Wednesday MidDay Medley Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning 90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
Wednesday, August 18, 2021
Monta At Odds + Stephonne + Geraldine Glen + Black Light Animals
Mark plays more New & MidCoastal Releases from: Blackstarkids, Cheery, Monta At Odds, Bobby Watson & The UMKC Concert Jazz Orchestra, The Grisly Hand, Stephonne, Miss Boating, Geraldine Glen, Liam Kazar, Kelley Hunt, Black Light Animals, Lee Walter Redding, and Whim Grace.
MONTA AT ODDS
At 10:15 Dedric Moore & Teri Quinn of the band Monta At Odds join us to talk about their new album, PEAK OF ETERNAL LIGHT, released July 23, 2021. The KCK based, Monta At Odds is brothers Dedric Moore on pulsing melodic bass and Delaney Moore’s artfully unhinged synthesizers in collaboration with acclaimed vocalists and songwriters Mikal Shapiro and Teri Quinn,Krystof Nemeth of Emmaline Twist on baritone guitar, Matthew Heinrich of Mysterious Clouds on drums, Kenn Jankowski of The Republic Tigers on synth, and Lucas Behrens on guitar and synth. The record contains Mikal and Teri’s otherworldly vocal contributions, with guest vocalist Your Friend on two tracks. PEAK OF ETERNAL LIGHT is released through The Record Machine. More info at: http://www.therecordmachine.co. Monta At Odds play a special Record Release Show for PEAK OF ETERNAL LIGHT at recordBar, 1520 Grand, KCMO, Friday, August 20, at 7:00 PM, with Emmaline Twist and a very special New Order Tribute set.
Stephonne Singleton Photo by John Brant
At 10:35 Mark talks with singer, songwriter, & actor – Stephonne Singleton about his new single,”The King’s Gambit” released on July 28, 2021. 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. His debut album, “Caged Bird Sings Songs About Red Beard” was one of WMM’s 118 Best Recordings of 2018. In 2020, Stephonne released the EP, SIS: Side A. Earlier this year Stephonne collaborated with Lee Walter Redding on the single “Elephant Man.” More info at: http://www.stephonne.com. Stephonne plays Lemonade Park, 1628 Wyoming, KCMO, on Saturday, August 28, at 7:00 PM with Lee Walter Redding and Nathan Corsi Band. More info at: http://www.lemonadeparkkc.com
At 11:11 Mark talks with vocalist Geraldine Glen about her debut single, “Interim Love” released on Groove King Records with help from Cole Bales and Branden Moser of the bands The Freedom Affair, and Black Light Animals. Cole and Branden helped write, arrange, mix, and produce the new track. They also played on the track with The Freedom Affair’s Brett Jackson and Pete Carroll on horns. Geraldine Glen told Michelle Bacon at the http://www.bridge909.org: that “Interim Love” reflects on that feeling of imbalance and negligence through the lens of a past relationship. I recognized that I was being treated as an interim love. At the time, this was not such a big deal to me so long as my autonomy would be respected. It wasn’t,” she says. “So, this is me telling the lazy man eating his cake and ice cream: ‘Don’t get mad when the sugar walks out.’” More info at: http://www.groovekingrecords.com
At 11:30 Cole Bales & Cody Calhoun share details about Black Light Animals and their debut album, Playboys of The Western World, released digitally July 3, 2020. 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. Colby also plays in the band The Freedom Affair. Black Light Animals will play a special Vinyl Release Show at Lemonade Park, 1628 Wyoming, KCMO, Saturday, August 21, at 7:00 PM with The Freedom Affair. They will have vinyl available including a limited edition fire orange swirl colored vinyl. More info at: http://www.lemonadeparkkc.com
Stephonne Singleton Photo by John Brant
On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org
Wednesday MidDay Medley Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning 90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
Wednesday, August 11, 2021
Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam + Mike Alexander + MG Salazar & Ignacio Carvajal
“Support for Wednesday MidDay Medley from Blue Fox Productions”
“Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks” from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979 [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]
Lava Dreams
Lava Dreams – “Out Loud” from: “Out Loud” – Single / R.I.O.T. LLC / August 13, 2021 [“Out Loud” is the 6th single from Lava Dreams full-length, self-titled debut album, released . More info at: linktr.ee/lavadreams. Solo artist Lava Dreams aka Julia Hamilton writes songs influenced by pop, soul, RnB, jazz, trap, house, funk, reggae, rock, and world music. Lava Dreams is planning to release an 11-song album later this year and will be releasing a new single every month leading up to the release. This is one of several single we’ve played.”Galaxies,” (the 5th single) was released July 9, 2021. “Simple Magic” was released May 7, 2021. “Surprise!” was released on March 26, “You’re The One” released February 26, and “The Amazing Wave” released Jan./ 8, 2021. All single were released through R.I.O.T. LLC The music was co-written and produced by Duncan Burnett. Lava Dreams released their debut EP “Good Energy + Focus” on June 13, 2020. Written by Lava Dreams and produced by Duncan Burnett. Lava Dreams aka Julia Hamilton is from Kansas City, MO, her guitar-based music is both dreamy & electric. Lava Dreams began writing lyrics and melodies as a young child. Growing up, she learned to play her first guitar chords from her father – who played around the house and in local bars. After playing guitar & singing in several KC bands as a teenager, she set out to become a solo artist in 2018. Julia Hamilton is also a filmmaker who received her Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Film from Avila Unversity. http://www.LavaDreamsMusic.com]
[Lava Dreams plays Lemonade Park, 1628 Wyoming, KCMO for PLAYBACK: 20 Years of Music Discovery, a special video tribute to the 20th Anniversary of 90.1 The Bridge with Jass and Ezmerelda (Kianna White).]
Sisterbot – “Approval (feat. Just Angel)” 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 alon 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 and Miki P). Adee chose the date April 26, 2021, as their release date, to honor the full moon called “The Pink Moon.” More info at: Sisterbot.bandcamp.com]
The Roseline – “Paper Plane” from: “Paper Plane” – Single / Alt Country Club / August 6, 2021 [The Roseline are releasing their third single “Paper Plane” off their upcoming record Constancy on Friday, August 6th. “This song is arguably the most epic and ambitious thing we’ve attempted. It’s almost seven minutes long and bookended by spacey guitar loops, so it’s pretty decidedly anti-single. I just wanted to write a really propulsive heartland rocker. Lyrically, it’s a fictional narrative about a person escaping a dead-end town. We’re all pretty stoked about how it came out.” – Colin Halliburton (lead singer/songwriter). / Colin Halliburton on acoustic guitar, vocals, aux percussion; Bradley McKellip on 12-string acoustic guitar, electric guitars; Colin Jones on bass; Jim Piller on drums; Heidi Gluck on backup vocals; Chase Horseman on synth; Joel Nanos – engineer, production, mix, mastered, recorded and produced by Joel Nanos at Element Recording Studios in Kansas City, Missouri. // The Roseline are an alt-country, Americana, rock band, formed by Colin Halliburton with friends in 2005. The Roseline released their 6th album GOOD / GRIEF on April 3, 2021. The Roseline released BLOOD on September 29, 2017; and TOWNIE on June 19, 2015. The band has toured the US and Halliburton has completed two European solo tours thus far, taking him through Poland, Germany, Belgium, and The Netherlands. Colin Halliburton joined us on WMM on March 25, 2020. More info at: https://roselinemusic.com%5D
[The Roseline play 940 LIVE at South Park, 1198 Massachusetts St., Lawrence, KS., on Thursday, August 26, at 7:00 PM.]
[The Roseline play Replay Lounge 946 Massachusetts St., Lawrence, KS., on Sunday, September 19, at 5:00 PM, with Fred Wickham Caravan.]
namelessnumberheadman
namelessnumberheadman – “Mt Analogue St” from: Mt. Analogue St.- Single / Namelessnumberheadman / August 13, 2021 [1st single from their new upcoming album, PLOT THE POINTS. More info at: https://soundcloud.com/nnhm. Mt Analogue St – Rene Daumal wrote a moving, amusing, and confusing book, Mount Analogue, in which there is an expedition to find a mountain that is so tall that the top can’t be seen. Why might someone want to take the journey up the mountain? Step after step plodding up the mountain, trusting that even though no one has seen the peak, that it’s actually there. Namelessnumberheadman is: Chuck Whittington, Jason Lewis, and Andrew Sallee. Plot the Points will be released on Friday, September 2, 2021. Back in 2019 Namelessnumberheadman released three instrumental records (The Ground, Current, and Meditations) which we were very proud of. But during the shutdown in 2020 we decided to dive back into our classic way of working: melding catchy rock/folk songs with sonic panoramas.]
[Namelessnumberheadman play recordBar, 1520 Grand, KCMO on Friday, October 1, with Elevator Division]
[Namelessnumberheadman play Replay Lounge, 946 Massachusetts St., Lawrence, KS., on October 23, 2021.]
CompanyNoCompany – “Passing Directions” from: Bright Fog / CompanyNoCompany / September 3, 2001 [William Smith on vocals, guitar, synthesizers, RC-505, percussion; John Bersuch on drums and percussion, additional keyboards, synths; and Wade Allen Williamson on live support. Produced, Mixed, Programmed, Organized and Saxophone by David Gaume Los Angeles, CA. Recorded by Joel Nanos at Element Recording Studios Kansas City, MO. William Smith will be with us on WMM on September 1, 2021]
[CompanyNoCompany play recordBar, 1520 Grand Ave, KCMO on Friday September 3, 2021 with Lesser Pleasures and Redder Moon.]
10:28 – Underwriting
Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam – “The Revolution Will Not Be Hashtagged” from: The Revolution Will Not Be Hashtagged / Shafer / July 9, 2021 [Inspired by Gil Scott-Heron’s 1971 single, “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”. Career and love brought hip-hop MC Flare Tha Rebel back to his hometown of Kansas City, MO, which created a second wind of new music. Noted by The Pitch, “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…” Known for a highly energetic live performance, Flare has shared the stage with artists such as Chance the Rapper, RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, Mac Lethal, Nappy Roots, and CES Cru. Although hip-hop at the core, Flare Tha Rebel’s versatility remains as he balances music with socially progressive themes that are still enjoyable enough to raise a glass to at a party. There’s also a duality to Flare’s approach. Many of his songs are connected to his Art to Empower initiative, raising awareness and funds for a variety of social justice causes and nonprofits. Info at: http://www.flaretharebel.com
Bob Pulliam and Flare Tha Rebel
10:33 – Interview with Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam
Career and love brought hip-hop MC Flare Tha Rebel back to his hometown of Kansas City, MO, which created a second wind of new music. Noted by The Pitch, “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…” Known for a highly energetic live performance, Flare has shared the stage with artists such as Chance the Rapper, RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, Mac Lethal, Nappy Roots, and CES Cru. – Nick Spacek The Pitch Kansas City
Bob Pulliam is a Licensing Specialist. He is a Drummer/Beatsmith at Bob The Beat Builder and Music Producer at THUMPR. Bon studied Studied Film and Media Studies at The University of Kansas from 2005 to 2010. He is the Founder/CEO at KC PUB CO. Bob attended Lincoln College Preparatory Academy
Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam join us live in our 90.1 FM studios to share tracks from their new EP, THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE HASHTAGGED, that was released on July 9, 2021. Inspired by Gil Scott-Heron’s 1971 single, “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”, Lyricist Flare Tha Rebel and beat producer Bob Pulliam take on a slew of social issues on their 4-track EP release: police brutality on “P.O.P. Off”, quotes from revolutionaries and civil right activities on “Different Ships,” and the United States tragic apathy towards gun violence for the track “Child’s Play” featuring Bob’s dad, KC Jazz musician and teacher Joe Miquelon. More Info at: http://www.flaretharebel.com
Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam thanks for being with us on WMM
Flare Tha Rebel photographed by Selina Rios
This year is the 50th anniversary of Gil Scott-Heron‘s “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.”
Flare Tha Rebel told Nick Spacek in a July 13, 2021 article for The Pitch Kansas City:
“When you listen to it today, it is dated yet timeless at the same time, you know?” Flare posits. “The pop culture references that he had in that original song may not be as relevant today, but the essence of the song is very relevant, right? His call to action to us to say that change will not just be handed to us, will not just be delivered to us–we have to go out and do something about it.”
As Flare continues, he thinks that Scott-Heron’s song is still relevant, in that Americans are addicted to consumerism and ready-made products, to the point that we’re at risk of feeling that social change will be delivered to us on TV or Netflix on Instagram.
“In fact, we have to go out in the community and do something about it,” says the rapper. “I was motivated to take that essence and create a modern-day interpretation of that song, but then also have the new title, “The Revolution Will Not Be Hashtagged,” be a moniker for the EP ’cause the other songs on there aligns with racial and social justice.”
I think some people might hear it and be like, ‘There’s no point of ever touching that song,’ and I gotta respect that,” says Flare. “At the same time, I feel that, when you are an artist and you can empower and motivate, it’s kind of like picking up the torch.”
“Career and love” Flare Tha Rebel back to his hometown KCMO from Chicago.”
Flare left KC in the late 2000s
“As a member of the hip-hop collective Anti-Crew m Flare Tha Rebel made quite an impact on the Kansas City hip hop scene.” – Nick Spacek The Pitch
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 him back to KC.
Flare Tha Rebel aka Jeff Shafer and Bob Pulliam went to middle school together and also went to Lincoln Prep Academy together. They played baseball together.
Bob Pulliam is a Drummer/Beatsmith at Bob The Beat Builder and Music Producer at THUMPR. Bon studied Studied Film and Media Studies at The University of Kansas from 2005 to 2010. He is the Founder/CEO at KC PUB CO.
Lyricist and MC Flare Tha Rebel and beat producer Bob Pulliam teamed up for, “Child’s Play” a track that features Bob Pulliam’s father, Kansas City based Jazz Musician, Joe Miquelon who passed away on March 5, 2021.
Joe Miquelon devoted his life to music. He was a renowned piano and saxophone player; playing in bands such as Jim Sweeney and The Jumpshotz, The Zoo, The Blue Riddim Band, New Riddim, Boko Maru, Tony DiPardo’s KC Chiefs Endzone Pack Band, The Elders, and The KC Aces. He shared the stage with Bonnie Raitt, Albert King, Stevie Ray Vaughnn, Huey Lewis, U-Roy, Ida McBeth, Kevin Mahogany, Parliament Funkadelic, Mike Finnigan, Danny Cox, and many other stars. Joe also had a passion for teaching music. Spanning over 3 decades of private instruction, he taught hundreds of students and recently taught for The Kansas City Jazz Academy. In 2017, Joe wrote and released his piano book titled “The Beginner’s Emergency Handbook for Jazz Piano and Theory”. A celebration of his life was held at Knuckleheads on July 21, 2021. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made in Joe’s name to The Kansas City Jazz Academy.
10:42
Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam – “Child’s Play (Radio) feat. Joe Miquelon” from: “Child’s Play (Radio) feat. Joe Miquelon” – Single / Shafer / July 12, 2021 [Lyricist and MC Flare Tha Rebel and beat producer Bob Pulliam team up for “Child’s Play” a track that feature Bob Pulliam’s father, Kansas City based Jazz Musician, Joe Miquelon who passed away on March 5, 2021. Joe devoted his life to music. He was a renowned piano and saxophone player; playing in bands such as Jim Sweeney and The Jumpshotz, The Zoo, The Blue Riddim Band, New Riddim, Boko Maru, Tony DiPardo’s KC Chiefs Endzone Pack Band, The Elders, and The KC Aces. He shared the stage with Bonnie Raitt, Albert King, Stevie Ray Vaughnn, Huey Lewis, U-Roy, Ida McBeth, Kevin Mahogany, Parliament Funkadelic, Mike Finnigan, Danny Cox, and many other stars. Joe also had a passion for teaching music. Spanning over 3 decades of private instruction, he taught hundreds of students and recently taught for The Kansas City Jazz Academy. In 2017, Joe wrote and released his piano book titled “The Beginner’s Emergency Handbook for Jazz Piano and Theory”. A celebration of his life was held at Knuckleheads on July 21, 2021. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made in Joe’s name to The Kansas City Jazz Academy. This was the first single from the EP, THE REVOLUTION WIL NOT BE HASHTAGGED. Career and love brought hip-hop MC Flare Tha Rebel back to his hometown of Kansas City, MO, which created a second wind of new music. Noted by The Pitch, “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…” Known for a highly energetic live performance, Flare has shared the stage with artists such as Chance the Rapper, RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, Mac Lethal, Nappy Roots, and CES Cru. Although hip-hop at the core, Flare Tha Rebel’s versatility remains as he balances music with socially progressive themes that are still enjoyable enough to raise a glass to at a party. There’s also a duality to Flare’s approach. Many of his 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. More information at: http://www.flaretharebel.com]
Flare Tha Reble & Bob Pulliam
10:47 – More Interview with Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam
We are talking with Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam about their new EP, THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE HASHTAGGED, that was released on July 9, 2021. Inspired by Gil Scott-Heron’s 1971 single, “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”, Lyricist Flare Tha Rebel and beat producer Bob Pulliam take on a slew of social issues on their 4-track EP release: police brutality on “P.O.P. Off”, quotes from revolutionaries and civil right activities on “Different Ships,” and the United States tragic apathy towards gun violence for the track “Child’s Play” More Info at: http://www.flaretharebel.com
Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam thanks for being with us on WMM
Earlier this year, Lyricist and MC Flare Tha Rebel and beat producer Bob Pulliam team up with Oboi Kong to release the single “Happy Clouds (Bob Ross Flow)” on April 9, 2021, This single hip hop tribute to the legendary Television artist/host, Bob Ross. Check out their video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brTTvYOi2jQ. Career and love brought hip-hop MC Flare Tha Rebel back to his hometown of Kansas City, MO, which created a second wind of new music.
Noted by The Pitch, “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…” Known for a highly energetic live performance, Flare has shared the stage with artists such as Chance the Rapper, RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, Mac Lethal, Nappy Roots, and CES Cru. Although hip-hop at the core, Flare Tha Rebel’s versatility remains as he balances music with socially progressive themes that are still enjoyable enough to raise a glass to at a party.
Flare’s older brother Sike‘s time working 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. it 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.
“Happy Clouds” video shows Flare’s striking resemblance to Bob Ross.
Flare Tha Rebel told Nick Spacek in a July 13, 2021 article for The Pitch Kansas City:
Flare Tha Rebel photographed by Selina Rios
“The entirety of The Revolution Will Not Be Hashtagged EP carries through on that sense of empowering and motivating the listeners. “Different Ships,” especially, interweaves a series of quotes from people by whom the rapper has been motivated, drawing its title from a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “We may have all come on different ships, but we’re in the same boat now.” As Flare puts it, “That’s a call for unity amongst the Black community, but it’s also showcasing the struggles that we’ve had in our shared experience.”
“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.”
To that end, Flare is releasing merchandise to tie in with the EP’s release which will benefit The BlocKC, a community organization which “focuses on Sustaining and Retaining Black men in education.”
“This isn’t a release to be preachy or tell people what to do as much as it’s also to encourage and amplify the action that’s taking place right now,” Flare explains. “There are a lot of people that are in the streets and getting very involved. The Bloc is a nonprofit I’ve gotten involved with and been very motivated by because they work to develop and retain more Black men as educators.”
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.
“We have to pull together ourselves as a community, but something like the Bloc is very education-focused and 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.”
The end result of all of this is that The Revolution Will Not Be Hashtagged is a very powerful collection of songs, not just because of the strength in the lyrics and in Flare’s delivery, but also with a lot of empathy. The rapper isn’t attempting to shame anyone so much as he’s addressing sense of being overwhelmed by these things and understanding of how that can be for folks.
“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.”
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).
Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam thanks for being with us on WMM
Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam about their new EP, THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE HASHTAGGED, that was released on July 9, 2021. IMore Info at: http://www.flaretharebel.com
10:56
Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam – “Different Ships (Radio Edit)” from: The Revolution Will Not Be Hashtagged / Shafer / July 9, 2021 [Inspired by Gil Scott-Heron’s 1971 single, “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”. Career and love brought hip-hop MC Flare Tha Rebel back to his hometown of Kansas City, MO, which created a second wind of new music. Noted by The Pitch, “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…” Known for a highly energetic live performance, Flare has shared the stage with artists such as Chance the Rapper, RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, Mac Lethal, Nappy Roots, and CES Cru. Although hip-hop at the core, Flare Tha Rebel’s versatility remains as he balances music with socially progressive themes that are still enjoyable enough to raise a glass to at a party. There’s also a duality to Flare’s approach. Many of his songs are connected to his Art to Empower initiative, raising awareness and funds for a variety of social justice causes and nonprofits. Info at: http://www.flaretharebel.com
11:00 – Station ID
Hipshot Killer – “All This Pain” from: Guns and Gas / Hipshot Killer / July 23, 2021 [KC based 3-piece power punk band formed in the fall of 2008. The current line up consists of: Mike Alexander (Revolvers, Architects, John Velghe and The Prodigal Sons, The Starhaven Rounders), on guitar & vocals, Chris Wagner (100 Years War, Jackie Carrol, John Velge and The Prodigal Sons) on bass & vocals; and Adam Phillips on drums. The band released their debut record Hipshot Killer, April 29, 2011. The band released their second album They Will Try To Kill Us All on January 16, 2016. It was number 7 in Wednesday MidDay Medley’s 116 Best Recordings of 2016. Hipshot Killer also released a single on Too Much Rock on October 21, 2016. Hipshot Killer released the album , ALL THIS TIME IS OURS on March 20, 2019. #21 of WMM’s 119 Best Recordings of 2019.
Mike Alexander on the August 11, 2021 edition of The Tenth Voice
11:03 – Interview with Mike Alexander
Mike Alexander is lead vocalist & guitarist of Hipshot Killer with Chris Wagner on bass & vocals, and for this recording Adam Phillips on drums Jon “Buddy” Paul on drums. Hipshot Killer released their debut album Hipshot Killer, on April 29, 2011. The band released their second album They Will Try To Kill Us All on January 16, 2016. It was # 7 in Wednesday MidDay Medley’s 116 Best Recordings of 2016. Hipshot Killer also released a single on Too Much Rock on October 21, 2016. Hipshot Killer released the album , ALL THIS TIME IS OURS on March 20, 2019. #21 of WMM’s 119 Best Recordings of 2019. Mike Alexander has been a tireless organizer of the KC area punk scene and has helped to produce multiple years of the Center of the City Fest. Mike Alexander joins us to share information about Hipshot Killer’s new 7-track EP, GUNS AND GAS, released July 23, 2021.. More info at: http://www.hipshotkiller.com
Mike Alexander thanks for being with us on WMM.
Guns and Gas was recorded by at Mastered at Weights and Measures studio by Duane Trower.
All songs written by Mike Alexander
Hipshot Killer describe their sound as “a loud, three piece, power punk band from KCMO.” With Mike Alexander and lead vocals and lead guitar, Chris Wagner on bass and backing vocals, and for this recording Adam Phillips on drums. Mike Alexander played with Adam in the legendary KC band The Architects. Mike Alexander also plays with The Starhaven Rounders
For 2019 Hipshot Killer’s All This Time is Ours features: Mike Alexander (Revolvers, Architects), on Guitar & Vocals, Chris Wagner (100 Years War, Jackie Carrol) on Bass & Vocals, legendary drummer Jon
With bandmate Chris Wagner Mike Alexander plays with John Velghe & The Prodigal Sons.
Mike Alexander grew up in KCK. He currently lives in KCMO, not far from KKFI Studios. Mike also works full time at Revolution Records
Several years ago, Mike helped to create the 8-song tribute recording, I’ll Repay You: A Benefit for John Fackler – featuring the songs of John Fackler and Jettison .
Mike is also a much sought after guitar player and he regularly performs live and records with John Velghe & The Prodigal Sons, The Starhaven Rounders, Revovers and The Architects.
Mike Alexander thanks for being with us on WMM.
Album Cover photo by Mike Alexander
Hipshot Killer’s new 7-track EP, GUNS AND GAS, released July 23, 2021.. More info at: http://www.hipshotkiller.com
11:19
Hipshot Killer – “I Am Not Alone” from: Guns and Gas / Hipshot Killer / July 23, 2021 [KC based 3-piece power punk band formed in the fall of 2008. The current line up consists of: Mike Alexander (Revolvers, Architects, John Velghe and The Prodigal Sons, The Starhaven Rounders), on guitar & vocals, Chris Wagner (100 Years War, Jackie Carrol, John Velge and The Prodigal Sons) on bass & vocals; and Adam Phillips on drums. The band released their debut record Hipshot Killer, April 29, 2011. The band released their second album They Will Try To Kill Us All on January 16, 2016. It was number 7 in Wednesday MidDay Medley’s 116 Best Recordings of 2016. Hipshot Killer also released a single on Too Much Rock on October 21, 2016. Hipshot Killer released the album , ALL THIS TIME IS OURS on March 20, 2019. #21 of WMM’s 119 Best Recordings of 2019.
11:23
In The Pines – “Bones” from: Bones – Single / Arctic Rodeo Recordings / June 5, 2020 [In The Pines are back with their first new release since the 2006 debut album In The Pines. “Bones” the single os from upcoming 2nd album, INTERLUDE on August 20, 2021, 13 years after the release the debut. Both albums are on Arctic Rodeo Records. More info at: http://www.arcticrodeorecordings.com . KC based six piece band with Brad Hodgson on guitar & vocals, Darren Welch on bass, Laurel Morgan on violin & vocals, Matt Wolber on guitar, and Mike Myers on drums. Made up of two guitars, a bass, a violin, a viola, a pump organ, drums, and five vocals, their music is serene at times, other times brooding, creating an atmosphere ideal for their subject matter: narratives of a man wasted away in prison, a woman burning to death as her dress catches fire, a handless man intent on showing others the subtle gifts in life. It is dark, it is dirty, it is sometimes drunken. It is intimate. Arctic Rodeo Recordings wrote: When we listened to IN THE PINES from Kansas City for the first time, we were totally blown away. This melancholic, morbidly charming and dark sounding music was so special, it was a real discovery. IN THE PINES sounded so different than anything we had in mind for Arctic Rodeo: A 6 piece band, 2 playing strings, sounding more like folk than like rock, mixing it up with singer/songwriter elements, and their songs were slow and beautiful, and so sad at the same time. We fell in love with IN THE PINES right away and ended up putting their debut album as the 7th release on Arctic Rodeo back in 2008. The band came over to Europe for touring and opening up for The New Amsterdams and Kevin Devine. 13 years later, IN THE PINES have finished their second record. We became friends and have always been in touch during this long period of time, and at some point, we honestly did not dare to hope for a new album to come anymore at all. But as special as this band sounds anyway, they actually did it and proved us wrong. Now, as a five piece band, IN THE PINES are back with their second record called Interlude, that has just been mastered by non other that Bob Weston in Chicago. The first single called Bones has already been released in June last year. It shows our friends continuing exactly where they started back 13 years ago – and it was totally worth the wait.Please check out the video for the first single Bones below. Interlude will be available on limited edition white vinyl and on all digital platforms. Members of In The Pines will join us on WMM on August 25, 2021. More info at: http://www.inthepines.com
11:28 – Underwriting
Elexa Dawson – “New Song” from: “New Song” – Single / Lost Cowgirl Records / April 2, 2021 [Elexa’s 2019 album, MUSIC IS MEDICINE (Lost Cowgirl Records) and her song “High Place” charted at #6 on Sirius XM’s Indigenous Music Countdown. // Elexa Dawson writes: The song was written at the very beginning of the shutdown and is a call to all of our better, higher selves to imagine a better world. “The Way it has always been done is now gone. This is our moment to sing a new song.” // I thought it would be a great campaign song for Bernie Sanders, but the day after I wrote it, he suspended. Ah, well. It’s still a good song. ”“New Song” is Elexa Dawson on vocals & guitar, Kelby Kimberlin on bass guitar, Melissa Tastove on vocals & percussion, Jenna Rae on vocals & percussion, Martin Farrell on vocals & keys. Recorded, produced & engineered by Martin Farrell, Lost Cowgirl Records http://www.thelostcowgirl.com Mastered by Brody Wellman Mixing by Peter Oviatt, Moonflower Sounds http://www.moonflowersounds.com. Cover Photo: Jordan Storrer, Lifeleak Visuals Elexa Dawson joined WMM on June 2, 2021. http://www.elexadawson.com]
11:34 – Interview with MG Salazar and Ignacio Carvajal
MG Salazar
MG Salazar is a poet, writer, performer, curator, business owner, chef, civil rights activist, assistant to Antoni Porowski for Season 3 & 4 of Netflix’s acclaimed television program – Queer Eye, cultural reporter & music reviewer for KCUR 89.3 FM, subject of the HBO documentary, Abortion: Stories Women Tell, and former host & producer on 90.1 FM’s long running LGBTQIA program, The Tenth Voice, Saturdays, at 1:00 PM. A lifelong activist for equality & justice, MG Salazar twice traveled to Standing Rock during the winter of 2016-2017 to stand as a water protector at the Oceti Sakowin Camp. In 2020 MG Salazar ran as a Democratic candidate for Missouri’s 5th Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives, challenging 8-term, incumbent Emanuel Cleaver II. MG’s latest book, Tiny Bits of Flesh was published by La Resistencia in 2019; their book, Striking the Black Snake: Poems from Standing Rock, was published by 39 West Press in 2017; and MG’s debut, If You See My Ghosts Like I Do, was published by Spartan Press in 2016.
