ensemble, and is host & producer of “From Arc To Microchip” heard on the fifth Thursday of each month on KKFI’s Thursday Night Special at 7:00pm on 90.1 FM.

Dwight’s new piece–Before the Big Bang– for 100 speakers opens at the Unicorn Theater on the evening of June 10 as part of the Sound Mandala.

Mará Williams, D. Rashaan Gilmore and Dwight Frizzell will help co-host for our Summer On-Air-Fund Drive. We will need to hear from YOU our listeners to support Community Radio. Please call 888-931-0901 during the show so we can say your name over the airwave

You can find our playlists at: http://www.wednesdaymiddaymedley.org & http://www.kkfi.org
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM
http://www.instagram.wednesday_midday_medley

Thank you to KKFI Staff: Executive Director – Bess Wallerstein-Huff, Chief Operator – Chad Brothers, Director of Development & Communications – J Kelly Dougherty, Volunteer Coordinator – Darryl Oliver, and Office Manager Book Keeper – Shaina Littler.

THANK YOU to everyone who donated to KKFI’a Winter Fund Drive during WMM we had a total of 49 individuals donated $3924.00 going way over our show goal!

Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information.
Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org

Wednesday MidDay Medley in on the web:
http://www.kkfi.org,
http://www.WednesdayMidDayMedley.org,
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM

Show #1150

WMM presents: David Brighton of David Brighton’s SPACE ODDITY + Jocelyn Olivia Nixon + Stephonne

Posted on June 1, 2026 by Mark Manning

Wednesday MidDay Medley
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning

Wednesday, June 3, 2026

WMM presents: David Brighton of David Brighton’s SPACE ODDITY + Jocelyn Olivia Nixon + Stephonne

Mark spins More New & MidCoastal Releases from: The Creepy Jingles, Hotel Leo, Stephonne, The Soul Activators, ALQ3MY, Cheery, TheBabeGabe, Boards of Canada, Shakey Graves, Octo Octa, Joe Jackson, and David Bowie.

At 10:30am Jocelyn Olivia Nixon of The Creepy Jingles joins us to talk about her band’s new 11-track album WASHED UP, released May 22, 2026, through Enigmatic Brunch Records. WASHED UP was written by Jocelyn Nixon, and recorded, engineered, and mixed by Paul Malinowski at Massive Sounds Studios in Shawnee, Kansas, with Jocelyn Olivia Nixon on lead vocals, piano, rhythm guitar; Andrew Woody on bass; Nick Robertson on drums; and Wills Van Doorn on lead guitars. The Creepy Jingles are a Kansas City based, rock and roll band led by Jocelyn Olivia Nixon, a transgender wordsmith who charms with razor wit and dazzles with her lyrical acrobatics. The Creepy Jingles released their album, TAKE ME AT MY WORDPLAY on March 25, 2022 and their self-titled debut EP on May 3, 2019, both through High Dive Records. Blending Brit-pop hooks, garage rock grit, surf shimmer, psychedelia, and sharp-witted storytelling, The Creepy Jingles deliver energetic, genre-defying performances packed with humor, heart, and lyrical acrobatics. The band’s colorful songwriting and beautifully chaotic rock and roll have made them one of KC’s most inventive live acts. The Creepy Jingles play a WASHED UP Album Release Show, Saturday, June 6, 2026, at 7:00pm at The Greenwood Social Hall, 1750 Belleview Ave, KCMO with Heidi Gluck, and Lauren Lovelle & The Midnight Spliffs.

At 11:00am Stephonne returns to discuss his new single, “Papa John” released May 20, 2026. Stephonne released “Bloody Mary” on February 13, 2026 written, produced, & engineered by Stephonne Singleton, co-produced, mixed and mastered by Joseph T Price. Stephonne released “Worship at the Chappell” On August 15, 2025. Co-written with Shawn M. Stewart and produced with Patrick Meagher. Inspired by fellow Missouri native Chappell Roan, the track transforms the dance floor into a sanctuary for queer joy, spiritual liberation, and unapologetic self-love. Stephonne describes himself as the lovechild of Prince & Billie Holiday. He grew up in KCK and received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music from Benedictine College, and Masters in Entertainment Business from Full Sail University. Stephonne is a 2023 recipient of the Charlotte Street Generative Performing Arts Fellows. “Stephonne is reimagining what it means to be a Black musician in Kansas City, disrupting outdated narratives with music that celebrates fluidity, theatricality, and freedom. Their art is multidimensional, relentless, and ambitious, drawing inspiration from other pockets of pop music.” – Lyrical Odyssey

At 11:30am Mark talks with David Brighton of David Brighton’s SPACE ODDITY, The Quintessential David Bowie Tribute Experience, presented by The Folly Theater, Friday, June 5, at 7:30pm. “David Brighton has the voice, moves and look to actually step in for David Bowie if he were unavailable and few would ever know. Experiencing Space Oddity made for a truly remarkable evening…” says Harry Maslin, the producer of David Bowie’s YOUNG AMERICANS and STATION TO STATION albums. David Brighton and his amazing band deliver a stunning note-for note theatrical concert event… transporting today’s audiences back in time through some of the most exciting moments in the history of Rock music. Space Oddity – The Quintessential David Bowie Tribute Experience is a live, multi-media spectacle that takes you on a musical journey through the constantly metamorphosing career of Rock and Roll’s most celebrated innovator. For more information you can visit: http://www.follytheater.org

On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or
STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org

Show #1150

WMM Playlist from May 27, 2026

Posted on May 31, 2026 by Mark Manning

Wednesday MidDay Medley
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning

Wednesday, May 27, 2026

WMM presents: Margaret Cho + FlareThaRebel + Brodie Rush & Cody Calhoun of An Evening of Pink Floyd

“It’s Showtime Folks”
from: Motion Picture Soundtrack to All That Jazz / Universal / Dec. 20, 1979
[WMM’s theme]

Radkey – “Ready To Burn”
from: “Ready To Burn” – Single / Little Man Records / May 22, 2026
[To single from upcoming New Album Bedroom Sand to be released on July 14, 2026Radkey released the EP Victory on July 30, 2025. It was part of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2025. // single “Falling Out of Grace” on October 24, 2025. Radkey released the single “Victory” on March 28, 2025. On September 23, 2022 Radkey released the single “Better Than This.” The band released “Games (Tonight)”: on January 28, 2022 on Little Man Records. Isaiah, Dee, and Solomon Radke of the critically acclaimed rock trio Radkey joined us live in our 90.1 FM studios on September 5, 2018. Radkey was formed in 2010 in St. Joseph, where the brothers were raised. The family moved to Kansas City. The band has released multiple full-length recordings. In 2021 Radkey was featured in Dave Grohl’s van-touring documentary film, WHAT DRIVES US. Radkey released GREEN ROOM on Little Man Records on November 27, 2020. On Green Room the band serve as their own producers. Radkey released DARK BLACK MAKE UP in 2015 and DELICIOUS ROCK NOISE in 2016 — plus multiple EPs and singles, and were part of a MasterCard advertising campaign on digital billboards in NYC along with a national television commercial that aired during the 2018 Grammy Awards that brought the band to the attention of Jack White who asked the band to tour with him. In 2018 the band went back on the road with The Damned throughout the United States. In December they went back into the studio to record with producer Bill Stevenson of the California punk rock group Descendents. In early 2019 they played shows in Amsterdam and Stockholm. In 2018 the band released “Basement,” “St. Elwood,” “Rock & Roll Homeschool,” as well as several other singles. On February 22, 2019, Radkey released “No Strange Cats…P.A.W.” a 7-song EP is essentially a collection of the band’s most recent singles. It comes after the January 11, 2019 release of No Strange cats…Spiders – EP a 6 song EP of several new songs mixed with several singles from late 2018.]

[Radkey plays Bottleneck, 737 New Hampshire St., Lawrence, KS. On Friday, June 12, with Godzillionaire.]

Sweeping Promises – “Shooting Shadows”
from: You Say I Romanticize / Feel It Records – Sub Pop / August 14, 2026
[From bandcamp page: Sweeping Promises’ introduction to the global punk underground was their debut album, Hunger for a Way Out, one of the breakout successes in music during 2020’s pandemic lockdown. In 2023, they followed up with the acclaimed Good Living Is Coming for You, which made Album of the Year lists for Pitchfork, NPR, Paste, and BBC, just to name a few. The album found guitarist/producer Caufield Schnug and bassist/vocalist Lira Mondal testing the limits of their home-recording resourcefulness as freshly minted Kansans – new place, new space. Now, the band is back with a frenetic new offering: You Say I Romanticize. // Recorded over an 18-month period, largely prepared and periodically interrupted by Schnug’s non-SP production work, You Say I Romanticize is a tribute to the chaos of creation and collaboration under shifting circumstances. For years now, Schnug and Mondal have embedded themselves in their combination tour house and recording studio in Kansas, annually working on dozens of albums from other bands, hosting tour stops, planning shows, and the like. After an immersive process of tracking and whittling down YSIR demos and carving out an idiosyncratic chamber recording method for the album’s intentional wall-of-sound, the duo brought in touring drummer Spenser Gralla to play the songs like the band would on stage. // The album’s frenzied execution, akin to the group’s renowned live show, prevails most of all in Mondal’s vocals. Whereas previously, you might have heard a growl here and there on certain Sweeping Promises tracks, the band’s formidable singer shouts, roars, hits all sorts of tricky notes, and shreds her throat all over the record, notably on the pummeling opener “Shooting Shadows” and the smoldering “Cocoon.” // A shadow side exists along with Sweeping Promises’ love of their artistic community—borne of weirdos channeling their misfit status into vibrant art and punk rock music, often passing through the revolving door that is their home studio. You Say I Romanticize takes the art-by-any-means-necessary ethos Mondal and Schnug have developed over the years and turns the prompt upside-down, landing on a personality epidemic manifesting across all ten tracks. // A big theme of You Say I Romanticize is hinted at in its title. Taken from a lyric sung on driving album closer “Write Lightly”—a narrative about the importance of self-expression in writing being scrubbed away by “professional” concerns—many of the characters Mondal fleshed out here are outcasts, marginalized by society and morphed into longing fanatics. The personalities depicted on You Say I Romanticize are often writerly types; as writing is, by and large, an art of obsession. To wit, “Last Man,” by equal turns musically nervous and cathartic, loosely takes after Mary Shelley’s literary work of the same name, The Last Man—a dystopian 19th Century novel written in wake of a cholera outbreak. Similarly, “My Anchoress” resonantes in its portrayal of 15th Century author Julian of Norwich—centered around her enduring Revelations of Divine Love (one of the earliest English-written works by a woman), which details her eccentric, sensuous religious visions. // Sweeping Promises have long been progenitors of concept-forward art-punk music that is remarkably immediate and irresistible. For being largely about personalities boxed in by isolation, You Say I Romanticize is carried by an outright soaring energy. —Martin Douglas ]

[On September 9 through November 18 Sweeping Promises go on a 32 City U.S. Tour that include: St. Paul, Denver, and even Omaha, but not KC. Local promoters passed, because it’s not a tribute show.]

Til Willis & Erratic Cowboy – “Come Up High”
from: Art, Luck and Architecture – EP / Til Willis / May 8, 2026
[Til Willis on vocals & guitar; Bradley McKellip on guitar; Eric Binkley on bass; and Austin Sinkler on drums. With Randy Wills on Organ on December’s Clover and East Bijou. Recorded and Mixed by Randy Wills at Exceptions Studios (Topeka, KS). All songs written by Til Willis. (c) 2026 Lemon Zephyr Music BMI. // Til Willis & Erratic Cowboy released Glass Cactus on March 27, 2025 with Til Willis on vocals, guitar, percussion, mixing, & production; Bradley McKellip om guitars & lap steel; Eric Binkley on bass, and Austin Sinkler on grums with Nate Holt on keyboards for: Ten Miles of Days, Horizon, Smells Like Honey, Recovering Sunday; Chance Dibben on Sonic Manipulations on Homecoming, Recovering Sunday, Natural Law; and Steve Faceman on backup vocals on Lost. Recorded in The Barn in Tecumseh, Kansas. Mixed in The Cabin in Ouray, Colorado, and at 1509 Recording Service in Lawrence, Kansas. // Til Willis, born in the heat of 1980, has been making music for a long time. Currently, when not performing solo, he makes noise with Erratic Cowboy. The style of music is lyric driven rock, that draws influence from many sources. Some have described it as Tin-Roof-Rain-Water-Bop. Til has had the pleasure to have performed with Pete Seeger.]

youbet – “Ground Kiss”
from: youbet / Hardly Art / May 1, 2026
[From Bandcamp page: The best teachers never stop learning. They listen closely, stay curious, and let what they discover shape how they guide others. On their new self-titled album as youbet (due May 1st 2026, via Hardly Art), longtime music educators Nick Llobet (he/they) and Micah Prussack (she/her) proudly act as both explorer and guide, sharing three-dimensional musical sculptures so confidently and esoterically their own that they couldn’t have been released under any other name but youbet. Created in motion and shaped between long stretches of touring, the album reflects a moment of ecstatic possibility and grit. Both sharpened and expansive, youbet grows from the confines of home recording and “bedroom pop” into something sturdier, louder, and unmistakably their own. // “I myself am a constant student of life, of creating,” Llobet says. “I see people’s creative anxieties because I have lived them. It’s very therapeutic because I can tell that I’m giving people strong advice based on all my failures.” Llobet relocated to New York from Denver in 2013 and forged initial connections in the local scene, while creating youbet and writing two albums, but it wasn’t until meeting Prussack in 2022 that they discovered a different level of musical connection. When the duo started playing together, they quickly realized their uniquely shared musical language and eagerness to learn from everything, connecting over a vast array of musical influence and their own practice of teaching. “Early in our friendship, Nick and I were playing guitar in the park and we decided that the Beatles were so good because they learned how to play hundreds of songs together,” Prussack says. “So we began our quest to learn 1,000 songs. Nick started compiling a massive playlist called ‘Learn Me’ filled with music that we habitually study and generate new ideas from.” // The duo began experimenting musically, and their subsequent year of touring led to a new, more refined sound. “We had a huge opportunity for reinvention,” Prussack says. “Nick will never play the chord that you expect, and is always pushing me outside of my creative box. Their compositions are so exciting to explore, and on tour we began to reconsider and transform the kernel of each song to match our new environment.” // That depth of surprise and expansive warmth radiates from album opener “Ground Kiss”, a late-night existential query written when Llobet found themselves adjusting to living alone after the end of an 11-year relationship. “The song represents an endless search for that something and the rebuilding that goes along with trial and failure,” they say. The song unites the spectrum between clouds of plucked Big Thief-esque glow and bursts of distorted frustration. To that end, youbet demonstrates Llobet and Prussack’s ability to weave beguiling musical and lyrical expression, pushing and pulling at the resulting mesh. // Developing their finely tuned fusion between complex musicality and deeply felt emotion required more than hoping inspiration would strike. Instead, the process of creating youbet involved countless hours of precise engineering, meticulous craft, and gritty dedication. The duo were consistently listening, learning, and writing. But that hard work boils down into every facet of their work, including bringing a set of dumbbells on tour so they could keep active and stay disciplined. For their part, Llobet sees the resulting album as a statement of that hard work and the opening of a new chapter. “It’s the beginning of a new era for youbet,” they say. “The band started as a sort of bedroom project for myself, but it has transformed into something expansive since working with Micah. It’s like we’re running a family business.” // The broiling “Undefined” draws from that personal soul-searching, a musical mosaic of life before and after a complicated breakup. Llobet first worked out the verses while waiting for a guitar student, a fitting backdrop for the song’s balance of wizardly art pop experimentalism and diligent power pop hookiness. Co-producers Katie Von Schleicher and Julian Fader help round out the mix, the former adding synth glisten and the latter a drum backbone hammered into place by Prussack’s bass. // The concussive “See Thru” rushes headlong through heavy alt rock chop, moments of gentler curve, and even bubbly electronics—a track Llobet notes began when they were toying with a Debussy piano part on guitar and then stamped in the harmonics and energy of Japanese hard rock band Boris. Elsewhere, “Receive” finds Llobet carving away at generational conflict, tethering propulsive bursts of guitar reverie with raw emotional vigor in the vein of Pile. “On the verse, the bass is playing variations on the vocal melody,” Prussack says. “Throughout the album, there’s unique interplay and variation that you can only get from a lot of hard work together.”// Echoing their strengths as educators, the ability to voraciously learn from a breadth of influences informs youbet—from the dizzying score to Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo to dazzling flamenco—but their ability to recognize meaning beyond signposts and find connections to emotional experience pushes everything into a topographical realism. “Having respect for the canon doesn’t mean we’re ever limited by revivalism. There’s a whole universe of musical vocabulary that we can borrow from and translate into our language,” Prussack says. // That willingness to learn from the past while building the future is something tied deeply to the band’s New York City roots, with so many visionary artists having previously built new worlds within the city’s confines. “For years, I was too intimidated to step into the scene. It’s been such a breath of fresh air to build this new craft, this new philosophy of songwriting in a scene I respect and feel in community with,” says Llobet. / Compelling art requires an unimaginable burst of new life, a shift from two-dimensional ideas to viscous, sinewy reality. As much as the hard work bolsters the music, it’s truly the resounding spirit of Llobet and Prussack’s relationship at the core of youbet. “Micah has brought a lot of order to my chaotic neurodivergence,” Llobet reflects. “I consider her my musical confidant. She can be cleverly critical and extremely encouraging. She’s probably the most opinionated person I know. Together we build this musical balance.” What emerges is an album that doesn’t just break free of its former constraints, but reconfigures them into something sturdier: a collaborative language capable of holding contradiction, growth, and connection all at once.]