MG Salazar, thanks for being with us on WMM.
Ignacio Carvajal
Ignacio Carvajal‘s new chapbook, Allow: A Litany, is the most recent release from La Resistencia Press who will host a Book Release, outside, this Saturday, August 14, at 4:30 PM at InterUrban ArtHouse 8001 Newton St., Overland Park, Kansas. Ignacio Carvajal is the author of Plegarias, winner of the Poetic Bridges contest by Casa Cultural de las Américas and the University of Houston in 2019. He has a Ph.D. in Iberian and Latin American Languages and Cultures, with a portfolio in Native American and Indigenous Studies, from the University of Texas at Austin. He also obtained a B.A. in Spanish and Latin American Studies with highest distinction from the University of Kansas and a A.A. in Liberal Arts, with honors, from Johnson County Community College. He is an assistant professor of literature and language at the University of Kansas. More info at: http://www.laresistenciapress.com
Ignacio Carvajal, thanks for being with us on WMM.
MG Salazar is a cofounder of La Resistencia, a collective of LGBTQ creatives of color in the KC area: Jessica Ayala, Lucky Garcia, Alex Martínez, Miguel M. Morales and MG Salazar sharing their words, art, voices, & bodies with community and to live the pride of their people. Sharing & celebrate the lived experiences of QTPOC and amplifying voices.
La Resistencia Press removes the biggest barrier from publishing: The Gatekeeper. Too often, non-white folks are at the mercy of begging for a chance from someone who does not look like them, have the same cultural experience, or does not care to hear artists from outside their realm. So La Resistencia Press thier our own press.
MG Salazar
Books:
Concealment – Pre-production – Alex Martinez
Allow: A Litany – Post – production – Ignacio Carvajal
Tiny Bits of Flesh (2018) – MG Salazar
MG Salazar ran as a Democratic candidate for Missouri’s 5th Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives, challenging 8-term, incumbent Emanuel Cleaver II. When running for Congress MG ran openly as a non-binary candidate. They / Them
From MG Salazar’s Campaign bio, MG wrote: “I can’t ask you to vote for me because I am Non-Binary. Or based solely on any of the identities I hold as a marginalized person. There are plenty of people who exploit their identities for political gain and do nothing to actually impact the community they claim to represent, or only represent the most privileged of their community. I do, however, promise to Queer Congress.” What does that mean? “It means challenging the status quo. Agitate Cisgender & Hetero-sexual Peers to reflect on their values. Make it clear that Queer & Trans people are not going anywhere without a fight. In many Indigenous Cultures, like the ones of my ancestors, Transgender & Gender Variant people were REVERED and CELEBRATED.”
MG Salazar on the August 11, 2021 edition of WMM on KKFI.
MG Salazar aka Maite has had a passion for making change that started when they were very young. Their first time “organizing” was when they were a little kid, advocating for animal rights with plans to send a “Barbie Jeep” to save endangered animals from poachers. As they grew up, they got involved in the Anti-War movement during the Bush Administration, at the age of 17 going as far as participating in a direct action when President Bush was in town, that was powerful enough that he thought it was best to run from his car to the building of the event, rather than confront the protest. This was the start of Maite putting themselves on the front lines of movements seeking justice.
One of the most memorable movements they were a part of was the North Dakota Pipeline Shutdown protests facilitated by the Water Protects. During the protests, Maite raised thousands of dollars to support Water Protectors on the front lines, and even joined the front lines themselves, witnessing/experiencing first hand the full barrage of human rights violations and police brutality facilitated by the United States Government, North Dakota and Private Police forces on their fellow peaceful protesters.
As far as their adult life, Maite has worked Service Industry jobs for over 17 years, at restaurants, bars, call centers and more. Customer Service is one of their greatest skills.
They also have spoken at almost every University in the Kansas City area, including some guest lecturing for The Art Institute and Park University, as well as worked as a cultural reporter and music reviewer for KCUR.
MG writes that they are no a millionaire. Not groomed by any party. Not from a political family. Just a regular working class person with some powerful experiences who saw an opportunity to make a difference for the people of 5th district and the took it.
In 2020 MG Salazar ran as a Democratic candidate for Missouri’s 5th Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives, challenging 8-term, incumbent Emanuel Cleaver II. Why Challenge an Incumbent Democrat? MG believes in direct democratic representation, and that reaching your representative should be EASY and NORMAL. That a representatives responsibility is to be an ACTIVE member of community, not just a public figure who shows up for photo ops and fancy closed door fundraisers and events. MG supports Progressive Polices her opponent doesn’t believe in. They here to stay, and they are gonna keep challenging incumbents until they are replaced by people who understand what being a representative is REALLY about.
MG Salazar worked as an assistant to Antoni Porowski for Season 3 & 4 of Netflix’s acclaimed Emmy winning television program – Queer Eye. MG Salazar talked about how Antoni is just as beautiful on the inside as he looks on the outside. MG set up all of the food demos on the show.
Ignacio Carvajal
Ignacio Carvajal specializes in interdisciplinary research on Mesoamerican Literatures, Languages, and Cultures and pedagogical approaches to Indigenous Languages instruction. He focuses on Mayan Languages from Guatemala, particularly K’iche’.
His interests include Indigenous responses to colonialism, particularly how early-modern notions of territory relate to political organization, authority, and religion. Drawing from Literary Studies, Ethnohistory, Indigenous Studies, and other disciplines, he analyzes indigenous language documents, doctrinal materials, religious chronicles, and other sources to better understand colonialism and coloniality, along with its contemporary remnants.
He is also interested in pedagogical approaches and the creation of open access materials for the study of Indigenous languages. He is a member of a team of collaborators working on Chqeta’maj le qach’ab’al K’iche’ (Let’s learn K’iche’!), an open resource, digital repository of language lessons, which are also the base for his K’iche’ class at the University of Kansas’s Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies.
Ignacio reads & writes poetry. His work has appeared in journals such as Acentos Review, Rio Grande Review, Coal City Review, and in the anthologies The Wandering Song: Central American Writing in the United States and Primera Página: Poetry from the Latino Heartland. He is a member of the Latino Writers Collective of Kansas City, the Taller Literario Don Chico in Costa Rica, and the board of directors of Borderlands: Texas Poetry Review, in Austin. Ignacio has a Ph.D. in Iberian and Latin American Languages and Cultures, with a portfolio in Native American and Indigenous Studies, from the University of Texas at Austin. He also obtained a B.A. in Spanish and Latin American Studies with highest distinction from the University of Kansas and a A.A. in Liberal Arts, with honors, from JCCC. ignaciocarvajal@ku.edu
MG Salazar and Ignacio Carvajal, thanks for being with us on WMM.
Ignacio Carvajal’s new chapbook, Allow: A Litany, is the most recent release from La Resistencia Press who will host a Book Release, this Saturday, August 14, at 4:30 PM, Outside, at InterUrban ArtHouse 8001 Newton St., Overland Park, Kansas. More info at: http://www.laresistenciapress.com
11:49
Margo May – “SoCal For The Summer” from: “SoCal For The Summer” – Single / Margo May / August 5, 2021 [Margo wrote this song with Zack Hames from Kansas City. Singer Songwriter – All around pop song writing gal. More info at: http://www.soundcloud.com/margomay.“ Inspired by everyone from Loretta Lynn to Lykke Li, Margo May has been writing songs since she was 15. Because she was underage at the time, May slowly gained some traction in her hometown, Kansas City, by playing whatever coffee houses and venues would let her on stage. That was a comfortable place for May as she’d worked in professional theatre as a kid. Now that she’s older, May balances her love of acting with her passion for pop, crafting songs than span a spectrum which mirrors her influences. “At the end of the day, though,” May has said, “I know my strength and it is folk music.” Despite appreciating the immediacy of pop, May also understands that folk music ages well. It’s also a lot more portable and playable for a solo artist on the rise, and it suits the sound of heartbreak a bit better.” – The Blue Grass Situation, 2015. Margo May released the 9 track album “I’m Not Coming Home” released July 19, 2015 With Margo May on vocals & acoustic guitar with Doby Watson on acoustic and electric guitar. Margo May released the 5-song EP HIPPY BOY KILLERS on May 29, 2014 Margo May released the 11 song album SPACE/FACE October 12, 2012, Recorded in Portland Oregon (2011) by Yahnee Kilfe. More info at: http://www.margomay.com]
11:54
Camp Clover – “Covered in Gasoline” from: “Covered In Gasoline” – Single / J Ashley Miller / August 1, 2021 [ Camp Clover is a band and a new musical project of J Ashley Miller and Simon Huntley]
[Camp Clover plays recordBar, 1520 Grand KCMO on Thursday, August 12, 2021.]
Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now” from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]
Next week on WMM, on August 19 we welcome Dedric Moore and the band Monta At Odds who released their new album, PEAK OF ETERNAL LIGHT on July 24, 2021, through The Record Machine. We also welcome singer & actor Stephonne Singleton about his new single “The King’s Gambit” and his show at Lemonaide Park on August 28. We also talk with Geraldine Glen about her new single “Interim Love” released July 23, 2021 on Groove King Records. Also, Cole Bales and Cody Calhoun of Black Light Animals share their newest release and details about their show at Lemonade Park with The Freedom Affair on Saturday, August 21.
Flare Tha Rebel photographs by Selina Rios
Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information. Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org
Wednesday MidDay Medley Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning 90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
Wednesday, August 11, 2021
Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam + Mike Alexander + MG Salazar & Ignacio Carvajal
Mark plays more New & MidCoastal Releases from: namelessnumberheadman, In The Pines, Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam, Hipshot Killer, Lava Dreams, The Roseline, Margo May, Camp Clover, Sisterbot, Elexa Dawson, and CompanyNoCompany.
At 10:30 Flare Tha Rebel & Bob Pulliam share tracks from their EP, THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE HASHTAGGED, released July 9, 2021. Inspired by Gil Scott-Heron’s 1971 single, “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”, Lyricist Flare Tha Rebel and beat producer Bob Pulliam take on a slew of social issues on their 4-track EP release: police brutality on “P.O.P. Off”, quotes from revolutionaries and civil right activities on “Different Ships,” and the United States tragic apathy towards gun violence for the track “Child’s Play” featuring Bob’s dad, KC Jazz musician and teacher Joe Miquelon. As part of Flare Tha Rebel’s, Art to Empower initiative, merchandise was designed by muralist Sike Style to raise funds and awareness for BLOC (Brothers Liberating our Communities). Info at: http://www.flaretharebel.com
At 11:00 Mark talks with Mike Alexander of Hipshot Killer about his band’s new 7-track EP, GUNS AND GAS, released July 23, 2021. Hipshot Killer describe their sound as “a loud, three piece, power punk band from KCMO.” With Mike Alexander and lead vocals and lead guitar, Chris Wagner on bass and backing vocals, and for this recording Adam Phillis on drums. Mike Alexander played with Adam in the legendary KC band The Architects. Mike Alexander also plays the John Velge and The Prodigal Sons, and The Starhaven Rounders. More info at: http://www.hipshotkiller.com
At 11:30 MG Salazar & Ignacio Carvajal share details about La Resistencia Press and Ignacio Carvajal’s new chapbook, Allow: A Litany Outdoor, that will have a Book Release, Saturday, August 14, at 4:30 PM at InterUrban ArtHouse 8001 Newton St., Overland Park, Kansas. MG Salazar is a poet, writer, performer, curator/business owner, chef, civil rights activist. MG’s book, Little Bits of Flesh was published by La Resistencia in 2019; her book, Striking the Black Snake: Poems from Standing Rock, was published by 39 West Press in 2017; and MG’s debut book, If You See My Ghosts Like I Do, was published by Spartan Press in 2016. Ignacio Carvajal is the author of Plegarias, winner of the Poetic Bridges contest by Casa Cultural de las Américas and the University of Houston in 2019. He has a Ph.D. in Iberian and Latin American Languages and Cultures, with a portfolio in Native American and Indigenous Studies, from the University of Texas at Austin. He also obtained a B.A. in Spanish and Latin American Studies with highest distinction from the University of Kansas and a A.A. in Liberal Arts, with honors, from Johnson County Community College. He is an assistant professor of literature and language at the University of Kansas. More info at: http://www.laresistenciapress.com
Flare Tha Rebel photographs by Selina Rios
On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org
Wednesday MidDay Medley Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning 90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
Wednesday, August 4, 2021
WMM’s “901 SHOW” shares stories about 90.1 FM KKFI with 9 special guests, who all keep 90.1 – On The Air!
10:00 – “Support for Wednesday MidDay Medley from Blue Fox Productions”
“Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks” from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979 [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]
Joni Mitchell – “You Turn Me On I’m A Radio” from: For The Roses / Asylum / 1972 [“You Turn Me On, I’m a Radio” is a song written and originally recorded by Canadian singer songwriter Joni Mitchell. It was released on her fifth studio album entitled For the Roses and was issued as a single as well. // Joni Mitchell originally wrote the song in response to her record label’s desire for her to write a hit song. Mitchell reveals her purpose on lines such as, “And I’m sending you out this signal here, I hope you can pick it up loud and clear”. She believed that including words in the song about radio themes would convince stations to play the recording. The song was recorded in preparation for Mitchell’s then-upcoming fifth studio album in Hollywood, California at A&M Studios. Although Graham Nash, David Crosby, and Neil Young all contributed to the recording session for the song, only the harmonica piece performed by Graham Nash was included on the official release. // “You Turn Me On, I’m a Radio” was released as a single in November 1972 via Asylum Records. The song became Mitchell’s first top-ten hit in Canada, reaching the tenth position on the RPM Top Singles chart. Additionally, the single became her first top-forty hit in the United States, reaching number twenty-five on the Billboard Hot 100. Outside North America, “You Turn Me On, I’m a Radio” peaked within the top forty on the Australian Kent Music Report chart.[6] The single was included on Mitchell’s fifth studio effort For the Roses, which was issued in November 1972. // For The Roses was released between her 2 biggest commercial and critical successes, “Blue” and “Court & Spark.” In 2007 it was one of 50 recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry. “For the Roses” was Mitchell’s farewell to the business; she took an extended break for a year after. The album was critically acclaimed with The New York Times saying, “Each of Mitchell’s songs on For the Roses is a gem glistening with her elegant way with language, her pointed splashes of irony & her perfect shaping of images. Never does Mitchell voice a thought or feeling commonly. She’s a songwriter and singer of genius who can’t help but make us feel we are not alone.” A nude photograph of Joni Mitchell was included on the inside cover of the original LP and is included in the CD booklet. The photograph shows the singer from the rear & was taken from a considerable distance; she is shown standing on a rock and staring out at the ocean. This created some controversy at the time.]
10:03
Thanks for tuning into WMM on 90.1 FM KKFI. I’m Mark Manning. Today we bring you WMM’s 901 show about 90.1 FM KKFI with 9 special guests, who all keep 90.1 – On The Air!
Stay tuned in to hear stories about how it took over ten years to get KKFI started, about how we almost lost KKFI, about the “terrible teenage years” of KKFI, about how lifelong friends were forged at KKFI, about how far KKFI has come in 33 years, and how far we have yet to go. 90.1 FM KKFI is Kansas City’s most original broadcasting station with over 85 weekly LOCALLY PRODUCED radio programs to serve Kansas City’s diverse collective communities! We’ll also spin songs about radio from: Psychic Heat, Elevator Division, Emily King, Kristie Stremel, Nivea, and Anne Feeney. We started the Show with Joni Mitchell.
At 10:00 we talk with Tom Crane – host & producer of World Sound Radio, about “the beginning” of 90.1 FM – KKFI.
At 10:20 Judy Ancel – host & producer of Heartland Labor Forum shares stories about “the struggle” a 3-year public campaign to take back 90.1 FM, restore our name, restore our bylaws, restore our Board, and our Active Members system.
At 10:40 Dorothy Hawkins – host & producer of Mother’s Mix, and Barry Lee – host & producer of Signal To Noise, share stories about the “bump & grind” of 90.1 FM.
At 11:00 Maria Vasquez Boyd – host & producer of ARTSPEAK RADIO and Marion Merritt – host & producer of Wednesday MidDay Medley share stories about “The Friendships” that have been created through KKFI.
At 11:20 Ebony Johnson – host & producer of Ebony’s Bones show, and Catina K Taylor – Vice President of the MidCoast Radio Project Board of Directors share their ideas about “The Current” of The Mid-Coast Radio Project.”
At 11:40 Lesley Pories – President of the MidCoast Radio Project Board of Directors, talks about “The Future” of 90.1 FM KKFI and the continual effort to help 90.1 FM become more secure, live by our mission, and sound as great as possible, while creating a place for volunteers to learn and grow as hosts, producers, engineers and collaborators.
10:05 – Interview with Tom Crane – “The Beginning”
We begin with the beginning, with a man who has been with KKFI when there were fewer than 3 people keeping the dream alive. Tom Crane studied International Affairs at Ohio University. He worked for the Peace Corps and Corporation For National Service (CNS) serving as health volunteer in Africa in Malawi. Tom Crane helped give birth to KKFI. His father, an engineer with WGN in Chicago, helped foster KKFI. At one time radio shows were produced in Tom Crane’s basement studio and recorded on reel to reel to then be taken to the tower to be played. Tom Crane stated his family at KKFI. He has two sons, Cameron Crane and Alex Crane. Tom was one of the members of Friends of Community Radio who worked to take back KKFI in the early 2000s. After a 3-year struggle Tom was reinstated as a programmer and has continued to produce and host his program World Sound on KKFI 90.1 FM Kansas City, Mo. Sundays at 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM, promoting world peace thru world music.
Tom Crane thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley’s 901 Show.
KKFI started broadcasting as a 100,000-watt FM station on 90.1 on the FM dial in Kansas City, Missouri, USA, February 28, 1988 at about 10:00 AM.
The http://www.kkfistory.org celebrates the work of hundreds of volunteers and the contributions of thousands of listeners who have kept KKFI going through the years. It chronicles some of the history, facts, and, interesting anecdotes about the struggle to get the community radio station going and keep it on the air.
On March 25th, 1977, the Mid-Coast Radio Project was born and was incorporated by a few individuals who supported starting a community radio station – as a Not for Profit Corporation under the laws of Missouri.
Original bylaws for the incorporation of Mid-Coast Radio certified by board secretary 5/10/77.
After incorporation the group of radio & media enthusiasts got together to set up a Communiversity course called “Radio Free Kansas City” for exploration of the idea of a citizen-owned, non-commercial radio station. The Communiversity was a free-university under the auspices of the University of Missouri Kansas City. People from the community could offer courses where ordinary people could enroll ranging from pottery, to investment strategies for a small fee. A quarterly catalog was put out of courses, and “Radio Free Kansas City” was offered several times.
The text book used in the Communiversity class was the 1971 book: Sex and Broadcasting, A Handbook on Starting a Radio Station for the Community, was written by Lorenzo Wilson Milam. Milam is credited with helping start 14 stations from the early 1960s through late 1970s. He got his start in radio volunteering in 1958–1959 at Lew Hill’s KPFA in Berkeley, California. He used a $15,000 inheritance to buy a small FM transmitter in 1959 and spent the next 3 years seeking a broadcasting license “anywhere in the US” from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which assigned him a frequency in Seattle, 107.7FM. With the help of volunteer engineer Jeremy Lansman he was able to get his antique Collins Radio transmitter on the air in 1962, creating the station KRAB. // Milam and Lansman later assisted in the creation of community radio stations around the country, starting in 1968 with KBOO (1968-1971) in Portland, KTAO (1968-1974), KDNA (St. Louis) 1969-72, KPOO-FM) (1972-) San Francisco, KCHU, 1975-77, KFAT (1975-1983) Gilroy, CA, WORT, WRFG 89.3 FM (Atlanta, Georgia), KOPN 89.5 FM (Columbia, Missouri), KZUM 89.3 FM (Lincoln, Nebraska). // The KRAB Nebula, was a tape exchange, using quarter-inch audio tape sent to stations, sharing programs. // According to David Armstrong in A Trumpet to Arms: Alternative Media in America, “Milam’s passion for community radio–and 1.1 million from the sale of a second station, KDNA-St.Louis, to commercial broadcasters in 1973–led him to become a veritable Johnny Appleseed of community radio.” // Lorenzo Wilson Milam, born on August 2, 1933, in Jacksonville, Florida, died on July 19, 2020 in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, Mexico, was an American writer and activist who was instrumental in starting many of the first listener-supported community radio stations in the United States, beginning with KRAB in Seattle in 1962. // In 1952, at age 19, he was diagnosed with polio. His sister died of the disease on December 29, 1952, but Milam’s case was milder and he was able to walk with crutches after one year. This is described in his autobiographical book “The Cripple Liberation Front Marching Band Blues.”
In KC a Communiversity Class was offered for students to study this book. From that group of Communiversity student the 501 (c) 3 organization The MidCoast Radio Project was formed.
The first sessions, organized by David Dye, drew about 57 participants. Soon the group adopted the name, “The Mid-Coast Radio Project”. This nomer was chosen as a rejection of the fact that all media are developed and dominated by the East and West Coasts of the United States. Some people whimsically also offered that there had originally been an ocean in the Kansas City area millions of years ago. (In fact, when the eventual KKFI radio station went on the air, it sometimes logged on as, “. . .from the floor of the Inland Sea”.
Soon the group starting publishing newsletters explaining what community radio is to encourage people to get involved.
During the year 1979, the numbers of people involved with Mid-Coast dwindled down to about 3 people, Gil Werner, Tom Crane, and Barbara Blake. The future for putting a community radio station on the air seemed bleak. Then it was discovered that there was some hope from an unlikely source, the U.S. Department of Commerce.
The PTFP (Public Telecommunications Facilities Program) of the Department of Commerce (DOC), announced that from one of their branches the NTIA (National Telecommunications Information Agency), that there would be a limited number of “planning grants” awarded which would enable organizations that were trying to put radio stations on the air that would serve a wide community, to hire someone to explore preparing an FCC application for a radio station.
The idea was since the space on the broadcasting band for non-commercial stations was so small, the DOC wanted to encourage groups that would serve a larger audience.
Gil Werner and Tom Crane discovered this almost too late, but managed to slap-together an ill-prepared application to the PTFP. Since the grants would be awarded in 1980, this put Mid-Coast’s foot in the door to reapply. If the application had not gotten in on time then there would have been no chance to apply for the next year.
The application got sent in in August. With help of a postal-meter and a friend in Washington who could get the document to the Department of Commerce in person, the day was saved.
The application was rejected with a note of encouragement to apply again. At this point Barbara Blake took the reins and prepared a decent application which was re-submitted to the PTFP. Letters of support were received from the community.
The Mid-Coast Radio Project looked like it was not going to succeed. The problem was – there was no spot on the radio dial for a new station – all the spots were taken.
There were 2 low-powered stations at 10 Watts each that occupied space on the non-commercial end of the FM broadcast band. Only a small portion of the broadcast frequencies on the radio dial can be used by non-commercial, non-profit stations – these 2 stations took up that space.
The stations were licensed to what was then Park College – KGSP FM, and to the Nazarene Theological seminary – KTSR FM.
As the situation looked hopeless, the membership of Mid-Coast dropped down from the original 30 or so which had showed up for the Communiversity class “Radio Free Kansas City” to 2 or 3 people who stuck with the goal of a community radio station.
Then, in 1978, things changed. The FCC in its infinite wisdom, decided that since there was a limit to the number of stations that could be put on the FM dial, that they had better make sure that all these stations were serving the most people.
10 Watt stations only could cover an area equivalent to a large neighborhood, and they were taking up a spot on the dial.
So in 1978, the FCC made a new rule that these 10 Watt stations either had to boost their power to 100 Watts, or move to another spot on the dial.
Maybe, just maybe, the small, broke organization, Mid-Coast Radio, could take advantage of the new ruling by negotiating with the two 10 Watt Kansas City stations!
The struggle to put KKFI on the air started in earnest in 1981 when negotiations had to happen with KTSR, the Nazarene station; KGSP, at Park College; and KIEE, a commercial station. The long and drawn out legal work with KTSR will be placed on the KKFISTORY site soon for people to read. It is an amazing story. The letter below highlights attempted negotiation with the Nazarene station which ultimately ended up with them going off the air.
After 11 years of work, Mid-Coast Radio finally put KKFI on the air!
A great party was held at the site of the new studios at the Mainmark Building. The first connection to the transmitter and radio tower was done over phone lines since no “studio-tower-link” had been set up yet.
First song played on KKFI, February 28, 1988 – “When the Ship Comes In!” by Bob Dylan
“. . . and the ship’s wise men will remind you once again, that the whole wide world is watching!
Oh the foes will rise, with the sleep still in their eyes, and they’ll jerk from their beds and think they’re dreamin’,
But they’ll pinch themselves and squeal, and know that it’s for real, the hour when the ship comes in
And they’ll raise their hands saying we’ll meet all your demands, But we’ll shout from the bow, ‘your days are numbered’!
And like pharaoh’s tribe they’ll be drownded in the tide, and like Goliath, they’ll be conquered!”