Yaya Bey – “Blue”
from: Fidelty / drink sum wtr / April 17, 2026
[When Queens-born Yaya Bey released her 3rd album, do it afraid, in 2025, she yearned to move past the topic of grief after feeling her work was increasingly viewed through the narrow lens of loss. That said, there was plenty to mourn, from the death of her father, the acclaimed Juice Crew MC, Grand Daddy I.U. as well as a creeping sense that a particular Black American experience, the one she grew up in, was disappearing. The week the album dropped, despite the critical acclaim, she found herself on the road in a Miami hotel room, crying uncontrollably. She wasn’t just tired, but also coming to the realization “there was no place for that grief to exist that would not become a spectacle. I had been holding it in. Maybe, to protect myself. Maybe to prove the onlookers wrong. Whatever the case, it was spilling over now.” // What Bey was pondering was “what part of that ache is specifically Black?” and clarity followed. Yaya quickly returned to the studio after last summer and crafted a new body of work, an album that works as an accomp-anying piece to do it afraid, called Fidelity, the result of that breaking point. It is a record born from a summer of reflection on what it means to be a Black artist when your grief becomes a commodity, another sob story for onlookers to feast upon. Fidelity is a bold step forward, and in this new act, Bey moves past the surface-level labels to examine what she calls the “Three Deaths”: the personal, the communal, and the loss of innocence. // The album confronts Personal Death through the passing of her father in 2022. Bey questions why the life expectancy of Black musicians is so short as we continue to lose consequential artists, only to receive their flowers too late, too far after the fact. “Why are we more interesting as ghosts?” she asks, looking at the mid-career mark where so many artists are left to die by a system that prioritizes the “shiny & new.” // On Fidelity, the social and the personal are inseparable. Bey explores the Death of Home & community, charting the displacement of native New Yorkers and the fracture of the Black diaspora. She critiques the rise of Black capitalism, or the “individualism and tribalism” that have replaced community solidarity. From the gentrifi-cation of her native Queens or Brooklyn’s Bed-Stuy to the “diaspora wars” online, Bey navigates the ways we’ve been pulled apart, weaponizing our differences instead of addressing the collective ache of being “made new” in a world that demands our constant adaptation. // Finally, the record addresses the Death of Innocence—the crash back to reality for a generation raised on the empty promises of the 90s and Y2K eras. Bey reflects on the transition from the “Golden Era” of Black media to a landscape of global pandemics, state violence, and an industry that exploits and disposes of Black artists that were once held in high esteem. // The songs show-case Bey’s range as a performer from lead-off single “Blue” which opens like a breath of fresh air to the project. Yaya says: “Blue” is the first song I wrote for the album. I wrote it when I was rock bottom coming off the heels of do it afraid. When I realized I had to make a big shift mentally and emotionally or I was gonna drown. The production is really reminiscent of early 2000’s Pop/R&B like something red-haired Kelly Rowland would sing over on one of her solo projects. The nostalgia drew me to it. Almost like I’m coaching my young-er self through something. Which I guess ultimately I am.” // Equally bright & effusive, “Forty Days” glim-mers with clarity, a song with a heavy theme about a phase transfer that is unexpectedly buoyed with a Disco-Funk confidence. “There’s a belief that after a loved one dies you give them 40 days to pass over into the ancestral realm and that got me thinking about what is the time frame for the grieving to transition into a new life that is absent of the lost one’s physical presence. How do both accli-mate to new conditions of the relation-ship?” // Fellow Queens native NESTA drops in for “Egyptian Musk”, a surprise chance moment turning into a key moment in the album. “I ran into NESTA at an event the night before and invited him to a session. We had this really dreamy reggae track that sounds like something old with a fresh spin. I named it Egyptian Musk ‘cause it reminds me of the scent. Rich, sweet and comforting.” // The core of the album is indeed found in its title. For Bey, Fidelity is the ultimate Black skill. It is the ability to fall down and get back up, to be “religious-ly joyful” even while the world is on fire. It is a grand pivot away from a yearning for mainstream accessibi-lity, and toward a radical faithfulness to self and community. Fidelity is not just a foil to do it afraid; it’s a re-clamation. She puts it, the veil is lifting, the work is being done, she’s still here. Cheers to hers, & our fidelity.]

Lee Walter Redding – “It Should Be Ours” (CD #7) (4:02)
from: “It Should Be Ours” – Single / Lee Walter Redding / February 4, 2025
[Lee Walter Redding released the EP Student Loan Forgiveness Program – EP on July 18, 2025. It was part of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2025. // Lee Walter Redding released the single “All My Text Messages Are Verification Codes” on July 11, 2025. Lee Walter Redding released the single “It Should Be Ours” on February 24, 2025. // On July 15, 2022 Lee Walter Redding released the EP live From The Argyle Wallpaper. Lee Walter Redding on vocals, guitar; Justin Rogers on bass; Andy Kirk on guitar/synth and Justin Skinner on drums. // Lee Walter Redding released “Elephant Man (feat. Stephonne)” on April 9, 2021. Lee told us that he learned about Stephonne Singleton from listening to Wednesday MidDay Medley and hearing Stephonne for the first time. WMM bringing musical collaborations together since 2004. // Kansas City based Lee Walter Redding was raised on 60s rock, steeped in 90s Britpop ennui, and guided by contemporary neo-soul, Lee Walter Redding weaves dry humor into vibrant sonic textures that sway from wistful to chaotic. Think 2010s Nick Lowe fronting The Velvet Underground. On warped vinyl. More info at: http://www.leewalterredding.bandcamp.com] [Lee Walter Redding was our guest on WMM on July 13, 2022]

10:24 – Underwriting

Black Light Animals – “sleeptalking”
from: LAST CALL FOR LOVE SONGS / The Record Machine / March 28, 2025
[Black Light Animals are: Cole Bales on lead vocals, background vocals, guitar, keyboards; Cody Calhoun on lead guitar & percussion; Branden Moser on bass, guitar, keyboards, drums & percussion; and Alex Hartmann on drums & percussion. All songs written and produced by Black Light Animals. Lyrics by Cole Bales, Cody Calhoun, Branden Moser. Mixed and engineered by Cole Bales. Mastered by Adam Boose. Featuring Nate Hubert on keyboards & background vocals; spoken word intro and outro by Jass. Seyko Groves & Paula Saunders on additional background vocals and vocal arrangements. Brett Jackson on saxophone. Recorded at Groove King Studios in KCMO. // Formed from the ashes of their last band, Instant Karma the new record contains lush pop vocals crooned over spaghetti western riffs, psychedelic synth, and hip hop drums. Playboys of the Western World is a sprawling, decadent examination of what it means to be a human being through the lens of horror movie organs, spaghetti western guitars, hip hop grooves, psychedelic sojourns, and ballads crooned to lovers in the night. More info at: http://www.blacklightanimalsband.bandcamp.com]

Be/Non – “Over The Moon”
rom: A Valley of No: The Alternative A Mountain of Yeses / Haymaker Records / Apr. 8, 2020
[Originally released May 12, 2009, A Mountain of Yeses was made by: Brodie Rush on vocals, guitar, bass, drums, keyboards; Ben Ruth on bass guitar; Ryan Shank on drums & percussion, and Jeremiah James on guitar, Moog & Vocals. Brodie writes: “This album is a journey into the sculpting process of creating “A Mountain of Yeses”. In contrast to the original release, this compilation contains alternate mixes, isolated tracks and demo versions. Be/Non presents a bizarro-like version of the AMOY album, showing an alternate universe what could have been if the creation of the album went on a divergent path. Behold the paradoxical serendipity of Be/Non’s unique take on constructing a space-themed story/album.]

Pink Floyd – “The Great Gig In The Sky”
from: The Dark Side of the Moon / Capitol / March 1, 1973
[Nick Mason (drums), Roger Waters (bass guitar, vocals) and Richard Wright (keyboards, vocals), with David Gilmour (guitar, vocals). The Dark Side of the Moon is the eighth studio album by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released March 1, 1973 by Capitol Records in the US, and March 16, 1973 by Harvest Records in the UK. Developed during live performances before recording began, it was conceived as a concept album that would focus on the pressures faced by the band during their arduous lifestyle, and also deal with the mental health problems of former band member Syd Barrett, who had departed the group in 1968. New material was recorded in two sessions in 1972 and 1973 at EMI Studios (now Abbey Road Studios) in London. // The group employed multitrack recording, tape loops, and analogue synthesisers, including experimentation. The engineer Alan Parsons was responsible for many aspects of the recording, and for the recruitment of the session singer Clare Torry, who appears on “The Great Gig in the Sky”. // The Dark Side of the Moon explores themes such as conflict, greed, time, death, and mental illness. Snippets from interviews with the band’s road crew and others are featured alongside philosophical quotations. The sleeve, which depicts a prismatic spectrum, was designed by Storm Thorgerson in response to the keyboardist Richard Wright’s request for a “simple and bold” design which would represent the band’s lighting and the album’s themes. // The Dark Side of the Moon has received widespread critical acclaim and is often featured in publication listings of the greatest albums of all time. It brought international fame and wealth to all four band members. As a blockbuster release of the album era, it also propelled record sales throughout the music industry during the 1970s. The Dark Side of the Moon is certified 14× platinum in the United Kingdom, and topped the US Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart, where it has charted for 996 weeks. By 2013, The Dark Side of the Moon had sold over 45 million copies worldwide, making it the band’s best-selling release, the best-selling album of the 1970s, and the fourth-best-selling album in history. In 2012, the album was selected for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”. It was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. // Waters conceived an album that dealt with things that “make people mad”, focusing on the pressures associated with the band’s arduous lifestyle, and dealing with the mental health problems suffered by the former band member Syd Barrett. // The band approved of Waters’ concept for an album unified by a single theme. Waters created demo tracks in a small studio in a garden shed at his home in Islington. Parts of the album were taken from previously unused material; the opening line of “Breathe” came from an earlier work by Waters and Ron Geesin, written for the soundtrack of The Body, and the basic structure of “Us and Them” was borrowed from an original composition, “The Violent Sequence”, by the keyboardist, Richard Wright, for Zabriskie Point. The band rehearsed at a warehouse in London owned by the Rolling Stones and at the Rainbow Theatre in Finsbury Park, London. They also purchased extra equipment, which included new speakers, a PA system, a 28-track mixing desk with a four channel quadraphonic output, and a custom-built lighting rig. Nine tonnes of kit was transported in three lorries. This would be the first time the band had taken an entire album on tour. // The album had been given the provisional title of Dark Side of the Moon (an allusion to lunacy, rather than astronomy). // Pink Floyd’s lengthy tour through Europe and North America gave them the opportunity to make improvements to the scale and quality of their performances. After more concerts in Europe and North America, the band returned to London on January 9, 1973 to complete the album. // Each side of the vinyl album is a continuous piece of music. The five tracks on each side reflect various stages of human life, beginning and ending with a heartbeat, exploring the nature of the human experience and, according to Waters, “empathy”. “Speak to Me” and “Breathe” together highlight the mundane and futile elements of life that accompany the ever-present threat of madness, and the importance of living one’s own life – “Don’t be afraid to care”. By shifting the scene to an airport, the synthesiser-driven instrumental “On the Run” evokes the stress and anxiety of modern travel, in particular Wright’s fear of flying. “Time” examines the manner in which its passage can control one’s life and offers a stark warning to those who remain focused on mundane pursuits; it is concluded with a retreat into solitude and withdrawal in the reprise of “Breathe”. The first side of the album ends with Wright and Clare Torry’s soulful metaphor for death, “The Great Gig in the Sky”. // “Money”, the first track on side two, opens with the sound of cash registers and rhythmically jingling coins. The song mocks greed and consumerism with sarcastic lyrics and cash-related sound effects. “Money” became the band’s most commercially successful track and was covered by other artists. “Us and Them” addresses the senseless nature of war, the ignorance of modern-day humans who have been taken over by materialism, and the isolation of the depressed with the use of simple dichotomies to describe personal relationships. “Any Colour You Like” tackles the illusion of choice one has in society. “Brain Damage” looks at mental illness resulting from the elevation of fame and success above the needs of the self; in particular, the line “and if the band you’re in starts playing different tunes” reflects the mental breakdown of Syd Barrett. The album ends with “Eclipse”, which espouses the concepts of otherness and unity while encouraging the listener to recognise the common traits shared by humanity. // The Dark Side of the Moon was recorded at EMI Studios (now Abbey Road Studios) in approximately 60 days between May 31, 1972 and February 9, 1973. Pink Floyd were assigned staff engineer Alan Parsons, who had worked as the assistant tape operator on their fifth album, Atom Heart Mother (1970), and had gained experience as a recording engineer on the Beatles albums Abbey Road and Let It Be. // The Dark Side of the Moon sessions made use of advanced studio techniques, especially the Studer A80 16-track recorders, an appreciable advantage over the eight- or four-track recordings they’d previously made, although the band often used so many tracks that second-generation copies were still needed to make more space available on the tape. The mix supervisor Chris Thomas recalled later, “There were only two or three tracks of drums when we came to mixing it. Depending on the song, there would be one or two tracks of guitar, and these would include the solo and the rhythm guitar parts. One track for keyboard, one track for bass, and one or two sound effects tracks. They had been very, very efficient in the way they’d worked.” // “The Great Gig in the Sky” features Richard Wright’s piano composition accompanied by improvised vocals from Clare Torry, a session singer and songwriter and a regular at Abbey Road. Parsons liked her voice, and when the band decided to use a female vocalist he suggested that she could sing on the track. The band explained the album concept to her, but they were unable to tell her exactly what she should do, and Gilmour, who was in charge of the session, asked her to try to express emotions rather than sing words. In a few takes on a Sunday night, Torry improvised a wordless melody to accompany Wright’s emotive piano solo. She was initially embarrassed by her exuberance in the recording booth and wanted to apologize to the band, who were impressed with her performance but did not tell her so. Her takes were edited to produce the version used on the track. She left the studio under the impression that her vocals would not make the final cut, and she only became aware that she had been included in the final mix when she picked up the album at a local record store and saw her name in the credits. For her contribution she was paid her standard session fee of £30, equivalent to about £360 in 2025. // In 2004, Torry sued EMI and Pink Floyd for 50% of the songwriting royalties, arguing that her contribution to “The Great Gig in the Sky” was substantial enough to be considered co-authorship. The case was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum, with all post-2005 pressings crediting Wright and Torry jointly. // The Dark Side of the Moon became one of the best-selling albums of all time and is in the top 25 of a list of best-selling albums in the United States. Although it held the number one spot in the US for only a week, on the week of May 5, 2006 The Dark Side of the Moon achieved a combined total of 1,716 weeks on the Billboard 200 and Pop Catalog charts. // In 2007, one in every 14 people in the US under the age of 50 was estimated to have owned a copy.]

Nate Hubert, Liam Sumnich, Cody Calhoun, Tim Jenkins, and Brodie Rush

10:36 – Interview with Brodie Rush, Cody Calhoun, Liam Sumnich, Nate Hubert, and Tim Jenkins

Brodie Rush is a musician, songwriter, band leader, graphic artist, actor, father and survivor. He has served as the Director of Animation & Motion Graphics at Crush Media. He is the creative genius behind Be/Non, a Kansas City band that has been making music for over 25 years. In October 2019, Brodie Rush survived having an Aortic Dissection, and after being in a coma, and after months of therapy, recovery, and healing through two dangerous years of Covid-19, Brodie returned to the studio to create new music and bring Be/Non back to life on stage, after a six year hiatus. Brodie Rush is considered a musical genius from his musical peers, including Haymaker Records Founder – Brenton Cook and many area music radio DJs. Be/Non has continued to move the boundaries of music and performance with special live shows at the Scottish Rite Temple, creating film and video to be presented wit h lie concerts, opening for Thomas Dolby. In the summer of 2008 Brodie was part of a Kansas City Theatre production of Pink Floyd’s The Wall, produced at at the former La Esquina Gallery, where Brodie played the “psychologically disintegrating” character of Pink, the role Bob Geldof played in the 1982 Alan Parker film version

We came to know Cody Calhoun as lead guitarist for the Kansas City based band Instant Karma. Cody immediately charmed our radio listeners with his clever sense of humor, and impecable musical taste. When Instant Karma went through their identity shift and became Black Light Animals we all followed awith Cole Bales, Branden Moser. And now Nate Hubert and Liam Sumnicht . The band members have recorded and performed lives with fantastic collaborations with Jass, Seyko Groves, Paula Saunders and others. Through their own Groove King Studios in KCMO. // Black Light Animals debut album, Playboys of the Western World was their own sprawling, decadent examination of what it means to be a human being through the lens of horror movie, organs, spaghetti western guitars, hip hop grooves, psychedelic sojourns, and ballads crooned to lovers in the night. Last year Black Light Animals released LAST CALL FOR LOVE SONGS on The Record Machine on March 28, 2025. It was in the Top Ten of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2025.

Also with us are: Liam Sumnicht (Black Light Animals, Not A Planet), Nate Hubert (Black Light Animals), and Tim Jenkins (Ramona Clay).

These guys join us to share details about An Evening of Pink Floyd, Friday, May 29, doors at 7:00pm, show at 8:00pm, at Warehouse On Broadway, 3951 Broadway, KCMO. The night will feature, The Dark Side of the Moon, performed in its entirety along with many more of Pink Floyd’s biggest hits and deep cuts. The band features some of Kansas City’s finest Rock, Soul, and Psychedelic musicians: Brodie Rush (Be/Non), Cody Calhoun (Black Light Animals), Liam Sumnicht (Black Light Animals, Not A Planet), Nate Hubert (Black Light Animals), SEYKO (The Freedom Affair and SUNU), and Tim Jenkins (Ramona Clay). With special guest performances by Aryana Nemanti and Michael Tipton (Found A Job, Michael Tipton & The Scoundrels) among others! For more information you can visit: https://warehouseonbroadway.com/

Brodie Rush, Cody Calhoun, Liam Sumnich, Nate Hubert, and Tim Jenkins thank you for being with us on WMM. An Evening of Pink Floyd, Friday, May 29, doors at 7:00pm, show at 8:00pm, at Warehouse On Broadway, 3951 Broadway, KCMO.

The night will feature, The Dark Side of the Moon, performed in its entirety along with many more of Pink Floyd’s biggest hits and deep cuts.

Pink Floyd:
Nick Mason (drums)
Roger Waters (bass guitar, vocals)
Richard Wright (keyboards, vocals),
David Gilmour (guitar, vocals).

The band features some of Kansas City’s finest Rock, Soul, and Psychedelic musicians:
Brodie Rush (Be/Non) – bass & Vocals
Cody Calhoun (Black Light Animals) – Guitar
Liam Sumnicht (Black Light Animals, Not A Planet) – Drums & vocals
Nate Hubert (Black Light Animals) – Keyboards & Vocals
SEYKO (The Freedom Affair and SUNU) – Vocals
Tim Jenkins (Ramona Clay) – Guitar

With special guest performances by Aryana Nemanti and Michael Tipton (Found A Job, Michael Tipton & The Scoundrels) among others!

For more information you can visit: https://warehouseonbroadway.com/

The Dark Side of the Moon is the eighth studio album by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released March 1, 1973 by Capitol Records in the US, and March 16, 1973 by Harvest Records in the UK.

Developed during live performances before recording began, it was conceived as a concept album that would focus on the pressures faced by the band during their arduous lifestyle, and also deal with the mental health problems of former band member Syd Barrett, who had departed the group in 1968. New material was recorded in two sessions in 1972 and 1973 at EMI Studios (now Abbey Road Studios) in London. The group employed multitrack recording, tape loops, and analogue synthesizers, including experimentation.

The engineer Alan Parsons was responsible for many aspects of the recording, and for the recruitment of the session singer Clare Torry, who appears on “The Great Gig in the Sky”.

The Dark Side of the Moon explores themes such as conflict, greed, time, death, and mental illness. Snippets from interviews with the band’s road crew and others are featured alongside philosophical quotations.

10:46

Pink Floyd – “Breathe (In the Air)”
from: The Dark Side of the Moon / Capitol / March 1, 1973
[Nick Mason (drums), Roger Waters (bass guitar, vocals) and Richard Wright (keyboards, vocals), with David Gilmour (guitar, vocals). The Dark Side of the Moon is the eighth studio album by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released March 1, 1973 by Capitol Records in the US, and March 16, 1973 by Harvest Records in the UK. Developed during live performances before recording began, it was conceived as a concept album that would focus on the pressures faced by the band during their arduous lifestyle, and also deal with the mental health problems of former band member Syd Barrett, who had departed the group in 1968. New material was recorded in two sessions in 1972 and 1973 at EMI Studios (now Abbey Road) in London.]

10:49 – More Interview with Brodie Rush, Cody Calhoun, Liam Sumnich, Nate Hubert, Tim Jenkins

Brodie Rush & Cody Calhoun & Company join us to share details about An Evening of Pink Floyd, Friday, May 29, doors at 7:00pm, show at 8:00pm, at Warehouse On Broadway, 3951 Broadway, KCMO. The night will feature, The Dark Side of the Moon, performed in its entirety along with many more of Pink Floyd’s biggest hits and deep cuts. The band features some of Kansas City’s finest Rock, Soul, and Psychedelic musicians: Brodie Rush (Be/Non), Cody Calhoun (Black Light Animals), Liam Sumnicht (Black Light Animals, Not A Planet), Nate Hubert (Black Light Animals), SEYKO (The Freedom Affair and SUNU), and Tim Jenkins (Ramona Clay). With special guest performances by Aryana Nemanti and Michael Tipton (Found A Job, Michael Tipton & The Scoundrels) among others! For more information you can visit: https://warehouseonbroadway.com/

Brodie Rush & Cody Calhoun, thank you for being with us on WMM

The sleeve, which depicts a prismatic spectrum, was designed by Storm Thorgerson in response to the keyboardist Richard Wright’s request for a “simple and bold” design which would represent the band’s lighting and the album’s themes.

The Dark Side of the Moon has received widespread critical acclaim and is often featured in publication listings of the greatest albums of all time. It brought international fame and wealth to all four band members. As a blockbuster release of the album era, it also propelled record sales throughout the music industry during the 1970s.

The Dark Side of the Moon is certified 14× platinum in the United Kingdom, and topped the US Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart, where it has charted for 996 weeks.

By 2013, The Dark Side of the Moon had sold over 45 million copies worldwide, making it the band’s best-selling release, the best-selling album of the 1970s, and the fourth-best-selling album in history.

In 2012, the album was selected for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”. It was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.

An Evening of Pink Floyd, Friday, May 29, doors at 8:00pm, at Warehouse On Broadway, 3951 Broadway, KCMO. The night will feature, The Dark Side of the Moon, performed in its entirety along with many more of Pink Floyd’s biggest hits and deep cuts. The band features some of Kansas City’s finest Rock, Soul, and Psychedelic musicians: Brodie Rush (Be/Non), Cody Calhoun (Black Light Animals), Liam Sumnicht (Black Light Animals, Not A Planet), Nate Hubert (Black Light Animals), SEYKO (The Freedom Affair and SUNU), and Tim Jenkins (Ramona Clay). With special guest performances by Aryana Nemanti and Michael Tipton (Found A Job, Michael Tipton & The Scoundrels) among others! For more information you can visit: https://warehouseonbroadway.com/

Brodie Rush, Cody Calhoun, Liam Sumnich, Nate Hubert, Tim Jenkins thank you for being with us on WMM – An Evening of Pink Floyd, Friday, May 29, doors at 7:00pm, show at 8:00pm, at Warehouse On Broadway, 3951 Broadway, KCMO. For info you can visit: https://warehouseonbroadway.com/

10:58

Pink Floyd – “Eclipse”
rom: The Dark Side of the Moon / Capitol / March 1, 1973
[Nick Mason (drums), Roger Waters (bass guitar, vocals) and Richard Wright (keyboards, vocals), with David Gilmour (guitar, vocals). The Dark Side of the Moon is the eighth studio album by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released March 1, 1973 by Capitol Records in the US, and March 16, 1973 by Harvest Records in the UK. Developed during live performances before recording began, it was conceived as a concept album that would focus on the pressures faced by the band during their arduous lifestyle, and also deal with the mental health problems of former band member Syd Barrett, who had departed the group in 1968. New material was recorded in two sessions in 1972 and 1973 at EMI Studios (now Abbey Road) in London.

Be/Non – “Journey”
from: A Valley of No: The Alternative A Mountain of Yeses / Haymaker Records / Apr. 8, 2020
[Originally released May 12, 2009, A Mountain of Yeses was made by: Brodie Rush on vocals, guitar, bass, drums, keyboards; Ben Ruth on bass guitar; Ryan Shank on drums & percussion, and Jeremiah James on guitar, Moog & Vocals. Brodie writes: “This album is a journey into the sculpting process of creating “A Mountain of Yeses”. In contrast to the original release, this compilation contains alternate mixes, isolated tracks and demo versions. Be/Non presents a bizarro-like version of the AMOY album, showing an alternate universe what could have been if the creation of the album went on a divergent path. Behold the paradoxical serendipity of Be/Non’s unique take on constructing a space-themed story/album.]

11:00 – Station ID

FlareThaRebel – “Dear City”
from: Dear City / Shafer Publishing / May 1, 2026
[Amplifying the tension between having love for one’s city while not dismissing its inequities, Dear City is a lyrical reflection of truth-telling and hometown pride. The album highlights commonalities experienced by many urbanites regardless of where they call home.  // In the weeks leading up to the album release concert, Flare has been releasing music video reels on social media featuring snippets of the new songs from Dear City. Filmed by Flaming Heart Productions, each reel features only the first verse or at most the first verse and chorus of each song, giving fans a taste of what’s to come and building hype for the album’s release. // Elevating the concoction further, Flare collaborated with bar owner, Bryan Ari, to film the music video reel of “Mixology” at Fern Bar. Flare turned the filming into a “fishbowl experience” inviting guests to watch him create the reel live while sipping cocktails of their own. Flare landed the scene, which involved rapping while mixing a cocktail and flaming an orange rind a precise moment within the song’s verse. The outcome? Confidently smooth – after about six takes and some hands-on coaching from Bryan Ari.// Career and love brought hip-hop MC Flare Tha Rebel™ back to his hometown of Kansas City, MO, which sparked a creative renaissance. As The Pitch noted, “As a member of hip-hop collective Anti-Crew, Flare Tha Rebel made quite an impact on the Kansas City hip-hop scene. After making the leap from KC to Chicago in the late ’00s, he’s now back…” His homecoming has proved fruitful – his track “Playground” was voted the Number 1 Song of 2022 by listeners of 90.9 FM The Bridge. Throughout his career, Flare has shared stages with heavyweights including Chance The Rapper, RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, Mac Lethal, Nappy Roots, and CES Cru. His most recent release is the locally acclaimed EP, “Summer You, Summer Me”, followed by his feature on the Kemet Coleman song “Android”. // Flare Tha Rebel aka Jeff Shafer is Executive Director for City Year Kansas City, an educational-equity nonprofit that places mentors/tutors in schools to keep kids on track to graduate. This was the job that brought Jeff back to KC, where he became Executive Director. ]

[FlareThaRebel plays Day Eight of Manor Fest 8 on Saturday, May 30 at 1:00pm at The Kemper Museum 4420 Warwick Blvd., KCMO with\Kadesh Flow and True Lions.]

11:02:30 – Interview with FlareThaRebel

FlareThaRebel returns to Wednesday MidDay Medley to share details about his new, epic full length album, DEAR CITY that was released May 1, 2026. Dear City is an incredible testimony of life as an artist in Kansas City making Hip Hop music. Dear City features 12 tracks with guest appearances from Jazlyn, Kemet Coleman, Ryan Marquez, Edie Moore, Kadesh Flow, The Epitome, The Royal Chief, Shay Lyriq, Joey Cool, and Paula Sunders, Shon Ruffin and SEYKO of The Freedom Affair. FlareThaRebel has just returned from special performance in Ireland with Kemet Coleman and Kadesh Flow. FlareThaRebel plays Day Eight of Manor Fest 8, on Saturday, May 30 at 1:00pm at The Kemper Museum 4420 Warwick Blvd, KCMO, with Kadesh Flow and True Lions. FlareThaRebel is also known as Jeff Shafer who serves as Executive Director for City Year Kansas City, an educational-equity nonprofit that places mentors/tutors in schools to keep kids on track to graduate. This was the job that brought Jeff back to KC. More info at: http://www.cityyear.org

FlareThaRebel, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

FlareThaRebel has just returned from special performance in Ireland with Kemet Coleman and Kadesh Flow.

FlareThaRebel plays Day Eight of Manor Fest 8, on Saturday, May 30 at 1:00pm at The Kemper Museum 4420 Warwick Blvd, KCMO, with Kadesh Flow and True Lions.

DEAR CITY that was released May 1, 2026. Dear City is an incredible testimony of life as an artist in Kansas City making Hip Hop music. Dear City features 12 tracks with guest appearances from Jazlyn, Kemet Coleman, Ryan Marquez, Edie Moore, Kadesh Flow, The Epitome, The Royal Chief, Shay Lyriq, Joey Cool, and Paula Sunders, Shon Ruffin and SEYKO of The Freedom Affai

Career and love brought hip-hop MC FlareThaRebel back to his hometown of Kansas City, MO, which sparked a creative renaissance. As The Pitch noted, “As a member of hip-hop collective Anti-Crew, FlareThaRebel made quite an impact on the KC hip-hop scene.

After making the leap from KC to Chicago in the late ’00s, he’s now back…” His homecoming has proved fruitful – his track “Playground” was voted the Number 1 Song of 2022 by listeners of 90.9 FM The Bridge. Throughout his career, Flare has shared stages with heavyweights including Chance The Rapper, RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, Mac Lethal, Nappy Roots, and CES Cru. His most recent release is the locally acclaimed EP, “Summer You, Summer Me”, followed by his feature on the Kemet Coleman song “Android”.

FlareThaRebel last joined us on WMM on February 11, 20926 to talk about Music Maker Mondays presented by Manor Records Foundation, & Brewery Emperial on the First Monday of every month, 5:00pm-7:00pm (through August) at Brewery Emperial, 1829 Oak St. KCMO, to provide local music makers of all types – any genre, a laid-back, non-gig environment to connect, organize, and build community through a new monthly happy hour occurring on the first Monday of each month.

Flare Tha Rebel aka Jeff Shafer is Executive Director for City Year Kansas City, an educational-equity nonprofit that places mentors/tutors in schools to keep kids on track to graduate. This job brought Jeff back to KC, where he became Executive Director.

11:11

FlareThaRebel – “A City Called Killah (Remix)”
from: Dear City / Shafer Publishing / May 1, 2026
[Amplifying the tension between having love for one’s city while not dismissing its inequities, Dear City is a lyrical reflection of truth-telling and hometown pride. The album highlights commonalities experienced by many urbanites regardless of where they call home.  // In the weeks leading up to the album release concert, Flare has been releasing music video reels on social media featuring snippets of the new songs from Dear City. Filmed by Flaming Heart Productions, each reel features only the first verse or at most the first verse and chorus of each song, giving fans a taste of what’s to come and building hype for the album’s release. // Elevating the concoction further, Flare collaborated with bar owner, Bryan Ari, to film the music video reel of “Mixology” at Fern Bar. Flare turned the filming into a “fishbowl experience” inviting guests to watch him create the reel live while sipping cocktails of their own. Flare landed the scene, which involved rapping while mixing a cocktail and flaming an orange rind a precise moment within the song’s verse. The outcome? Confidently smooth – after about six takes and some hands-on coaching from Bryan Ari.// Career and love brought hip-hop MC Flare Tha Rebel™ back to his hometown of Kansas City, MO, which sparked a creative renaissance. As The Pitch noted, “As a member of hip-hop collective Anti-Crew, Flare Tha Rebel made quite an impact on the Kansas City hip-hop scene. After making the leap from KC to Chicago in the late ’00s, he’s now back…” His homecoming has proved fruitful – his track “Playground” was voted the Number 1 Song of 2022 by listeners of 90.9 FM The Bridge. Throughout his career, Flare has shared stages with heavyweights including Chance The Rapper, RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, Mac Lethal, Nappy Roots, and CES Cru. His most recent release is the locally acclaimed EP, “Summer You, Summer Me”, followed by his feature on the Kemet Coleman song “Android”. // Flare Tha Rebel aka Jeff Shafer is Executive Director for City Year Kansas City, an educational-equity nonprofit that places mentors/tutors in schools to keep kids on track to graduate. This was the job that brought Jeff back to KC, where he became Executive Director. ]

[FlareThaRebel plays Day Eight of Manor Fest 8 on Saturday, May 30 at 1:00pm at The Kemper Museum 4420 Warwick Blvd., KCMO with\Kadesh Flow and True Lions.]

11:14 – More Interview with FlareThaRebel

FlareThaRebel, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Flare has shared stages with heavyweights including Chance The Rapper, RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, Mac Lethal, Nappy Roots, and CES Cru. His most recent release is the locally acclaimed EP, “Summer You, Summer Me”, followed by his feature on the Kemet Coleman song “Android”. FlareThaRebel is also known as Jeff Shafer who serves as Executive Director for City Year Kansas City, an educational-equity nonprofit that places mentors/tutors in schools to keep kids on track to graduate. This was the job that brought Jeff back to KC. More info at: http://www.cityyear.org

The DEAR CITY album was connected to DEAR CITY Reels – filmed by Lava Dreams, Directed by FlareThaRebel. Each Reel showcases verses and chorus of songs from DEAR CITY album.

Jeff Shafer is Executive Director for City Year Kansas City, an educational-equity nonprofit that places mentors/tutors in schools to keep kids on track to graduate.

FlareTheRebel wants to encourage Kansas City to form a music office of MUSIC OFFICE AND MEETING IN OCTOBER WITH DALLAS MUSIC OFFICE

Flare’s brother Sike is known for his pristine community murals’s located all over Kansas City. Sike’s time at Recycled Sounds was memorable for Jeff as a young kid and as he developed into a DJ and graphic designer and got heavily into the scene with The Guild, CES Cru, Sounds Good, Brother of Moses, etc. This influenced Jeff and Anti-Crew to start releasing music and performing as well.

Many of Flare’s songs are connected to his Art to Empower initiative, raising awareness and funds for a variety of social justice causes and nonprofits, such as his Royalty EP poster designed by muralists JT Daniels, which raises funds for the Equal Justice Initiative. Flare’s Art to Empower initiative, and about merchandise that was designed by your brother muralist Sike Style to raise funds and awareness for BLOC (Brothers Liberating our Communities).

As Flare explains, in our country Black men are being mistreated, demonized, killed, and not given the same structures that they need to be successful.

Flare writes: “We have to pull together ourselves as a community,… that’s something that I’m very passionate about. I can’t just talk about it. I got to walk the walk and, if I can use art to promote and raise funds for nonprofits and social justice causes that are making difference on the front lines, then that’s what I want to do.”

“You can’t do this without being empathetic, in my opinion,” Flare concurs. “I might be bringing up topics that are hard for people to swallow, but I hope I do so in a way that’s still motivating. Music is supposed to make you feel an emotion and hopefully, the emotion that people feel from this music is motivation to make a change, to make a stand, or–at the very least–to educate themselves about the realities of our country.”

“I’m motivated by my ancestors,” states Flare emphatically. “I’m motivated by the revolutionaries and civil rights activists that have come before me and I’m motivated by the ones that exist today. I’m learning from them and when I’m creating art, I’m interweaving what I’ve learned from them into what I’m addressing. It was a way to create a lyrical pro-Black narrative that I felt was very relevant.”

Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam joined us live in our 90.1 FM studios on August 11, 2021. the year his EP, THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE HASHTAGGED, was released (on July 9, 2021). This was the 50th anniversary of Gil Scott-Heron’s “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.”

FlareThaRebel thanks for being with us on WMM

FlareThaRebel hosts Music Maker Mondays presented by Manor Records Foundation, & Brewery Emperial on the First Monday of every month, 5:00pm-7:00pm (through August) at Brewery Emperial, 1829 Oak St. KCMO, to provide local music makers of all types – any genre, a laid-back, non-gig environment to connect, organize, and build community through a new monthly happy hour occurring on the first Monday of each month

11:22

Kansas City, MO USA – November 02, 2024: Flare Tha Rebel Plays APOCALYPSE MEOW 17 at recordBar

FlareThaRebel – “Powder Blue”
from: Dear City / Shafer Publishing / May 1, 2026
[Amplifying the tension between having love for one’s city while not dismissing its inequities, Dear City is a lyrical reflection of truth-telling and hometown pride. The album highlights commonalities experienced by many urbanites regardless of where they call home.  // In the weeks leading up to the album release concert, Flare has been releasing music video reels on social media featuring snippets of the new songs from Dear City. Filmed by Flaming Heart Productions, each reel features only the first verse or at most the first verse and chorus of each song, giving fans a taste of what’s to come and building hype for the album’s release. // Elevating the concoction further, Flare collaborated with bar owner, Bryan Ari, to film the music video reel of “Mixology” at Fern Bar. Flare turned the filming into a “fishbowl experience” inviting guests to watch him create the reel live while sipping cocktails of their own. Flare landed the scene, which involved rapping while mixing a cocktail and flaming an orange rind a precise moment within the song’s verse. The outcome? Confidently smooth – after about six takes and some hands-on coaching from Bryan Ari.// Career and love brought hip-hop MC Flare Tha Rebel™ back to his hometown of Kansas City, MO, which sparked a creative renaissance. As The Pitch noted, “As a member of hip-hop collective Anti-Crew, Flare Tha Rebel made quite an impact on the Kansas City hip-hop scene. After making the leap from KC to Chicago in the late ’00s, he’s now back…” His homecoming has proved fruitful – his track “Playground” was voted the Number 1 Song of 2022 by listeners of 90.9 FM The Bridge. Throughout his career, Flare has shared stages with heavyweights including Chance The Rapper, RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, Mac Lethal, Nappy Roots, and CES Cru. His most recent release is the locally acclaimed EP, “Summer You, Summer Me”, followed by his feature on the Kemet Coleman song “Android”. // Flare Tha Rebel aka Jeff Shafer is Executive Director for City Year Kansas City, an educational-equity nonprofit that places mentors/tutors in schools to keep kids on track to graduate. This was the job that brought Jeff back to KC, where he became Executive Director. ]

[FlareThaRebel plays Day Eight of Manor Fest 8 on Saturday, May 30 at 1:00pm at The Kemper Museum 4420 Warwick Blvd., KCMO with\Kadesh Flow and True Lions.]