The first song was played at the Mainmark Building on 1627 Main Street in Kansas City.
The first radio programs were recorded on a reel-to-reel tape recorder produced in temporary basement studios. The tapes were then taken out to the tower location and played back on an identical tape recorder to the transmitter which broadcast the shows.
The station’s first program schedule was 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM (signing off to the song “Route 66”). A year later, KKFI would expand to a full 24-hour schedule.
First program guide put together by Kevin Dowd, Matt Quinn, & a crew of KKFI volunteers!
Charity Bingo Hall – to raise money for KKFI volunteers worked the Charity Bingo Hall in Midtown Kansas City near Main Street between Linwood and 31st Streets.
KKFI Locations:
MainMark Building, 1627 Main Street (in now the Crossroads) 9001/2 Westport Rd. (Westport) 3901 Main Street (Midtown)
Here are some of the hundreds of people who helped make KKFI happen: Barbara Blake, Ralph Tomlinson, Rachel Kaub, Kevin Dowd, Gil Werner, Mabel Guthrie, Anne Winter, Suzi Colbert, Rev. Sam Mann, Ron McMillan, Jennifer Field, Karen Wright, John Wright, Sunshine Del Hamrick, Lloyd Daniel, Barbara Crist, Bill Hillburn, Michael Hogue, April Fletcher, Steve Peters, and so many more.
Tom Crane thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley’s 901 Show.
World Sound airs on 90.1 FM KKFI – Sundays at 1:00 to 3:00 PM. Promoting world peace thru world music. Tom’s website about KKF’s history is http://www.kkfistory.org
10:22 – Underwriting
Anne Feeney – “Look To The Left” from: Look To The Left / Center Cut Records / 1992 [Debut album. Anne Feeney was born July 1, 1951 and died from complications related to COVID-19 on Feb. 3, 2021. Anne Feeney was an American folk musician & singer-songwriter, political activist & attorney. She began her career in 1969 as a student activist playing a Phil Ochs song at a Vietnam War protest, one of many causes she embraced. As an undergraduate she cofounded Pittsburgh’s first rape crisis center and went on to earn a Juris Doctor (law) degree in 1978, seeking to effect social change through the legal system. She worked as a lawyer for 12 years while also pursuing music and activism, and ultimately decided engaging through music was her calling. Blending Irish music with American folk and bluegrass, as well as her political message, she recorded twelve albums and toured most of the period from 1991 to 2015, attending protest rallies and joining the concerts of groups like Peter, Paul and Mary. The latter also recorded a version of Feeney’s anthem for civil disobedience, “Have You Been to Jail for Justice?” // Feeney was born July 1, 1951, in Charleroi, Pennsylvania, to Annabelle (née Runner) and Edward J. Feeney. Her mother was a homemaker and her father a chemical engineer at Westinghouse Electric Co. She had one sister, Kathleen. The family moved to the nearby Brookline neighborhood of the city of Pittsburgh in 1954. Feeney’s grandfather, William Patrick Feeney, was a significant early influence on her, as mineworkers’ organizer and violinist who also used his music in the service of political and labor causes. // Feeney graduated from Fontbonne Academy, a Catholic girls’ high school in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, in 1968. // As a high school student, Feeney purchased a Martin D-28 guitar in 1968 and gave her first performance at an anti-war protest in 1969, playing a song by Phil Ochs. She played the same guitar for 40 years. // She enrolled in college at the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) and joined Thinking Students for Peace, a group that protested the Vietnam War and apartheid in South Africa. In 1972, while an undergrad, she was arrested in Miami at the Republican National Convention where she was protesting Richard Nixon’s re-nomination for President of the United States. That same year, Feeney attended the annual Conference on Women and the Law. Inspired by the group that founded “Women Organized Against Rape” in Philadelphia, Feeney began a campaign for a rape crisis center in Pittsburgh. This effort became Pittsburgh Action Against Rape (PAAR), which still provides services to rape victims in the Pittsburgh area as of 2021. Feeney graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1974 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. // She enrolled in law school, also at Pitt, and in 1976, she joined a bluegrass band, Cucumber Rapids. The group disbanded in 1977, but Feeney carried on performing locally.// Feeney graduated from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 1978. She worked for 12 years as a trial attorney, something she said had interested her as way to effect social change, although later she found her music to be a better route for that goal. While a lawyer, Feeney’s clients were mainly refugees and domestic violence survivors. She was a member of the Gender Bias Committee of the Allegheny County Bar Association. // From the early 1980s through the 2010s, Feeney served on the board of Pittsburgh’s Thomas Merton Center, devoted to advocating for peace and justice causes. She was also chapter president of NOW and served on the organization’s state executive board in Pennsylvania. // In 1989, Feeney’s music career became an increasing focus after she won a national song writing contest, the Kerrville New Folk contest. Beginning in 1991, Feeney toured North America and the world to perform and participate in political and labor rallies and events. In 2008, she said in an interview, “I think music is a fantastic way of empowering people and giving them strength and energy. I’ve spent a good part of my life trying to find and write music that will empower people to resist and stand up for what’s right.” Feeney’s music is frequently featured on the broadcast radio program Democracy Now! and her anthem “Have You Been to Jail for Justice?” is featured in the documentaries This is What Democracy Looks Like, Isn’t This a Time: A Tribute to Harold Leventhal and Get Up/Stand Up: The History of Pop and Protest. The song is an ode to civil disobedience, beginning, “Was it Cesar Chavez? Maybe it was Dorothy Day / Some will say Dr. King or Gandhi set them on their way / No matter who your mentors are it’s pretty plain to see / That, if you’ve been to jail for justice, you’re in good company.” // Feeney served as president of the Pittsburgh Musicians’ Union from 1997 to 1998, the first and only woman ever elected to this position, as of 2021. She was a member of the Industrial Workers of the World as well as the American Federation of Musicians. In 2005, she was honored with a lifetime achievement award from the Labor Heritage Foundation. Her business cards described her as “Performer, Producer, Hellraiser.” // Her first recording, Look to the Left, was released in 1992. She put out 12 albums in all, including Union Maid, If I Can’t Dance, Have you Been to Jail for Justice?, and Dump the Bosses Off Your Back. Fenney’s last album was Enchanted Way in 2010. // Feeney and her daughter, Amy Berlin, performed Feeney’s song “Ain’t I a Woman” at the March for Women’s Lives in Washington, D.C. on April 25, 2004. Feeney’s song “Have You Been to Jail for Justice?” was recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary and she also worked with John Prine and Pete Seeger. Political cartoonist Mike Konopacki included her recording of “Union Maid” in a flash animation in 2003. She also collaborated with spoken word artist Chris Chandler, whom Sing Out! said “finally met his match with the powerful, radical singer-songwriter” Feeney, and called their performances together “highly entertaining.” // The Washington Post described her music as “blending elements of Irish, bluegrass, folk & pop music while coupling many of her melodies with political lyrics, sometimes tinged with satire & humor, that were reminiscent of the ’60s protest songs.” In 1989, Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul & Mary wrote expressing his enthusiasm for her music, which he saw as a continuation of his own efforts: “I think your songs are wonderful, your group is terrific and your music rings with resonance of all that Peter, Paul & Mary has attempted to share throughout the last 28 years. It is comforting and exciting to know that the torch of folk music is being passed on to people as concerned, artful and decent as yourselves.” // On Nov. 19, 1977, Feeney married labor attorney Ron Berlin. She & Berlin had 2 children, Dan & Amy. The marriage ended in divorce in 1995. In 2002, she married Swedish political artist Julie Leonardsson. // In Aug. 2010, while touring in Sweden, Feeney was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer. She underwent treatment, recovered and returned to touring, but the cancer returned in 2015. // Feeney was in rehabilitation for a fracture in her back when she contracted pneumonia related to COVID-19. She died at UPMC Shadyside hospital in Pittsburgh on Feb. 3, 2021, aged 69, with her family by her side.]
Judy Ancel on WMM’s “901 Show” August 4, 2021
10:26 – Interview with Judy Ancel – “The Struggle”
Judy is Ancel is President of the Cross Border Network. From December 1988 until November 2017 she served at Director of Worker Education & Labor Studies at the University of Missouri at Kansas City. She has also worked with Missouri Jobs with Justice. Originally from Maywood, Illinois, she went to elementary school with with John Prine who carried her books home for her in third grade. Judy graduated from Stanford University and received her Masters in History from Hunter College. She is host and producer of The Heartland Labor Forum Kansas City’s only program about the workplace. It airs every Thursday at 6:00 PM, and rebroadcasts at 5:00 AM on Fridays. It is produced by and for working people. The show has been on the air since 1988 and is part of the Labor Radio Podcast Network. Always choosing to give her volunteer efforts to producing radio, Judy chose not to get involved in KKFI governance, but in 2001, using her own labor organizational background, Judy helped organize a coalition of courageous KKFI programmers who, while continuing to do their weekly shows on KKFI, created the not-for-profit organization, Friends of Community Radio, and filed two lawsuits against the Board of Directors and launched a 3-year public campaign to take back 90.1 FM, restore our name, restore our bylaws, restore our Board, and our Active Members system. After winning the struggle and achieving all of the objectives of FCR Judy later has served as Treasurer of the Board of Directors, Chair of KKFI’s Finance Committee helping to guide KKFI from our difficult teenage years to being financially balanced, with the security we need to continue to grow.
Judy Ancel thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley’s 901 Show.
On May 16, 2002 – Anne Feeney played All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church with Chris Chandler in support of Friends of Community Radio
Judy Ancel first get involved at KKFI 90.1 FM with Heartland Labor Forum in 1989
Mark Manning started as a volunteer in May 2001, and did his first program for The Tenth Voice on Wednesday, June 6, 2001.
Sometime in 2000, KKFI hired a Station Manager who’s name we will change to protect the guilty. We will call him “Louie De Palma” the character Danny Devito played on the late 1970s early 1980s sitcom TAXI. – Louie is the main antagonist of the sitcom. The head dispatcher of the Sunshine Cab Company, Louie spends his time holding court inside the caged-in dispatch office at the garage, arguing with, belittling and bullying the drivers. He not only lacks morals, he is openly proud of his misdemeanors and outright crimes. Louie will do anything to benefit himself.
So… KKFI hired Louie De Palma who had recently been fired from another public radio station in the area after every single female employee at that station complained about his behavior to the General Manager. Louie De Palma filed a lawsuit against the station and asked the court for a “gag order” so that no one could talk about the particulars. No one could warn a 13 year old radio station from hiring Louie De Palma, and that is what happened he became KKFI’s Station Manager.
Immediately he changed things: Bringing in a new Board, finding another set of bylaws in a filing cabinet he claimed were the “real” bylaws. He changed the name of “KKFI Community Radio” to “KKFI Public Radio.” He helped squeeze the Active Member System by helping to create two class of members: 1. “those in good standing,” and 2. “those NOT in good standing.” Essentially the ACTIVE MEMBERS were squeezed to less than 13 “members in good standing”
Louie De Palma
At http://www.kkfistory.org you can find out the true identity of, “Louie De Palma,” you can see the actual lawsuits filed by Friends of Community Radio, and see newsletters and fliers.
Friends of Community Radio was founded in 2001 as a response to the takeover of KKFI FM 90.1 by new management.
The group that was now running the station, allegedly illegally in power, tried to change the community radio station into an amorphous “public radio” station aligned with mainstream media. A new general-manager hired in 2000 did not follow the original goals of Mid-Coast radio which was founded in 1977 as a cooperative community effort to put a non-commercial radio station on the air.
Hired in 2000, after tenure with the American Heartland Theater and previous employment with KCUR FM (leaving that radio station under questionable circumstances) “Louie De Palma” was hired by the KKFI board after a recommendation from the personnel committee with some dissent.
During early 2001, it became apparent that KKFI was under threat of radical change as the new general manager purged the voting membership (active members) of the station, with his associates put forth a slate of board candidates to his liking, who were installed to the Mid-Coast board of directors.
The active members who are volunteers who after having proved they have done work for the station are then voted in as voting members, elect the entity that legally owns and governs the station – the board of directors.
A new set of bylaws approved by the reduced voting membership, also made the general manager a voting member of the board which increased his dominance of the station.
Throughout the year the KKFI program schedule became radically changed as programmers of long-standing were pushed out (some representing minority communities), and others resigned their radio shows in protest.
In the May 31, 2001 issue of the Pitch, Kansas City’s alternative news weekly, a scathing article was published on the goings on at KKFI.
Two people who who had long-standing shows on KKFI wrote letters to the editor in June in response to the Pitch article in May. Fortuitously. These letters were read by Denis Moynihan, who happened to be working with an activist group in Lawrence, Kansas. Denis is an associate of Amy Goodman who produces the “Democracy Now” news show on KKFI. Denis would be instrumental in arranging for the visit of Amy in 2002 to help raise funds to fight the station takeover and he offered to help with the KKFI struggle.
Coincidentally, the Pacifica Radio Network was undergoing its own take-over which forced out Amy Goodman and installed a questionable board of its own. Denis, helped link the struggles of KKFI and Pacifica together over the Internet and people around the country also started contributing also to FCR.
Some of those who had founded KKFI and who had worked for years to make community radio in Kansas City sustainable, became increasingly alarmed. They decided to meet on a regular basis to counter the threat.
Ultimately, with no hope of modifying the take-over of the station, the informal group became an underground organization which proposed strategies to remove the current management. This resistance group decided to call itself the Friends of Community Radio (FCR). Some demonstrated in front of the KKFI studio.
Because of threats of retaliation by management, the identities of some FCR activists were forced to remained hidden at first. One person even wore a cardboard mask at a demonstration outside the station, with the face of “Louie De Palma” so s/he would not be identified and lose a radio show.
Friends of Community Radio members soon realized that the only way to solve the problem of what was going on and to save the station was through legal remedies and the court system.
To start the process of getting rid of the current management, Friends of Community Radio in December, 2001 after preparing extensive paperwork, became incorporated in Missouri as a 501(c)3 non-profit group. This meant that FCR as a tax-exempt organization could now cover the costs of hiring attorneys to legally challenge those who were running the station.
As a part of becoming a non-profit organization, Friends of Community Radio passed its own set of by-laws in December, 2001
On December 29, 2001, while some were on vacation. the management cronies passed a resolution at the shrunken active members meeting designation those associated with FCR as enemies which should be expelled from KKFI.
Friends of Community Radio and listeners started raising money with other events, flyers, newsletters, and T-Shirts – in earnest for the needed upcoming battles in court.
On February 15th of 2002, Amy Goodman of “Democracy Now” whose show had been moved to 10 PM away from drive time, performed a benefit at All-Souls Unitarian Church in Kansas City. The purpose was to raise money FCM to mount a legal challenge that would restore the democratic process to KKFI
In April, 2002 after seeking the help of Lawyer Robin Martinez and Aldo Caller, eight members of Friends of Community Radio filed a lawsuit in the Circuit Court of Jackson County to overturn decisions made by the current management of the station. A 19-page legal document was filed with the court.
One of the things that the general manager (GM) did in August, 2002 was to institute an 14-page “volunteer contract” that all people involved with KKFI had to sign. This took away rights and became an instrument of control which the GM could use at his discretion.
In 2002, Friends of Community Radio had taken action in court with a second lawsuit to return the station to volunteer control.
Through the lawyers representing Friends of Community Media – Robin Martinez, and Aldo Caller, a settlement proposal was given to the current KKFI management.
After over two years of drama, turmoil, and strife, it was finally announced by the current board president, Chuck Tackett, that Louie De Palma would resign on September 3rd (after taking a buy-out).
Effective September 1, 2003 Louie De Palma resigned as General Manager of 90.1 FM.
Effective September 2, 2003 Bob Terry accepted the position of General Manager. The Board of Directors assigned Jim Olenick official spokesperson to the media and press. There was no advertised position or interviews for the manager position. Bob Terry was related to one of the Board Members. Bob Terry was in his mid 80s and only had experience in commercial radio. It also took him 30 minutes to climb up KKFI’s rickety wooden staircase.
After a three-year struggle, KKFI righted itself and was now called a “community-radio” station again, not a “public-radio” station. This article was published in 2004 in the Kansas City Pitch, an alternative weekly newspaper.
Meeting. Meetings. Meetings! – Mark’s Timeline of Friends of Community Radio Events:
Sept. 30, 2001 – Tom Crane Speaks at Culture Under Fire event at Westport Coffeehouse about the struggles to save KKFI.
November 11, 2001- Meeting at Plaza Library of concerned KKFI Programmers that ultimately leads to the formation of FCR Friends of Community Radio
January 26 & 28, 2002 – Friends of Community Radio – mailing – stuffing envelopes, sending newsletter to listeners and the public.
February 24, 2002, FCR Meeting
March 25, 2002 Michael Moore in KC speaks at UMKC and at The Uptown with Iris DeMent
April 13, 2002 – Reclaiming Democracy at All Souls
May 14, 2002 – FCR Meeting
May 16, 2002 – Anne Feeney plays All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church with Chris Chandler in support of Friends of Community Radio
May 20, 2002 – Mark breaks arm in garden with 1st grade students
May 21, 2002 – arriving late to FCR Meeting Mark is informed he’s been elected President of FCR
June 16, 2002 – Judy’s Mediation
June 27, 2002 FCR Board Meeting
June 30, 2002 – Judy’s Mediation
July 11, 2002 – Mediation at All Souls with FCR and KKFI
July 11, 2002 – FCR Meeting at All Souls
July 23, 2002 – FCR Board Meeting
July 28, 2002 – FCR Strategy Meeting at Judy’s
August 6, 2002 – FCR General Meeting
August 9, 2002 – BBB’s “Askew Airwaves” at J.O.B.
August 13, 2002 – FCR Strategy Meeting at Judy’s
August 18, 2002 – FCR Board Meeting
August 22, 2002 – Meet with Judy
August 23, 2002 – Mediation: Judy Ancel & Mark Manning with Jim Murtha & George Biswell
September 3, 2002 – FCR Strategy Meeting at Tom Crane’s
September 8, 2002 – FCR Board Meeting (Ruiz Library)
September 10, 2002 – Justice Not Revenge Rally
September 26, 2002 – FCR Meeting
September 28, 2002 – Barbara Blake honored (Tom outs Mark at FCR President to Louie)
October 10, 2002 – FCR General Meeting
October 22, 2002 – FCR Meeting
October 26, 2002 – Iris DeMent & Greg Brown Benefit Concert for FCR at Unity Temple
October 29, 2002 – FCR Strategy Meeting at Judy’s
November 1, 2002 – Angela Davis at UMKC
November 10, 2002 – FCR Strategy Meeting
November 19, 2002 – FCR Strategy Meeting
November 24, 2002 – FCR Strategy Meeting
November 26, 2002 – FCR Communications Meeting
December 9, 2002 – FCR Communications Meeting
January 5, 2003 – FCR Meeting
January 26, 2003 – FCR General Meeting
January 30, 2003 – FCR Strategy & Communications Meeting
May 8, 2003 – FCR Board Meeting June 27, 2003 – FCR Strategy Meeting with FCR Attorney Aldo Caller
June 28, 2003 – KKFI Special Active Members Meeting, called by Jim Murtha, President of KKFI’s Board. A coalition of FCR members, and Blues Programmers attended but would not sign-in in protest of Jim Murtha. This shut down the meeting for lack of quorum.
July 7, 2003 – FCR Communications Meeting
July 10, 2003 – FCR Board Meeting
August 24, 2003 – FCR Strategy Meeting at Judy’s
August 29, 2003 – Meet with FCR Attorney Aldo Caller on Strong Avenue.
September 1, 2003 – Louie De Palma resigned as General Manager
September 2, 2003 – Bob Terry accepted the position of General Manager
September 7, 2003 – FCR Strategy Meeting
September 11, 2003 – FCR Board Meeting
September 15, 2003 – KKFI All Station Meeting at Californos KKFI programming changed with New Program Director John Jessup. Several Public Affairs and News shows were moved from weekdays to Saturday afternoon: The Tenth Voice, Every Woman, Urban Connections, and Guess Who’s Coming to Kansas City. The Morning Buzz now aired from 6:00 to 9:00 AM, hosted by John Jessup, and MidDay Medley/Eclectics from 9:00 to 11:00 AM hosted by Rebecca Roche. Democracy Now moved to 10:00 PM.
September 21, 2003 – FCR Strategy Meeting
October 16, 2003 – FCR Board Meeting
October 18, 2003 – Rolling Thunder
October 21, 2003 – FCR Strategy Meeting
November 1, 2003 – Amy Goodman & The Wilders at Unity Temple in Benefit for FCR
November 9, 2003 – FCR Strategy Meeting at Judy’s
November 13, 2003 – FCR Board Meeting
December 11, 2003 – FCR Board Meeting
January 8, 2004 – FCR Board Meeting
January 24, 2004 – KKFI Governance Judy Ancel and Mark Manning were approved by The KKFI Board to serve on the Governance Committee along with Charles Ragsdell, who worked as Chairperson on this important committee, and who’s wife Lori Ragsdell was recently elected to KKFI Board. The Governance Committee was tasked with re-writing the Midcoast Radio Project bylaws.
February 12, 2004 – FCR Board Meeting
February 15, 2004 – KKFI Governance Meeting
February 22, 2004 – KKFI Governance Meeting
February 27, 2004 – KKFI Governance Meeting
March 7, 2004 – KKFI Governance Meeting
March 11, 2004 – FCR Board Meeting
March 23, 2004 – Special KKFI Active Members Meeting to hear new bylaws (called by 5 Active Members and where KKFI Governance Chair – Charles Ragsdell read out loud the extensive new bylaws top the members present, with notes taken and made available to anyone.
March 30, 2004 – Special KKFI Active Members Meeting to hear second reading of new bylaws, read by KKFI Governance Chair – Charles Ragsdell, and then voted on bu quorum of Active members to pass them. The passage of these new bylaws was an achievement and satisfied one of FCR’s biggest objectives to restore our bylaws.
March 28, 2004 – FCR Meeting
April 5, 2004 – Special Meeting of KKFI Active Members Active Members voted to remove Jim Murtha as a Board Member, Board President, and Active Member. The Motion passed.
April 5, 2004 – Annual Meeting of the Active Members (After voting out Murtha, FCR members realized there was one more open seat on the Board, and that with their new numbers (as restored members returned) they had the votes to put an FCR member on the Board. FCR chose Mark Manning. Mark later jokingly said, “I was chosen because I was new, no one hated me yet.”
April 5, Mark Manning (Secretary) was elected to Jim Murtha’s old seat along with LaDonna Sanders (Treasurer), Dorothy Hawkins (Vice President), Charles Ragsdell (Active Member Chair), Lori Ragsdell (President), Cindy Terwiliger, Donna Wolfe, and others including a few from the previous Board including George Biswell who had been a soldier for Louie de Palma and had been Active Member Chair when the membership was squeezed down to just 13 voting members who just agreed and passed everything Louie De Palma wanted.
April 20, 2004 – KKFI Board Meeting
April 30, 2004 – KKFI Executive Board met with organizational leaders at KCPT KC PBS
May 3, 2004 – KKFI All Station Meeting KKFI Programming Changes: The 5 Morning Buzz and 5 Midday Medley were divided to 10 slots with 10 programmers hand picked by John Jessup, Program Director
May 5, 2004 – The first Wednesday MidDay Medley
May 7, 2004 – FCR meets KKFI at All Souls
May 13 – FCR Board Meeting
May 23, 2004 – KKFI Board at Minsky’s
May 25, 2006 – KKFI Executive Board meeting
June 1, 2004 – KKFI Board Meeting
June 27, 2004 – Amy Goodman at Community Christian Church
July 18, 2004 – KKFI Board Meeting
July 29, 2004 Marion’s first WMM
August 16, 2004 – KKFI Board Meeting (Lori Ragsdell resigned as President and from the Board after a difficult dispute with KKFI’s Office Manager, hired previously by Louie De Palma)
(Please Note: Mark created this timeline based on personal notes form his calendars. If you have more correct information please contact Mark. This was a big endeavor with lots of activity, and there is so much more that is part of the story.)
Judy Ancel thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley’s 901 Show.
Judy Ancel is host and producer of The Heartland Labor Forum Kansas City’s only program about the workplace. It airs every Thursday at 6:00 PM, and rebroadcasts at 5:00 AM on Fridays. It is produced by and for working people. The show has been on the air since 1988 and is part of the Labor Radio Podcast Network.
10:41
Psychic Heat – “Black Radio” from: Sunshower / High Dive Records / May 27, 2016 [Psychic Heat was created by Evan Herd & Tanner Spreer. After releasing their EP Lighter and Brighter in 2015 they quickly turned their attention to their first full length Sunshower being released through High Dive Records. Sunshower is Engineered by Ron Miller (Kid Congo and the Pink Monkey Birds) & mixed/mastered by Kliph Scurlock (previously of the Flaming Lips). Psychic Heat is: Steve/Evan Herd on guitar & vocals, Tanner Spreer on guitar & vocals, James Thomblison on bass, and Mark Rockwell on drums.]
Dorothy Hawkins and Barry Lee on WMM’s “901 SHOW” August 4, 2021
10:43 – Interview with Dorothy Hawkins and Barry Lee – “The Bump & Grind”
Dorothy Hawkins is host & producer of Mother’s Mix, Mondays from 3:00 to 6:00 PM on 90.1 FM since 1999. Dorothy came to Kansas City from Great Bend, Kansas. She studied Sociology at Rockhurst University, and studied Economics at UMKC where she also worked. Dorothy is a mother and grandmother. She was elected to the MidCoast Radio Project Board of Directors in 2004 where she served as Vice President. Dorothy also served as an interim Station Manager for six months. A midtown resident Dorothy practices Yoga, Buddhism, positive thinking and she taught me to chant during stressful board meetings.
Dorothy Hawkins thanks for being with us on our 901 Show
Barry Lee is host of Signal to Noise heard Friday nights at 9:00 here on KKFI 90.1 FM. Barry has been a longtime programmer at KKFI. Barry Lee lives in Lawrence but grew up in the Independence and Raytown areas. He studied creative writing, poetry and radio at UMKC. Barry Lee has organized multiple benefit concerts for KKFI including his annual Beatles Tribute shows, A Tribute to Pete Seeger, and special “Collaborations” recordings. It was while playing in a tribute to Neil Young that Barry and friends formed Broken Arrows, a 5-piece band that has released multiple records to critical acclaim. Barry Lee has also played and recorded with The Jubilee Mystics, and this year is releasing new music as Barry Lee and The Mystic Arrows.
Barry Lee thank you for being with us on our 901 Show
Dorothy Hawkins & Barry Lee shared stories about the “bump & grind” of 90.1 FM, the “terrible teenage years” of KKFI, a rickety unaccessible staircase, unconscious guests in the studio, and being Station Managers.
Dorothy Hawkins from the “Grandmothers” mural on Troost from Alexander Austin
Dorothy was brought into the station by Wendy Mason who in 1999, as office manager, was serving as programmer Monday through Friday 6:00 to 9:00 on the Morning Buzz and then doing organizational work in the office. Wendy recruited Dorothy because Wendy thought the station needed more female DJs. Barry Lee trained Dorothy as a programmer.