11:28 – Underwriting

Margaret Cho – “Lucky Gift”
from: Lucky Gift / Clownery Records / February 14, 2025
[Margaret Cho’s 3rd music album. She released In Transistion in 2013, and American Myth in 2016. // Produced and co-written with Garrison Starr and Roger Rocha. Acoustic Guitar Garrison Starr and Margaret Cho. Backround Vocals Kate Willett. // Stef Rubino, Feb 18, 2025, http://www.autostraddle.com – In her over 30-year queer career, Margaret Cho has managed to leave her mark on just about every mainstream creative endeavor we have available to us as artists. Since beginning her career as a stand-up comedian in the early 1990s, Cho has grown to be one of our most prolific multi-hyphenate artists, constantly working across genres and willing to share her creative pursuits with her fans and the general public. Over the last 30 years, she’s gone on several comedy tours and recorded many comedy specials and albums; she’s been in films and on TV; she’s co-produced podcasts, written books, and recorded and written her own music. She has also collaborated with other musicians like Fiona Apple, Grant Lee Phillips, Ben Lee, Andrew Bird, Ani DiFranco, Tegan and Sara, and Patty Griffin. // Her first two albums of original songs, Cho Dependent and American Myth, were released to critical acclaim in 2010 and 2016 with the former earning her a Grammy nomination in 2011 for Best Comedy Album. Both of those albums featured Cho’s signature style of finding ways to laugh at the more traumatizing aspects of her life while also finding new phenomena to poke fun at and lambast a little, hence being labelled as musical comedy albums. After a nearly nine year hiatus from music production, she released her newest album Lucky Gift last week on Valentine’s Day. // Cho, a self-proclaimed music lover, collaborated with musicians Roger Rocha and Garrison Starr to both write most of the tracks and produce and compose the album, which is less comedia than the previous two albums and more of an interesting examination of the last few years of Cho’s life, her personal losses, the political atmosphere in the U.S., and the kinds of music that move her the most. // The album’s opening title track, “Lucky Gift,” is undoubtedly the biggest song on the record in terms of composition and the places Cho has to take her voice in order to match the power-pop energy of the fast-paced drums, stomping electric acoustic guitar and double-neck mandolin, and celebratory background harmonies. Although the song is brand new, its structure, rises and falls, and ever-present tambourine feel especially reminiscent of late-1990s and early-2000s pop hits. In it, Cho sings to her lover, “Thought I’d lose you but I haven’t / The worst thing I been through never happened / I could look at you and live / You are such a lucky gift.” // Then, in what feels like one of the hallmark qualities of Cho’s sense of humor, just a few songs later, we get this one’s companion in “90s Sisyphus,” a song about breaking up with the lover in “Lucky Gift.” The composition of “90s Sisyphus” feels equally nostalgic, only its led by the fuzzy power chords of an electric guitar and punchy drums with a jangly, gleaming synthesizer just above it, all rounding out the late-1990s rom-com feel of the song. Whereas “Lucky Gift” was an ode to new love, “90s Sisyphus” gives us her feelings after the fall: “You got me so unbound / And I hate you now / Love’s most bitter refrain / Spit it up and taste it again.” / Two tracks on the album, “Funny Man” and “Baked Bread,” serve as informal eulogies for two of Cho’s friends who passed away since the recording and release of her last album. The first, “Funny Man,” is a crisp, percussive piano- and horn-section-driven track about the late, great Robin Williams and the difficulty of being the kind of comedian who uses humor as a coping mechanism for the trauma they’ve experienced, Cho singing at the chorus, “Weren’t we lonely / Weren’t we sad / Weren’t we beautiful / Weren’t we bad.” “Baked Bread” was written to honor Cho’s friend Gerri Lawlor, and its composition plays with the conventions of both pop-rock and country through its thumping bassline and twangy guitar hooks. This song is not quite as straightforward as “Funny Man” is. Instead, it is imbued in metaphor and what seems like very personal recollections of Cho’s life with Lawlor. That doesn’t make it difficult to listen to by any means, but it does feel a little less accessible than many of the other tracks on the album. // Another pair of tracks, “Wheels of Gold” and “Melinda,” address Cho’s 10-year struggle to finally get sober from opiate addiction, though the positionalities of the speaker on both of the tracks are completely different, with “Wheels of Gold” focusing on the feelings of being “in love” with drugs while “Melinda” sets its sights on the experience of recovery. The compositions of each track also help set the tone for their speakers: “Wheels of Gold” rivals that of “Lucky Gift” with the soaring orchestral swell of the electric organ leading the track whereas “Melinda” is much more lowkey, instead featuring slow, glassy acoustic guitars and some subtlely emotive violin. // Being that the long-out Cho has always fearlessly and publicly stood up for queer and trans people, it’s no surprise there’s a track on the album written specifically for queer and trans youth and dedicated to Nex Benedict. Through brightly composed acoustic guitars and glittering keyboards, Cho delivers an uncomplicated anthem for queer and trans youth reminding them that they’re free to be who they are even if the world tells them they’re wrong. Cho sings, “All I know is I’ve had enough / So I’m sending this message up / And you can be you / You can be you / You can be you / And that’s what’s true.” In a recent interview about the album, Cho said “You Can Be You” is one of her favorite tracks on the album explaining that “it’s an opportunity to establish a ‘queer elder’ understanding and a relationship to the younger community.” // While her first two music albums take the opportunity to incorporate more of Cho’s humor, Lucky Gift is an album of serious writing and musical composition that occasionally has some glimmers of Cho’s humor poking through. Although it is starkly different from a lot of the work she’s done, the album serves as yet another example of Cho’s talent. Where many artists this far into their careers might feel comfortable resting on the signatures and routines they’ve built, Cho proves once again that she’s consistently and successfully evolving, not just to keep up with the times but to show how vital it is to keep uncovering new parts of yourself as time goes on. In that way, Lucky Gift is just helping us get to know Cho in a completely different way than we’re used to and is a fun, welcome addition to Cho’s incredible repertoire.

[Margaret Cho brings her new show, “Choligarchy” to The Folly Theater, 300 West 12th, KCMO, on Saturday, June 16, at 7:30pm. ]

11:33 – Interview with Margaret Cho

Comedian. Actor. Musician. Advocate. Entrepreneur. Artist. Margaret Cho is smart, she’s funny, she’s courageous, she’s outrageous, she’s charming, she’s provocative, she’s fearless, she’s raw, she’s honest, she roots for the underdog. She is the underdog. Margaret Cho the five-time Grammy and Emmy nominated comedian-actress was recently included in VOGUE Magazine’s “9 best female comedians of all-time’ alongside Joan Rivers, Gilda Radner and Wanda Sykes. Margaret Cho is the author of two memoirs, has done 12 national comedy tours including “True Colors” with Cyndi Lauper. Margaret has been in 48 films, including Fire Island, a portrayal of the LGBTQ Asian American experience on Fire Island. She has been in 72 television shows, including 19 episodes of All American Girl, 72 episodes of Drop Dead Diva, 21 episodes of Fashion Police with Joan Rivers, and 3 episodes of 30 Rock, where her portrayal of Kim Jong II was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series. Margaret Cho has also created 8 television comedy specials, recorded 9 comedy albums, 3 full length musical albums, 11 musical singles and 23 music videos. Margaret Cho was the recipient of the Victory Fund’s Leadership Award, the first-ever Best Comedy Performance Award at the Asian Excellence Awards, the First Amendment Award from the ACLU of Southern California, and the Intrepid Award from the National Organization for Women (NOW). She has been honored by GLAAD, American Women in Radio and Television, the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force(NGLTF), the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), PFLAG, She Rocks Awards and LA Pride.

Margaret Cho brings her new “blistering and brutally honest” show, “Choligarchy” to The Folly Theater, 300 West 12th, KCMO, on Saturday, June 16, at 7:30pm. For more information you can visit: http://www.follytheater.org

Margaret Cho Thanks for being with us on WMM

First off – We LOVE Margaret Cho! Her stand up shows have made me laugh so hard we’ve cried. Mark writes, “as a queer person living I the United States her performance work has made her a hero to me and the queer people everywhere.”

We just played “Lucky Gift,” the title track for Margaret’s last music full length release. She worked with Garrison Starr in writing and producing. This is Margaret’s power pop anthem and the first song she wrote on her mandotar (a double neck mandolin-guitar).She writes, “It is giving gay pop in the best way and it’s my favorite song I’ve ever written.”

Margaret will be participating in the Jillith Fair Tribute concerts for Jill Sobule.

David Bowie is a big influence to Margaret.

Margaret was born and raised in San Francisco, an experience that helped to shape her worldview. She knew she was funny enough to try stand-up at age 14. Soon after, Margaret won a contest to open for Jerry Seinfeld, prompting a move to Los Angeles and work on the college comedy circuit. She performed over 300 concerts within two years. Arsenio Hall introduced her to late night audiences, Bob Hope put her on a prime time special and justlikethat, Margaret Cho became a household name

Cho was born on December 5, 1968, to a family of Korean descent. Her paternal grandfather Myung-sook Cho, a Christian minister, worked for the Japanese as a station master during their occupation of Korea. When Japan withdrew from Korea at the end of World War II, he was denounced as a chinilpa, a traitor, by North Korea and forced to move with his family, including his son, Margaret’s father Seung-hoon Cho, to South Korea. During the Korean War, Myung-sook ran an orphanage in Seoul.

According to Margaret, she was raised in “a very Christian family.” Cho grew up in a racially diverse neighborhood near the Ocean Beach section of San Francisco, which she described as “old hippies, ex-druggies, burn-outs from the 1960s, drag queens, Chinese people and Koreans. To say it was a melting pot – that’s the least of it. It was a really confusing, enlightening, wonderful time.” Cho’s parents, Young-Hie and Seung-Hoon Cho, ran Paperback Traffic, a bookstore on Polk Street at California Street in San Francisco. Her father writes joke books and a newspaper column published in Seoul, South Korea.

At school, Cho was bullied, saying that “I was hurt because I was different and so sharing my experience of being beaten and hated and called fat and queer and foreign and perverse and gluttonous and lazy and filthy and dishonest and yet all the while remaining invisible heals me, and heals others when they hear it – those who are suffering right now.”

Choligarchy continues Margaret’s mission of speaking truth to power. We are living in such crazy times, when reality is seemling so absurd already, is it harder to find the jokes?

“My new show Choligarchy is bringing me back to my roots as a political comedian. I’m so frustrated with the state of the union and I know the only weapon I have is humor. We are being taken over by the richest people in the world but the one thing they cannot afford is jokes at their expense. I want to fight fascism with everything I have. This will be my most blistering and brutally honest show yet! Let’s tear down racism, homophobia and sexism with all that we have. We have to fight for what we have now, because if we wait any longer, it might be too late to save ourselves” says Margaret.

Cho goes on to share –“Not only do we need more than impeachment. We need a full cabinet removal. Gavin Newsom has to go in with California Closets and redo the whole thing.”

“I will fight Kristi Noem at the med spa of her choosing. We would both have to dissolve our filler beforehand to ensure a fair fight.”

Margaret Cho writes a joke everyday.

Margaret started doing television when she was 24

Margaret is in Gregg Araki’s next film, “I Want Your Sex” w/ Olivia Wilde & Charli XCX

Margaret is featured alongside Sandra Bernhard & Kristen Schaal in Disney’s season 2 of “Percy Jackson and the Olympians”

Like other comedians of the time, she was soon offered a network show. Her groundbreaking ABC sitcom, All-American Girl premiered in 1994, and while producers said they wanted to work with her because she was a non-conformist Korean American woman with liberal views, they also wanted her to tone it down for television. “For fear of being too “ethnic,” the show got so watered down that by the end, it was completely lacking in the essence of what I wanted to accomplish.”

In 1999, her groundbreaking Off-Broadway one-woman show, I’m The One That I Want, toured to national acclaim and was turned into both a best-selling book and feature film of the same name. After her experience with All-American Girl, Margaret made sure she would only have to answer to herself, staying in charge of the distribution and sales of her film, an unusual move at the time. In 2001, Margaret launched Notorious C.H.O., a smash-hit 37-city national tour that culminated in a sold-out concert at Carnegie Hall.

In 2003, Margaret began her 3rd sold-out national tour, Revolution, heralded as “Her strongest show yet” by Chicago Sun Times and earning her a Grammy nomination for Comedy Album of the Year. In 2005, she released the live comedy film Assassin, which premiered in select theatres and on the LGBT premium channel, Here! TV.

Margaret returned to television in 2008 with the VH1 series, The Cho Show. Describing it as a ‘reality sitcom,’ Margaret said at the time, “It’s the closest I’ve been able to come to what I do as a comic on TV.” The aptly titled Beautiful tour followed, exploring the good, bad and ugly in the world of beauty and the marketers who try to shape our world-view.

In 2009, Margaret nabbed a co-starring role in the dramedy series Drop Dead Diva, which aired for six seasons on Lifetime. Margaret memorably participated in 2010’s Season 11 of Dancing with the Stars, performing a dance number in a gay-pride-supporting rainbow dress during a time when there was a rise in suicides among gay youth due to bullying.

2010 culminated in another high, a second Comedy Album of the Year Grammy Award nomination for Cho Dependent, her incredibly funny music album. Featuring collaborations with Fiona Apple, Andrew Bird, Grant Lee Phillips, Tegan & Sara, Ben Lee and more, the album received critical acclaim, not only for the topics tackled, but also for Margaret’s musicianship. In 2011, Margaret released the live concert film of Cho Dependent, shot at the Tabernacle in Atlanta, GA.

Margaret spent whatever free time she had crafting a new stand-up show, MOTHER, which she took across America and Europe in 2012. According to Margaret, “MOTHER offered an untraditional look at motherhood and how we view maternal figures and strong women in queer culture.”

Margaret’s creative side moved full speed ahead with an Outstanding Guest Actress Emmy nomination for playing Kim Jong II on 30 Rock. 2015 also brought Margaret back to the stand-up stage, where she filmed PSYCHO at the historic Gramercy Theatre in NYC

Margaret put out her second studio album, American Myth, in 2016 on her Clownery label, earning her a third Grammy nomination for Best Comedy Album. In 2017, Rolling Stone magazine named her one of the 50 Best Stand-Up Comics, calling her “the sort of funny, sex-positive feminist and LGBT activist younger comics continue to look up to.”

Her 2018 Fresh off the Bloat tour was shuttered by Covid, but as soon as she was able to get back out on stage, she did. Margaret kicked off 2019 as the Poodle on the first season of The Masked Singer on FOX, appeared in an episode Law & Order: SVU and was in an episode of HBO’s critically acclaimed series High Maintenance. In 2020, Margaret appeared in three films –Faith Based, also starring Seinfeldalum Jason Alexander, Friendsgiving, with Kat Dennings and Malin Akerman, and in Netflix’s first major animated film, the acclaimed Over the Moon.

In June of 2021, Netflix released the hit rom-com Good on Paper, starring Iliza Shlesinger with Margaret co-starring as her best friend. Her 2022 appearances included guest starring roles on Season 2 of The Flight Attendant (HBO Max), Season 2 of Hacks (HBO Max) and two Netflix is a Joke comedy specials: Stand Out: An LGBTQ+ Celebration and Jane Fonda & Lily Tomlin: Ladies Night Live. Probably the biggest splash of that year was her role as “Erin” in HULU’s smash Fire Island with Bowen Yang & Joel Kim Booster.

2023/24 has found Margaret, well, everywhere. She guested on Amy Schumer’s Life with Beth as well as the Ryan Murphy hit Doctor Odyssey and was part of the ensemble cast of the Netflix doc Outstanding: A Comedy Revolution. A who’s who of incredible comedians, the documentary shares the history of LGBTQ+ stand-up and its importance as an instrument for social change over the past five decades.

Margaret’s latest film, All That We Love, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival, with Margaret earning rave reviews. The Hollywood Reporter called the film “poignant and lovely.” Margaret was also named the Vanguard Artist-in-Residence for Manhattan’s famed Joe’s Pub. This prestigious recognition singles out “an iconic artist who has significantly influenced the artistic community of Joeʼs Pub & American culture at large.”

Remarkably, she also managed to film a series and another movie. Margaret stars as “Wasp,” one of the “Gray Sisters” (alongside Sandra Bernhard and Kristen Schaal) in Season 2 of Disney’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians as well as in Gregg Araki’s thriller I Want Your Sex, also starring Olivia Wilde and Charli XCX.

Margaret has also developed a new solo show, Mommy, A One Woman Cho, which is noted for being her first work of fiction. “My new show, Mommy, is a completely fictional autobiography of my mother I have written for the stage. You can lie in plays but not standup comedy, so I’m super excited for my Mommy fan fiction era.” The play debuted in July 2024 to a sold-out audience at Marist College.

If that wasn’t enough, the end of 2024 brings new music from Margaret. The first single, Lucky Gift – also the album’s title – gives a taste of things to come before the February 14, 2025, release on her Clownery Records label.

Margaret continues to staunchly support the causes that are important to her: anti-racism, anti-bullying and gay rights. She was the recipient of the Victory Fund’s Leadership Award, the first-ever Best Comedy Performance Award at the Asian Excellence Awards, the First Amendment Award from the ACLU of Southern California, and the Intrepid Award from the National Organization for Women (NOW). Margaret has been honored by GLAAD, American Women in Radio and Television, the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force(NGLTF), the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), PFLAG, She Rocks Awards and LA Pride.

“Margaret Cho is my soul sister, we see the world through the same lens trying our damndest to make things just a little groovier, mellower & a lot more fun. I admire her deeply. You’ve got to experience her live to get the whole picture so get up & make it happen! She is one of a kind” – Sandra Bernhard

Margaret was also part of Netflix’s “Stand Out Comedy Special” and “Over The Moon” film with Ken Jeong & Sandra Oh which was nominated for an Academy Award & Golden Globe Award.

Margaret has been working on a 10 year project – a new one-woman show about her mother and two sisters, where Margaret plays all of the characters – hoping to eventually take the show to Broadway.

A pioneer amongst women in comedy, Margaret doesn’t take anything for granted as she continues to tackle difficult subjects with sensitivity and her razor sharp insight with her takes on addiction, abuse, activism and Asianness. It’s all about the politics of disgust and what is disgusting about politics. Margaret has received many rave reviews for her live shows with the Chicago Tribune saying “Be it on-screen (“30 Rock,” “Drop Dead Diva”) or on stage, Margaret Cho has been one of the most exciting, unpredictable stand-up comics working for some time, and that hasn’t changed. If anything, the Asian-American female comedian’s voice has become more valuable than ever, given today’s social climate, and Cho’s material remains just as compelling, thanks in part to—and sometimes in spite of—her unapologetic delivery.”

“Margaret Cho inspired me since I was a kid. She was someone who was queer, Asian and doing something that you did not immediately associate with an Asian person. There’s a dearth of representation when it comes to queer people or Asian people, but I have to give credit to the people who have been out here doing it, and that’s definitely Margaret.” – Bowen Yang

“The Notoroius C.H.O.! Margaret is a jack of all trades and master of many. Whether conjuring the spirits of George Carlin, Joan Rivers or Lenny Bruce, she is committed to navigating the world of comedy and uniquely making it her own. Completely unapologetic about the life experiences that have shaped her path and journey to where she is today. These are just some of the reasons I love Margaret.” – Wanda Sykes

“Margaret Cho is a pioneering, trailblazing, genre-busting badass. She also happens to be extremely amusing.” – Shirley Manson of Garbage

“Margaret doesn’t just kick the door down. She lights it on fire.” – Atsuko Okatsuka

“I’ve said it before but it bares repeating: I would not be doing what I do without Margaret Cho. Her comedy was daring and bawdy and incisive when I first discovered her early work and seeing her now it’s remarkable how she’s been able to evolve, stay relevant and remain one of the funniest comics working today.” – Joel Kim Booster

Margaret Cho Thanks for being with us on WMM

11:50

Margaret Cho – “Wheels of Gold”
from: Lucky Gift / Clownery Records / February 14, 2025
[Margaret Cho’s 3rd music album. She released In Transistion in 2013, and American Myth in 2016. // Produced and co-written with Garrison Starr and Roger Rocha. Acoustic Guitar Garrison Starr and Margaret Cho. Backround Vocals Kate Willett. ]

[Margaret Cho brings her new show, “Choligarchy” to The Folly Theater, 300 West 12th, KCMO, on Saturday, June 16, at 7:30pm. ]

Mitski – “I’ll Change For You”
from: Nothings About to Happen to Me / Dead Oceans / February 27, 2026
[Nothing’s About to Happen to Me is the eighth studio album by Mitski. Continuing the musical through line established with The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We, the album features live instrumentation by The Land touring band and ensemble arrangements. The album finds Mitski immersing herself in a rich narrative whose main character is a reclusive woman in an unkempt house. Outside of her home, she is a deviant; inside of her home, she is free.]

Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now”
from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]

Next week, on Wednesday, June 3 we talk with David Brighton of David Brighton’s SPACE ODDITY, The Quintessential David Bowie Tribute Experience, presented by The Folly Theater, Friday, June 5, at 7:30. We also welcome back to the show Stephonne, AND Jocelyn Olivia Nixon of The Creepy Jingles joins us to talk about her band’s new album WASHED UP.

THANK YOU to everyone who donated to KKFI’a Winter Fund Drive during Wednesday MidDay Medley we had a total of 49 individuals donated $3924.00 going way over our show goal!

Thank you to KKFI Staff: Executive Director – Bess Wallerstein Huff, Chief Operator – Chad Brothers, Director of Development & Communications – J Kelly Dougherty, Volunteer Coordinator – Darryl Oliver, and Shaina Littler – Office Manager Book Keeper

You can find our playlists at: http://www.wednesdaymiddaymedley.org & http://www.kkfi.org
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM
http://www.instagram.wednesday_midday_medley

Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information.
Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org

Wednesday MidDay Medley in on the web:
http://www.kkfi.org,
http://www.WednesdayMidDayMedley.org,
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM

Show #1149

WMM presents: Margaret Cho + FlareThaRebel + Brodie Rush & Cody Calhoun of An Evening of Pink Floyd

Posted on May 24, 2026 by Mark Manning

Wednesday MidDay Medley
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning

Wednesday, May 27, 2026

WMM presents: Margaret Cho + FlareThaRebel + Brodie Rush & Cody Calhoun of An Evening of Pink Floyd

Mark spins More New & MidCoastal Releases from: Radkey, Sweeping Promises, Til Willis & Erratic Cowboy, FlareThaRebel, Lee Walter Redding, Black Light Animals, Be/Non, youbet, Yaya Bey, Mitski, Pink Floyd, and Margaret Cho.

At 10:30am Brodie Rush & Cody Calhoun join us to share details about An Evening of Pink Floyd, Friday, May 29, doors at 7:00pm, show at 8:00pm, at Warehouse On Broadway, 3951 Broadway, KCMO. The night will feature, The Dark Side of the Moon, performed in its entirety along with many more of Pink Floyd’s biggest hits and deep cuts. The band features some of Kansas City’s finest Rock, Soul, and Psychedelic musicians: Brodie Rush (Be/Non), Cody Calhoun (Black Light Animals), Liam Sumnicht (Black Light Animals, Not A Planet), Nate Hubert (Black Light Animals), SEYKO (The Freedom Affair and SUNU), and Tim Jenkins (Ramona Clay). With special guest performances by Aryana Nemanti and Michael Tipton (Found A Job, Michael Tipton & The Scoundrels) among others! For more information you can visit: https://warehouseonbroadway.com/

At 11:00am FlareThaRebel returns to Wednesday MidDay Medley to share details about his new, epic full length album, DEAR CITY that was released May 1, 2026. Dear City is an incredible testimony of life as an artist in Kansas City making Hip Hop music. Dear City features 12 tracks with guest appearances from Jazlyn, Kemet Coleman, Ryan Marquez, Edie Moore, Kadesh Flow, The Epitome, The Royal Chief, Shay Lyriq, Joey Cool, and Paula Sunders, Shon Ruffin and SEYKO of The Freedom Affair. FlareThaRebel has just returned from special performance in Ireland with Kemet Coleman and Kadesh Flow. FlareThaRebel plays Day Eight of Manor Fest 8, on Saturday, May 30 at 1:00pm at The Kemper Museum 4420 Warwick Blvd, KCMO, with Kadesh Flow and True Lions. FlareThaRebel is also known as Jeff Shafer who serves as Executive Director for City Year Kansas City, an educational-equity nonprofit that places mentors/tutors in schools to keep kids on track to graduate. This was the job that brought Jeff back to KC. More info at: http://www.cityyear.org

At 11:30am Mark talks with Margaret Cho – the five-time Grammy and Emmy nominated comedian who brings her new “blistering and brutally honest” show, “Choligarchy” to The Folly Theater, 300 West 12th, KCMO, on Saturday, June 16, at 7:30pm. Margaret continues to be the must-see comedian-actress with new acting roles in Gregg Araki’s next film, “I Want Your Sex” with Olivia Wilde & Charli XCX, and alongside Sandra Bernhard & Kristen Schaal in Disney’s season 2 of “Percy Jackson and the Olympians”. Margaret was also part of Netflix’s “Stand Out Comedy Special” and “Over The Moon” film with Ken Jeong & Sandra Oh which was nominated for an Academy Award & Golden Globe Award. Margaret was recently included in VOGUE Magazine’s “9 best female comedians of all-time’ alongside Joan Rivers, Gilda Radner and Wanda Sykes. Margaret Cho is the author of two memoirs, has done 12 national comedy tours including “True Colors” with Cyndi Lauper. Margaret has been in 48 films, including Fire Island, a portrayal of the LGBTQ Asian American experience on Fire Island. She has been in 72 television shows, including 19 episodes of All American Girl, 72 episodes of Drop Dead Diva, 21 episodes of Fashion Police with Joan Rivers, and 3 episodes of 30 Rock, where her portrayal of Kim Jong II was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series. Margaret Cho has also created 8 television comedy specials, recorded 9 comedy albums, 3 full length musical albums, 11 musical singles and 23 music videos. She has frequently supported LGBTQ rights and has won awards for her humanitarian efforts on behalf of women, Asian Americans, and the LGBTQ community. For more information you can visit: http://www.follytheater.org

On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or
STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org

Show #1149

WMM Playlist from May 20, 2026

Posted on May 21, 2026 by Mark Manning

Wednesday MidDay Medley
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning

Wednesday, May 20, 2026

KC Folk Fest w/ Rachel Christia & Vi Tran + Darin Challacombe + Madeline Marak & Lori Buntin

“It’s Showtime Folks”
from: Motion Picture Soundtrack to All That Jazz / Universal / Dec. 20, 1979
[WMM’s theme]

Andrew Connor – “Kiss Them For Me”
from: Covers Collection / Pretend Outlaw Music / May 1, 2026
[Andrew Connors new release features 13 covers of songs from family, friends and musical icons including Andrew’s Fathers Band from during /before his early childhood, from Minden lead singer Casey Burge, Siouxsie Sioux & The Banshees, The Bee Gees, Neil Young, Alex Chilton, Yukihiro Takashi and more. // “Kiss Them for Me” by Siouxsie Sioux (Susan Ballion), Steven Severin, Budgie (Peter Edward Clarke), and Martin McCarrick, originally recorded by Siouxsie and the Banshees. // Recorded & Mixed by Andrew Connor. Instruments & Vocals by AC except: Jake Acosta – Drums on “Kiss Them For Me.” Mastered by Mike Nolte at Eureka Mastering. // Andrew Connor is a veteran of the Lawrence KS – KC Music Community. Ghosty has released some of our most favorite music of the past 22 years of this radio show. // The Lawrence/KC band GHOSTY is one of our most played and favorite area bands of all time Between 2002 and 2020 GHOSTY has released six EPs, three full length albums, and multiple singles. As a solo project Andrew Connor recently released COLORADO on April 21, 2023. More info at: http://www.ghostysounds.com]

Ghosty / Andrew Connor Discography

Ghosty released the 3-song EP, PRODIGAL SUN on February 28, 2020 with Bill Belzer on drums, percussion / Ross Brown on guitar, keys / Andrew Connor on guitar, keyboards, vocals / Mike Nolte on bass

Ghosty released the self titled album GHOSTY on April 17, 2014. It was there 3rd full length release with Andrew Connor, Mike Nolte and Bill Belzer who recorded their new album themselves over the last couple of years with help from David Wetzel, Josh Adams, Jake Blanton, Konnor Ervin, Ryan Connor, Kirsten Paludan, and Dan Talmadge. The new release was pressed on vinyl and available on LP and digital download.]

Ghosty released the single “Love U 2” on July 15, 2013, recorded June 2013 at Westend, Kansas City, KS. Documentary about the recording of this song by surrounding media vimeo.com/70317712 // with: Mike Nolte on bass, engineering, mastering // Andrew Connor on guitar, keys, vocals / Bill Belzer – drums, & percussion

Ghosty released the 5-track EP, TEAM UP AGAIN on April 13, 2010 with Andrew Connor, Mike Nolte, David Wetzel, Josh Adams, Jake Blanton, Suzannah Johannes, Konnor Ervin, Ryan Johnson // Team Up Again,” “Ocean of Heat (Setting FIres),” and “Quell The Hunger” by Andrew Connor, arranged by Ghosty, Pretend Outlaw Music, ASCAP, 2010. “Virginia Song” by Rev. Howard Finster, arranged by Ghosty. “On A Saturday” by Jake Blanton, arranged by Ghosty. // “Team Up Again,” “Setting Fires,” “Virginia Song,” and “On A Saturday” recorded and mixed at Run Riot / More Famouser Studios, Shawnee, KS, September 2009 through March 2010. Engineered and mixed by Mike Nolte and Ghosty. // “Quell The Hunger” recorded at Mixtape Soundlab, Lawrence, KS, January 2009 additional tracking and mixing and Run Riot / More Famouser studios, Shawnee, KS, and February 2010. Engineered and mixed by Mike Nolte and Ghosty.

Ghosty released the 3-track EP, FOOLISH PRIDE on November 17, 2009 with All songs by Andrew Connor, arranged by Ghosty, Pretend Outlaw Music, ASCAP, 2009 // “Foolish Pride” and “Rose-Colored Glasses” basic tracks recorded at Jack’s House, Merriam, Kansas, Fall 2007. Engineered by Mike Nolte and Ghosty. Additional tracking and mixing at More Famouser Studios, Kansas City, MO, and Run Riot Studios, Shawnee, KS, Fall 2009. // “Hey Bill” basic tracks recorded at Mixtape Soundlab, Lawrence, KS, January 2009. Engineered by Mike Nolte and David Wetzel. Additional tracking and mixing at More Famouser Studios, Kansas City, MO by Mike Nolte and Ghosty, Spring 2009.

Ghosty released the 3-track EP, A MYSTIC’S ROBE on September 15, 2009 with Andrew Connor, David Wetzel, Mike Nolte, Jake Blanton, Josh Adams, Carmen Winters // All Songs by Andrew Connor, arranged by Ghosty, Pretend Outlaw Music, ASCAP, 2009 // “My Girl Is Strong” and “Sunday Morning” basic tracks recorded at Mixtape Soundlab, Lawrence, KS, January 2009. Engineered by Mike Nolte and David Wetzel. Additional tracking & mixing at More Famouser Studios, KCMO by Mike Nolte & Ghosty Spring 2009. // “Secret Language” basic tracks recorded at Jack’s House, Merriam, KS, Fall 2007 Engineered by Mike Nolte & Ghosty. Additional tracking & mixing at More Famouser Studios, by Mike Nolte & Ghosty Spring 2009.

Ghosty released the 11-song album ANSWERS on January 15, 2008 with tracks recorded by Paul Malinowski at Westend and Run Riot Studios, Kansas City, KS, 2006-07. racks 4, 6, 7, and 9 were recorded and mixed by Trent Bell at Bell Labs, Norman, OK, 2006. // Track 8 was recorded by Tim Brandsted at UMKC and Paul Malinowski at Westend. Mixed by Paul Malinowski at Westend, 2007. // Tracks 2 and 10 were recorded by Chris Behmer at the Ferrell home, Overland Park, KS, 2005, and with Trent Bell at Bell Labs. Mixed by Trent Bell at Bell Labs, 2006. // Mastered by Roger Seibel at SAE Masterin // All songs by Andrew Connor, arranged by Ghosty // Pretend Outlaw Music, ASCAP. // Released on Oxblood Records.

Ghosty released the 5-track EP, ME, ME, ME on January 15, 2006 w/ Andrew Connor on guitar & vocals / Jeff Ferrell on guitar & vocals // David Wetzel on keyboards &* vocals // Mike Nolte – bass & vocals // Josh Adams on drums & vocals // Recorded & mixed Fall 2005 by Jeff Ferrell and Ghosty at New York St. house, Lawrence, KS. Artwork by Paul Browning. Songs by Andrew Connor, Pretend Outlaw Music

Ghosty released the 19-track album GROW UP OR SLEEP IN (Deluxe Edition) on August 30, 2005 with Josh Adams, Andrew Connor, Jeff Ferrell, Mike Nolte, David Wetzel// and Alums: Jacob Baum, Richard Gintowt, Mark Hurst, Andrew Sallee, James Duft // Big Surrender, Henry Greene, and Hey! Somebody were recorded by Mike Mogis at Presto! in Lincoln, NE in the summer of 2002 // Jacqueline, Rooms in the Dark, (In a Big World)Little Dreams Count, High on Life, Clouds Solve It, Go to Add/Drop City, and World Travelers were recorded by Trent Bell and Andy Nunez at Bell Labs in Norman, OK in the fall 2003 // Mastered by Doug Van Sloun at Studio B // Design by Patrick Giroux at Blue Collar Press // All songs by Andrew Connor, Copyright 2005 // Pretend Outlaw Music(ASCAP) // Wayne Coyne appears courtesy of Warner Brothers Records // BONUS TRACKS: Primadonna, John Hunter, and Sad Sack recorded Summer 2006? at the Ferrell Home in Overland Park, KS by Chris Behmer and Ghosty // Dust Box Nites and Rok Town Air recorded and mixed with Tom Wagner at Underground Sound in Lawrence Kansas, Winter 2005? James Duft plays bass // Going Home Recorded in the Spring of 2002 at 1225 and 1137 Tennessee in Lawrence, KS by Ghosty, Mixed with Jeff Ferrell.

Ghosty released the 6-track EP THE FIVE SHORT MINUTES on February 2, 2002 with Andrew Connor: Guitar, Vocals, Keyboards / Jacob Baum: Bass, Organ, Percussion, Guitar / Richard Gintowt: Drums, Percussion / Jeff Jackson: Pedal Steel Guitar on Track 5 // Recorded Fall 2001 at the haunted house by Jacob Baum / Produced by Ghosty / Mastered by Boyd Bristow

Andrew Connor – In Colorado / Pretend Outlaw Music / April 21, 2021
[Darien Williams on drums, Justin Fernando on bass guitar, Joseph Murphy on synth, Ryan Connor on guitar & lap steel, Andrew Connor on guitar, keys, & bass guitar. // Engineered by Doug Malone at Jamdek, Chicago // additional tracking by Andrew Connor. // Mixed by Mike Nolte and Andrew Connor in Portland, OR // Mastered by Mike Nolte at Eureka Mastering // Songs by Andrew Connor, Pretend Outlaw Music ASCAP
Except “Misery” by Ryan Connor and Andrew Connor.]

Andrew Connor – 2015 / Pretend Outlaw Music / August 10, 2024
[These 2015 Demos Andrew just posted have this effect: When they start, they are subtle, and through glints of metal and woozy guitars evoke some future summer. But by the end the listener comes to understand that this future environment could map onto our present. The music then positions the listener to inhabit that world, to accept Andrew’s contention that the griefs and disappointments of today are wholly contained in a breezy, becalmed futurenow.” Eugene Booth, 2024.]

Swamp Dogg – “Acid Tongue (Jenny Lewis Cover)”
from: Swamp Dogg Contemplates The Afterlife / S-Curve Records / June 19, 2026
[The B-Side of the First single from new album. // Veteran soul/R&B/funk/rock/Americana icon Swamp Dogg celebrates his 84th birthday this summer; this milestone is to be preceded by the release of his 27th full length Swamp Dogg Contemplates The Afterlife. The new album, set for release by S-Curve Records on June 19, in recognition of Black Music Month, was produced by the artist, né Jerry Williams, Jr., along with S-Curve founder Steve Greenberg, Mike Mangini and Sam Hollander, Grammy winners who’ve individually and collectively produced artists including Joss Stone, Tom Jones, the O’Jays, Betty Wright & the Roots, Andy Grammer, Jonas Brothers, Hanson, Digable Planets and Public Enemy. // Two advance tracks from the album will be released on April 24 – the digital equivalent of a double A-sided 45. The self-penned “Searching For Heaven” encapsulates the album’s overriding themes of life lived and one’s mortality. The other track is a cover of “Acid Tongue,” written and originally recorded in 2008 by Jenny Lewis. Swamp Dogg and Lewis are friends and Lewis collaborated with Swamp on his much-celebrated 2024 album Blackgrass: From West Virginia to 125th St. // “This record didn’t start out as a concept album but, apparently, it is,” Swamp Dogg relates. Except for unique takes on “Acid Tongue” and John Prine’s “Please Don’t Bury Me,” the rest of the album’s selections are Swamp Dogg originals, including “Waka Waka Waka,” featuring guest vocalist Gary U.S. Bonds, who’d been a close collaborator and friend of Swamp since adolescence before an unfortunate falling out decades ago, now remedied by this appearance. // One of the few first-generation soul artists still recording and touring, Swamp Dogg’s music being has been embraced by successive generations who are taken with his musical mastery and iconoclastic approach to both his craft and life writ large. Testimony to his ecumenism is found in the fact that he’s been warmly embraced within the Americana world, and in his recent headlining appearance aboard the SiriusXM Outlaw Country Cruise. He has also made waves of late with the release of the critically lauded documentary film Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted, currently streaming. // Of special note is the album art, conceived by Grammy-winner David Gorman, depicting Swamp Dogg, surrounded by tomes dealing with mortality, examining a comic book in the style of a Renaissance illuminated manuscript.]