Barry Lee started early at KKFI, in 1986. He also signed the incorporation papers to create the not-for-profit 501 (c) 3 organization: Friends of Community Radio.
In our last segment we talked with Judy about “The Struggle” to save KKFI. Barry actually resigned from his show in protest of what Barrientos was doing to the station in 2001. Lonesome Cowboy Bill Hilburn joined Barry in the on-air resignation.
Dorothy, also lived through “The Struggle” and ended up in being elected to the Board of Directors in April 2004. Friends of Community Radio had won all of their objectives, but in many ways KKFI was facing even more challenges during our difficult teenage years.
One of the first things Dorothy and Mark and the other Executive Board (Lori Ragsdell, LaDonna Sanders, Chales Ragsdell) had to do was on April 30, 2004 – when KKFI Executive Board Members met with organizational leaders at KCPT Channel 19 PBS. The previous Louie De Palma Board had been hatching a plan. After changing the name from “Community radio” to “Public Radio” they had been in serious negotiation with KCPT to move KKFI’s entire operation into the facilities at KCPT
We also were working with a Station Manager hired by the previous Louie De Palma Board of Cronies. The manager was in his mid 80s and it took him 30 minutes to climb KKFI’s rickety staircase. He once called Mark while he was at work teaching a 6th grade class a gardening workshop, asked Mark to tell him what LGBT meant.
Four months into our terms The Board President Lori Ragsdell and Active Member Chair Charles Ragsdell resigned and left KKFI.
Dorothy and Mark served together on a Board that went through several management hirings that didn’t work out. In-between permanent managers, the Board appointed temporary, “Interim Managers” after serving on the Board, Dorothy was asked to temporarily step in an Interim Station Manager for six months.
Barry Lee
Barry Lee volunteered to be Station Manager and was hired by the Board in a paid position for nearly two years. He became an important link to the Folk Alliance International Conference that was now based in Kansas City and help creat Live Broadcasts from the Conference. He also helped get The Boogie Bridge and River Trade radio on the air at 90.1 FM.
One of the things we try to avoid in radio is “dead air” but Dorothy one day came in to do her show. The Jazz Programmer was packing up his stuff and exiting the studio when Dorothy noticed a passed out man sitting in the guest chair. What about him? she asked, the Jazz Programmers was almost out the door and stopped to realize the situation. 911 was called and an ambulance took away the passed out guest.
Barry Lee for many years you produced your show on Sundays followed by Lonesome Cowboy Bill Hilburn, one of the funniest men on planet earth.
Dorothy Hawkins was at one time the “baby sitter” for Luscious Lynn of Beauticians’s Blues.
Dorothy Hawkins & Barry Lee, thanks for being with us on our 901 Show
Dorothy Hawkins – host & producer of Mother’s Mix, Mondays from 3:00 to 6:00 PM
Barry Lee is host of Signal to Noise, Friday nights 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM
11:00 – Station ID
11:00 – “Support for Wednesday MidDay Medley from Blue Fox Productions”
Various Artists – “WKRP In Cincinnati” from: All-Time Top 100 TV Themes / TVT Records / 2005 [WKRP in Cincinnati is an American sitcom television series that features the misadventures of the staff of a struggling fictional radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio. The show was created by Hugh Wilson and was based upon his experiences working in advertising sales at Top 40 radio station WQXI in Atlanta. Many of the characters and even some of the stories (including that of the Season 1 episode “Turkeys Away”) are based on people and events at WQXI.Wilson once told The Cincinnati Enquirer that he selected WKRP as the call sign to stand for C-R-A-P. // The ensemble cast consists of Gary Sandy (as Andy Travis), Howard Hesseman (Dr. Johnny Fever), Gordon Jump (Arthur Carlson), Loni Anderson (Jennifer Marlowe), Tim Reid (Venus Flytrap), Jan Smithers (Bailey Quarters), Richard Sanders (Les Nessman) and Frank Bonner (Herb Tarlek). // The series won a Humanitas Prize and received 10 Emmy Award nominations, including three for Outstanding Comedy Series. Andy Ackerman won an Emmy Award for Videotape Editing in Season 3. // WKRP premiered on September 18, 1978 on the CBS television network and aired for four seasons and 90 episodes, ending on April 21, 1982. Starting in the middle of the second season, CBS repeatedly moved the show around its schedule, contributing to lower ratings and its eventual cancellation. // When WKRP went into syndication, it became an unexpected success. For the next decade, it was one of the most popular sitcoms in syndication, outperforming many programs that had been more successful in prime time, including all the other MTM Enterprises sitcoms. // Jump, Sanders and Bonner reprised their roles, appearing as regular characters in a spin-off/sequel series, The New WKRP in Cincinnati, which ran from 1991 to 1993 in syndication. Hesseman, Reid and Anderson also reprised their roles as guest stars.]
Elevator Division – “Radio” from: Years / Second Nature Recordings / September 7. 2004 [Elevator Division play recordBar October 1, with Namelessmumberheadman]
Maria Vasquez Boyd and Marion Merritt on WMM’s “901 SHOW” August 4, 2021
11:03 – Interview with Marion Merritt and Maria Vasquez Boyd – “The Friendships”
Marion Merritt is our most frequent contributor to WMM, She grew up in Los Angeles, and St. Louis. She went to college in Columbia, Missouri. She studied art and musical engineering, and is a avid lover of classic films and punk rock music. She saw Talking Heads on their first U.S. tour when they played One Block West, in 1978. For 17 years she has been sharing her sonic discoveries and information from her musically-encyclopedic brain on Wednesday MidDay Medley. Marion has joined us for every WMM on-air fund drive to help raise funds for the MidCoast Radio Project. Along with her partner Ann Stewart, Marion is also the proprietor of Records With Merritt, at 1614 Westport Rd. in Kansas City, Missouri, that feature in-store performances from young and upcoming bands.
Marion Merritt thank you for being with us on our 901 Show.
Maria Vasquez Boyd is an artist, poet, educator, and radio show host & producer. She has been a regular contributor to Wednesday MidDay Medley where she has produced shows about Ukuleles, The Day of The Dead, and The Artist’s Studio. She has been a regular cast member in our “He Touched Me Gospel Hour” programs, and has contributed original material for almost all of our “A Story In A Song” shows, including our live show at recordBar, and Big Bang Buffet Black Sheep Rising at The Buffalo Room. Maria is graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute, where she has taught in the Design/Illustration Department, as well as, the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art. Maria is a founding member of the Latino Writers Collective. Maria uses all of her experience as the host and producer of ARTSPEAK Radio which airs Wednesdays at Noon, following Wednesday Midday Medley on 90.1 FM KKFI. Soon ARTSPEAK Radio will be celebrating 9 years on the air!
Maria Vasquez Boyd, thanks for being with us on our 901 Show
We always wanted someone from a record store to have a regular presence on WMM. Marion’s first WMM was on July 29, 2004. For 17 years Marion has had a huge influence on our playlists
Mark first met Marion when shoe walked up to him and handed him the Philip Glass recordings of the Low Symphony with David Bowie and Brian Eno, saying, “I think you may be interested in this.” Mark continually asks Marion when she learned she has musical E.S.P.
Maria Congratulations on ARTSPEAK Radio!
Maria Vasquez Boyd
Mark met Maria at The Writer’s Place. Mark was on the Board of KKFI’s MidCoast Radio Project, Maria was on the board of Latino Writer’s Collective. They would both go in early to set up for their meetings. Maria was a guest on WMM and was welcomed you back to produce & host several shows on WMM. After a few years of being “Guest Producer” it became clear that Maria should create Artspeak Radio.
Mark and Maria became friends, and Mark became Maria’s “Radio Husband”.
Marion Merritt
Mark and Marion really didn’t know each other in the beginning, but throughout these 17 years they’ve become close friend. Mark has watched Marion’s life transition from corporate retail to owning her own record store, with her partner Ann Stewart, in the neighborhood where Mark lives.
Marion & Maria both ended up producing & hosting radio programming for nearly two decades.
Marion And Maria both ended up serving on the Board.
Maria Vasquez Boyd, and Marion Merritt thanks for being with us on our 901 Show
ArtSpeak Radio airs Wednesday at Noon. Records With Merritt, at 1614 Westport Rd. in Kansas City, Missouri, More info at http://www.recordswithmerrtitt.com
11:18 – Underwriting
11:20
Nivea – “Don’t Mess With The Radio” from: Nivea / Zonma Recordings / September 25, 2001 [Nivea B. Hamilton (born March 24, 1982),[3] better known by the mononym Nivea, is an American singer whose recordings reached the Billboard charts during the early 2000s. Nivea is known most for her Grammy-nominated hit “Don’t Mess with My Man” as well as “Laundromat” and “Okay” featuring YoungbloodZ & Lil’ Jon. She has released three studio albums: Nivea (2001), Complicated (2005), Animalistic (2006), and an independently released extended play Nivea: Undercover (2011). // On September 26, 2019, she released her album Mirrors, including the single “Circles”. // Hamilton was born in Savannah, Georgia, the youngest of three sisters. She sang in a church choir and admired the music of Mariah Carey.[6] Nivea admitted to being shy in a BET “Finding Nivea” interview. She said, “I never wanted anyone to hear me sing… my parents would turn down the radio.]
11:22 – Interview with Ebony Johnson and Catina Taylor – “The Current”
Ebony Johnson
Ebony M. Johnson is native to Kansas City, however she has lived, studied and worked throughout the United States. Ebony received her Bachelor’s degree in Arts from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, and she received her Masters degree in Arts from Florida A&M University in Tallahassee, Florida. With her MBA Ebony is an arts and entrepreneurial advocate who thrives on making connections and a beautiful life. Ebony is host and producer of one of KKFI’s newest public affairs shows, Ebony’s Bones, which airs every Wednesday night at 6:00 PM (CST). Ebony is a natural conversationalist, she nourishes kitchen table conversations that seek to explore black folk, question what we’ve been told to believe and decolonize.
Ebony Johnson, thanks for being with us on our 901 Show
Catina Taylor
Catina Taylor serves as Vice President of the MidCoast Radio Project 90.1 FM KKFI’s parent organization. She is Founder, CEO at Dreams Consulting and Founder and Executive director at Dreams KC a rigorous educational environment which uses the Project Based Learning strategy to reengage students & increase achievement.Studied B.S. Paralegal Studies Political science at Avila University where she graduated in 1996. From 1996 to 1999. Catina is from Kansas City. She is a former 1st Grade Teacher at St. Paul’s Episcopal Day School from 2005 – 2011.
Catina Taylor, thanks for being with us on our 901 Show
Ebony heard Maria Vasquez Boyd at an event talking about KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio. Ebony started co-hosting and co-producing on shows: Every Woman, Guess Who’s Coming to Kansas City, Urban Connections.
Ebony encouraged Catina to run for a position on KKFI’s Board of Directors.
Ebony has volunteered as part of several public affairs programs on KKFI including Guess Who’s Coming To Kansas City, Urban Connections. She has filled in on Jazz programs and as host of ARTSPEAK RADIO, she has served on staff os the Volunteer Coordinator, and served on KKFI’s Board of Directors.
Ebony’s Bones is cohosted by Historian & Professor AJ Lowe the team also includes: Dominique McCrary, and Ronkeia Bates a recent journalism graduate.
KKFI 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 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.
Ebony Johnson, and Catina Taylor thanks for being with us on our 901 Show.
Ebony is host and producer of Ebony’s Bones, which airs every Wednesday night at 6:00 PM (CST).
Kristie Stremel – “Radio” from: Here Comes The Light / Stremeltome / July 1, 2003 [Last year on November 13, 2020 Kristie released her 11th full length release.. Recorded at Stremeltone Studio, Kansas. Mixed by John Hobson. Mastered by Paul Malinowski. Kristie Stremel on vocals & guitar, Lance Gilchrist on drums, Jason Hammond on bass, Ryan McCall on keyboards, and John Hobson on guitar & vocals. Described as “Joan Jett & Tom Petty’s love child,” and armed with her guitar, fueled by coffee, and over 85 published songs, singer, songwriter, producer, rock & roll mom, Kristie Stremel has 11 full-length releases in her musical career of over 20 years. She has recorded as a solo artists and also on the bands Frogpond, and The 159ers. In October, 2013 Kristie and her partner, Lori Isabell, welcomed their adopted baby son, Charlie, into their family. In April 2014 Kristie released her 6th solo record, and the 9th full-length release of her musical career of over 20 years. SONGWRITER was released on her own label, Stremeltone, it was Kristie’s first self-produced album. Stremeltone Records, was created in her home in Lawrence. The last track, “It’s Enough” was released early, as a video, featuring photos of couples in partnerships, relationships, marriages, unions, families. The video was Kristie’s response the the KS House of Representatives passing HD 2453 allowing businesses the right to refuse service to LGBT customers. In 2015 Kristie released, WILDFLOWERS, her children’s book of song and poems with accompanying CD recording with contributions from Victor & Penny, Kelley Hunt, Ron Megee, Kasey Rausch and more. In 2016 Kristie released the single “Orlando (Keep Dancing).” The song was written by: Kristie Stremel in response to the Pulse Nightclub massacre on June 12, 2016, when Omar Mateen, a 29-year-old security guard, killed 49 people and wounded 53 others in a hate crime inside Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Pulse was hosting Latin Night and most of the victims were Latino. About 320 people were inside the club, which was serving last call drinks at around 2:00 a.m. After arriving at the club by van, Omar Mateen approached the building on foot, armed with a SIG Sauer MCX semi-automatic rifle and a 9mm Glock 17 semi-automatic pistol and bypassed security and began shooting and taking hostages. After a three-hour standoff, he was shot and killed by Orlando Police Department officers. It was both the deadliest mass shooting by a single shooter and the deadliest incident of violence against LGBT people in United States history. It was also the deadliest terrorist attack in the US since the 9 /11 attacks in 2001. “Keep Dancing” was included in the new release SKY CREW. More info at: http://www.kristiestremel.com]
Lesley Pories
11:38 – Interview with Lesley Pories – “The Future”
Lesley Pories is President of the MidCoast Radio Project Board of Directors, Lesley moved to KC seven years ago and has been volunteering at 90.1 FM for most of that time, and has served on the Board of Directors for five of those years. A DC native, Lesley has a Masters in Urban Planning from UNC Chapel Hill and a Masters in International Relations from the Fletcher School at Tufts University. Aside from the East Coast, she’s lived and worked in Uzbekistan, India and Guinea. Here in KC, she also serves on the Board of BikeWalkKC. During the day, Lesley works as a Manager, Sector Strategy for the non-profit, Water.org.
Lesley Pories, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
Lesley has two Masters Degrees
She served in The Peace Corps in Uzbekistan
She worked with The Carter Center – observing political elections in Guinea
Lesley works as a Manager, Sector Strategy for Water.org based in Kansas City.
Since volunteering at KKFI over 6 years ago Lesley has been very involved with Membership and Active Membership, and became a Board Member
Lesley has been instrumental in bringing more of the community onto KKFI’s Board of Directors.
Lesley has worked on KKFI’s long-term strategies, and the continual effort to make 90.1 FM sound as great as possible, while creating a place for volunteers to learn and grow as hosts, producers, engineers and collaborators.
Lesley and Mark discussed the great Staff Members at KKFI 90.1 FM
Bill Sundahl, Development Director, Developmen@kkfi.org
Bill Sundahl became Development Director in July of 2017. He joined KKFI 90.1 FM in May of 2014 as Events & Volunteer Coordinator. He has completed the Fundraising Leadership Series at Midwest Center for Nonprofit Leadership in the UMKC Henry W. Bloch School of management and is working to expand the fundraising capacity of KKFI. // Prior to that he was owner of Spice of Life Productions. For more than a decade he has produced the Crossroads Music Fest, the Spring Dance, The Donkey Show. and many more great Kansas City events . He is also a working musician, playing bass and singing in the Starhaven Rounders. // In 2020, Bill has been a presenter for the NFCB (National Federation of Community Broadcasters) on Event Management an Underwriting as well as a panelist on Monthly Giving presented by the Greater KC chapter of AFP (Association of Fundraising Professionals). He has also been honored with an Urban Hero Award from the Kansas City Downtown Council in 2007 and has won two Pitch Music Awards.
Chad Brothers, Chief Operator & Traffic Coordinator, Chief Operator@kkfi.org
Chad Brothers joined KKFI as Chief Operator in August 2019. He has been an avid listener, donor, and often guest on various KKFI programs for nearly two decades as a resident and working musician in Kansas City. // Chad grew up on a small family farm outside of Winfield, KS, where he developed a love for music and listening to radio while spending long days on a tractor working in the fields. He attended Kansas State University in Manhattan, KS where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Management and Entrepreneurship. It was there where he also logged hours as a late night DJ on campus radio station The Wildcat 91.9. Chad has been playing guitar and performing music for over 28 years and operates a home recording studio out of his basement. // You can find Chad performing live in his various musical projects in KC and beyond with Old Sound, Shapiro Brothers (with his wife Mikal Shapiro), Supermassive Black Holes, Scott Stanton and The Butter Band, Howard Iceberg, and Chris Hudson.
Darryl joined KKFI as Volunteer Coordinator in May 2020. // Darryl moved to Overland Park from Macon, GA when his family opened the first Bonanza Steak House franchise in the Kansas City area. He attended Alcorn State University, where he received a bachelor’s degree in English. His varied career has included stints in advertising & marketing communications, computer consulting, tech support, broadcasting and telecommunications. // Darryl enjoys live music – especially jazz at any of Kansas City’s fine venues, and is an avowed word nerd. // Favorite quote: “Ending a sentence with a preposition is something up with which I will not put.” -Winston Churchill
Shaina Littler, Office Manager, Office@kkfi.org
Shaina Littler hails from Kansas City, Missouri’s Waldo neighborhood. She is a recent graduate of MCCKC having earned her AAS degree as an honors student in the Spring of 2018. During her time with MCCKC Shaina was an active member and volunteer of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, as well as a mentor and tutor to her fellow accounting students. Shaina is a committed lifelong learner, with the dream of becoming an educator. She is continuing her education in the accounting field as a graduate student, with the goal of better serving her community through platforms and opportunities such as those presented by KKFI. Shaina has over a decade of hospitality management experience working exclusively for locally owned and operated firms in the Greater Kansas City Area. While her background is not in broadcasting or programming, she descends from a long line of musicians and community advocates, who have inspired her to pursue work with nonprofit organizations. In her free time, Shaina is most notably found enjoying precious moments with her husband, children, and pets.
Sam Wisman, Community Marketing Representative, Data & Traffic Specialist, Sam@kkfi.org
If for any reason you need more help please contact the Underwriting Coordinator. 816-994-7869 or email Development (at) kkfi.org.
Volunteer Staff:
Mike Lytle, Station Manager, Manager@kkfi.org
Mike Lytle has been part of the KKFI family since 2003. He has served in many positions from phone volunteer to being a member of the Board Of Directors and everything in between. He enjoys his own long standing radio show that is on KKFI every Friday night beginning at 7pm CST. “The Real Deal” plays a variety of unique and rare rock music that you will not hear anywhere else. // Mike grew up in and around the radio business with his parents being “radio people” in Kansas City all of his life. Mike has spent a good portion of his career in commercial radio, but his love of non commercial radio and serving the KKFI Mission Statement is his primary focus. // Mike graduated from Kansas University with a BA in Psychology in 1978 and is lucky number is 128 1/2.
Norm Browning, KKFI Music Librarian AKA ‘Alley Cat’, newmusic@kkfi.org
Lesley Pories Thanks for being with us on Show 901.
Emily King – “Radio (Acoustic)” from: Sides / ATO Records / January 27, 2020 [Emily King (born July 10, 1985) is an American singer and songwriter. She started her career in 2004 and her first album East Side Story was released in August 2007. In December 2007, King was listed as a Grammy nominee for Best Contemporary R&B Album. In 2019 Emily King was nominated for Best R&B Song for the 62nd Grammy Awards and her album Scenery was nominated for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. In 2020 Emily King was nominated again, this time for t for her song “See Me”. // Born in New York City in 1985, King grew up in a small apartment on the Lower East Side. Her parents, Marion Cowings and Kim Kalesti, were a singing duo who performed and traveled regularly taking her and her older brother with them. At age 16, King left high school after earning her GED to pursue her music career. She began playing shows in restaurants and venues around New York City including CBGB and The Bitter End. // King signed her first record deal with J Records in 2004 and appeared on Nas’ 2004 album Street’s Disciple credited as simply “Emily”. Her first album East Side Story was released in August 2007. It received a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary R&B Album of the Year. After leaving the label in 2008, King continued her work independently with producer Jeremy Most. She self-recorded her follow-up EP Seven in her home, released in July 2011. Throughout this time, King toured domestically and internationally with many artists including Nas, John Legend, Floetry, Alicia Keys, Chaka Khan, Erykah Badu, and Maroon 5. // In 2012, King was awarded the Holly Prize (a tribute to the legacy of Buddy Holly) from The Songwriters Hall of Fame for recognition of the “all-in songwriter” whose work exhibits the qualities of Holly’s music: true, great and original. In the fall, King was invited by Emeli Sandé to open for her UK tour playing sold out shows in five cities including at The Royal Albert Hall in London. King collaborated with José James on his album No Beginning No End in 2013 and can be heard on the tracks “Heaven on the Ground” and the acoustic version of “Come to My Door”. In 2014, King performed as an opening act for Sara Bareilles’ Little Black Dress tour. //King’s second studio album, The Switch, was self-released by her own label, Making Music Records, on 26 June 2015. The Wall Street Journal remarked that the album is “a tasteful collection of eleven songs that showcase King’s distinctive voice”. // She signed with the independent label ATO Records in 2017 and with them released her third studio album, Scenery, on 1 February 2019. // In late 2019, King once again performed as an opening act for Sara Bareilles in her Amidst The Chaos Tour. // In 2019, King helped to compose “Being Human”, the ending theme song for the Cartoon Network animated series Steven Universe Future, which she sang. Her song “Can’t Hold Me” was also used in an episode of the series. // King released her fourth studio album, Sides, on January 17, 2020. The album features acoustic takes on her previous songs, and includes a guest appearance by Sara Bareilles on the track “Teach You.” In response to racial unrest in the summer of 2020, King released the song “See Me” in August. The song was nominated for Best R&B Performance in the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards.]
Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now” from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]
Next week on WMM, on August 11 we bring you show # 902 with Flare Tha Rebel and Bob Pulliam. Plus Mike Alexander of Hipshot Killer, Plus, MG Salazar & Ignacio Carvajar of La Resistencia Press.
Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information. Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org
Wednesday MidDay Medley Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning 90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
Wednesday, August 4, 2021
WMM’s show # 901 shares stories about 90.1 FM KKFI with 9 special guests, who all keep 90.1 – On The Air!
Tune in to hear stories about how it took over ten years to get KKFI started, about how we almost lost KKFI, about the “terrible teenage years” of KKFI, about how lifelong friends were forged at KKFI, about how far KKFI has come in 33 years, and how far we have yet to go. 90.1 FM KKFI is Kansas City’s most original broadcasting station with over 85 weekly LOCALLY PRODUCED radio programs to serve Kansas City’s diverse collective communities! We’ll also spin songs about radio from: Psychic Heat, Elevator Division, Emily King, Kristie Stremel, Nivea, Anne Feeney, and Joni Mitchell.
At 10:00 we talk with Tom Crane – host & producer of World Sound Radio, who talks about “the beginning” of 90.1 FM – KKFI, and the years of working the Charity Bingo Hall to raise money to purchase the license and our tower. We’ll also discuss creating radio in a basement, driving tapes to the tower, and Sex and Broadcasting.
At 10:20 Judy Ancel – host & producer of Heartland Labor Forum shares stories about “the struggle” and the courage of a small coalition of KKFI programmers who, while continuing to do their weekly shows on KKFI, created the not-for-profit organization, Friends of Community Radio, and filed two lawsuits against the Board of Directors and launched a 3-year public campaign to take back 90.1 FM, restore our name, restore our bylaws, restore our Management, Board, and our Active Members system.
At 10:40 Dorothy Hawkins – host & producer of Mother’s Mix, and Barry Lee – host & producer of Signal To Noise, share stories about the “bump & grind” of 90.1 FM, the “terrible teenage years” of KKFI, a rickety unaccessible staircase, unconscious guests in the studio, and being Station Managers.
At 11:00 Maria Vasquez Boyd – host & producer of ARTSPEAK RADIO joins Marion Merritt – host & producer of Wednesday MidDay Medley to share stories about “The Friendships” that have been created through KKFI, and how they first were invited onto the airwaves of 90.1 FM KKFI, and how they ended up producing and hosting radio programming for nearly two decades.
At 11:20 Ebony Johnson – host & producer of Ebony’s Bones Show, and Catina K Taylor – Vice President of the MidCoast Radio Project Board of Directors speak about “The Current” of The Mid-Coast Radio Project,” about they jumped in as volunteers, board members, and programmers, and about the mission “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.”
At 11:40 Lesley Pories – President of the MidCoast Radio Project Board of Directors, talks about how she first became a volunteer at 90.1 FM, and was eventually elected to the board and as president. We’ll ask Lesley about 90.1 FM tower and location, about KKFI’s long-term strategies, and the continual effort to make 90.1 FM sound as great as possible, while creating a place for volunteers to learn and grow as hosts, producers, engineers and collaborators.
On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org
Wednesday MidDay Medley Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning 90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
Wednesday, July 28, 2021
WMM Celebrates 900 Shows with four of our most favorite musical guests: Calvin Arsenia, Krystle Warren, Madisen Ward & The Mama Bear, and Ivory Blue
“Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks” from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979 [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]
Calvin Arsenia – “Experience” from: Catastrophe / Calvin Arsenia / February 14, 2017 [Calvin Arsenia premiered these songs in a live show at recordBar in November 2016 in a stage show that involved a company of 50 people, dancers, stilt walkers, special lighting, back up singers, guest artists. Born in Orlando, Florida, Calvin’s creative journey really began when he moved to the KC suburb of Olathe, teaching himself the guitar, and eventually the harp. He learned his signature instrument at the age of 20 after he couldn’t find a harpist as determined as him to meld folk, rock, classical, rap and R&B into the irresistible fusion which has become his calling card in the Kansas City music scene and beyond. His passion for stretching the boundaries of musical expression saw him transform a trip to Edinburgh, Scotland’s Fringe Festival early in his career into a life-changing music mission, with an Edinburgh church offering him a role as musical liaison between the church and the city that would change his life. Two years and 300 shows later, Calvin returned to Kansas City reborn as a humanistic songwriter/performer whose impassioned and conceptual stage shows (regularly sold-out in Kansas City, currently catching fire on the West Coast with a diverse following across Europe), are collaborative, costumed-culture-bridging spectacles which In KC Magazine has hailed as ‘equal parts opera, symphony, musical theatre, rock show, all built around its creator: a charismatic 6-foot-6-inch harpist with a natural stage command and knack for gilding gold and painting lilies. Since Calvin Arsenia came home to KC after living in Edinburgh, Scotland, he has released his EP, Moments, in 2014, and his EP Prose in 2015, and his Folk Alliance exclusive EP Catastrophe in 2016. His full-length album Catastrophe on February 14, 2017, His EP Caviar in Novenber 2017. Calvin’s 2018 national debut, Cantaloupe, was released on September 15, 2018 on Center Cut Records. On June 28, 2019 Calvin released Honeydew, an EP including a remix of three songs from Cantaloupe. On September 20, 2019 Calvin released LA Sessions. On December 13, 2019 Calvin released his full length Christmas album “all is calm.” Calvin is also a graduate of Artist INC. Since 2014 we have been celebrating the music of Calvin Arsenia. He has played Folk Alliance International, Kansas City Fringe Fest, The Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, The Kauffman Center For The Performing Arts, The Middle of the Map Fest., The Folly Theatre. Calvin was first on WMM on July 25, 2012. He has appeared live on 19 shows, including today, and most recently on Oct 14, 2020]
10:04 – Interview with Calvin Arsenia
Calvin Arsenia has been described as,”Jeff Buckley meets Nina Simone with the soul of Sam Cooke, and the sparkle of Bjork on a harp.” Calvin Arsenia is one of our most frequent guests who first appeared on WMM on July 25, 2012. Today marks his 19th appearance! Since signing to Center Cut Records, Calvin released the albums: Cantaloupe in 2018, L.A. Sessions in 2019, the EP HONEY DEW, and the EP with Quixotic, the Holiday album, ALL IS CALM. In 2020 Calvin collaborated with Mike Dillon on the Soundtrack to “Summer in Hindsight,” a feature-length film created by The West 18th Street Fashion Show that starred Calvin as an actor. Calvin is getting ready to release a book, an new musical, and new tours of the East Coast and West Coast. More info at http://www.calvinarsenia.com
Calvin Arsenia, thanks for being with us on WMM.
Calvin Arsenia plays The Cable Building, 1321 Burlington Street, North Kansas City, on Friday, August 13, 2021 at 7:00 PM, for a live podcast recording of Spirituality Adventures with live speaking from Fred Herron. Previous podcast: Former Evangelical Megachurch Pastor Fred Herron and I talk about my musical career and Cantaloupe. We talk about the context of my show at the Gem Theater, incorporating the Marching Pythons as well as civil rights and gay marriage.
Calvin Arsenia plays The Candlelight Sessions at PH Coffee, 2200 Lexington Ave Kansas City, MO Monday, August 2, at 6:30 PM – The Candlelight Sessions Showcase is an intimate and experimental open mic and networking event designed and curated by Calvin Arsenia to elevate and empower singers, musicians, writers, and artists who are looking to expand the depth and breadth of their craft. 1-3 songs/pieces or 10 minutes per performer. This is a chance to share what your passions are and what you Pedal harp, acoustic steel string guitar, and a non-weighted keyboard are provided.
Calvin plays the Inner Sanctuary with Maralis Self on Wednesday, Aug 25 at 7:00PM at The Shop, 407, N 6th St., Kansas City, KS – There is a magnificent thing that happens once we become more aware of, connected to and more perceptive of our own energy. We can then learn ways to sense and navigate that energy. We, as humans, are in charge of our own energy. We get to discern and decide what our reactions to energy and emotions will be. Join Calvin & Maralis as we discuss ways to direct your energy, and ways you can begin to utilize your energy for self-healing. We will learn and experience how music and sound can work harmoniously in tandem with our efforts to uplift and shift. If you missed the first event in the series, not to worry, we have notes! Come as you are, ready to connect, with an open mind and an open heart. We will learn, we will move, we will experience music, and we will share in the beautiful harmonious vibration we create. Join us! *Please bring a mat or something to sit /lay on, a blanket if you’d like, a journal and your favorite writing utensil. **Handout will be provided with the teaching and with our information.
Calvin is working on a new book that will be released by Andrews McMeel Publishing
Calvin is also working on a new musical about Marie Antoinette with Calvin playing in the title role.
Calvin Arsenia at Recordbar Sept. 19, 2019
Calvin came home to KC in 2014 after working in Edinburgh, Scotland. Calvin was voted KC’s Best Musician in The Pitch in 2018, and 2020, and featured in Billboard, NPR.org, and GRAMMY.com, Calvin’s classically trained voice, visually striking 6-foot-7 presence, and deft harp playing have built his reputation as an incredible live performer.
Calvin Arsenia’s angelic stylings on voice & harp create rare harmonies & arrangements that look past the boundaries of traditional gospel & classical disciplines finding the most direct line of expression to inform common struggles. Known for his elaborate and ceremonious sensory concert experiences that merge jazz & electronic influences, “Calvin has consistently delivered genre-bending (and gender-bending) shows that tackle sexuality, religion, and race in a stunningly unorthodox manner. Somewhere between sacred and sacrilege.”
Calvin recently played shows in Homer, Alaska and on the West Coast.
Calvin can be heard on several tracks currently on the radio:
Making Movies –”Listening Wind ft. Calvin Arsenia, Jeremy Kittel” From La Cuarentena EP / 3/2 Recordings / February 5, 2021
Rob Rice – “Tiny Window (feat. Calvin Arsenia & Ezgi Karakus)” from: “Tiny Window” – Single / Rob Rice / March 3, 2021 [1st single from the debut EP of Rob Rice titled, and the Devil’s Threesome to be released March 21, 2021.. Singer/songwriter Rob Rice is a Kansas City native with a spark of millennial magic, his dusty acoustic music transitions from barn-burning ballads to soothing serenades, all of which contain notes of love, loss, and lust whilst learning to live with oneself through it all. On his debut EP and the Devil’s Threesome, Rob humbly assumes the role of choirmaster to a caravan of iconic Kansas City artists and musicians (12 in total) to create unique trios for each song, meditating and musing on the woes and wins of yesteryear.
True Lions – “Blue Marble feat. Calvin Arsenia” from: The Fempire Strikes Back, / Manor Records / April 9, 2021 [Alisön Hawkins on keytar & vocals, Aryana Nemati on saxophone, Calvin Arsenia on harp & vocals, Claire Adams on guitar, Elizabeth Kosko on drums & percussion, Fritz Hutchison on lead electric guitar, Iona DeWalt on synthesizers;, Leslie Butsch on saxophone, Teri Quinn on bass, plus a sample of Greta Thurnberg’s speech at the UN Climate Action Summit in NYC, Sept. 2019. Recorded at Deep Space Co-op. Tracking & engineering by Ross Brown at Escape Pod Audio. Mixing and mastering by Joel Nanos at Element Recording. In 2019 True Lions released their EP debut, “Cute at Best,” on Feb. 5, 2019. They followed up with a second EP called. You’re Not Invited, released on Nov. 9, 2019. For these recordings True Lions was: Alison Hawkins on guitar, synth, and vocals; Elizabeth Kosko on percussion, vocals; Mikala Petillo on bass, vocals; Claire Adams on guitar, vocals; Leslie Butsch on saxophone, Ezgi Karakus on cello; and Teri Quinn on vocals. All songs written by True Lions and produced by Claire Adams &Alison Hawkins. Tracking & Engineering by Claire Adams. Mixing & Mastering by Ian Dobyns and Chase Horseman. Info at: http://www.manorrecords.com ] ]
Calvin is working on a new record with J. Ashley Miller and Simon Huntley
Congratulations to Calvin and his fantastic team of co-conspirators & creators: Khitam Jabr, John P. Beatty, Ignacio Galarza III, Ashlee Fairchild Jones, production assistants, & crew. The Toxic music video earned its sixth set of laurels as an official selection of the L.A. Music Video Awards, where they were nominated for Best Music Video, Best Cover Song & Best Male Vocalist.
Born in Orlando, Florida, his creative journey really began when he moved to the KC suburb of Olathe, teaching himself the guitar, and eventually the harp. He learned his signature instrument at the age of 20 after he couldn’t find a harpist as determined as him to meld folk, rock, classical, rap and R&B into the irresistible fusion which has become his calling card in the Kansas City music scene and beyond.
His passion for stretching the boundaries of musical expression saw him transform a trip to Edinburgh, Scotland’s Fringe Festival early in his career into a life-changing music mission, with an Edinburgh church offering him a role as musical liaison between the church and the city that would change his life.
Two years and 300 shows later, Calvin returned to Kansas City reborn as a humanistic songwriter/performer whose impassioned and conceptual stage shows (regularly sold-out in Kansas City, currently catching fire on the West Coast with a diverse following across Europe), are collaborative, costumed-culture-bridging spectacles which In KC Magazine has hailed as ‘equal parts opera, symphony, musical theatre, rock show, all built around its creator: a charismatic 6-foot-7-inch harpist with a natural stage command and knack for gilding gold and painting lilies.’
Calvin’s 2018 national debut, Cantaloupe (Center Cut Records), has been acclaimed for melding diverse textures into an alluring signature sound for the adventurous artist. Calvin performed live at L.A.’s The Mint, showcasing the songs on LA Sessions with the musicians who collaborated with him on the album. Says Calvin: “It’s such a special experience to play with them. To be able to perform these songs in front of an audience and do this for a living – to have made a career out of something I love is so amazing – it is an honor that I never take for granted.”
On September 15, 2018 Calvin released Cantaloupe on Center Cut Records.
Calvin released L.A. Sessions September 20, 2019 on Center Cut Records
Calvin Arsenia – Honeydew / Center Cut Records / June 28, 2019 [On September 15, 2018 Calvin released Cantaloupe on Center Cut Records. This new EP is a remix of three of the songs from Cantaloupe, plus a Talking Heads cover that was performed live in this style at a New Year’s Eve show at The Truman opening for Making Movies who performed the entire Talking Heads album, Remain in Light. The last three songs on Honeydew were from performed in this style at The Nelson Atkins 2019 event “Party Arty.” Honeydew was produced by Jametatone, Simon Huntley, Calvin Arsenia.
Quixotic & Calvin Arsenia – “Goddess – EP / Quixotic / May 17, 2019 [An innovative performance art collective that fuses imagination with technology, dance, projection, mapping & live music to create fully-immersive, multi-sensory experiences. Quixotic harnesses light, rhythm and expressive emotion. Quixotic was given Silicon Valley’s unofficial stamp of genius when they were invited to perform at the global TED Conference in 2012. A unique blend of performance art, technology & emotion. Quixotic fuses all these elements in to what the New York Times branded an “innovative circus performance”.]
Calvin Arsenia – all is calm / Calvin Arsenia. / December 13, 2019 [Arsenia’s dreamlike whimsy shimmering through your favorite Christmas Classics. All proceeds for this album go towards the purchase of Calvin’s first harp. Featuring: Ben Muñoz on Cello, Shane Borth on Violin and Voila, and Luke “Skippy” Harbur on Beatbox. Mastered by Jametatone at the Infoaming Vertex and special thanks to Simon Huntley. Calvin wrote: “I recorded the majority of this album in my bedroom in between flights to and from KC and SF. I had my nephews and friend’s kids in mind and wanted an album of Christmas lullabys. I think it became just a little more sassy than anticipated, but I think you’ll enjoy it regardless.
Arsenia’s powerful vocals span a 4.5 octave range, playing piano, banjo, guitar & harp. Calvin has played Folk Alliance Int., KC Fringe Fest, Apocalypse Meow, The Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, Kauffman Center For The Performing Arts, Middle of the Map Fest., The Folly Theatre. Calvin undertook a three month US/European Outlyre Tour playing San Francisco, Vancouver, NYC, Boston, Sweden, Denmark, Holland, Switzerland and Paris.
Calvin Arsenia – “Falling Over” from: L.A. Sessions / Center Cut Records / September 20, 2019 [Produced by Tony Braunagel (he also delivers exquisite percussion on LA Sessions) with Paul Brown on guitar, Mike Finnigan on keyboards, Freddie Washington on bass, and David Garfield on piano. Between them, the five musicians have worked with some of music’s most iconic names, including Jimi Hendrix, George Benson, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Leonard Cohen, Bonnie Raitt, Chuck Loeb, Rickie Lee Jones, Buddy Guy, The Neville Brothers From Center Cut Record Press Release: “It was a thrill for me to work with such legendary players,” says Calvin. “Not only were they incredibly talented, but I got off a plane straight from Australia, hit the studio, and they were more than ready to get to that place where you honor the songs, leaving their egos at the door and honoring what the muses tell them. It was one of the best recording experiences I ever had.” Calvin’s production M.O. on previous recordings was to piece together songs “like pieces of a puzzle” and “layer them over several sessions.” He believes the immediacy of the LA Sessions, and having the instrumentation all happening in the “same emotional space together as a band,” powerfully served the intimacy of the album, particularly on the reflective “Back To You.” “It’s one of the most vulnerable songs on the album, and it always plays that way in my live set, and the guys were able to help me capture that,” he says. “The song is a very heartfelt admission of guilt, I think. But it’s done in a way people usually don’t want to talk about. Breakup songs are usually angry and lashing out and this is a very sober-minded take on it. It’s not something we usually want to admit, surrendering or admitting defeat in a relationship, because everyone thinks you’re always going to make it through, and this is saying ‘no we didn’t…but it’s OK.’” Born in Orlando, Florida, his creative journey really began when he moved to the KC suburb of Olathe, teaching himself the guitar, and eventually the harp. He learned his signature instrument at the age of 20 after he couldn’t find a harpist as determined as him to meld folk, rock, classical, rap and R&B into the irresistible fusion which has become his calling card in the Kansas City music scene and beyond. His passion for stretching the boundaries of musical expression saw him transform a trip to Edinburgh, Scotland’s Fringe Festival early in his career into a life-changing music mission, with an Edinburgh church offering him a role as musical liaison between the church and the city that would change his life. Two years and 300 shows later, Calvin returned to Kansas City reborn as a humanistic songwriter/performer whose impassioned and conceptual stage shows (regularly sold-out in Kansas City, currently catching fire on the West Coast with a diverse following across Europe), are collaborative, costumed-culture-bridging spectacles which In KC Magazine has hailed as ‘equal parts opera, symphony, musical theatre, rock show, all built around its creator: a charismatic 6-foot-7-inch harpist with a natural stage command and knack for gilding gold and painting lilies.’ Calvin’s 2018 national debut, Cantaloupe (Center Cut Records), has been acclaimed for melding diverse textures into an alluring signature sound for the adventurous artist. Most recently, Calvin performed live at L.A.’s The Mint, showcasing the songs on LA Sessions with the musicians who collaborated with him on the album. Says Calvin: “It’s such a special experience to play with them. To be able to perform these songs in front of an audience and do this for a living – to have made a career out of something I love is so amazing – it is an honor that I never take for granted.” On September 15, 2018 Calvin released Cantaloupe on Center Cut Records. Calvin released Honeydew on June 28, an EP including a remix of three of the songs from Cantaloupe.]
[Calvin Arsenia plays The Cable Building, 1321 Burlington Street, North Kansas City, on Friday, August 13, at 7:00 PM, for a live podcast recording of Spirituality Adventures with Fred Herron.]
[Calvin Arsenia plays The Candlelight Sessions at PH Coffee, 2200 Lexington Ave Kansas City, MO Monday, August 2, at 6:30 PM]
[Calvin plays the Inner Sanctuary with Maralis Self on Wednesday, Aug 25 at 7:00PM at The Shop, 407, N 6th St., Kansas City, KS]
10:29 – Underwriting
Station ID with Krystle Warren
Krystle Warren & The Crew – “Gimme Some Truth” from: The Crew EP / Parlour Door Music / September 15, 2020 [Through isolation came unity. The Crew is Lakecia Benjamin, Matthew Silberman, Jacob Snider, Joe Blaxx, Solomon Dorsey, Zach Djanikian, Cassorla, Krystle Warren, and Ben Kane. They have recorded unique versions of classic songs with the hope of encouraging the rallying cries of The Moment: the movement of the people. // In the lockdown of their homes, they sewed together their interpretations of “Bein’ Green” (based upon Ray Charles’ rendition); “Gimme Some Truth” (a mighty John Lennon composition); “Dear Landlord” (a scathing indictment from the blistering pen of Bob Dylan); and “Rhythm of Life”, (a timeless statement originally performed by Oleta Adams). // A portion of the proceeds from The Crew. EP will be donated to the various causes and organizations The Crew. support.From Billboard.com: Singer-songwriter Krystle Warren has made a powerful statement about the struggle for Black equality with the help of Kermit the Frog’s iconic song “Bein’ Green” (written by Joe Raposo). // The moving five-minute clip, over which Warren sings her rendition of the 1970 song — since recorded by Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra and others — sprang from a covers EP she recorded during the pandemic with a group of musicians known as The Crew. Warren embarked on the project after her forthcoming album with her regular group, The Faculty, was put on hold due to COVID-19. The EP, which tackles themes of racial injustice in the wake of nationwide Black Lives Matter protests this summer, also includes a cover of John Lennon’s “Gimme Some Truth.” // The “Bein’ Green” video weaves in footage of this year’s Black Lives Matter protests, and also includes a heartbreaking montage of young Black children choosing white dolls over dark-skinned ones. It additionally features archival footage of such transformative Black figures as James Baldwin, Angela Davis, Malcom X, Nina Simone, Marsha P. Johnson and Al Sharpton, as well as victims of police brutality including Sandra Bland, George Floyd and Eric Garner. It ends with a clip from a speech by civil rights activist Ella Baker. // “‘Bein’ Green,’ it’s such a gorgeous song, and it says so, so much,” says Warren. “I began thinking about what I wanted it to express visually before we started [recording the song]. Essentially — it’s not easy being Black. That’s what Ray Charles was saying, and we felt it needed to be said again.” // Warren, who now resides in Paris, began performing in her native Kansas City at the age of 16 before moving to New York City, where she started busking on the streets and later formed her regular band, The Faculty. She and the group have recorded several full-length albums, including 2009’s Circles, 2012’s Love Songs and 2017’s Three the Hard Way. Her next album is slated for release this winter. // A large percentage of proceeds from sales of the EP will be donated to the ACLU.]
Krystle Warren and The Faculty – “Tuesday Morning” from: Love Songs- Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace (A Time to Refrain from Embracing) / Parlour Door Music / April 9, 2012 UK] [Originally from KC, Krystle learned to play the guitar by listening to Rubber Soul & Revolver from The Beatles. Krystle graduated from Paseo Arts Academy in 2001 and began her musical career in collaborating with area jazz and pop musicians. After living in San Francisco and NYC, Krystle was signed to a French label, Because Music, and moved to Paris to release “Circles” in 2009. Krystle played French and British television programs, including Later with Jools Holland, garnering critical acclaim and traveling all over the world with Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Norah Jones, and Joan As Police Woman. Krystle created, Parlour Door Music, to release “Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace” a recording from a 13-day session in Brooklyn, where she recorded 24 songs live with 28 musicians including her band, The Faculty, alongside choirs, horn and string sections.]
Krystle Warren & The Faculty– “Rising” from: Rising – Single / Parlour Door Music / May 31, 2019 [This single was produced by co-founding member of The Faculty, bassist Solomon Dorsey. I was texting with Krystle over the weekend after the KC Bands Together (May 15 and May 16, 2020) weekend, 6-hour streaming concert, where Krystle shared three songs including a cover of Gerry Raferty’s “The Ark” from his 1978 album, City to City. Krystle was currently doing over dubs on “Rising” that will be included on the new Krystle Warren & The Faculty album called, “Extended Play.” Krystle told me that they had wanted to do album cover photos during a concert that was scheduled in Kansas City in March, 2020, but was cancelled due to COVID-19. Getting everyone together has not been possible. Krystle was hoping for a late 2020 release. This album will now come out in 2021.]
10:41
Krystle Warren‘s album THREE THE HARD WAY as #1 on WMM’s Best Recordings of 2017. Released on Parlour Door Music, on August 18, 2017 and Produced by Krystle Warren and Ben Kane. Recorded, engineered, and mixed by Ben Kane. Written & performed by Krystle Warren. Mixed at The Garden, Brooklyn. Mastered & cut by Alex DeTurk at Masterdisk. Last year in Krystle Warren premiered this song and her other new songs from this album at the Middle of the Map Fest in a packed room at Californos in Westport and later at The Polsky Theatre for the Performing Arts Series of Johnsons County Community College. For this record Krystle decided to play every instrument and vocals & back up vocals, “playing bass, drums, lap steel, piano, guitar, and vocals directly to analog tape. She and Ben Kane recorded in Villetaneuse, France, a small town on the outskirts of Paris in a vintage 70s era studio that offered just the right, rich sound to suggest the musical foundation for the record, and to do justice to the duo’s carefully balanced arrangements.” On the Wednesday MidDay Medley radio show in 2016 Krystle shared inspirations for this record, early gospel recordings, that crossed over into Jazz from: Pharoah Sanders, Edwin Hawkins, and The Swan Silvertones.
10:43
Krystle Warren – “Move!” from: Three The Hard Way / Parlour Door Music / August 18, 2017 [Produced by Krystle Warren and Ben Kane (D’Angelo, Emily King, PJ Morton). Recorded, engineered, and mixed by Ben Kane. Written & performed by Krystle Warren. Mixed at The Garden, Brooklyn. Mastered & cut by Alex DeTurk at Masterdisk. Last year in Krystle Warren premiered this song and her other new songs from this album at the Middle of the Map Fest in a packed room at Californos in Westport and later at The Polsky Theatre for the Performing Arts Series of Johnsons County Community College. For this record Krystle decided to play every instrument and vocals & back up vocals, “playing bass, drums, lap steel, piano, guitar, and vocals directly to analog tape. She and Ben Kane recorded in Villetaneuse, France, a small town on the outskirts of Paris in a vintage 70s era studio that offered just the right, rich sound to suggest the musical foundation for the record, and to do justice to the duo’s carefully balanced arrangements.” On the Wednesday MidDay Medley radio show in 2016 Krystle shared inspirations for this record, early gospel recordings, that crossed over into Jazz from: Pharoah Sanders, Edwin Hawkins, and The Swan Silvertones. Originally from KC, Krystle learned to play the guitar by listening to Rubber Soul & Revolver from The Beatles. Krystle graduated from Paseo Arts Academy in 2001 and began her musical career in collaborating with area jazz and pop musicians. After living in San Francisco and NYC, Krystle was signed to a French label, Because Music, and moved to Paris to release “Circles” in 2009. Krystle played French and British television programs, including Later with Jools Holland, garnering critical acclaim and traveling all over the world with Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Norah Jones, and Joan As Police Woman. Krystle created, Parlour Door Music, to release “Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace” a recording from a 13-day session in Brooklyn, where she recorded 24 songs live with 28 musicians including her band, The Faculty, alongside choirs, horn and string sections.
10:48 – Interview with Krystle Warren
KC born and internationally known singer songwriter Krystle Warren joins us from France. One of our most played artists of all time on the show. Krystle has appeared on WMM nearly 15 times. Mark first interviewed Krystle Warren for The Tenth Voice, back 2002. Krystle’s critically acclaimed album, Three The Hard Way was #1 on WMM’s 117 Best Recordings of 2017. Wednesday MidDay Medley was the first to play tracks from Krystle’s album, before it was released. Krystle came on the show months before the release, to share music that was the inspiration for the recording. We last talked with Krystle last fall sharing details about The Crew EP where Krystle and friends recorded unique versions of four classic songs with the hope of encouraging the rallying cries of the moment: the movement of the people. Warren embarked on the project after her newest album, with her band The Faculty, was stalled due to COVID-19.
Krystle Warren, thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
Back 2002, Mark waited several hours, during a winter snow storm, at a huge party, where Krystle played with her band including her longtime friend Solomon Dorsey on bass, in a packed, smoke filled apartment near Community Christian Church across the hall from where Solomon lived, to be given a 2 song demo CD, that contained Krystle’s first recorded music, including a song called “Chanel #5.” Krystle has since gone on to be known all over the world, but still maintains contact with her hometown of Kansas City.
Warren began performing in her native Kansas City at the age of 16 before moving to New York City, where she started busking on the streets and later formed her regular band, The Faculty. She and the group have recorded several full-length albums, including 2009’s Circles, 2012’s Love Songs and 2017’s Three the Hard Way. Her EP, THE CREW was released on September 15, 2020. Her band The Faculty is ready to release their new album EXTENDED PLAY.
Krystle recently played the Stimmen Festival Ettiswill in Switzerland on May 8.
Krystle graduated from Paseo Arts Academy in 2001 and began her musical career in collaborating with area jazz and pop musicians. After living in San Francisco and NYC, Krystle was signed to a French label, Because Music, who gave her a one way ticket to France. Krystle moved to Paris to release CIRCLES in 2009. Krystle played French & British TV programs, including Later with Jools Holland, garnering critical acclaim and traveling all over the world on tours with Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Norah Jones, and Joan As Police Woman.
Krystle left Because Music and created her own recording label, Parlour Door Music, to release “Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace / A Time to Refrain from Embracing” a double album recording from a 13-day session in Brooklyn, where she recorded 24 songs live with 28 musicians including her band, The Faculty, alongside choirs, horn and string sections. In 2019 The Kansas City based Owen/Cox Dance Group premiered a new dance piece titled “Love Songs” with choreography by Jennifer Owen, set to all 24 songs, in the order they appear in the recording.
Krystle Warren has collaborated with Erykah Badu, Keziah Jones, Zap Mama, Rufus Wainwright and Martha Wainwright, Brad Cox, Amadou & Mariam, Lakecia Benjamin, Guarco, Teddy Thompson, Gwyneth Herbert, Hercules & Love Affair, and Joon Moon. Along with being included in the compilation “NYC Subway – Songs from the Underground,” and tribute recordings for Kate McGarrigle, and Nick Drake,
Warren has released the EP “Diary” on May 1, 2007; “The Up Series – EP” on November 10, 2008; “Circles” her 13-song full length on March 13, 2009; “A Time To Keep – Love Songs EP”, on August 12, 2011, The double album 24-song “Love Songs” released on vinyl in Europe on April 9, 2012 and as separate digital and CD albums in the U.S. as: “Love Songs: A Time to Embrace,” on March 13, 2012 and “Love Songs: A Time to Refrain from Embracing” on February 27, 2015; Krystle released “Three the Hard Way” on August 18, 2017.
Last time Krystle was on the show live, was October 16, 2019 with Brad Cox when she was here in KC to present Love Songs with Owen/Cox Dance Group at Oct 19 & 20, 2019 at Polsky Theatre at JCCC.
In an article in SPIN Magazine, December 6, 2020, The 35 Best Lesser-Known Artists of the Last 35 Years, Picked by 35 Well-Known Artists — Krystle Was named twice!
Joan as Police Woman on Krystle Warren: “Most stellar voice, tender and strong in equal measure with a range nothing short of miraculous. Incredible writer of songs, the type of which used to get written and go on to become classics. Exquisite live performer in the way you forget completely where you are and what’s happening in your life.”
Rufus Wainwright on Krystle Warren: “Krystle Warren’s voice and performance style seared an indelible mark on me years ago when she joined Martha and I on tributes to our mom Kate McGarrigle in both London and New York. Her haunting interpretations, vocal timbre and singular look completely devastated all present, and soon after I had the honor of taking her out on the road with me. Be it covers, her own material or harmonizing with others, she is a true musician and should be considered an international treasure.”