Stephonne – “Papa John”
from: “Papa John (radio edit)” – Single / Glory Blue Music / May 20, 2025
[“Stephonne is reimagining what it means to be a Black musician in Kansas City, disrupting outdated narratives with music that celebrates fluidity, theatricality, and freedom. Their art is multidimensional, relentless, and ambitious, drawing inspiration from other pockets of pop music.” – Lyrical Odyssey // May 20th, 2026 (New York, NY): Fearless alternative/genrequeer singersongwriter, producer and multi-disciplinary artist Stephonne has debuted their new single, “Papa John”. A funky pop art joyride of sexual liberation, they delivers us a sonic smorgasbord. Innuendo laden and cheeky, Parliament meets Doja Cat on a Studio 54 dance floor. Over a percolating beat and playful bass synth, grit, guts and go-go simmer. “Papa John” is inimitably Stephonne. Their artistic voice here is singular, however lushly layered, and the freest we’ve heard it yet.// “In the age of A.I. it’s more important than ever to show up as perfectly imperfect and as fully as possible. Listening to this song is like freebasing me. You’re experiencing me at my purest, loosest, most raw, and in full-on play mode. Every part of creating this song was fun. It felt like a celebration and still does. I’m excited to party with everybody. Right now, we need humor and joy. We need to dance and free ourselves. Revolution can be sexy. It may even be necessary. In the midst of so much pain, it’s easy to forget about pleasure. We aren’t just here to procreate. Please be safe and get tested, but don’t forget to spice up your life. Food is not the only thing that’s better with seasoning, sis. That goes for all of us, no matter the countless ways we separate ourselves. We have more in common than we don’t. God and sex are two of the biggest things we do. God used it to create my gay ass just like He used it to create you. Can we move on to something important? You know, like stopping WWIII and A.I. armageddon? Persecuting LGBTQ people won’t stop either of those or those in power from coming for you next. Unclench, folks. Life is so much more enjoyable. The gays can show you how, honey! We can also show you how to survive, thrive, and persevere because we continue to through it all.” – Stephonne // Stephonne takes the helm as songwriter, producer, and artist again. Recent collaborator, Joseph Price (Third Son) adds his assist to amplify the Kansas City native’s potent lyricism and musical instincts. We’ve stepped into an electronic era, but “Papa John” is still punk. Full of humor and audacity, it also recalls and reimagines funk and disco. “Papa John” will live rent free in your head, long after first listen and leave you hungry for Stephonne’s next delivery .// On February 13, 2026 Stephonne released “Bloody Mary” Written, Produced, and Engineered by Stephonne Singleton, Co-Produced, Mixed and Mastered by Joseph T Price. // On August 15, 2025 Stephonne released “Worship at the Chappell: Co-written with Shawn M. Stewart and produced with Patrick Meagher, the song is a declaration of power, pleasure, and pride—a sonic celebration of being fully and freely oneself. “Worship at the Chappell” is a bold, genre-bending anthem from Kansas City artist Stephonne—an electrifying fusion of disco, pop, and gospel spirit. Inspired by fellow Missouri native Chappell Roan, the track transforms the dance floor into a sanctuary for queer joy, spiritual liberation, and unapologetic self-love. With soaring vocals, provocative lyrics, and infectious grooves, Stephonne delivers a soulful sermon for the marginalized. // Stephonne describes himself as the lovechild of Prince & Billie Holiday. He grew up in KCK and received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music from Benedictine College, and Masters in Entertainment Business from Full Sail University. Stephonne is a 2023 winner of the Charlotte Street Generative Performing Arts Fellows. // Stephonne is an Alternative/Genrequeer singer-songwriter, cultural producer, and generative performing artist from Kansas City, MO. They synthesize music, written/spoken word, performance and visual art/media into an inimitable art. They share their struggles, triumphs, and journey to self-love through multidisciplinary performance and have sent audiences on visceral and experiential journeys through a multitude of music and video releases since 2015. Bold new 2025 singles and videos continue to push boundaries! New experiences, both sonic and visual, await us from the upcoming sophomore LP, STEPHONNE. // Singer, songwriter, actor, model, artist, activist – Stephonne Singleton keeps very busy, serving as a board member of KC Folk Fest, organizing tribute shows, playing: music festivals, Charlotte Street Foundation, Lemonade Park, Lawrence Pride, Manor Records, Midwest Music Foundation, The AIDS Service Foundation of KC, InterUrban ArtHouse, Crossroads Music Fest, The Black Box, The Folly Theatre, and West 18th Street Fashion Show. Stephonne released his EP SIS: Side B on June 24, 2022. Stephonne released the single “I” on August 21, 2024. Stephonne released the single “I think its Gonna Be Alright” I April 2025. Stephonne released the single, Forgive Me, Father (Sinead O’Connor) on May 21, 2025. // More info at: http://www.stephonne.com]

[Stephonne joins us on WMM on June 3, 2026]

Angélique Kidjo – “Bando (feat. Pharrell Williams & Quavo)
from: Hope / Parlophone Records / April 24, 2026
[Angélique Kpasseloko Hinto Hounsinou Kandjo Manta Zogbin Kidjo is a Beninese musician, actress, and activist. Kidjo has won five Grammy Awards and a Polar Music Prize. She has collaborated with artists including Alicia Keys, Peter Gabriel, John Legend, Philip Glass, Bono, Yo-Yo Ma, and Burna Boy. She is the first Black African artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.She performed at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony on July 23, 2021. In 2021, Time magazine included her in its list of the 100 most influential people in the world. Kidjo is fluent in five languages: Fon, French, Yorùbá, Gen (Mina) and English. She sings in all of them, and she also has her own personal language, which includes words that serve as song titles such as “Batonga”. Kidjo often uses Benin’s traditional Zilin vocal technique and vocalese. // Angélique Kpasseloko Hinto Hounsinou Kandjo Manta Zogbin Kidjo was born in Ouidah, French Dahomey, in what became Benin. Her father is from the Fon people of Ouidah and her mother from the Yoruba people. Her father was a musician, and her mother worked as a choreographer and theatre director. She grew up listening to Yoruba and Beninese traditional music, Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela, James Brown, Manu Dibango, Otis Redding, Jimi Hendrix, Fela Kuti, Stevie Wonder, Osibisa and Santana. By the time she was six years old, Kidjo was performing with her mother’s theatre troupe. // She started singing in her school band, Les Sphinx, and found success as a teenager with her adaptation of Miriam Makeba’s “Les Trois Z”, which was played on national radio. Kidjo recorded the album Pretty with Cameroonian producer Ekambi Brilliant and her brother Oscar. It featured the songs “Ninive”, “Gbe Agossi”, and a tribute to the singer Bella Bellow, one of her role models. The success of the album allowed her to tour all over West Africa. Continuing political conflicts in Benin prevented her from being an independent artist in her own country and led her to relocate to Paris in 1983. // After moving to France, Kidjo initially planned to become a human rights lawyer, but ended up studying music. While working various day jobs to pay for her tuition, Kidjo studied music at the CIM, a jazz school in Paris, where she met musician and producer Jean Hebrail, with whom she has composed most of her music and whom she married in 1987. She started out as a backup singer in local bands. In 1985, she became the front singer of Jasper van ‘t Hof’s Euro-African jazz/rock band Pili Pili. Three Pili Pili studio albums followed: Jakko (1987), Be In Two Minds (1988, produced by Marlon Klein) and Hotel Babo (1990). By the end of the 1980s, she had become one of the most popular live performers in Paris and recorded a solo album called Parakou for the Open Jazz Label. She met Island Records founder Chris Blackwell in Paris; Blackwell signed her to a record deal in 1991. She recorded four albums for Island until Blackwell’s departure from the label. In 2000, she was signed in New York by Columbia Records, for whom she recorded two albums.]

Cola – “Forced Position”
from: Cost of Living Adjustments / Firetalk Records / May 8, 2026
[C.O.L.A. is sort of a self-titled album. It’s an acronym for Cost of Living Adjustment, a fitting conceptual framework for Cola’s third record. C.O.L.A. is the band’s most maximalist work to date, full of the eerie and sweet pangs that nostalgia can provoke. It is the band’s most refined offering. A perfection of carefully honed aesthetic impulses. One of the goals with the album was to have the melody guide the lyrics. Here, the vocal melodies are on the same level as all of the other melodies on the record, but the lyrics are no less poetic. Sounds do not blur, even when they are expansive. The record is full of clarifying moments: where a whole swirl of feelings becomes so clear that it almost hurts a little bit. It is abstract, oblique, sometimes strange, whatever you want to call it. But it is also beautiful, in the classic sense. Beautiful like a painting can be beautiful. / Cola is a post-punk band from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The band consists of Tim Darcy (vocals, guitar), Ben Stidworthy (bass), and Evan Cartwright (drums). // The band’s roots trace back to late 2019, when members of Ought, Tim Darcy and Ben Stidworthy, began writing music with Evan Cartwright of U.S. Girls. Darcy and Sidworthy were in Montreal at the time, while Cartwright was in Toronto. After informal writing and music sessions, the members began exchanging lyrics and song ideas into 2020 and 2021. In November 2021, the band Ought announced their disbandment, and announced the band, Cola the same day. With the announcement of the band was the release of their debut single, “Blank Curtain”. The song was met with critical praise, with Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone describing the song having a “gorgeously obsessive guitar groove”. The band told Destroy Exist that the song, “is a quarter note kick drum pushing 240 bpm, a drone-like chord progression, and declarative vocals cutting through the haze. If you could invert the color of the Blank Curtain, you might have something like a Chicago house track that sounds like a band in a room.” // On February 22, 2022, the band announced their debut studio album, Deep in View. The album was released on May 20, 2022. // In April 2024, Cola announced their sophomore record, The Gloss, and released the record on June 14, 2024, through Fire Talk Records. // On February 18, 2026, the band announced their third record, Cost of Living Adjustment, alongside the first single “Hedgesitting.” Cost of Living Adjustment released on May 8 on Fire Talk Records. Discography: Deep in View (2022), The Gloss (2024), and Cost of Living Adjustment (2026)]

Hovvdy – “Try Try Try”
from: Big World / Arts & Crafts / August 14, 2026
[Hovvdy the project of Will Taylor and Charlie Martin, announce Big World, their sixth full-length album, due August 14th via Arts & Crafts. Alongside the album announcement, the band has its propulsive lead single “Try Try Try” with a Michael Rees-directed video. // The songs of Big World find Hovvdy trading in overt emotional directness for subject matter that leans enigmatic, contemplating their place in the world through a mosaic of songs that sees the band at their most secure and self-aware. // Since 2024’s Hovvdy, the band’s most expansive album to date, which earned them the coveted Best New Album distinction from Pitchfork, both Martin and Taylor have become published songwriters in their new home of Nashville – a career development that heavily informed their approach to making Big World. “The last record felt like such a generous offering: a double-album, deeply personal, you can literally hear me crying on some songs,” says Martin. “With this one, we wanted to take on the challenge of making something more concise and to the point, and give the fans something that feels like a shorter but more exciting ride.” // Over a handful of recording sessions between Nashville and Asheville in fall 2025, Martin and Taylor adopted a recording approach that was new for them as a band: coming to the sessions only with instrumentals rather than fully-drafted demos, choosing to write and respond to the songs in real time. “When it comes to the music, there’s literally never questions between Charlie and me, only answers,” says Taylor. “We can always show up and not have to worry about the music, and that continues to amaze me.” They viewed this as a fun, new challenge for them and, with the backing of their longtime collaborator Ben Littlejohn who serves as producer on Big World, felt less pressured and more empowered to make a record that was more sonically immediate, but emotionally ambiguous. Each song holds up a mirror to the band, both looking back at where they’ve come from and forward towards where they might be heading, sometimes proud, sometimes defeated, but always humbled by the enormity of the world and their place in it. // Additionally, Hovvdy announced a fall tour in support of Big World that traverses the US and Canada. Before then, they will be supporting Bleachers (US) and Wilco (EU) this summer.]

[Hovvdy plays The Bottleneck In Lawrence Kansas. on October 9, 2026 with Bleachers.]

10:28 – Underwriting

10:30 – Interview with Darin Challacombe

Darin Challacombe is host & producer of KKFI’s All That Class and Jazz, broadcast Saturday mornings 2:00am to 5:00am. Darin, holds a Ph.D. in psychology from Northcentral University. He also holds a degree in Specialization in Human Resources Management – Certified Practitioner, and is Director of Talent Development at a medical records company. With 20+ years in education and deep roots in the health information field, Darren serves on several professional boards and associations. When he’s not in the office, Darin is DJ Darin — the voice behind All That Class and Jazz on KKFI. A trained vocalist and enthusiast of jazz, blues, swing, and classical music, he’s lived in a half-dozen states and several countries, and recently returned to Kansas City from South America.

Darin Challacombe , thank you for being with us on WMM

He also holds a degree in Specialization in Human Resources Management – Certified Practitioner, and is Director of Talent Development at a medical records company.

With 20+ years in education and deep roots in the health information field, Darren serves on several professional boards and associations.

Darin is DJ Darin — the voice behind All That Class and Jazz on KKFI. A trained vocalist and enthusiast of jazz, blues, swing, and classical music,

Darin has lived in a half-dozen states and several countries, and recently returned to Kansas City from South America.

90.1 FM KKFI Kansas City
All That Class And Jazz – 2:00 AM to 5:00 AM
Music With DJ Darin

This show’s core philosophy is to break down the perceived barriers between “high art” and “street soul” weaving together Classical, Jazz, Blues, & Swing, the program aims to:

Demonstrate Musical Lineage: Show how the complex harmonies of classical music directly influenced the birth of jazz and blues.

Promote Accessibility: Make genres that are often viewed as exclusive or “academic” approachable and entertaining for a broad audience.

Champion Diversity: Focus on underrepresented composers and performers in each genre, highlighting the contributions of women and people of color to the classical and jazz canons.

Foster Discovery: Provide a space where a fan of swing might discover a new favorite classical suite, and vice-versa, through thoughtful, thematic curation.
“All That Class and Jazz” track’s with our mission statement, especially to “stimulate, educate, and entertain our audience” and to showcase “music that have been overlooked, suppressed or under-represented by other media.”.

DJ Darin is the voice behind “All that Class and Jazz,” KKFI’s Saturday early morning show. He is a jazz, blues, swing, and classical music enthusiast. He is trained in vocal performance. Originally from Topeka, he has lived in a half-dozen states and several countries. He recently just returned to KC from South America.

Darin Challacombe , thank you for being with us on WMM

KKFI’s All That Class and Jazz, broadcast Saturday mornings 2:00am to 5:00am.

On a recent show we heard Darin play: Charlie Parker, Robert Johnson, Aaron Copeland, W.C. Handy, Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald. Count Basie, Muddy Waters, and Tervor Turla

10:49

Trevor Turla – “Let Go”
from: As We Continue / Trevor Turla / April 21, 2022..
[Trevor Turla composed all of the music on this EP that included Trevor Turla on trombone, Daniel Dissmore on trumpet, Aryana Nemati on saxophone, Fritz Hutchison on guitar & banjo, Miki P on guitar & vocals, John O’Keefe on bass, Nik Douglas on drums, Carmen Dieker on fiddle, Jake Keegan on dobro, and Chris Hazelton on organ. “Let Go” was the second single released on February 17, 2022. We first played Trevor Turla on WMM on July 29, 2020. His track “Busted” was released on a compilation titled KANSAS CITY SYZYGY that featured over 25 Kansas City-based musicians who came together to create a compilation of music created during the shutdown of the world in the Spring of 2020. // Originally from Wichita, Kansas, Trevor Turla is now lives in Kansas City. Trevor defines himself as a musician. He started playing his first instrument, the bagpipes, at the age of 8 and hasn’t stopped the pursuit of music since. He received his Bachelor’s in Jazz Studies for trombone from the UMKC Conservatory of Music. Trevor now creates music full time by playing, recording, and holding clinics around the United States. Trevor plays & sings in numerous bands, including Jake Wells, Grand Marquis, Miki P, Fritz Hutchison, & LA Jones. He was also the founder, lead singer & trombonist for the band Sulu Moon. Info at http://www.trevorturla.com.]

[Trevor Turla plays the KC Folk Fest on KC Folk Fest, Saturday, May 30, 11:00am to 7:00pm at Washington Square Park with The Freedom Affair, Kaia Kater, Flutienastieness & The Soul Patrol, Julia Haile, Reach, Sisterbot, Bad Alaskan, and more!]

Flutienastiness – “Go Get It”
from: This Is Me / Flutienastiness Entertainment / October 28, 2020
[Jazz flutist, educator, band director, and band leader, Amber Underwood is a native of Kansas City and has been entertaining and performing music since the tender age of 8. Beginning her musical journey on the piano and soon after began playing classical flute. / While in college, Amber discovered Jazz and became intrigued with the art form inspired by musical influences of Bobbi Humphrey, Hubert Laws, Frank Wess, Herbie Mann, and Nestor Torres and found a love for the art form. At age 20, Amber graduated from Wichita State University with a Bachelor of Music in Flute Performance and by 23 she completed a Masters of Arts in Arts Administration and Music Business from the University of Missouri Kansas City Conservatory and continued her education with a second Master’s degree in Education and Teaching Music from Pittsburgh State University. / In the beginning of 2014, the Amber Underwood Project and later transformed into Flutienastiness and the SoulPatrol with the mission to showcase an instrument that is normally used as an auxiliary instrument in jazz but now as a solo instrument. Flutienastiness and the SoulPatrol is a modern and fresh take on smooth jazz and R&B sounds with a touch of Latin, Funk and Gospel. Flutienastiness and the SoulPatrol uses the rich tones and colors of the flute to interpret the various styles and genres of jazz. Amber has been a presence in the Kansas City jazz scene making a place and a voice for her instrument. Amber has opened for Kirk Whalum and has performed alongside a host of other artist. / Amber is our modern-day soul and contemporary jazz flautist and a force to be reckoned with. Her debut album, ‘This Is Me’ has gained International recognition and was name one of the Top 25 Jazz Albums of Kansas City in 2020. Amber has also appeared on jazz playlists and featured on various recordings from all genres. Amber ‘Flutienastiness’ Underwood is the future of contemporary soul jazz flute! // On October 28, 2020 Flutienastiness released the album THIS IS ME (part of WMM 120 Best recordngs of 2020). The album was produced, mixed, & mastered by Desmond “D. Professor” Mason for Out D. Park Productions. All flutes by Amber Underwood. All tracks were composed collaboratively between Amber & Desmond. Amber writes: “This is album is a touch of all my feelings, life journeys and a inside look into Amber ‘Flutienastiness’ Underwood as a person beyond the stage. More info at:www.flutienastiness.com.]

[Flutienastiness plays the KC Folk Fest on KC Folk Fest, Saturday, May 30, 11:00am to 7:00pm at Washington Square Park with The Freedom Affair, Kaia Kater, Trevor Turla & The Soul Patrol, Julia Haile, Reach, Sisterbot, Bad Alaskan, and more!]

Julia Haile – “Keep It Comin’ [feat. Les Izmore]”
from: EP/ Julia Haile / October 31, 2025
[New 7-track recording collection of Julia’s most recent songs. “Keep It Comin’” offers a mini reunion with Julia’s former band mate Les Izmore from the KC super-group The Buhs. Julia Haile on vocals; Tim Braun on guitar & bass; Fritz Hutchison on drums; Chase Horseman on keyboards, & synthesizers. // Julia Haile is an Indie Soul singer-songwriter with a voice that balances power and elegance. Her music pairs sweet and stirring vocals with driving guitar and funky beats, taking the listener on a genre-mixing journey of conscious baring offerings. Julia has carved out a unique sound that blends elements of Jazz, R&B, Pop and Rock. Along with musical partner Tim Braun, the pair have crafted songs with rich melodies and authentic storytelling, reflecting themes of love, self-discovery, and resilience. // Drawing inspiration from classic greats like Ella Fitzgerald all the way to the modern sounds of Erykah Badu and H.E.R, Julia continues to create music that marries instinct and raw ability. Her single Up Late is a Disco and Soul soaked party with heavy, dance inspiring guitar. Set Out begs you to leave behind what you know and venture into new depths. Each a view into the singer’s perspective on living life in this evolving day and age. // Haile studied Vocal Performance at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. // She has been a featured artist in bands such The Buhs and Hi-Lux. She has collaborated with musicians around the country and world. // Julia’s work with Hi-Lux included Tim Braun on guitar, Nick Howell on keys, Dan Loftus on bass, (and prior to that Pete Leibert on bass) and Kian Bryne on drums. Hi-Lux was a Modern-Soul band that blends and bends the boundaries between soul, rock n roll, reggae, and funk. This group aims to create music that pays tribute to their myriad of influences (Amy Winehouse, The Meters, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings). but also claims a spotlight of its own in the musical world. Hi-Lux released the singles, “Revolution” and “Get What You Give” on February 28, 2020, through The Record Machine. Hi-Lux released the single. “Don’t Blame Lee” (featuring Lee Scratch Perry) on April 20, 2018. Hi-Lux released the 7” vinyl single, “”Dance With My Baby” b/w “Don’t Blame Me” on January 5, 2018 through Sunflower Soul Records. Hi-Lux released their 6-track, self-titled EP, Hi-Lux on January 2, 2018. The band brings together elements of soul, reggae and funk for a unique and dance inspiring sound. More info at: http://www.juliaHaile.com]

[Julia Haile plays the KC Folk Fest on KC Folk Fest, Saturday, May 30, 11:00am to 7:00pm at Washington Square Park with The Freedom Affair, Kaia Kater, Trevor Turla & The Soul Patrol, Flutienastiness , Reach, Sisterbot, Bad Alaskan, and more!]

11:00 – Station ID

11:00 – Interview with Rachel Christia, and Vi Tran

Rachel Christia a Kansas City born tech-girl, afro-futurist, vocalist, actress and landlocked mermaid. She has performed with notable MidCoast bands such as Hearts of Darkness; an eclectic collective influenced by 70s afrobeat, and the Denver based powerhouse Pink Hawks; pulling funky polyrhythms from West Africa and South America. More recently, she enjoys collaborating with her favorite Kansas Music legends or concocting fully improvised audience led musicals with The Maestro’s – Kansas City. She is perfectly aligned as a Kansas City Folk Fest Board member as her primary directive is to build community by lovingly blurring the lines between art and activism.

Rachel Christia, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Vi Tran is an event producer, interdisciplinary storyteller, performer, and arts entrepreneur. Vi is best known as the creator of The Butcher’s Son, a folk musical memoir chronicling his family’s journey from Vietnam to the meatpacking country of southwestern Kansas. Past festival goers might recognize him as the Main Stage Manager and MC for the 2023 KC Folk Fest! Vi was also the founding owner and managing curator of The Buffalo Room, an artists’ salon and performance space in Westport. In its span, The Buffalo Room hosted over 800 events, collaborating with scores of producers and mentoring hundreds of performers over its six years of operation.

Vi Tran, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Rachel Christia and Vi Tran join us to share all the details about Kansas City Folk Festival, Saturday, May 30, 11:00am to 7:00pm at Washington Square Park with The Freedom Affair, Kaia Kater, Flutienastieness & The Soul Patrol, Julia Haile, Reach, Trevor Turla, Sisterbot, Bad Alaskan, and more! KC Folk Fest boasts three stages, delicious food trucks, bike valet and an extensive craft market chock full of local vendors. Heralded as a grassroots “people’s fest,” organized by a local community-led board. KC Folk Fest continues its legacy as an all-ages, admission-free city festival whose mission is “to celebrate the music and arts of our neighborhoods, region and beyond.” Originally founded as a public outreach event for Folk Alliance International’s annual industry conference in 2016, FAI transitioned the fest over to local stakeholders in 2019. “Kansas City Folk Festival” incorporated as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization in 2021 and produced their first outdoor folk festival in 2022 in Washington Square Park, KCMO. For more information: http://www.kcfolkfest.org

KC FOLK FEST IS ADMISSION-FREE

Where to park?

Carpools, Buses and Bikes, OH MY – We encourage everyone to carpool or take our mass transit including our RideKC buses and the free KC Street Car. Bikes also welcome! We have a FREE BIKE VALET thanks in part to our pardners at Midwest Cyclery!

What to bring? – Lawn chairs and blankets * sun protection * reusable shopping bags * reusable water bottles to refill at the KC water bar * cash for the craft market * frisbee * friends and framily * bag for trash

We are a “PACK IT IN, PACK IT OUT!” event.
Keep our fest trash-free. Take your belongings and trash with you when you go 🙂

KC Folk Fest Board

Chair – Les Izmore is an AfricanFuturist multi-disciplinary artist. Izmore, centered around experimentation and Black sonic creations, is a spoken word artist, poet, writer, songwriter, music composer, beat maker and vocal performer. A Black farmer, historian and OutKast, Les Izmore is also the curator of KCulture Building. Izmore’s work takes a critical look at the sociopolitical injustices of the world creating spaces for conversation, edutainment, healing, and action.

Vice Chair – Rachel Christia is a Kansas City born techgirl, afrofuturist, vocalist, actress and landlocked mermaid. She has performed with notable MidCoast bands such as Hearts of Darkness; an eclectic collective influenced by 70s afrobeat and Denver based powerhouse Pink Hawks; pulling funky polyrhythms from West Africa and South America. More recently, she enjoys collaborating with her favorite Kansas Music legends or concocting fully improvised audience led musicals with The Maestro’s – Kansas City. She is perfectly aligned as a Kansas City Folk Fest Board member as her primary directive is to build community by lovingly blurring the lines between art and activism.

Secretary – Mikal Shapiro In 2021, Mikal facilitated the successful transition of Kansas City Folk Festival from an event hosted by Folk Alliance International into its own nonprofit. She continues to help organize. Her experience includes: Recruiting a dedicated board of local stakeholders, building and sustaining a volunteer base, producing the festival program, designing a budget, securing funding and independently coordinating the event from 2022-2025. Prior administrative experience includes serving on the Board of Directors of the Midcoast Radio Project / KKFI Kansas City Community Radio in her roles as Membership Committee Chair and Programmer Representative. Mikal is also a Kansas City based musician, artist and filmmaker.

Treasurer – Rachael Cady is a freelance lighting and video designer and an adjunct professor at UMKC. She primarily works on live events like theatre, concerts, cruise ships and large corporate meetings. Rachael’s work has been seen all over the world. Locally her designs have been seen at the Kansas City Rep, Unicorn, Coterie, New Theatre, Actors Theatre and MTH. She works regularly for Virgin Voyages primarily as a video engineer and programmer but has also done design work on all the ships in the fleet. She has toured with Pit Bull, Imagine Dragons, J Lo, Paula Abdual, and several others. When she is not working Rachael enjoys music, she is primarily a drummer, but also dabbles with keyboards, synths, drum machines and sequencers. Rachael is an avid pickleball player and has won several medals in local, and regional tournaments. Rachael is also the producer and one of the hosts of Siren Song, as well as the cohost of The Darkest Hours on KKFI 90.1FM in Kansas City. She lives with her partner Margaret and their 2 dogs Cassie and Harley.

Member – Dan Calderon. In 2021, as treasurer he helped to facilitate the formation of the Kansas City Folk Festival as a separate 501(c)3 after the transition away from its ownership by Folk Alliance International. Duties in that endeavor included the formation of the organization as a non-profit entity with the State of Missouri, as well as drafting the organization’s governing documents and bylaws. Calderon also provides much of the logistical planning and permitting for the yearly event, working closely with the city of Kansas City and the Parks Department to ensure that the festival operates within city guidelines and policies. He also coordinates the many vendors that provide the festival’s crucial infrastructure – including staging, attendee comfort, and sheltering. Calderon is an attorney (currently inactive status), and received a Juris Doctorate from the University of Kansas School of Law. In his previous employment as an attorney, some of Calderon’s practice centered around contract law, corporate law, entertainment law, and commercial litigation. Dan is also a musician and music writer.

Festival Coordinator – Vi Nhan Tran An event producer, interdisciplinary storyteller, performer, and arts entrepreneur, Vi (he/him) is best known as the creator of The Butcher’s Son, a folk musical memoir chronicling his family’s journey from Vietnam to the meatpacking country of southwestern Kansas. Vi was also the founding owner and managing curator of The Buffalo Room, an artists’ salon and performance space in Westport. In its span, The Buffalo Room hosted over 800 events, collaborating with scores of producers and mentoring hundreds of performers over its six years of operation.Past festival goers might recognize him as the Main Stage Manager and MC for the 2023 KC Folk Fest!

11:07

The Freedom Affair – “The Water”
from: The Freedom Affair / Sunflower Soul Records / May 9, 2025
[Shon Ruffin on vocals, Paula Saunders on vocals, Seyko Groves on vocals, Cole Bales on guitar, Branden Moser on bass & Acoustic Guitar, Chris Hazelton on Hammond B3 Organ, Wurlitzer, Rhodes, Piano, Bass (Track 4), Vocals; Dave Brick on drums; Pete Carroll on trumpet & flugelhorn; Brett Jackson on tenor sax, baritone sax, tambourine. Recorded at Royal Studios in Memphis, TN. Recording Engineer: Boo Mitchell. Tape Operator: Wesley Graham. Produced by: Chris Hazelton, Dave Brick, and The Freedom Affair. Mixed by: Vince Chiarito. Mastered by: JJ Golden at Golden Mastering. Horn Arrangements by: Hazelton, Carroll, Jackson, and Bales. Design and Layout: Tracy Lenihan // The Freedom Affair has planted deep roots in soul music from their start, but after nearly a decade together, the group’s self-titled sophomore album focuses their sound squarely where Muscle Shoals meets Memphis Soul. It’s a masterstroke of impassioned message-music exploring ageless themes of inequity, love, and togetherness. // A fateful February 2023 encounter with Grammy Award-winning recording engineer Boo Mitchell (Mark Ronson, Bruno Mars, Al Green) at Royal Studios created a spark that sent the band back to Kansas City with new musical conviction. By November, the band had returned to record all-new Southern Soul-inspired songs in the legendary Memphis studio. // The ever-powerful female trio fronting the band–Paula Saunders, Seyko Groves, and Shon Ruffin–has been the hallmark of The Freedom Affair’s sound and identity, and their collective vocal prowess is on full display ranging from tough to tender, touching on heartache and hope. The experience at Royal studios convinced the band that there isn’t a better room to record horns. The “one take” horns of Pete Carroll on trumpet and Brett Jackson on saxophone prove their years together as a unit have paid off with their precision and lines written to meet the vibe perfectly. With rhythm section personnel remaining the same from their debut album Freedom is Love, a shift in instrumentation moves Chris Hazelton from bass to his primary instrument of the Hammond B3 organ along with various keyboards. Branden Moser swaps in the bass, which also happens to be his primary instrument, from his former rhythm guitar. Cole Bales continues to dig into timeless riffs on lead guitar, and Dave Brick maintains the backbone with the heavy boom-bap on drums. This album has cemented The Freedom Affair’s sound: enduring melodies with rich arrangements, backed by a gritty pulse. // Royal was the perfect site for this album, and the band took full advantage of the studio’s history by incorporating studio tools and relics throughout the process. With only four days to fully track the ten-song album, the band insisted on using the same Ampex 1” tape recorder that produced all the Hi Record hits from 1974 and prior to preserve authenticity. It was the first time the machine had been used for an album since 1974. The limitations and quirks of using vintage, analog gear made way for magic moments that shape the album’s charm. The record calls fresh attention to classic Southern Soul with all the coziness and warmth you’d expect from listening to Al Green or Ann Peebles, captured in the very same room. Mixed by Vince Chiarito (Hive Mind, Jalen Ngonda, Charles Bradley) and mastered by JJ Golden (Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, The James Hunter Six, Antibalas), this album is a truly an all-killer, no-filler lesson in soul music.]

[The Freedom Affair, play KC Folk Fest on KC Folk Fest, Saturday, May 30, 11:00am to 7:00pm at Washington Square Park with Kaia Kater, Julia Haile, Trevor Turla & The Soul Patrol, Flutienastiness, Reach, Sisterbot, Bad Alaskan, and more!]

11:11 – More Interview Rachel Christia & Vi Tran

We are talking with Rachel Christia & Vi Tran share info about KC Folk Fest, Saturday, May 30, 11:00am to 7:00pm at Washington Square Park with The Freedom Affair, Kaia Kater, Flutienastieness & The Soul Patrol, Julia Haile, Reach, Trevor Turla, Sisterbot, Bad Alaskan, and more! KC Folk Fest boasts three stages, delicious food trucks, bike valet and an extensive craft market chock full of local vendors. Heralded as a grassroots “people’s fest,” organized by a local community-led board. KC Folk Fest continues its legacy as an all-ages, admission-free city festival whose mission is “to celebrate the music and arts of our neighborhoods, region and beyond.” Originally founded as a public outreach event for Folk Alliance International’s annual industry conference in 2016, FAI transitioned the fest over to local stakeholders in 2019. “Kansas City Folk Festival” incorporated as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization in 2021 and produced their first outdoor folk festival in 2022 in Washington Square Park, KCMO. For more information: http://www.kcfolkfest.org

Rachel Christia &Vi Tran & Les Izmore thanks for being with us on WMM

KC Folk Fest boasts four stages, delicious food trucks, bike valet and an extensive craft market chock full of local vendors.

Programming by community partners include an open mic, youth songwriter contest by Heartland Song Network, and showcases by No Divide KC.

Supported by grassroots campaigns such as as our “Dandelion Donor” campaign ($100×100 “Seed” Donors), “Fun Raisers” such as FolkyOkie Karaoke and community outreach events like Pickball – a jam-friendly brand of kickball – alongside local sponsors, community partners and arts grants such at Missouri Arts Council’s Folk Arts Grant, KC Folk Fest continues its legacy as an all-ages, admission-free city festival whose mission is “to celebrate the music and arts of our neighborhoods, region and beyond” – all while paying its artists a living wage. As a zero-waste event with recycling and composting available on-site, KCFF encourages visitors to follow the National Parks mottos “Pack it in, pack it out” and “Leave it better than you found it.”

HISTORY OF THE FEST: Originally founded as a public outreach event for Folk Alliance International’s annual industry conference in 2016, FAI transitioned the fest over to local stakeholders in 2019. “Kansas City Folk Festival” incorporated as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization in 2021 and produced their first outdoor folk festival on Saturday, May 22, 2022 in Washington Square Park, KCMO.

KC Folk Festival at Washington Square Park on Sat, May 30, 2026 from 11 to 8:00pm.
For lineup: http://www.kcfolkfest.org.

11:18

Kaia Kater – “The Witch (Feat. Aoife O’Donovan)”
from: Strange Medicine / Kaia Kater – Free Dirt Records / May 17, 2024
[Kaia Kater’s album, Strange Medicine, opens with a haunting vision. Accompanied by Aoife O’Donovan, Kater sings of the women burned at the stake as witches in 17th century Salem, Massachusetts and their wish to strike back: “I dreamt I moved through you and / Burned my name into your chest”. It’s an opening salvo from an album that celebrates the power of women and oppressed people throughout history as they rise up and turn the poison of centuries of oppression into a strange kind of medicine. Kater’s songs are dialogues with these historical figures and meditations on her own modern life as well. In the years since her 2018 album, Grenades, on Smithsonian Folkways, Kater has taken time to reinvent herself and hone her skills, first attending film school to learn composition, then diving deeper into her songwriting to come up with her most personal album yet. Feeling the pressure as a talented young songwriter, banjo player, and bandleader with three successful albums and an NPR Tiny Desk Concert under her belt, Kater struggled initially with the expectations of her adopted genre, Americana. “I was factoring everybody else’s perception into my songwriting,” she says. “Would I write more honestly if I knew that no one would ever hear this?” With that in mind, Kater retreated to her apartment in Montréal. Sitting at home with her banjo, the songs unfolded in personal intimacy, revealing windows into the perspective of women and revolutionaries through history. Co-producing with Joe Grass (Elisapie, The Barr Brothers), Kater invited close friends and colleagues O’Donovan and Allison Russell to sing on the album, along with longtime hero and American legend Taj Mahal. With lush arrangements and unexpected musical ideas drawn from genres as surprising as minimalist composition, jazz drumming, and film scores, Strange Medicine is the bold next step in Kater’s career. It’s an album made beyond the white gaze of Americana, unbeholden to a music industry that so often tokenizes and silences marginalized voices, a Black Feminist perspective on a genre that refuses to cede power to Black women. // Kaia Kate writes: “I specifically wanted to write about the way men historically have branded women as temptresses, harlots, sirens and shrews, and then sought to reflect this visually – the letter A for adulteress, the burning of flesh to symbolize evil. The first woman labeled a witch in Salem was a Black woman by the name of Tituba. Usually these women died nameless and scorned. In my narrative, the woman who is branded a witch and burned at the stake survives her pilgrim’s punishment, and now seeks her revenge on those who sought to destroy her.” // “One of Americana’s most thoughtful and inventive artists returns after six years with a meditation on those who’ve survived and thrived against marginalization and oppression.” – Ann Powers, NPR Music]

[Kaia Kater plays KC Folk Fest on KC Folk Fest, Saturday, May 30, 11:00am to 7:00pm at Washington Square Park with The Freedom Affair, Julia Haile, Trevor Turla & The Soul Patrol, Flutienastiness , Reach, Sisterbot, Bad Alaskan, and more!]

11:22 – More Interview Rachel Christia & Vi Tran

We are talking with Rachel Christia & Vi Tran share info about KC Folk Fest, Saturday, May 30, 11:00am to 7:00pm at Washington Square Park with The Freedom Affair, Kaia Kater, Flutienastieness & The Soul Patrol, Julia Haile, Reach, Trevor Turla, Sisterbot, Bad Alaskan, and more! KC Folk Fest boasts four stages, delicious food trucks, bike valet and an extensive craft market chock full of local vendors. Heralded as a grassroots “people’s fest,” organized by a local community-led board. For more information: http://www.kcfolkfest.org

KC Folk Fest boasts three stages, delicious food trucks, bike valet and an extensive craft market chock full of local vendors.

The 2026 Folk Fest Poster was created by artist, Kai Johnson (they/them), an illustrator and designer based in Kansas City, Missouri, with a deep passion for mental health advocacy and creative self-expression. With eight years of freelance experience, Kai has brought countless projects to life, including patches for KC Current’s Pride Collection, a tifo and hand-painted banner for the Google Pixel X NWSL Championship in 2024, a mental health journal for children, wrestling merchandise and uniforms, a flower press, and portraits.

Kai’s work is a commitment to mental health, self-awareness, and community healing. Their current artistic focus is on developing Mark Making: an art curriculum that pairs somatic experiences with creative exercises, empowering individuals to explore, understand, and transform emotions through art.