From Diary EP to Extended Play A Truncated History of Krystle Warren & The Faculty
Krystle Krystle Warren met Solomon Dorsey some weekend at a high school debate competition in Kansas City. After she had trounced Solomon’s debate partner, the two ended up in an open classroom where they began playing music—Krystle had brought her guitar and was practicing chords, and Solomon, then an accomplished violinist, cellist, bassist, and singer likely had some sort of instrument on him, and even if he didn’t he had his voice.
Due to some specific details we’re not going to get into, Krystle was already living on her own; she was eighteen and he was seventeen. But she had a friend who had an apartment near hers, and this friend was having a party. “Wanna go?” she asked Solomon. And, as Solomon puts it, he has seen or spoken to Krystle every single day of his life since.
So when Solomon decided to attend the jazz program at New School in New York, he asked Krystle, “Wanna go?” And a few months after he moved, Krystle showed up. On her first night in the city, Solomon introduced her to Zach Djanikian, a saxophonist he’d become fast friends with at school. They lived in the same dorm, and Zach and Solomon took Krystle to a practice room in the basement and the three of them played musical games. According to Zach, “We’d sing as many melodies as we could over four open strings of the upright bass, plucked successively. ‘Norwegian Wood’ and the theme to Family Matters were a couple favorites.”
This led to busking as a trio, and each of them was hustling for gigs. An Italian restaurant that featured live music gave Krystle a regular night, and she often had Solomon and Zach play with her. Zach’s friend from Philadelphia, Ben Kane, would come to these nights, and he brought Mike Riddleberger.
In Philly, Zach was in a band called The Brakes, and Ben Kane was producing an album for Zach’s band in a windowless apartment that he shared with Riddleberger. Kane and Riddleberger had become friends a year earlier at NYU, bonding over their love of D’Angelo’s album Voodoo. Riddleberger says that even though he saw Krystle perform, he didn’t speak to her until after she saw him play with his band, Quintus. Zach had brought her, and she approached him after the show to play in a band she was starting.
The Faculty was formed with Krystle, Solomon, Zach, Riddleberger, and Dave Moore, a keyboardist from Kansas who was at New School, too. While the four boys had classes and gigs, Krystle floated around New York and made a lot of friends. She busked and wrote songs, and, with the help of her band members and Ben Kane, who had an internship at ElectricLady Studios and was sneaking them in at odd hours, Krystle turned those songs into an EP called Diary.
And it was a diary. The songs were about her daily experiences in this new place and with these new people. “I’ve Seen Days” has a title that implies a reflection, but it’s about how the world is new to her, how she’s “a frightened child” in a new city. “The New Astrologer” is about a new and exciting love, one that remains a good friend of hers. “A Song For Holly” is a letter to family explaining her new quotidien life (“your big sister / out in New York on some subway / your big sister, out trying to get paid”). And “Central Park” is a document of a night she had in Central Park with Zach and his boyfriend (now husband) Jesse, and how she is coming to embrace this new city, these new people, and this new chapter of her life.
If Diary, the Faculty’s first recordings, is Krystle’s “Songs of Innocence,” then Extended Play, the Faculty’s latest, is Krystle’s “Songs of Experience.”
Diary led to Circles, which Ben Kane co-produced with Voodoo engineer Russell “The Dragon” Elevado. Circles was bought by Because Music in France, and Krystle had her next move. She stayed in France even when her relationship with Because ended because she found Vanessa, and Vanessa was worth staying in France for. But Krystle still recorded Love Songs in New York, a double album that invokes a Blakean duality with its two subtitles, “A Time to Refrain from Embracing” and “A Time You May Embrace.” Love Songs was produced with most of the Faculty (Zach was on tour with Amos Lee) and a slew of guest musicians in Brian Bender’s Brooklyn studio. Bender’s assistant, Jonathan Anderson, would later go on to replace Dave Moore on keys in the Faculty.
The Faculty has always been a tenuous project for everyone involved because of the distance and the schedules. While everyone remains close friends, the band members are spread across the globe. Krystle in France. Riddleberger in New York and Zach in Woodstock. Solomon and Jonathan in Los Angeles. And then they are all working musicians, touring, recording, and collaborating with an impressive list of artists. Musicians like, in no particular order: D’Angelo, Hercules and Love Affair, Donald Fagen and the Nightfliers, Joan As Policewoman, Jose James, Emily King, Janet Jackson, Ron Sexsmith, The Dixie Chicks, Amy Helm, Stevie Wonder, Taylor Swift, Rufus Wainwright, Kylie Minogue, Sara Bareilles, Natalie Merchant, Kesha, Bleachers, Emylou Harris, Amos Lee, Lana Del Rey, Broken Social Scene, Teddy Thompson, Lakecia Benjamin, Jenny Lewis, and honestly that’s less than the half of it.
So they have been busy, and they have gained a lot of experience since the days of sneaking into ElectricLady late night or playing for meager pay and free wine at an East Village Italian resto. And while Diary and Circles and Love Songs were recorded with everyone in the same room (Three the Hard Way was just Krystle and Kane together), Extended Play was recorded disparately and assembled together by the steady hands and ears of Kane and Krystle. There is distance between the musicians in the recording process, but there is still a close emotional connection that can be heard in these songs.
And Krystle is writing with a close emotional connection to the distant past. The songs that make up Extended Play are songs of experience—the lyrics reflect on a crush from high school, a departed musical hero, and others who live in memory. There is nostalgia in Extended Play, and a forlornness. And these songs are filled with references, musical and otherwise, to those who have inspired Krystle over the years, from Les Mis (specifically the song adopted by the ACT UP movement) to Gregory Djanikian, Zach’s poet father, and Audre Lord.
Krystle describes “When I Look Back,” the last song of Extended Play, as “an apology to my teenage self.” Seventeen years ago she was writing songs about what happened day-of because being young is about immediacy and living in the present tense. Now the songs are about years past because life slows down, and we are allowed the time to “look back.”
But as Krystle sings in “Rising,” “Future lingers while past is present.” She’s writing about the past because we are all our collected histories—or as she puts it in “When I Look Back”: “there’s still something of her that stays.” The future, of course, still lingers, always there waiting for us, for the next move. The album ends with a recording of Audre Lorde’s gravelly voice. She says,
“I’m going on to something else, the shape of which I have no idea. ‘Only thing I know, is it’s going to be quite different. What I leave behind has a life of its own. I’ve said this about poetry… Well in a sense, I’m saying it about the very artifact of who I have been.”
Krystle Warren & The Faculty still have more to come. They have built seventeen years of memories, experiences, recordings, and shows, and with the release of Extended Play, they continue to show a commitment to growing as musicians together, even if apart.
In 2020 Krystle Warren & The Crew released the 4-track EP THE CREW. Warren embarked on the project after her forthcoming album with her regular group, The Faculty, was put on hold due to COVID-19. The Crew EP, which tackles themes of racial injustice in the wake of nationwide Black Lives Matter protests this summer, also includes a cover of John Lennon’s “Gimme Some Truth.”
The Crew: Lakecia Benjamin, Matthew Silberman, Jacob Snider, Joe Blaxx, Solomon Dorsey, Zach Djanikian, Cassorla, Krystle Warren, and Ben Kane.
With the EP, The Crew, the band released a video of their interpretation of “Bein’ Green” an emotionally stirring five minute montage of footage of Black Lives Matter protests, young Black children choosing white dolls over dark-skinned ones, archival footage of James Baldwin, Angela Davis, Malcom X, Nina Simone, Marsha P. Johnson Al Sharpton, Ella Baker, as well as Sandra Bland, George Floyd and Eric Garner. Proceeds from the EP will be donated to the ACLU.
Bein’ Green – Kermit the Frog’s iconic song “Bein’ Green” (written by Joe Raposo). // The moving five-minute clip, over which Warren sings her rendition of the 1970 song — since recorded by Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra and others — sprang from a covers EP she recorded during the pandemic with a group of musicians known as The Crew. ‘Bein’ Green,’ it’s such a gorgeous song, and it says so, so much,” says Warren. “I began thinking about what I wanted it to express visually before we started [recording the song]. Essentially — it’s not easy being Black. That’s what Ray Charles was saying, and we felt it needed to be said again.”
Krystle Warren, thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
Krystle Warren & The Faculty are working on a new album, the first single “Rising” was included in the official soundtrack to the Ana DuVernay television series soundtrack for “When They See Us.” The single was released May 31, 2019. The Crew EP was released by Parlour Door Music on September 15, 2020. More info at http://www.krystlewarren.com
11:00 – Station ID with Bobby Watson
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear – “Never Met a Mutha” from: Started With a Family / Starts With Music, LLC / September 6. 2019 [Produced with Grammy-winner Nathan Chapman at iconic Blackbird Studios in Nashville. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear have garnered international acclaim, and new fans from all over the world. They signed with Glassnote Records and recorded their debut full length album in Nashville with acclaimed producer Jim Abiss. They performed their debut single “Silent Movies” on The Late Show with David Letterman, they’ve toured across the United States, and Europe, more than once. They were featured on CBS Sunday Morning, NBC’s The Today Show, and “Later With Jools Holland and played Bonnaroo, Pilgramage, and the Newport Folk Festival, and the Ryman Theatre, in Nashville. Ruth Ward has continually performed throughout her life, mostly in coffee shops and open mics, for over 30 years, even recording a solo record. In the midst of this she got married and became a mom, and was busy raising a family. Madisen Ward was born in Oklahoma, and grew up in the outskirts of Kansas City, Missouri. He graduated from William Chrisman High School in 2007. Madisen’s journey to become a musician, was “melodically passed down” through the songs of his mother, where Madisen grew up watching his mom perform at local coffee shops. Eventually he began to learn to play the guitar, and poured his talent for writing into the music to create original songs. They began playing Madisen’s original songs along with the ocassional cover of a classic track, reinterpreted in their own incredibly beautiful performance of two voices and two guitars in harmony and orchestration. Their debut album, The Skeleton Crew, was released May 9, 2015 and was our most played record that year and was #1 on WMM’s The 115 Best Recordings of 2015. Their follow up EP Radio Winners was released July 27, 2018 and received critical acclaim.] [Madisen Ward and The Mama Bear played Crossroads Music Fest, Sat., Sept 7,, Crossroads KC, with Shy Boys, Split Lip Rayfield, The Freedom Affair.]
11:04 – Interview with Madisen Ward and Ruth Whitlock Ward
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear released their debut album, The Skeleton Crew on May 9, 2015 and performed their debut single “Silent Movies” on The Late Show with David Letterman. They have been featured on CBS Sunday Morning, NBC’s The Today Show, “Later With Jools Holland” and played Bonnaroo, Pilgramage, the Newport Folk Festival, and at the Ryman Theatre, in Nashville. Getting married and raising a family slightly delayed Ruth Ward’s 30-year musical journey. Her son Madisen Ward was born in Oklahoma, and grew up in the outskirts of Kansas City, watching his mom perform at local coffee shops. He graduated from William Chrisman High School in 2007. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear have released two albums, and two EPs, and a Live Album. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear play the 2nd Annual Camp Leavenworth, Friday, September 24, at 8:30 PM. More info at: http://www.madisenwardandthemamabear.com
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear thanks for being with us on WMM.
We first played the song “Whole Lotta Problems” on May 8, 2013 from their self produced We Burned The Cane Field Down / Independent / October 6, 2012. Their debut EP was recorded in Kansas city’s Element Studios with recording by Joel Nanos who passed this release on to me back then and said he hadn’t ever heard anything quite like it.
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear played live on our shows on July 10, 2013, November 20, 2013, July 9, 2014, September 24, 2014, and came back to see us on November 18, 2015, and September 20, 2017, September 4, 2019 and now today.
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear are part of great lineup, this time at Camp Leavenworth that features Melissa Etheridge, returning to her hometown for a big show.
During the quarantine, Madisen Ward and The Mama Bear created their own podcast: “Mad Mama Half Happy Hour Podcast.” They’ve already have created 33 episodes with some amazing guests including: Will Forte, Heidi Gardner, and Joseph Gordon Levitt.
Ruth Ward said it was her brother who turned her onto Folk Music. Ruth Ward has continually performed throughout her life, mostly in coffee shops and open mics, for over 30 years, even recording a solo record.
In the midst of this she got married and became a mom, and was busy raising a family. Madisen Ward was born in Oklahoma, and grew up in the outskirts of Kansas City, Missouri. He graduated from William Chrisman High School in 2007.
Madisen grew up watching his mom perform at local coffee shops. Eventually he began to learn to play the guitar, and poured his talent for writing into the music to create original songs. They began playing Madisen’s original songs
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear consists of singer-songwriter and guitarist Madisen Ward and Guitarist and vocalist Ruth Ward. They are a modern soulful/folk music duo from Independence, Mo. The band’s debut album Skeleton Crew, produced by Jim Abbiss, known for his award-winning work with Arctic Monkeys and Adele, captures Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear in their most natural setting. The two tracked most of the tracks live, sitting across from one another in the recording studio. They didn’t use a click track. With help from a handful of session musicians, the two Wards captured the sound they’d been making since those coffeeshop days. The album was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee. The album reached number 50 on the UK Albums Chart on June 14, 2015.
The Skeleton Crew, was released May 19, 2015 and was our most played record on WMM that year and was #1 on WMM’s The 115 Best Recordings of 2015.
In 2015, The duo appeared on Late Show with David Letterman, Later… with Jools Holland, BBC Breakfast News, CBS News Sunday Morning, and Today (U.S. TV program). That same year, the band performed in the USA, Canada and Europe, including Bonnaroo Music Festival, Newport Folk Festival, Americana Music Festival & Conference.
They also supported The Tallest Man on Earth, Sufjan Stevens, Pixies, Rodrigo y Gabriela, and Old Crow Medicine Show.
The duo released The Radio Winners (EP) in July 2018. They co-wrote each song, also working with Grammy-winner Nathan Chapman — a producer on Taylor Swift’s first five albums — and Ryan Hadlock, best known for his work with the Lumineers.
Madisen War and the Mama Bear’s video for “Started With a Family” was released Aug 6, 2019 was shot at the iconic Blackbird Studios in Nashville. Produced by Nathan Chapman.
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear
Two years ago, Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear headlined the 15th Annual Crossroads Music Fest, on the KC Crossroads Stage.
Madisen Ward ‘s Birthday is August 23.
Ruth’s Husband and Madisen’s Dad is Kenneth Ward
Madisen Ward wanted to follow in his uncle’s footsteps. His Uncle was on The Wire and has been in many other TV shows and films. Madisen’s Uncle, Ruth’s brother is, Isiah Whitlock Jr. Born September 13, 1954, in South Bend, Indiana, USA. – He is an actor and writer, known for Da 5 Bloods (2020), Cedar Rapids (2011) and BlacKkKlansman (2018). Trade Mark – Distinctive way of saying “shit” in many of his films and “The Wire” He has received widespread acclaim for his sensitive portrayal of Joe, a married English professor who arranges a date with a teenage boy, in Christopher Shinn’s “Four”, a role he has played in several productions around the U.S.
Isiah Whitlock Jr pursued advanced drama studies as a member of American Conservatory Theater in San Fran. He graduated from Southwest State University (Marshall, Minnesota) in 1975. e Grew up the 5th of 10 children in South Bend, Indiana, where his father was a steel mill worker. Was in a long-term relationship with actress Wilma Mondi.
Interview in Milk
Recently, Milk’s JamRoom served up something a little different to its select patrons. The featured artists of the night? Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear. The mother-son duo has been touring across the world, even stopping by one of the last shows of Letterman, in support of their debut album Skeleton Crew.
Much like their music, the pair is relaxed and completely authentic in their interactions. Seeing them sit together really is just like watching a mother and son laugh, banter, and be family, but once they get on stage, they have a sound that can bring you to tears as easily as it can make you get up and boogie. Milk Made’s Jordan Mack got to sit with them minutes before the rocked the Jam Room to talk about their relationship as bandmates and family members, David Beckham and opening for one of B. B. King’s last shows.
Are you guys excited for the show tonight?
Madisen: Yeah, Milk is a cool space. Plus, they just told me David Beckham might be coming. DBecks! That’s just so cool.
Ruth: We’re getting a picture with him. I don’t care what I have to do.
How did the mother-son duo come to be?
Ruth: Well, I’ve been playing music since I was 19 in coffee houses, some clubs. The whole family would come out to hear me play. Then when Madisen was in high school, he started to play and write songs. I noticed that he had a gift, so when I would go to play, I would make Madisen come up to play some of his songs. We got a good reaction from the audience, and we had a good rapport, so it just evolved from that.
Was that nerve-racking at first to be called up on stage like that?
Madisen: Not at all. I’ve always loved being on stage. When I was young, I would act in plays and stuff like that. I love performing. Music was just a later ambition, because it was always in the house. I grew up with it, and Mom always played it, but it felt like her thing. Once I got up on stage though, it clicked. It was really comfortable, especially having my mom literally right next to me. There was a certain freedom that I became addicted to in just being able to write whatever you want. I think if I had been playing from when I was little, my writing would be very different.
How do you think coming to music later shaped your writing?
Madisen: You have a weird sense of discovery when you start playing music. I’ve never been one to focus on other artists, or learn their riffs. There are bits of my mother’s playing style with me, but it’s really just me sitting in a room trying to figure this thing out.
If you could cover any musical artist, who would it be?
Madisen: Tom Waits, for sure. He’s got soul.
Ruth: Out of anyone, probably Adele.
Madisen: Really?
Ruth: Oh yeah, she’s got a depth to her that you know is real. She’s my girl. When anyone, man or woman, can sing and really just caress the vocals.
Madisen: Oh, can I change my answer to Ginuwine? [laughs] That’s my real answer.
What’s it like touring together? Do you ever get on each others nerves or anything?
Ruth: Oh yes! All the time.
Madisen: It’s the nature of family really. It’s really not different than living at home together. I think that’s also the nature of touring with anyone, it’s like having a roommate. My mom and I get on each other’s nerves but we still love each other. It’s kind of a cruel advantage because –
Ruth: We know we’re not going anywhere [laughs]
Madisen: Well that and we know it’s not personal. If I had just met her and we had just starting playing together, I’d be so nervous because let me tell you, my mother knows how to tell it like it is. If I wasn’t her son, I would totally think she disliked me, but there’s that love there as a base.
So you debuted ‘Skeleton Crew’, and you guys have blown up between Letterman and Rolling Stone. How has this increase in fame changed the process, and the dynamic between you two?
Madisen: It makes you want to work harder, but the dynamic really hasn’t changed. It’s still the same feeling of us just playing at home. That hasn’t changed too much, and we don’t want it to change.
What’s it like raising Madisen Ward and vice versa? What’s it like being raised by Ruth Ward?
Ruth: Well I have two other children. I have an older daughter and son, and a beautiful granddaughter. I raised them the same. Everyone is the same. I would joke with them and tell them that ‘fair’ doesn’t live here, when they would say ‘it’s not fair!’ But I don’t know. I mean he’s my son? No one has ever asked me that question [laughs]
Madisen: You don’t know what it was like to raise me? [laughs]
Ruth: I guess I was there, but no one really asks that. He was a good kid. He never gave us any real problems. He’s very normal. My biggest thing was to love unconditionally and allow them to be who they wanted to be, whether it’s a musician or a real estate agent, like my other two children. I just wanted them to be able to function as adults.
Madisen: Growing up having my folks as my folks was an interesting background. They’re pretty eclectic people with great taste, which is something I really appreciate, looking back. It’s really affected my own tastes. They didn’t really argue. Like she said, it’s a pretty normal household. We’re all really close because it’s always just been the five of us. We’ve always depended on each other and had a tight knit group.
If we talked to either of you 10 years ago, and we told you that would be playing together, going on tour together, doing these interviews, what would you have said?
Madisen: If you had told me that 10 years ago, I would have told you my dad’s favorite line, ‘You teasin!’ [laughs] I really wanted to do something in the entertainment industry, not necessarily music. I always wanted to follow my uncle’s footsteps, Vincent Ward. He was on The Wire and I looked up to him my whole life. So if you told me all of this 10 years ago, I’d be thinking ‘oh good, my plan comes together.’ [laughs] But as far as what it became, that’s where the unreal aspect comes in.
Ruth: I’m of the same mindset, ‘you teasin.’ I’m surprised. 10 years ago, I never would have dreamed of this. I was playing coffee houses for years, and my brain never really went further than that. Now that we’re doing this, my mind has really expanded. We even went to Europe! I went to a cooking school in Italy about 10 years ago, and I always really regretted not traveling when I was younger. Here I am now, fulfilling all of these dreams. But the most important thing is that no matter what, I’ve always been content.
Madisen: That’s always been a big theme in our family: contentment. It’s never been about having a lot. It was about using what you had. It comes into the music too. We don’t like big production, it’s just our voices and our guitars. That’s the ‘skeleton crew’. Just basics.
Ruth: My husband would always say, ‘simple pleasures are the best.’
Your husband has a lot of great one liners.
Madisen: That’s all he does. We’re going to make him put out a book of them [laughs]
Have you always been a ‘Mama Bear? Like ‘don’t mess with my cubs or I’ll cut you’ kind of thing?
Ruth: Cut you? That’s intense. You sound like B. B. King with that. When we opened for him, he would always talk about cutting people! ‘Don’t do this or I’ll cut ya!’ That’s an old school thing to say. But to answer the question, when we were first putting the duo together, Madisen suggested Mama Bear, but someone had that. So then my husband said ‘Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear’, and it just stuck. As far as protecting my ‘cubs,’ I’m like a mama lion keeping the pride together, bringing home the bacon. ‘Mama Bear’ is new, but I accept it.
Madisen, would you say you have a ‘hip mom’?
Madisen: A hip mom? I don’t think I’m even that hip. [laughs]
Ruth: I’m not hip, but Madisen is definitely not hip either. [laughs]
Madisen: We’re just us. On stage we’re bandmates, but as soon as we walk off it’s back to mother and son. We’re not doing anything crazy and cool. We’re just doing us and having a great time. Our biggest mission is to make people happy. If people like our music, we can’t help but keep making more.
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear thanks for being with us on WMM.
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear
11:24
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear – “Started With A Family” from: Started With a Family / Starts With Music, LLC / September 6. 2019 [Produced with Grammy-winner Nathan Chapman at iconic Blackbird Studios in Nashville. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear have garnered international acclaim, and new fans from all over the world. They signed with Glassnote Records and recorded their debut full length album in Nashville with acclaimed producer Jim Abiss. They performed their debut single “Silent Movies” on The Late Show with David Letterman, they’ve toured across the United States, and Europe, more than once. They were featured on CBS Sunday Morning, NBC’s The Today Show, and “Later With Jools Holland and played Bonnaroo, Pilgramage, and the Newport Folk Festival, and the Ryman Theatre, in Nashville. Ruth Ward has continually performed throughout her life, mostly in coffee shops and open mics, for over 30 years, even recording a solo record. In the midst of this she got married and became a mom, and was busy raising a family. Madisen Ward was born in Oklahoma, and grew up in the outskirts of Kansas City, Missouri. He graduated from William Chrisman High School in 2007. Madisen’s journey to become a musician, was “melodically passed down” through the songs of his mother, where Madisen grew up watching his mom perform at local coffee shops. Eventually he began to learn to play the guitar, and poured his talent for writing into the music to create original songs. They began playing Madisen’s original songs along with the occassional cover of a classic track reinterpreted in their own incredibly beautiful performance of two voices and two guitars in harmony and orchestration. Their debut album, The Skeleton Crew, was released May 9, 2015 and was our most played record that year and was #1 on WMM’s The 115 Best Recordings of 2015. Their follow up EP, Radio Winners, was released July 27, 2018 and received critical acclaim. Madisen Ward and The Mama Bear played Crossroads Music Fest, Sat., Sept 7, Crossroads KC, with Shy Boys, Split Lip Rayfield, The Freedom Affair.]
KC based singer songwriter and rock & roller, Ivory Blue has been busy in the studio putting together new music. In 2020 Ivory released the singles “Elite Dreamland,” (Feb. 17), “Half a Life” (Sept. 20), and “Family Tables” on December 7. In 2011, Ivory landed in the Kansas City area, and became a part of new family. Ivory Blue’s debut EP, Ready Get Set was released in 2015 and had wide radio airplay. Ivory Blue has played Crossroads Music Festival, The Middle of the Map Festival, The Westport Roots Festival, Kansas City Public Library, and Kauffman Stadium. More info at: http://www.ivorybluemusic.com
Ivory Blue thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
Since 2015 Ivory Blue has been on the WMM 10 times.
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 them Ivory KC, and adopting Ivory into the Van Lue family. During the past 10 years Ivory came out as “Non-Binary Transgender.
Ivory Blue’s debut EP, Ready Get Set was released in June 2015 and had wide radio airplay on this show and multiple radio and television stations in Kansas City and across the country. Recorded and mastered by Larry Gann of Awestruck studios. Micah Burdick on guitar, Craig Kew on bass, and Lester Estelle, drummer for Kelly Clarkson, on drums for Ivory ‘s EP.
11:35
Ivory Blue
Ivory Blue – “Elite Dreamland” (Live) from: Ivory Blue’s new full length 10-song album COMPOUND LOVE to be released later this year.
We are talking with KC based singer songwriter and rock & roller, Ivory Blue has been busy in the studio putting together new music for upcoming releases of a new album COMPOUND LOVE and several EPs. In 2020 Ivory released the singles “Elite Dreamland,” (Feb. 17), “Half a Life” (Sept. 20), and “Family Tables” on December 7.
Ivory Blue was among 1800 bands that competed in neXt2Rock.
Ivory won local and regional challenges and advanced to the nationals in Los Angeles, where the top five bands played The Viper Room before judges that included: Scott Borchetta President & CEO of Big Machine Label Records; fashion designer John Varvatos; songwriter & producer Desmond Child; engineer Chris Lord-Alge; Steve Jones of the Sex Pistols; and Gavin Rossdale of Bush. Ivory won the entire competition and the opportunity to record “Ready Get Set” for Big Machine Records / John Varvatos Records.
11:45
Ivory Blue – “Heavy” (Live) from: Ivory Blue’s new full length 10-song album COMPOUND LOVE to be released later this year.
We are talking with KC based singer songwriter and rock & roller, Ivory Blue has been busy in the studio putting together new music. In 2020 Ivory released the singles “Elite Dreamland,” (Feb. 17), “Half a Life” (Sept. 20), and “Family Tables” on December 7.
Ivory Blue thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
Klaartje Van Lue is Ivory’s manager and she was the one who helped Ivory find their way to KC. Ivory has said that Klaartje saved their life.
Ivory Blue’s new full length 10-song album called COMPOUND LOVE will be released later this year.
Ivory Blue thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
For Ivory Blue, and WMM, I’m Mark Manning. Thanks for listening!
11:56
Ivory Blue
Ivory Blue – “Family Tables” from: “Elite Dreamland” – Single / Devin Robert Kesler / February 17, 2020 [KC based singer songwriter and rock & roller, Ivory Blue is currently in the studio putting together a new full length 10-song album called “Compound Love” for release in 2020. Ivory Blue’s debut EP, Ready Get Set was released in June 2015 and had wide radio airplay on this show and multiple radio and television stations in Kansas City and across the country. In 2017 Ivory was among 1800 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 Crossroads Music festival, The Middle of the Map Festival, The Westport Roots Festival, the KCPT Screening of “Real Boy” at The Kansas City Public Library, Kauffman Stadium. Born in 1986 in Peoria Illinois, and given up for adoption at the age of four, it was difficult to find trust in people after living with eight different foster families. Running away at 15, Ivory moved from Indiana to Oklahoma and eventually ended up in Seattle. In 2011 Ivory moved to Kansas City, and has became a part of new family.]
Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now” from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]
Next week on WMM, on August 4, we bring you our 901st show with 9 special guests who all help KKFI 90.1 keep going! These nine guests will tell stories about 90.1 FM that have never been spoken on the radio before. KKFI Guests include: Tom Crane, Judy Ancel, Barry Lee, Dorothy Hawkins, Marion Merritt, Maria Vasquez Boyd, Ebony Johnson, Catina Taylor and Leslie Pories.
Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information. Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org
Wednesday MidDay Medley Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning 90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
Wednesday, July 28, 2021
WMM Celebrates 900 Shows with Madisen Ward and The Mama Bear + Krystle Warren + Calvin Arsenia + Ivory Blue
This week we bring you our 900th consecutive show with four of our most favorite musical guests: Calvin Arsenia, Krystle Warren, Madisen Ward and The Mama Bear, and Ivory Blue
Calvin Arsenia
At 10:00 we welcome singer songwriter Calvin Arsenia. His EPs: Moments, Prose, Catastrophe, Caviar, and album Catastrophe led to being signed by Center Cut Records where he released the albums Cantaloupe in 2018, and L.A. Sessions in 2019, along with the EP HONEY DEW, an EP with Quixotic, and the Holiday album, ALL IS CALM. In 2020 Calvin released the Soundtrack to “Summer in Hindsight,” a collaborative feature-length film created by The West 18th Street Fashion Show that also starred Calvin as an actor. Calvin’s classically trained voice, visually striking 6-foot-6 presence, and deft harp playing have built his reputation as an incredible live performer. We’ll talk with Calvin about his mini-tour with Colton Cox, his show at Replay Lounge, his upcoming Candlelight Sessions, his new book, and his upcoming tours on the West Coast and East Coast. More info at http://www.calvinarsenia.com
Kristle Warren
At 10:30 KC born and internationally known singer songwriter Krystle Warren joins us from France. Krystle learned to play the guitar by listening to Rubber Soul & Revolver from The Beatles. Krystle graduated from Paseo Arts Academy in 2001 and began her musical career in collaborating with area jazz and pop musicians. After living in San Francisco and NYC, Krystle was signed to a French label, Because Music, and moved to Paris to release “Circles” in 2009. Krystle played French and British television programs, including Later with Jools Holland, garnering critical acclaim and traveling all over the world with Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Norah Jones, and Joan As Police Woman. Krystle created, Parlour Door Music, to release “Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace” a recording from a 13-day session in Brooklyn, where she recorded 24 songs live with 28 musicians including her band, The Faculty. In 2020 Warren released a 4-track EP The Crew. More info at: http://www.krysltewarren.com
Madisen Ward and The Mama Bear
At 11:00 we welcome Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear who released their debut album, The Skeleton Crew on May 9, 2015 and performed their debut single “Silent Movies” on The Late Show with David Letterman. They were featured on CBS Sunday Morning, NBC’s The Today Show, “Later With Jools Holland and played Bonnaroo, Pilgramage, the Newport Folk Festival, and the Ryman Theatre, in Nashville. Getting married and raising a family only slightly delayed Ruth Ward’s 30-year musical journey. Madisen Ward was born in Oklahoma, and grew up in the outskirts of Kansas City, watching his mom perform at local coffee shops. He graduated from William Chrisman High School in 2007. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear have released two albums, and two EPs and a Live Album. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear play Azura Amphitheatre, on August 3 with Lucinda Williamsand Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit. /// Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear play the 2nd Annual Camp Leavenworth, Friday, September 24, at 8:30 PM. More info at: http://www.madisenwardandthemamabear.com
Ivory Blue
Blue At 11:30 singer songwriter rock & roller, In 2020 Ivory Blue who released the singles “Elite Dreamland,” (Feb. 17), “Half a Life” (Sept. 20), and “Family Tables” on December 7. 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. In 2011, Ivory landed in the Kansas City area, and became a part of new family. Ivory Blue’s debut EP, Ready Get Set was released in 2015 and had wide radio airplay. In 2017 Ivory was among 1800 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 Crossroads Music Festival, The Middle of the Map Festival, The Westport Roots Festival, the KCPT Screening of “Real Boy” at The Kansas City Public Library, and Kauffman Stadium. More info at: http://www.ivorybluemusic.com
On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org
Wednesday MidDay Medley Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning 90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
Wednesday, July 21, 2021
Spinning Records With Marion Merritt + A Visit with Jairy
Mark welcomes Marion Merritt, of Records With Merritt, who joins us as “Guest Producer” to share sonic discoveries and information from her musically-encyclopedic-brain. Marion Merritt is our most frequent contributor to WMM. For over 17 years Marion has been bringing music that is just not played on other radio stations. Marion grew up in Los Angeles, and St. Louis. She went to college in Columbia, Missouri. She studied art and musical engineering. After nearly two decades of managing Kansas City’s largest music department store, Marion left the corporate world and went independent. With her partner Ann Stewart, Marion is the proprietor of Records With Merritt, a minority owned business at 1614 Westport Rd. in Kansas City, that features new vinyl. More information at: http://www.recordwithmerritt.com
Marion Merritt, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
“Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks” from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979 [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]
Dimitri From Paris – “Prologue” from: Sacrebleu / Atlantic / 2001
Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack – “What’s Going On” from: “What’s Going On” – Single / Rhino Entertainment / February 12, 2021 [In celebration of Roberta Flack‘s 84th birthday, an unreleased cover of Marvin Gaye’s iconic ‘What’s Going On’ has been unearthed from the vault. Roberta Cleopatra Flack was born February 10, 1937. She is an American singer. She is known for her No. 1 singles “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”, “Killing Me Softly with His Song”, “Feel Like Makin’ Love”; and “Where Is the Love” and “The Closer I Get to You”, two of her many duets with Donny Hathaway. // Flack is the only solo artist to win the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in two consecutive years: “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” won at the 1973 Grammys and “Killing Me Softly with His Song” won at the 1974 Grammys. // Flack lived with a musical family, born in Black Mountain, North Carolina to parents Laron Flack, a Veterans Administration draftsman, and Irene Council Flack a church organist, on February 10, 1937 (some sources also say 1939 – 1940 Census states Roberta was 3 years old) and raised in Arlington, Virginia. Growing up she often accompanied the choir of Lomax African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church by playing hymns and spirituals on piano, but she also enjoyed going to the “Baptist church down the street” to listen to contemporary gospel music, such as that performed by Mahalia Jackson and Sam Cooke. // When Flack was nine, she started taking an interest in playing the piano, and during her early teens, Flack so excelled at classical piano that Howard University awarded her a full music scholarship. By age 15, she entered Howard University, making her one of the youngest students ever to enroll there. She eventually changed her major from piano to voice, and became an assistant conductor of the university choir. Her direction of a production of Aida received a standing ovation from the Howard University faculty. Flack is a member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority and was made an honorary member of Tau Beta Sigma by the Eta Delta Chapter at Howard University for her outstanding work in promoting music education. // Roberta Flack became a student teacher at a school near Chevy Chase, Maryland. She graduated from Howard University at 19 and began graduate studies in music, but the sudden death of her father forced her to take a job teaching music and English in Farmville, North Carolina. // Before becoming a professional singer-songwriter, Flack returned to Washington, D.C. and taught at Banneker, Browne, and Rabaut Junior High Schools. She also taught private piano lessons out of her home on Euclid St. NW. During this period, her music career began to take shape on evenings and weekends in Washington, D.C. area night spots. At the Tivoli Club, she accompanied opera singers at the piano. During intermissions, she would sing blues, folk, and pop standards in a back room, accompanying herself on the piano. Later, she performed several nights a week at the 1520 Club, again providing her own piano accompaniment. Around this time, her voice teacher, Frederick “Wilkie” Wilkerson, told her that he saw a brighter future for her in pop music than in the classics. She modified her repertoire accordingly and her reputation spread.[citation needed] Flack began singing professionally after being hired to perform regularly at Mr. Henry’s Restaurant, on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC in 1968. // The atmosphere in Mr. Henry’s was welcoming and the club turned into a showcase for the young music teacher. Her voice mesmerized locals and word spread. A-list entertainers who were appearing in town would come in late at night to hear her sing. // As restaurant owner Henry Yaffe recalled, “She told me if I could give her work there three nights a week, she would quit teaching.” He did and she did. // To meet Roberta’s exacting standards, Yaffe transformed the apartment above the bar into the Roberta Flack Room. “I got the oak paneling from the old Dodge Hotel near Union Station. I put in heavy upholstered chairs, sort of a conservative style from the 50s and an acoustical system designed especially for Roberta. She was very demanding. She was a perfectionist.” // Les McCann discovered Flack singing and playing jazz in a Washington nightclub. He later said on the liner notes of what would be her first album First Take noted below, “Her voice touched, tapped, trapped, and kicked every emotion I’ve ever known. I laughed, cried, and screamed for more…she alone had the voice.” Very quickly, he arranged an audition for her with Atlantic Records, during which she played 42 songs in 3 hours for producer Joel Dorn. In November 1968, she recorded 39 song demos in less than 10 hours. Three months later, Atlantic reportedly recorded Flack’s debut album, First Take, in a mere 10 hours. Flack later spoke of those studio sessions as a “very naive and beautiful approach… I was comfortable with the music because I had worked on all these songs for all the years I had worked at Mr. Henry’s.” // In 1971, Flack participated in the legendary Soul to Soul concert film by Denis Sanders, which was headlined by Wilson Pickett, along with Ike & Tina Turner, Santana, The Staple Singers, Les McCann, Eddie Harris, The Voices of Harlem, and others. The U.S. delegation of musical artists was invited to perform for 14th anniversary of African independence in Ghana. The film was digitally reissued on DVD and CD in 2004 but Flack declined permission for her image and recording to be included for unknown reasons. Her a cappella performance of the traditional spiritual “Oh Freedom” retitled “Freedom Song” on the original Soul to Soul LP soundtrack is only available in the VHS version of the film. // Flack’s cover version of “Will You Love Me Tomorrow” hit number 76 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1972. Her Atlantic recordings did not sell particularly well, until actor/director Clint Eastwood chose a song from First Take, “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” written by Ewan MacColl, for the sound track of his directorial debut Play Misty for Me; it became the biggest hit of the year for 1972, spending six consecutive weeks at #1 and earning Flack a million-selling Gold disc. It finished the year as Billboard’s top song of 1972. The First Take album also went to #1 and eventually sold 1.9 million copies in the United States. Eastwood, who paid $2,000 for the use of the song in the film, has remained an admirer and friend of Flack’s ever since. It was awarded the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1973. In 1983, she recorded the end music to the Dirty Harry film Sudden Impact at Eastwood’s request. // In 1972, Flack began recording regularly with Donny Hathaway, scoring hits such as the Grammy-winning “Where Is the Love” (1972) and later “The Closer I Get to You” (1978), both million-selling gold singles. Flack and Hathaway recorded several duets together, including two LPs, until Hathaway’s 1979 death. // On her own, Flack scored her second #1 hit in 1973, “Killing Me Softly with His Song” written by Charles Fox, Norman Gimbel and Lori Lieberman. It was awarded both Record of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female at the 1974 Grammy Awards. Its parent album was Flack’s biggest-selling disc, eventually earning double platinum certification. In 1974, Flack released “Feel Like Makin’ Love,” which became her third and final #1 hit to date on the Hot 100. That same year, Flack sang the lead on a Sherman Brothers song called “Freedom”, which featured prominently at the opening and closing of the movie Huckleberry Finn. Also in that same year, she performed “When We Grow Up” with a teenage Michael Jackson on the 1974 television special, Free to Be… You and Me. Then, in her only film role, she served as the narrator for The Legend of John Henry. // Flack had a 1982 hit single with “Making Love”, written by Burt Bacharach (the title track of the 1982 film of the same name), which reached #13. She began working with Peabo Bryson with more limited success, charting as high as #5 on the R&B chart (plus #16 Pop and #4 Adult Contemporary) with “Tonight, I Celebrate My Love” in 1983. Her next two singles with Bryson, “You’re Looking Like Love To Me” and “I Just Came Here To Dance,” fared better on adult contemporary (AC) radio than on pop or R&B radio. // In 1986, Flack sang the theme song entitled “Together Through the Years” for the NBC television series Valerie, later known as The Hogan Family. The song was used throughout the show’s six seasons. In 1987 Flack supplied the voice of Michael Jackson’s mother in the 18-minute short film for Bad. Oasis was released in 1988 and failed to make an impact with pop audiences, though the title track reached #1 on the R&B chart and a remix of “Uh-Uh Ooh-Ooh Look Out (Here It Comes)” topped the dance chart in 1989. Flack found herself again in the US Top 10 with the hit song “Set the Night to Music”, a 1991 duet with Jamaican vocalist Maxi Priest that peaked at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts and #2 AC. Flack’s smooth R&B sound lent itself easily to Easy Listening airplay during the 1970s, and she has had four #1 AC hits. // In 1999, a star with Flack’s name was placed on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. That same year, she gave a concert tour in South Africa; the final performance was attended by President Nelson Mandela. In 2010, she appeared on the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards, singing a duet of “Where Is The Love” with Maxwell. ” In February 2012, Flack released Let it Be Roberta, an album of Beatles covers including “Hey Jude” and “Let It Be”. It was her first recording in over eight years. Flack knew John Lennon and Yoko Ono, as both households moved in 1975 into The Dakota apartment building in New York City, and had apartments across the hall from each other. Flack has stated that she has already been asked to do a second album of Beatles covers. She is currently involved in an interpretative album of the Beatles’ classics. // At age 80, Flack made her most recent recording, Running, the closing credits song of the 2018 feature documentary 3100: Run and Become with music and lyrics by Michael A. Levine. // Flack’s minimalist, classically trained approach to her songs was seen by a number of critics as lacking in grit and uncharacteristic of soul music. According to music scholar Jason King, her work was regularly described with the adjectives “boring”, “depressing”, “lifeless”, “studied”, and “calculated”; AllMusic’s Steve Huey said it has been called “classy, urbane, reserved, smooth, and sophisticated”. In 1971, Village Voice critic Robert Christgau reported that “Flack is generally regarded as the most significant new black woman singer since Aretha Franklin, and at moments she sounds kind, intelligent, and very likable. But she often exhibits the gratuitous gentility you’d expect of someone who says ‘between you and I.'” // Reviewing her body of work from the 1970s, he later argued that the singer “has nothing whatsoever to do with rock and roll or rhythm and blues and almost nothing to do with soul”, comparing her middle-of-the-road aesthetic to Barry Manilow but with better taste, which he believed does not necessarily guarantee more enduring music: “In the long run, pop lies are improved by vulgarity.” // Flack is a member of the Artist Empowerment Coalition, which advocates the right of artists to control their creative properties. She is also a spokeswoman for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals; her appearance in commercials for the ASPCA featured “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”. In the Bronx section of New York City, the Hyde Leadership Charter School’s after-school music program is called “The Roberta Flack School of Music” and is in partnership with Flack, who founded the school, which provides free music education to underprivileged students. // Between 1966 and 1972, she was married to Steve Novosel. Together, they had a son, Bernard Wright, who became a successful funk and jazz keyboardist and producer. Flack is the aunt of professional ice skater Rory Flack. // According to DNA analysis, she is of Cameroonian descent. // On April 20, 2018, Flack was appearing onstage at the Apollo Theater at a benefit for the Jazz Foundation of America. She became ill, left the stage, and was rushed to the Harlem Hospital Center. In a statement, her manager announced that Flack had suffered a stroke a few years prior and still was not feeling well, but was “doing fine” and being kept overnight for medical observation. More info at http://www.robertaflack.com]
Marcos Valle – “Estrelar” from: Marcos Valle / Columbia Records / January 1, 1983 [Reissued on Mr. Bongo / 2021] [Marcos Kostenbader Valle (born 14 September 1943)[1] is a Brazilian singer, songwriter, and record producer. He has produced works in many musical styles, including bossa nova, samba, and fusions of rock, soul, jazz, and dance music with Brazilian styles. Valle is regarded as one of the greatest Brazilian artists of all time. // Valle’s talent was evident from his high school years, which coincided with the explosion of the bossa nova movement in Rio. His classmates included future legends such as Edu Lobo and Dori Caymmi, and his composition “Sonho de Maria” was included on the Avanco album by the influential Tamba Trio in 1963. With his brother Paulo Sérgio Valle as his lyricist, he had already built an impressive portfolio of songs, prompting Odeon Records (a subsidiary of EMI) to sign him as a singer. His debut album Samba “Demais”, was released in April 1964. His reputation quickly spread, and his fellow musicians (including Wilson Simonal, Elis Regina, and Nara Leão) lined up to record his songs. A second album, O Compositor e o Cantor, followed in 1965, and featured what would become his most recognisable song, “Samba De Verão” – known in English as “So Nice (Summer Samba)” – along with other hits such as “Deus Brasileiro,” “Gente”, and “A Resposta”. // 1966 brought Valle’s first trip to the United States, where he and his then-wife Anamaria briefly teamed up with Sérgio Mendes in an early version of what would later become Brasil ’66. The threat of being drafted and sent to Vietnam caused Valle to return quickly to Brazil, although the following year saw him back to the United States and enjoying some success, including the release of his U.S. debut album, Braziliance!, on Warner Bros. Records, and several appearances on The Andy Williams Show. Following session work on Verve Records releases by compatriots Walter Wanderley and Astrud Gilberto, the label released Valle’s Samba ’68 featuring English-language versions of songs from his earlier Brazilian releases. // Shortly thereafter, feeling homesick, Valle returned to Brazil and entered a new creative phase. Viola Enluarada (1968) was more mature and introspective, far removed from the frothy feel of Samba ’68. The title track was a duet with Milton Nascimento and became one of Valle’s signature compositions in Brazil. It also betrayed a political consciousness largely absent from Valle’s previous work – he would become more overtly political in the years to come. The album as a whole pointed to a broader range of musical influences (particularly the Northeastern Brazilian styles he had enjoyed listening to since his childhood days) that moved him out of the “strictly ‘bossa nova artists’ club.” // This process continued on 1969’s Mustang Cor de Sangue ou Corcel Cor de Mel, another leap forward that incorporated rock, soul and pop idioms, all stamped with Valle’s own melodic style. His work on the album reflected the sophisticated pop approach of American songwriters such as Jimmy Webb and Burt Bacharach as well as the influence of The Beatles. // Around this time, Valle began writing music for TV programs and telenovelas (soap operas), which over the next few years would become one of the main outlets for his work, along with advertising jingles. Marcos Valle (1970) (often referred to as The Bed Album due to its cover shot of Valle in bed) contained his most adventurous as well as his most rock-influenced and psychedelic music up to that point. Backed by Milton Nascimento’s band Som Imaginario, Valle explored a more eccentric approach, with a number of futuristic tracks and an extended instrumental suite not unlike the work of U.S. composer and producer David Axelrod. Garra (1971) was a career highpoint that summed up his music and still stands as one of the finest pop albums of the era, Brazilian or otherwise. Its effervescent pop, jazz, soul, bossa, and film soundtrack stylings were matched by lyrics that attempted to reconcile Valle’s hippie leanings with his status as a wealthy young musician who was also a successful businessman because of his successful novela soundtracks and corporate advertising accounts. Telenovelas he provided some or all of the music for during this period included O Cafona, Uma Rosa com Amor, Minha Doce Namorada, Pigmalião 70, Os Ossos do Barão, and, most prominently, Selva de Pedra. He also wrote the score for the film O Fabuloso Fittipaldi (1973). // Vento Sul (1972) found Valle long-haired and bearded, and backed by the progressive rock band O Terço. His most experimental effort to date (he even flirted with heavy metal on the song “Mi Hermoza”), it was a sales flop, although it has acquired admirers over the ensuing decades. The following year’s innovative Previsão do Tempo fared better. It was made in conjunction with the band that initially formed to back Valle at live shows and named itself after one of his songs, Azimuth (soon to change the spelling to Azymuth). This album had a notable jazz fusion feel thanks to Valle’s enthusiasm for the Fender Rhodes piano and Azymuth keyboardist Jose Roberto Bertrami’s expertise on the Hammond organ and assorted synthesizers such as the Mini-Moog and the ARP Soloist. This sound would prove a decisive influence on the acid jazz scene in Europe twenty years later. Another innovation in Previsão do Tempo was the use of vocal percussion on the track “Mentira”, ten years before hip-hop artists introduced beatboxing. Valle emulates a drum kit with his voice to perform a pattern and a fill. // From 1972 to 1974, Valle provided the music for Vila Sésamo, Brazil’s version of Sesame Street. In 1974, he also released his final album for Odeon, again self-titled. This album differed yet again from its predecessors in pursuing a piano-pop sound reminiscent in turns of Elton John, Todd Rundgren, and Bread, and replete with elaborate vocal arrangements. // At this point, Valle had grown tired of the strictures of living and working under Brazil’s military dictatorship, then in its darkest and bleakest phase. He therefore decided to return to the U.S., where he spent the rest of the decade. Settling in Los Angeles, he entered into collaborations with artists as diverse as Sarah Vaughan, Chicago, and R&B singer and songwriter Leon Ware. Valle and Ware found themselves especially compatible, and wrote many songs together. Valle appeared on several of Ware’s Elektra Records releases. // Valle returned to Brazil in early 1980 and completed two albums, 1981’s Vontade de Rever Você, and 1983’s Marcos Valle. These albums had prominent boogie, soul and funk influences. These had been present in Valle’s work since the beginning of the 1970s and would be permanent influences on his music, also being solidified by his work with Leon Ware and Chicago. His single “Estrelar” (1982), a boogie dance track marketed as “workout music” at the time, proved to be his best-selling record ever with a total of about 90,000 copies sold. In 1984, he released another boogie single, “Bicicleta”, but his recording label (Som Livre) decided to dismiss its entire cast and concentrate on soap opera LPs and Marcos was unable to complete a new album. His final album from the eighties was 1986’s Tempo da Gente, after which he took a break from recording. Nevertheless he kept on playing gigs (something he did not do in his “Estrelar” days) and writing songs for many different artists such as Tim Maia, Roberto Carlos, and Ricky Martin. // In the meantime, many listeners had become acquainted with Valle’s work of the 1960s and 1970s, and his music started to find favour with European and American fans, as well as connoisseurs of dance music. Valle recorded a new album in 1999, Nova Bossa Nova, which reached back to his roots in bossa nova and added contemporary electronic influences to his music. At this point Valle had signed with the London-based Far Out Recordings, which specialised in Brazilian musicians such as Azymuth (his backing band on 1973’s Previsão do Tempo) and Joyce. In 2001 Valle also produced two other discs, Live in Montreal with guitarist Victor Biglione and a backing band, and Bossa Entre Amigos, a release aimed at the Brazilian market that featured Valle sharing the bill with Brazilian guitarist and songwriter Roberto Menescal and singer-guitarist Wanda Sá. // Escape, and especially its follow-up, Contrasts (released in 2003), showed increased electronic influences, mediated by London-based producer Roc Hunter. Valle showed on these releases that he was able to stay true to the roots of his sound while remaining open to modern influences and integrating them into his style. On 2005, Valle released Jet Samba, an all-instrumental collection featuring reworked compositions from past albums, as well as several new songs. // In 2010, he released Estática, an album which saw him return to a more organic approach, albeit with the use of some analog synthesisers. The record features expansive horn and string arrangements and has been referred to as a “masterpiece” by some. In 2011, he collaborated with the Phenomenal Handclap Band to contribute a version of the song “Tudo o Que Você Podia Ser” to the Red Hot Organization’s fund-raising album Red Hot + Rio 2, proceeds from the sales of which were donated to fight AIDS/HIV. Valle continues to perform in Brazil and throughout Europe.]