In their spare time, Kai loves to indulge in early 2000s cartoons and roller skating. For more about Kai, visit: kaistoodios.com/ or catch them on the Insta @kaistoodios

Rachel Christia &Vi Tran & Les Izmore thanks for being with us on WMM

KC Folk Fest, Saturday, May 30, 11:00am to 7:00pm at Washington Square Park with The Freedom Affair, Kaia Kater, Flutienastieness & The Soul Patrol, Julia Haile, Reach, Trevor Turla, Sisterbot, Bad Alaskan, and more! For more information: http://www.kcfolkfest.org

11:28 – Underwriting

Sisterbot – “Feel The Color”
from: Truth House / Sisterbot / July 10, 2021
[Sisterbot is a performing artist dedicated to breaking genre boundaries, creating cosmic musical and theatrical experiences. The 9-piece Sisterbot Band is a “punk pop chamber orchestra” complete with electric guitar, drums, piano, strings and horn. “Truth House (2021) is a concept album written over the span of three years, encapsulating a chapter of my life that I spent in a house alone, dealing with the aftermath of trauma and rebirth.”- Sisterbot (Adee Dancy). Written by Sisterbot. Produced by Jametatone and Sisterbot. Engineered, Mixed, Mastered by Jametatone, except “Approval” which was Produced, Engineered, & Mixed by Andrew Bonci Jr. at Magnolia Tree Studios, with AJ Bonci on guitar, Just Angel and Sisterbot on vocals. Cover Art by Mazzy Mann. Adee Rocket Dancy released the single “Hello Moon (feat. The Swallowtails)” on April 26, 2021. (This song is also on the Sisterbot album.) Produced by Jametatone & Adee Rocket Dancy. Adee Rocket Dancy on piano & vocals & cello; Rachel Lovelace on bassoon; Mikala Petillo on guitar & background vocals, Mixing and Mastering by Jametatone, (J. Asley Miller). Adee Rocket Dancy writes, “This is a song about my life-long love for the moon, featuring The Swallowtails (Rachel Lovelace & Miki P). Adee chose the date April 26, 2021, as their release date, to honor the full moon called “The Pink Moon.” // Adee Dancy (Sisterbot), is a performing artist born and raised in the KC area. Adee is a student of many teachers and disciplines, attempting to amalgamate all they have learned and loved, into their artistic life. Adorning many different hats, Adee has stepped into a multitude of roles in their career such as professional cellist, music director, vocalist, composer, actor, and more. With dynamic string writing and theatrical rock at the helm of their work, Adee captains a project and alter-ego called Sisterbot, that fuses their multiple disciplines. Adee feels extremely lucky to have music, art, & theater as means of expression and livelihood! Adee has collaborated with many groups including Owen Cox Dance Group, No Divide KC, and The Swallowtails. More info at http://sisterbotmusic.com%5D

[Sisterbot recently announced that as of this July, they will be joining the cast of Cirque du Soleil’s ECHO as a cellist and lead singer!!! Cirque put out a casting call back in late February that so many people tagged Adee and texted so they decided to submit an audition. Adee found out last week that they officially got the job- and that I’ll be going on an 18-month international tour. Aee will leave for Montreal, Québec, about mid-way through July for training, rehearsals, and their first shows with the company. Then I’ll spend the rest of 2026 in three different cities in Mexico!]

[Sisterbot plays KC Folk Fest on KC Folk Fest, Saturday, May 30, 11:00am to 7:00pm at Washington Square Park with The Freedom Affair, Kaia Kater, Julia Haile, Trevor Turla & The Soul Patrol, Flutienastiness , Reach, Bad Alaskan, and more!]

11:35 – Interview with Madelin Marak & Lori Buntin

Madeline Marak is a visual artist that makes paintings inspired by the urban environment. She received her Masters of Fine Art from the Sam Fox School of Art and Design at Washington University in St. Louis and her Bachelors of Fine Art from Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana. She has exhibited in notable galleries and museums including Kiosk Gallery, Smalter Gallery, Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Meadows Museum, Contemporary Art Museum in St. Louis, UNO Gallery in New Orleans, and more. She has been an artist in residence at several international residency programs and a commissioned public artist in St. Louis and Kansas City. Aside from her art practice, Marak has been dedicated to serving her community in non-profit and arts leadership roles. She moved to Kansas City in 2022 from North Louisiana to join the vibrant arts community and continue working as a practicing artist.

Lori Buntin has lived in the Kansas City area since 2001, moving here after having taught drawing and painting courses at Wichita State University where she received her MFA in painting. Her current studio in the Livestock Exchange Building, located in the West Bottoms of Kansas City, puts her in the heart of the urban industrial surroundings that so often are the subjects of her paintings. Lori’s paintings and other artworks are in homes and collections across the country.

Lori is inspired by urban spaces, lit by cloudless, blue skies. Walking about the city, observing color, light, and form informs the subjects and compositions of her work. The finished work is sometimes a combination of the representation of a particular space, along with technical references to color mixing, sections roughed in/not “finished”, and design details. Other times the work is a singular composition of an observed space. And sometimes, a particular detail of a larger space becomes the focus of the piece.

Madeline Marak & Lori Buntin joins us to talk about a group show at Kansas City Artists Coalition curated by Madeline Marak called (un) Focused – a show of women artists who create images within lived experiences, which explore the relationship between urban and suburban, personal spaces, belonging, and a collective uncertain future. Marak brings together artists whose work intends to prompt the viewer to re-consider, re-connect, and re-examine ordinary spaces and familiar, yet uncharted spaces. Opening Reception Friday, June 5, 5:00pm. Closing Reception Friday, July 5, 5:00pm. On View: May 15 – July 3, 2026 at Kansas City Artists Coalition, 3200 Gillham Road, KCMO. http://www.kansascityartistscoalition.org

Madeline Marak & Lori Buntin thanks for being with us on WMM

Artists include: Lori Buntin, Hannah Chalew, Nicole Fry, Jessica Heikes, Kaitlyn B. Jones, Jessica Kincaid, Madeline Marak, Caroline Minchew, Yuxiao Mu, Katelyn Patton, Mandy Pedigo, Whitney Lea Sage, Carley Schmidt, Francesca Simonite, Tiffany J. Sutton, Gala Reneaum Tello, Chanel Thomas, Katherine Toler, Carolyn Wiedeman, and Arin Yoon.

Kansas City Artists Coalition
exhibitions@kansascityartistscoalition.org | http://www.kansascityartistscoalition.org
20+ artists in 2 exhibitions explore lived experience, and contentious relationships in KCAC’s Early Summer series.

Kansas City, MO — This spring, KCAC presents two group exhibitions exploring relationships and the everyday.

Main Gallery: (un) Focused, curated by Madeline Marak

Curator and artist Madeline Marak curates a show of women artists who create images within lived experiences, which explore the relationship between urban and suburban, personal spaces, belonging, and a collective uncertain future. Marak brings together artists whose work intends to prompt the viewer to re-consider, re-connect, and re-examine ordinary spaces and familiar, yet uncharted spaces.

Snap Space: The Unearthing of Cavities Through Meditative Rituals of Intimate and
Quiet Practice, a two person exhibition by Eve Krahn and Moe Leady

In the Snap Space, Painter Moe Leady and Ceramicist Eve Krahn investigate relationships
between individuals and vessels. The proximity of forms and bodies in their works prompt
us to reflect on relationships and stories that emerge from these interactions. The media of
each artist are quite different, yet both create work that directs the viewer towards both
contemplating and feeling larger ideas about identity, memory, and connection.
Moe Leady is an artist who works and resides in Kansas City. Her work has been recently
exhibited at Zhou B Art Center in Kansas City, Visionary Projects in Manhattan, and Awita
Studio in Brooklyn.

Eve Krahn is a practicing pediatrician and Fine Artist in Kansas City, focusing on a
abstract, hand-built sculptures that feature organic forms. She Shows regularly around
Kansas CIty, on both sides of State Line.

Exhibition Details
Opening Reception: First Friday, June 5, 2026, from 5:00 – 9:00 PM
Closing Reception: First Friday – July 5 , 2026, 5:00 – 8:00 PM
On View: May 15 – July 3, 2026
Location: Kansas City Artists Coalition, 3200 Gillham Road, Kansas City, MO 64109
Gallery Hours: Wednesday – Saturday, Noon – 5:00 PM

More Information: Visit http://www.kansascityartistscoalition.org
About the Kansas City Artists Coalition: The Kansas City Artists Coalition (KCAC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting More Information: Email Thayer, Exhibitions

Madeline Marak & Lori Buntin thanks for being with us on WMM

Kansas City Artists Coalition curated by Madeline Marak called (un) Focused – a show of women artists who create images within lived experiences, On View: May 15 – July 3, 2026 Opening Reception Friday, June 5, 5:00pm, at Kansas City Artists Coalition, 3200 Gillham Road, KCMO. http://www.kansascityartistscoalition.org

11:49

Allison Russell – “Cold April”
from: “Cold April” – Single / Birds of Chicago LLC – Fantasy Records – Concord/ May 8, 2026
[4x GRAMMY-nominated singer, songwriter, poet, activist, and multi-instrumentalist Allison Russell has announced her third studio album, In The Hour of Chaos, produced by Russell and Dim Star and arriving on July 10th via Fantasy Records. To mark the occasion she has shared her single “Cold April” featuring her tourmate Kara Jackson, Denitia and the Explore! Pop Choir. // Allison Russell just completed her second run on Broadway as Persephone in the 8x Tony Award winning musical Hadestown. She took over the role in November 2024 initially, after spending much of that year opening for Hozier on his Unreal Unearth Tour supporting his arena run on all US dates and throughout Europe. She made her Billboard Hot 100 debut thanks to their duet “Wildflower & Barley.” // Russell recently took the stage at the JUNO Awards to pay tribute to fellow Canadian, Joni Mitchell. The performance was a duet between her and Sarah McLachan who she will tour with throughout the summer. Dates kick off on July 1st in Franklin, TN. A full list of tour dates is below. // The accolades for Russell have been immense. Last year she was nominated for the Polaris Prize and named Billboard Women In Music Canada’s “Breakthrough Artist of the Year.” She has had 8 GRAMMY nominations and one win, earned three 2022 Americana Award nominations and a win for Album of the Year with subsequent nominations in 2023 and 2024, two International Folk Music Award wins, a 2022 Juno nomination for ‘Songwriter of the Year,’ and her first-ever Juno Award win for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year. Russell won three Canadian Folk Music Awards, two UK Americana Music Awards, and more. // Allison Russell on “Cold April” – Things are rough. Things have been rough before. “Cold April” is not laying out the grim facts of the moment. “Cold April” asks if we can let the music itself restore and recharge us. The act of singing with my sisters, Kara Jackson and Denitia, is a balm for my soul, and a wind at my back to keep on. And my daughter Ida’s Explore! Pop Choir?! Let them tell it: “Calling all birds from across the nation yeah we got a brand new murmuration we don’t have to fly in that old formation, no” Youth – and Love – will be served! // Kara Jackson recently collaborated with Gorillaz and was previously the US National, Youth Poet Laureate Denitia part of CMT Next Women Of Country series, member of Rissi Palmer’s Color Me Country program, and featured in Dolly Parton’s Threads: My Songs in Symphony concert. // // Allison Russell released The Returner, on September 8, 2023. The album was written and co-produced by Allison along with dim star (her partner JT Nero and Drew Lindsay) and was recorded over Solstice week in December 2022 at Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles, CA. It features Russell’s “Rainbow Coalition” band of all female musicians along with special guest appearances from the legendary Wendy & Lisa, Brandi Carlile, Brandy Clark, and Hozier. Allison Russell on The Returner: “My goal with The Returner – sonically, poetically, and spiritually – is a radical reclamation of the present tense, a real time union of body, mind, and soul. This album is a much deeper articulation of rhythm, groove, and syncopation. Groove as it heralds the self back into the body, groove as it celebrates sensual and sexual agency and flowering, groove as an urgent call to action and political activism. // In just a word, it’s funkier. But as is the history of anything funky, it’s never just a party. It is a multiverse of energies that merges the celebration and the battle cry. For while an embrace of the present tense is a celebration, it is equally an unquestioning leap into battle – cultural, political, environmental.” // Since the release of her debut solo LP two years ago Outside Child, Russell’s often devastating, deeply moving, cathartic celebration of survivor’s joy has become one of the most acclaimed albums of the past 10 years. Now comes the second chapter in her story, The Returner, a body-shaking, mind-expanding, soulful expression of liberation, love, and self-respect that serves as a fierce declaration of joy for all survivors that have made it to the other side. Allison, JT, and Drew built The Returner from the bottom up with a rhythm-first, genre-fluid approach. The improvisational energy of great female artists sparked the album’s fierce joy, and provided a wider canvas for Allison’s immense, unlimited talent. In all, the new album doesn’t just deliver on the promise of the last two years, it exceeds all reasonable (and unreasonable) expectations and affirms Allison Russell’s place among music’s most vital artists and The Returner, as one of 2023’s most essential recordings. // Allison Russell has spent her career in multiple bands, including Po’ Girl, Our Native Daughters, and Birds of Chicago. After a career spent as a gifted multi-instrumentalist, backing numerous other artists, she finally dared to release her solo project in 2021. “It’s an album of strength and affirmation, not victimization,” said The New York Times in their profile on Russell and Outside Child. Following the album’s release, Russell performed on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Ellen, Late Night With Stephen Colbert, CBS Saturday Morning, Austin City Limits, The Kelly Clarkson Show made her Opry debut and appeared at the Country Music Hall of Fame and performed at the 2022 GRAMMY’s Premiere Ceremony. // The accolades for Russell have been immense. In addition to her four GRAMMY nominations, she has earned three 2022 Americana Award nominations and a win for Album of the Year, two International Folk Music Award wins, a 2022 Juno nomination for ‘Songwriter of the Year,’ and her first-ever Juno Award win for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year. Russell received two 2021 Americana Awards nominations, won three Canadian Folk Music Awards, two UK Americana Music Awards, and more. She was recently nominated for Song of the Year and Artist of the Year for the 2023 Americana Awards. In addition, Russell has consistently used her newfound platform to elevate, educate and inspire; curating the history making Once And Future Sounds: Roots and Revolution set for the Newport Folk Festival in 2021 and mobilizing this year’s triumphant Love Rising All-Star benefit concert in support of LGBTQIA+ causes in Nashville – raising over $550,000 and calling national attention to Tennessee’s dangerous anti/trans and anti/drag laws. Russell has also announced a book deal with Flatiron/MacMillan for her debut novel, a memoir based on her life and the material that inspired Outside Child and The Returner. // All songs written by Allison Russell, JT Nero, and Drew Lindsay // Co-Producers: Dim Star and Allison Russell // Recorded by Brandon Bell at Henson Recording Studios (Los Angeles, CA) Assistant Engineer: Kelsey Porter. Mixed by Brandon Bell at The Cabin Studio (Nashville, TN). Mastered by Kim Rosen at Knack Mastering (Ringwood, NJ) // Allison Russell (vocals, banjo, clarinet), Elenna Canlas (keyboards/synth, backing vocals), Elizabeth Pupo-Walker (percussion), Chauntee Ross (violin, backing vocals) & Monique Ross (cello, backing vocals) aka SistaStrings, Ganessa James (bass, backing vocals), Joy Clark (guitar), Kerenza Peacock (violin), Larissa Maestro (cello, backing vocals), Lisa Coleman (piano), Mandy Fer (guitar, backing vocals), Meg Coleman (drums), Meg McCormick (guitar), Wendy Melvoin (guitar, bass), and Wiktoria Bialic (drums). Special guests Brandi Carlile, Brandy Clark, and Hozier provide backing vocals on “Requiem”. //We first saw Allison Russell as part of the band/duo with her partner JT Nero as, The Birds of Chicago at the 2014 International Folk Alliance Conference, where they were an Official Showcase Artist . More info at http://www.folk.org. Russell was born in Montreal to a Grenadian student and a Scottish-Canadian teenage single mother. Her mother struggled with postpartum depression and schizophrenia, and Russell was initially placed in foster care. Her mother regained custody of her after marrying a white-supremacist American expatriate. From the ages of 5 to 15, she was physically and sexually abused by her adoptive father. At the age of 15, Russell ran away from home, eventually moving to Vancouver in 1998. She attended Dawson College. // Russell was initially a member of the Vancouver-based Celtic folk band Fear of Drinking. // In 2003, Russell formed the band Po’ Girl with The Be Good Tanyas member Trish Klein. She recorded seven albums with the band: Po’ Girl (2003), Vagabond Lullabies (2004), B-side Recordings (2006), Home to You (2007), Deer in the Night (2008), Live (2009), and Follow Your Bliss (2010). Russell formed the music group Birds of Chicago with JT Nero in 2012. As part of Birds of Chicago, Russell released three studio albums, Birds of Chicago (2012), Real Midnight (2016) and Love in Wartime (2018). With the group, she also released a live album, Live from Space, and an EP titled American Flowers in 2018. In 2018, Russell joined the musical collective Our Native Daughters alongside fellow musicians Rhiannon Giddens, Leyla McCalla, and Amythyst Kiah In 2019, the group released the album Songs of Our Native Daughters under the Smithsonian Folkways label. Russell was also featured alongside the rest of the group in a Smithsonian Channel documentary titled Reclaiming History: Our Native Daughters. Info: http://www.allisonrussellmusic.com]

Aldous Harding – “Venis in Zinnia (feat. H. Hawkline)”
from: Train on the Island / 4AD / May 8, 2026
[Aldous Harding is New Zealand based singer songwriter. Her Lyrics are brilliantly expressive and surreal. Her minimalist Indie rock 2022 album Warm Chris was released March 25, 2022. // Hannah Sian Topp was born in 1990. She is known professionally as Aldous Harding, is based in Cardiff, Wales. // Topp comes from a musical family in Lyttelton, New Zealand: her mother is folk singer Lorina Harding. One of the first musicians who came across her was New Zealand folk-pop singer/songwriter Anika Moa. Moa asked Harding to play support for her that night after finding her busking outside the venue she was about to play at. // She has released music through independent record labels Flying Nun, Spunk, and 4AD. She has collaborated with Marlon Williams, John Parish, Mike Hadreas and Fenne Lily. // 4AD announced Harding as a new signing in early 2017 just prior to the release of her second album, Party. Party was nominated for IMPALA’s European Album of the Year Award. Singer-songwriter Aldous Harding, released Designer is the third studio album on April 26, 2019 by 4AD. The song “The Barrel” won the 2019 APRA Silver Scroll award. // As of 2020, she is based in Cardiff, Wales, where she had previously lived with partner and collaborator H. Hawkline. Aldous Harding played The Granada Theatre, 1020 Massachusetts, Lawrence, on Saturday, July 2.]

Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now”
from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]

Next week, on Wednesday, May 27 we talk with comedian Margaret Cho who plays The Folly Theatre on Saturday, June 13 at 7:30PM. Plus we talk with FlareThaRebel fresh from his trip to Ireland with Kadesh Flow and Kemet Coleman. AND Cody Calhoun and Brodie Rush share all the details of the Pink Floyd Tribute show they’ve put together featuring Dark Side of The Moon in it’s entirety along with other hits on Friday, May 29 at 8:00pm at Warehouse on Broadway, 3951 Broadway Blvd, KCMO

THANK YOU to everyone who donated to KKFI’a Winter Fund Drive during Wednesday MidDay Medley we had a total of 49 individuals donated $3924.00 going way over our show goal!

Thank you to KKFI Staff: Executive Director – Bess Wallerstein Huff, Chief Operator – Chad Brothers, Director of Development & Communications – J Kelly Dougherty, Volunteer Coordinator – Darryl Oliver, and Shaina Littler – Office Manager Book Keeper

You can find our playlists at: http://www.wednesdaymiddaymedley.org & http://www.kkfi.org
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM
http://www.instagram.wednesday_midday_medley

Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information.
Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org

Wednesday MidDay Medley in on the web:
http://www.kkfi.org,
http://www.WednesdayMidDayMedley.org,
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM

Show #1148