Marcos Valle, Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad – “Our Train” from: Jazz Is Dead 003 / Jazz Is Dead / February 12, 2020 [From Rolling Stone. March 19, 2020 by Hank Shteamer // Hear Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Adrian Younge Team With Jazz Royalty on New Comp ‘Jazz Is Dead 001’ features new tracks created by the Midnight Hour duo in collaboration with esteemed veterans like Roy Ayers, Gary Bartz // On new comp ‘Jazz Is Dead 001,’ Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad team up with jazz veterans like Roy Ayers, pictured, and Gary Bartz. // In 2017, the Los Angeles promoter Andrew Lojero had an idea for a new jazz concert series. Along with A Tribe Called Quest DJ-producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad and prolific R&B and hip-hop composer-producer Adrian Younge — the duo behind throwback soul project the Midnight Hour and the Luke Cage soundtrack — he began putting together bills featuring esteemed jazz veterans such as Roy Ayers and Gary Bartz, and rising stars of the genre like Keyon Herrold. Lojero dubbed the series Jazz Is Dead. // “I thought the name was bold, provocative and exactly what was needed to stir things up,” Muhammad writes in an email. “For us it’s more than a show; it’s a celebration of our treasured bastions of freedom.” // Now, three years later, the team is furthering the project with the launch of a new label bearing the same name. The first release, Jazz Is Dead 001 — officially out March 20th and premiering below — is a compilation on which Younge and Muhammad team up with their musical heroes to create brand-new tracks. // The track list is studded with artists who have been sampled for years by hip-hop heavyweights such as A Tribe Called Quest, Dr. Dre, Nas, and J Dilla: jazz-funk vibraphonist Ayers; Bartz, the saxophonist, NTU Troop leader, and onetime Miles Davis sideman; Brian Jackson, who collaborated with Gil Scott-Heron on a long string of landmark Seventies albums; bossa nova luminaries João Donato and Marcos Valle; keyboardist Doug Carn, whose Seventies LPs on Oakland’s Black Jazz label are highly prized by crate diggers; and Brazilian jazz-funk outfit Azymuth. // “We want them to feel the love for what they have given us in a time where a spotlight may not be shining brightly on their works,” Muhammad says of the artists featured on Jazz Is Dead 001. // Every one of the tracks — from “Distant Mode,” on which Bartz’s alto sax dances over a simmering groove to “Down Deep,” a beautifully chill ballad featuring Carn’s potent Hammond B3 organ — was a full collaboration between the featured artist, and Muhammad and Younge, both of whom play keys, guitar, bass, and more on the record. (Various other musicians contribute drums, vocals, horns, and keys throughout.) A balmy title track, “Jazz Is Dead,” by Muhammad and Younge’s own the Midnight Hour, rounds out the album. // “To see Ali with Gary Bartz or João Donato, two artists that meant so much to A Tribe Called Quest, is crazy,” Younge writes, reflecting on the sessions that went into Jazz Is Dead 001. “When they sampled their compositions, they never thought it would come full circle. I never thought I’d be sitting in the studio with Marcos Valle or Lonnie Liston, writing with Brian Jackson and Azymuth; writing with Jean Carne and Doug Carn. It’s insane. It’s as if my career was meant for this moment.” // “Seeing someone that you sampled long ago blowing fresh notes onto something we have written just for them was emotional,” Muhammad adds. “Admiring the way they are playing right in front of your eyes when at one time it was a dream to wonder what they were thinking about when they recorded their songs. Feeling humbled at the respect they give us for the music that we have made for them. Wondering how this wave of new music will be transferred by the next generation.” // Jazz Is Dead 001 is merely a prelude for the label. Later this year, they’ll reveal seven full-length albums, one featuring each of the guests heard on the comp. They’re also planning live shows featuring artists from their roster and other like-minded musicians. To learn more about all upcoming Jazz Is Dead activities, visit: ww.jazzisdead.co or http://www.instagram.com/jazzisdead%5D
Amythyst Kiah – “Black Myself” from: Black Myself – Single / Rounder Records / February 19, 2021 [With an unforgettable voice that’s both unfettered and exquisitely controlled, the Tennessee-bred singer/ songwriter expands on the uncompromising artistry she most recently revealed as part of Our Native Daughters, an all-women-of-color supergroup whose Kiah-penned standout “Black Myself” earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best American Roots Song and won Song of the Year at the 2019 Folk Alliance International Awards. When met with the transcendent quality of her newly elevated sound, what emerges is an extraordinary vessel for Kiah’s songwriting: a raw yet nuanced examination of grief, alienation, and the hard-won triumph of total self-acceptance. // This new studio version of “Black Myself” is a glorious collision of two vastly different worlds: the iconoclastic alt-rock that first sparked her musical passion, and the roots/old-time-music scene. Produced by Tony Berg (Phoebe Bridgers, Amos Lee, Andrew Bird) the track was recorded at the legendary Sound City Studios in Los Angeles. More info at: http://www.amythystkiah.com]
Rhiannon Giddens – “Avalon (with Francesco Turrisi)” from: They’re Calling Me Home (with Francesco Turrisi) / Nonesuch Records / April 9, 2021 [Rhiannon Giddens (born February 21, 1977) is an American musician. She is a founding member of the country, blues and old-time music band Carolina Chocolate Drops, where she is the lead singer, fiddle player, and banjo player. // Giddens is a native of Greensboro, North Carolina, an alumna of the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, and a 2000 graduate of Oberlin Conservatory at Oberlin College, where she studied opera. // In addition to her work with the Grammy-winning Chocolate Drops, Giddens has released two solo albums: Tomorrow Is My Turn (2015) and Freedom Highway (2017). Her 2019 album, There Is No Other, is a collaboration with Italian multi-instrumentalist Francesco Turrisi. Her latest album, They’re Calling Me Home (2021) continues her collaboration with Francesco Turrisi. She appears in the Smithsonian Folkways collection documenting Mike Seeger’s final trip through Appalachia in 2009, Just Around The Bend: Survival and Revival in Southern Banjo Styles – Mike Seeger’s Last Documentary (2019). In 2014, she participated in the T Bone Burnett-produced project titled The New Basement Tapes along with several other musicians, which set a series of recently discovered Bob Dylan lyrics to newly composed music. The resulting album, Lost on the River: The New Basement Tapes, was a top-40 Billboard album. // In 2005, Giddens, who at that time was spending time competing in Scottish music competitions (specializing in the Gaelic lilting tradition, also known as mouth music), attended the Black Banjo Then and Now Gathering, in Boone, North Carolina. There she met Dom Flemons and Sule Greg Wilson. The three started playing together professionally as a “postmodern string band”, Sankofa Strings. During that same time period, Giddens was also a regular caller at local contra dances and featured in a Celtic music band called Gaelwynd. Later in 2005, after both Gaelwynd and Sankofa Strings had released CD albums, Giddens and Flemons teamed up with other musicians and expanded the Sankofa Strings sound into what was to become the Grammy winning Carolina Chocolate Drops. // In 2007, Giddens contributed fiddle, banjo, “flat-footin'” dancing and additional vocals to Talitha MacKenzie’s album Indian Summer. // Performing as a soprano, Giddens and mezzo-soprano Cheryse McLeod Lewis formed a duo called Eleganza to release a CD in 2009. Because I Knew You… consists of classical, religious, theater, and movie music. Giddens and Lewis were middle school classmates who reconnected after college while working in the same office. The friends started singing together in 2003, but did not begin recording until 2008. // As of November 12, 2013, Giddens became the only original member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops. // In 2013, Giddens began pushing further into her solo career. Giddens participated in “Another Day, Another Time”, a concert inspired by the Coen brothers film Inside Llewyn Davis. Many critics have stated that Giddens had the best performance at what was called “the concert of the year”. Late in 2013, Giddens contributed the standout a cappella track “We Rise” to the LP We Are Not For Sale: Songs of Protest by the NC Music Love Army – a collective of activist musicians from North Carolina founded by Jon Lindsay and Caitlin Cary. Giddens’ protest song joins contributions from many other Carolina musical luminaries on the Lindsay-produced compilation (11/26/13 via Redeye Distribution), which was created to support the NC NAACP and the Moral Monday movement. // In early 2014 Giddens recorded for Lost on the River: The New Basement Tapes alongside Elvis Costello, Marcus Mumford, Taylor Goldsmith & Jim James. The album was produced by T-Bone Burnett and is a compilation of partial, unreleased lyrics written by Bob Dylan. // In February 2015, Giddens released her debut solo album, Tomorrow Is My Turn, on Nonesuch Records. Also produced by Burnett, the album includes songs made famous by Patsy Cline, Odetta, Dolly Parton, Nina Simone, among others. The Wall Street Journal said the album “confirms the arrival of a significant talent whose voice and distinctive approach communicate the simmering emotion at the core of the songs.” Additionally, the Los Angeles Times called the album “a collection that should solidify her status as one of the bright new lights in pop music.” // In July 2015, she had a big stage at world music folk and dance festival at TFF Rudolstadt in Germany. Her performance was also broadcast live by the German national public radio Deutschlandfunk. Rhiannon appears on Jon Lindsay’s single “Ballad of Lennon Lacy” (Redeye Distribution, August 21). The song tackles the mysterious hanging death of Lennon Lacy, a black teen from rural Bladenboro, North Carolina. The case is currently under investigation by the FBI, and widely suspected to be a lynching. // On November 27, 2015, to coincide with the Black Friday Record Store Day event, Giddens released Factory Girl (EP) on Nonesuch Records, which contained music culled from the same T Bone Burnett–produced sessions that yielded Tomorrow Is My Turn. A digital version of Factory Girl was made available December 11, 2015. The sessions for the album and EP took place in Los Angeles and Nashville, with a multi-generational group of players assembled by Burnett. Musicians on Factory Girl include Burnett; fiddle player Gabe Witcher and double bassist Paul Kowert of Punch Brothers; percussionist Jack Ashford of Motown’s renowned Funk Brothers; drummer Jay Bellerose; guitarist Colin Linden; veteran Nashville session bassist Dennis Crouch; and Giddens’s Carolina Chocolate Drops touring band-mates, multi-instrumentalist Hubby Jenkins and beat-boxer Adam Matta. // Rhiannon appeared on Jools Holland’s Hootenanny on December 31, 2015, shown on BBC Two. She performed songs from her 2015 album Tomorrow Is My Turn, including “Waterboy” and a cover of “St James Infirmary Blues” with Tom Jones. // She was selected to take part in Transatlantic Sessions in January 2016. This collaboration between American and Celtic musicians is a coveted honor. The ensemble performed as part of Celtic Connections in Glasgow, and a short UK/Irish tour. Her performances on the tour included the stirring tribute to David Bowie “It Ain’t Easy”. Later in the year, Giddens became the first American to be honoured as Folk Singer of the Year at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. Later in the year, it was also announced that she would be receiving the prestigious Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass. Winning this award makes Giddens both the only woman and the only person of color to receive the prize in its six-year history. In 2016, it was also announced that Giddens and the Carolina Chocolate Drops would be inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame. // In 2017, Giddens became only the fourth musician to perform at both the Newport Folk and Jazz Festivals. Later that year, she delivered the keynote address at the World of Bluegrass Business Conference 2017. According to Bluegrass Today, “Giddens shattered long-held stereotypes…By the time she was done, she had systematically dismantled the myth of a homogenous Appalachia.” In June 2017, Giddens appeared in the multi award-winning documentary The American Epic Sessions, directed by Bernard MacMahon, where she recorded “One Hour Mama” and English folk ballad “Pretty Saro”, on the restored first electrical sound recording system from the 1920s. Both performances were released on Music from The American Epic Sessions: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Upon hearing the playback of these direct-to-disc recordings, she exclaimed “you feel like your soul is coming out of the speaker.” // In October 2017, Giddens was named one of the 2017 class of MacArthur “Genius” Fellows. The organization noted, “Giddens’s drive to understand and convey the nuances, complexities, and interrelationships between musical traditions is enhancing our musical present with a wealth of sounds and textures from the past.” Rhiannon further demonstrated the broad range of her musical interests with several subsequent projects. In early November, she performed as a soprano with the Louisville Orchestra in Teddy Abrams’ multimedia tribute to Muhammad Ali, The Greatest. A week later, she sang with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra for their live recording of American Originals: 1918, which explored the early development of jazz during the post WWI era. In January 2018, Giddens co-produced (with Dirk Powell) Songs of Our Native Daughters for Smithsonian Folkways. Written and recorded with fellow artists Amythyst Kiah, Leyla McCalla, and Allison Russell, “The album confronts the ways we are culturally conditioned to avoid talking about America’s history of slavery, racism, and misogyny.” Also in early 2018, the Nashville Ballet announced that Rhiannon Giddens has been commissioned to write the music for Lucy Negro, Redux, a new dance choreographed by artistic director, Paul Vasterling. Based on the book by Caroline Randall Williams, its premise is that Shakespeare’s Dark Lady was of African descent. The ballet premiered in February 2019. Then in March 2018, Giddens fulfilled a previously announced engagement as guest curator for the Cambridge Folk Festival by inviting Peggy Seeger, Kaia Kater, Birds of Chicago, Amythyst Kiah, and Yola Carter to perform at the event. // Giddens recorded vocals for Silo Songs, an audio installation created by composer Brad Wells for Hancock Shaker Village. She contributed a song, “Mountain Hymn”, to the popular video game Red Dead Redemption 2 which was released in October 2018. The song was written with Daniel Lanois. Beginning in December 2018, she is hosting a podcast called Aria Code with Rhiannon Giddens produced by the Metropolitan Opera and WQXR-FM. The program examines why individual arias have a lasting impact on audiences and how singers prepare to perform them. In 2019, Giddens released two studio albums: Songs of Our Native Daughters with Allison Russell, Leyla McCalla and Amythyst Kiah, and There Is No Other with Italian musician Francesco Turrisi. // For the 2020 Spoleto Festival USA, Giddens was commissioned to create an opera based on the autobiography of Omar Ibn Said, an enslaved Muslim-African man who was brought to Charleston, South Carolina in 1807. Giddens wrote the libretto and served as lead composer with help from co-composer Michael Abels. Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the world premiere of Omar was postponed until 2021. In July 2020, Giddens was named Artistic Director of the cross-cultural music organization Silkroad (arts organization). The position had been vacant since 2017 when Silkroad’s founder, Yo-Yo Ma, stepped down. // On August 17, 2020, Giddens guest-hosted the BBC Radio 2 Blues Show whilst its regular host Cerys Matthews was on her holidays. // Giddens earned an Honorary Doctor of Letters from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro for her lasting impact on the UNCG community and work in music. She sang “Calling me Home” by Alice Gerrard at a virtual commencement after accepting the degree in December 2020
10:30 – Underwriting
Shabaka Hutchings
Shabaka and the Ancestors – “Go My Heart, Go To Heaven” from: We Are Sent Here By History / Impulse Records / March 13, 2020 [Shabaka Hutchings is a British jazz saxophonist, clarinettist and band leader. He leads the bands Sons of Kemet and Shabaka and the Ancestors. He is also a member of The Comet Is Coming, performing under the stage name King Shabaka. Hutchings has played saxophone with the Sun Ra Arkestra, Floating Points, Mulatu Astatke, Polar Bear, Melt Yourself Down, Heliocentrics and Zed-U. // Hutchings was born in London, but moved to Birmingham at the age of two. From the age of six he was raised in his parents’ native Barbados. There, as a nine-year-old, he picked up the clarinet and practised along to the hip hop verses of Nas, Notorious BIG and Tupac, as well as the rhythms of Crop Over. He returned to England to receive a classical-music degree on the instrument. In London he joined the Tomorrow’s Warriors programme, a blues workshop led by British bassist Gary Crosby, Janine Irons and expat New Orleans trumpeter Abram Wilson, where Hutchings met many of his future collaborators in the burgeoning South East London jazz scene. // Hutchings and many of his contemporaries shrug off the “jazz” label, eschewing the restriction especially as the many groups reflect influences ranging from acid house and drum & bass, to hiphop and soca, with less of a blues influence than jazz, which reviewers have noted marks a distinction between the London scene as represented by Hutchings and American jazz music. // Shabaka and the Ancestors debuted in 2016 with the album Wisdom of Elders on Gilles Peterson’s Brownswood Recordings label. The Comet Is Coming, a trio with keyboardist Dan Leavers and drummer Max Hallett, received a Mercury Prize nomination for their debut album Channel the Spirits, released on The Leaf Label in April 2016. Sons of Kemet, a quartet of saxophone, tuba and two drummers, launched with the album Burn in 2013, followed up with Lest We Forget What We Came Here to Do in 2015, both on the Naim Jazz label, before moving to Impulse! for Your Queen Is a Reptile in 2018, which coincided with a breakout into wider public consciousness of the UK jazz scene, captured by the attention on the Hutchings-directed compilation We Out Here on Brownswood. // In November 2018, Hutchings curated part of the programme for the Dutch Le Guess Who? festival. // In March 2020, Shabaka and the Ancestors released We Are Sent Here by History under Impulse! Records.]
Sons Of Kemet – “Let The Circle Be Unbroken” from: Black To The Future / Impulse Records / May 14, 2021 [Sons of Kemet are a British jazz group formed by Shabaka Hutchings, Oren Marshall, Seb Rochford, and Tom Skinner. The group uses saxophone and clarinet (Hutchings), tuba (Cross), and two drummers (Skinner, Hick) to make their music and plays a mixture of jazz, rock, Caribbean folk, and African music. Cross replaced Oren Marshall on tuba. // On September 9, 2013, Sons of Kemet released their debut album Burn, which received the Arts Desk Album of the Year 2013 and a nomination for Gilles Peterson’s Album of the Year. Their next album Lest We Forget What We Came Here to Do received the same nomination for the year 2015. The group won Best Jazz Act at the 2013 MOBO Awards. // On March 30, 2018, Impulse! released the band’s third album, Your Queen Is a Reptile. It was nominated for the 2018 Mercury Prize. // Discography: Burn (Naim, 2013) // Lest We Forget What We Came Here to Do (Naim, 2015) // Your Queen Is a Reptile (Impulse!, 2018) // Black to the Future (Impulse!, 2021)]
Female Species – “Tale of My Lost Love” from: Tale of My Lost Love / Numero Group / April 9, 2021 [This is the story of two sisters who nurtured a dream for half a century and never let it die. Vicki and Ronni Gossett launched their musical career as teenagers in Whittier, California in 1966. They called themselves the Female Species. Members came and went; their base of operations moved to Las Vegas, back to LA, and over to Nashville. Along the way their sound transformed from garage rock to lounge to country-pop, the only constant being an innate mastery of hooks and harmony. These ladies had it. // Along the way, they crossed paths with The Carpenters, Paul Revere & The Raiders, The Judds, and seemingly half of the industry’s power players, rebuffing all untoward advances, focused always on their craft. In the 1980s they became staff songwriters for music publishing companies in the hit-making business. Relentless pushing landed them a once in a lifetime audition before the court of RCA’s top executives — the kind of new talent showcase that almost never happens after 30. Vicki and Ronni were by then in their 40s. // Tale of My Lost Love is the whole story from beginning to end of two sisters who gave everything to their dream, yet never made a single record… until now. Sometimes great music just isn’t enough to break through — until it is. Numero Group is thrilled and proud, at long last, to introduce Female Species. More info at: http://www.femalespecie.bandcamp.com]
Clairo – “Blouse” from: Sling / Clairo – Fader – Republic / July 16, 2021 [On her second album, reluctant Gen Z ambassador Clairo turns back the clock, embracing classic touchstones of 1970s folk. // Claire Cottrill was born August 18, 1998. She is known professionally as Clairo, and is from Carlisle, Massachusetts. Her fame escalated after releasing “Pretty Girl” in 2017, a lo-fi-produced song that attracted over 35 million views on YouTube. She credited her sudden popularity to the website’s algorithm system. Claire was born in Atlanta, Georgia, the daughter of marketing executive Geoff Cottrill. According to her, “Pretty Girl” was inspired by 1980s pop music, and that although she was tagged with the “bedroom pop” label, it was not her intention to make that style of music. After the popularity of “Pretty Girl”, Clairo signed a record contract with Fader. Clairo’s father, Geoff Cottrill, formerly held top positions at Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola, Starbucks, Converse, and MusiCares a philanthropic organization associated with the Grammy Awards. Between 2015 and 2017, he was president of American operations at MullenLowe Lintas Group. Claire began recording covers at the age of 13 and taught herself guitar from Internet tutorials. During this time, MTV contacted her to record a song to be used as background music for one of their shows, but the song was never used. Under the names Clairo and DJ Baby Benz, she began posting music to Bandcamp while in high school before beginning to post covers and songs in addition to DJ mixes of rap music on SoundCloud. She also maintained a YouTube channel where she would post covers and short films. In 2017, she began attending Syracuse University. Clairo’s “Pretty Girl” was recorded for an indie rock compilation benefiting the Transgender Law Center. According to her, she recorded the track “using the resources around me which were pretty shitty. I used like a little keyboard that I had and I was really into ’80s pop music — my mom is obsessed with it — so it kind of inspired me to do something like that.” The video also became popular on vaporwave-centric Facebook groups. Another video that was uploaded to YouTube a month earlier, “Flamin Hot Cheetos”, garnered 3 million views by July 2018. The success of “Pretty Girl” led to interest from major labels such as Capitol, RCA, and Columbia. Clairo signed a 12-song record contract with Fader Label. According to The New York Times, this was made possible by her father’s connection to Jon Cohen, co-founder of The Fader and an executive at the publication’s marketing agency, Cornerstone. He signed Clairo to the magazine’s associated record label. Clairo is managed by Mike Ahern and Jimmy Bui. “The whole ‘do-it-yourself’ attitude is everything that I’m about. […] I think it’s really important to be genuine and authentic with everything you do.” —Claire Cottrill, 2017 interview with Fader. In October 2017, an article about Clairo was published by Fader, in which she stated that she was most inspired by Brockhampton, and cited their “do-it-yourself ‘attitude'” as her ethos. Some online communities criticized her comments as disingenuous, arguing that her professional career was borne from nepotism, and thus she should not be considered a true DIY musician. They accused her of being an “industry plant”, in other words, an artist who has backing from the music industry to advance or kick-start their careers, but are deceptively presented as an independent start-up. Such discussion appeared mostly on Reddit. One of the widely shared posts lamented that, although the user enjoyed her music and thought she was an “inspiring” songwriter, they could not fathom why none of her articles and interviews acknowledged her father’s significant industry connections. Clairo described the “industry plant” accusation as sexist and denied that there was “a man behind my success”. The Ringer contributor Lindsay Zoladz commented that it would have likely been more difficult for Clairo to get a record contract without her father’s connections, and that “it is impossible to imagine Clairo’s success in a Gen X world, so vital is the internet to her appeal.” On May 25, 2018, Fader Label released Clairo’s debut record, titled Diary 001. In her review for Pitchfork, Fader contributor Sasha Geffen wrote that the EP ought to subside the “legions of naysayers who dismissed her as a one-hit fluke or an industry plant.” By then, “Pretty Girl” had amassed more than 15 million views on YouTube. A piece written by Joe Coscarelli of The New York Times said that the work: “bridges both worlds, building on the coy, understated bedroom pop of ‘Pretty Girl’ and ‘Flamin Hot Cheetos’ toward sturdier numbers like ‘4EVER’ and ‘B.O.M.D.'”. That same month, she announced a headlining tour throughout North America, opening for Dua Lipa on multiple dates. Her July performance at the Bowery Ballroom in New York was a sold-out show. In October 2018, she performed at Lollapalooza. She is scheduled to perform at Coachella 2019. Clairo played Middle of The Map Fest, October, 4 at The Uptown Theatre, 3700 Broadway, KCMO with Snail Mail, Beabadoobee, and Hello Yellow.]
10:58 – Station ID
Terry Pollard
Terry Pollard Quintet – “The More I See You” from: Terry Pollard / Bethlehem Records / March 1, 2015 [orig. 1955] [Terry Pollard (August 15, 1931 – December 16, 2009) was an American jazz pianist and vibraphonist active in the Detroit jazz scene of the 1940s and 1950s. She has been described as a “major player who was inexplicably overlooked.” // Pollard began her career by collaborating with other Detroit musicians, such as Billy Mitchell (and Elvin Jones, in the house band at the Blue Bird Inn), Johnny Hill, and the Emmitt Slay Trio. She was discovered by Terry Gibbs and toured with him in the early 1950s, playing piano and vibraphone. They recorded several albums, including Terry Gibbs Quartet – Featuring Terry Pollard. Pollard appeared with Gibbs on an episode of The Tonight Show hosted by Steve Allen. Her collaborations with Gibbs from 1953 to 1957 marked the height of her career. // Pollard also performed with John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Chet Baker, Nat King Cole, Dinah Washington, Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald. // Pollard recorded a self-titled solo album for Bethlehem Records in 1955 and won DownBeat magazine’s New Artist award in 1956. Pollard retired from her full-time music career shortly thereafter in order to raise a family, but she continued to play locally in Detroit and performed with artists including Diana Ross and the Supremes. She was inducted into the Michigan Jazz Hall of Fame. // Her contributions to the mid-century Detroit jazz scene were recognized in the book Before Motown: A History of Jazz in Detroit 1920-1960, by Lars Bjorn and Jim Gallert.]
Terry Gibbs – “Lonely Dreams” from: Terry Gibbs / Verve / 1955 [Reissued by Verve – UMG / 2001] [Terry Gibbs (born Julius Gubenko; October 13, 1924) is an American jazz vibraphonist and band leader. // He has performed or recorded with Tommy Dorsey, Chubby Jackson, Buddy Rich, Woody Herman, Benny Goodman, Alice Coltrane, Louie Bellson, Charlie Shavers, Mel Tormé, Buddy DeFranco, and others. Gibbs also worked in film and TV studios in Los Angeles.// In the 1950–1951 season, Gibbs was a popular guest on Star Time on the DuMont Television Network. Thereafter, he was a regular in 1953–1954 on NBC’s Judge for Yourself. // In the late 1950s, he appeared on NBC’s The Steve Allen Show, on which he regularly played lively vibraphone duets with the entertainer and composer. In 1997, he appeared on Steve Allen’s 75th Birthday Celebration on PBS. Gibbs was also the bandleader on the short-lived That Regis Philbin Show. As an instrumentalist, together with his big band, the Dream Band, Gibbs has won prestigious polls, such as those of Downbeat and Metronome. // When Gibbs moved from New York to California in 1958 he began planning for his next big band album. In early 1959 he booked extended residencies at two Los Angeles night clubs, the Seville and the Sundown, for what became known as the Dream Band. // The band usually played on a Sunday, Monday or Tuesday night when the cream of Hollywood jazz and studio musicians would be available. The core band always remained stable with Mel Lewis holding down the drum chair. // Some of the key players were lead altoist Joe Maini, tenor saxists Bill Holman and Med Flory, trumpeters Al Porcino and Conte Candoli and trombonists Frank Rosolino and Bob Enevoldsen. // New arrangements were commissioned from Bill Holman, Marty Paich, Med Flory, Manny Albam and Al Cohn, among others, to feature Gibbs’ vibes in front of the band. The band released four albums from 1959 to 1961. // In the mid 1960s, Gibbs opened a music store in Canoga Park, California, with former Benny Goodman drummer Mel Zelnick. Terry Gibbs and Mel Zelnick Music Stop was also the first teaching facility of the drum guru Freddie Gruber[6] and Henry Bellson, brother of Louie.]
Mdou Moctar – “Chismiten” from: Afrique Victime / Matador / May 21, 2021 [From http://www.mdoumoctar.bandcamp.com: With “Afrique Victime” the prodigious Tuareg guitarist and songwriter rips a new hole in the sky – boldly reforging contemporary Saharan music and “rock music” by melding guitar pyrotechnics, full-blast noise, and field recordings with poetic meditations on love, religion, women’s rights, inequality, and Western Africa’s exploitation at the hands of colonial powers. // If “Ilana” was a late ’60s early ’70s ZZ Top and Black Sabbath record – “Afrique Victime” is mid-’70s to early ’80s Van Halen meets Black Flag meets Black Uhuru. The ferocity of Moctar’s electric guitar and the band’s hypnotic rhythm section are on awe-inspiring display “Chismiten” and the mournful yet incandescent title track. Elsewhere, Moctar finds inspiration in highlighting lesser-known facets of the group: “While people have gotten to know Mdou Moctar as a rock band, there is a whole different set of music with this band done on acoustic guitars, which we wanted to incorporate into this album in order to go through a sonic journey,” he says. Mdou pays homage to one of his heroes Abdallah Ag Oumbadagou, the legendary Niger musician and political revolutionary, on songs “Ya Habibti” and “Layla”. “Abdallah was a contemporary of Tinariwen and helped to pioneer the sound of Tuareg guitar music blended with drum machines and electronic sounds”. // “Afrique Victime” sounds and feels like a Tuareg hand reaching down from the sky, and we are very lucky for this chance to get lifted.]
Tinariwen – “Kel Tinawen (feat. Cass McCombs)” rom: Amadjar / Wedge SARL – Anti Records / September 6, 2019 [Tinariwen is a group of Tuareg musicians from the Sahara Desert region of northern Mali. The band was formed in 1979 in Tamanrasset, Algeria, but returned to Mali after a peace accord between 1990 and 1995. The group first started to gain a following outside the Sahara region in 2001 with the release of the album The Radio Tisdas Sessions, and with performances at Festival au Désert in Mali and the Roskilde Festival in Denmark. // Their popularity rose internationally with the release of the critically acclaimed album Aman Iman in 2007. NPR calls the group “music’s true rebels”, AllMusic deems the group’s music “a grassroots voice of rebellion”, and Slate calls the group “rock ‘n’ roll rebels whose rebellion, for once, wasn’t just metaphorical”. // Tinariwen was founded by Ibrahim Ag Alhabib who, at age four witnessed the execution of his father, a Tuareg rebel, during a 1963 uprising in Mali. As a child he saw a western film in which a cowboy played a guitar. Ag Alhabib built his own guitar out of a “plastic water can, a stick and some fishing wire”, according to future bandmate Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni. Ag Alhabib first lived in Algeria in refugee camps near Bordj Badji Mokhtar and in the deserts around the southern city of Tamanrasset, where he was given a guitar from a local Arab man. // Later, Ag Alhabib resided with other Tuareg exiles in Libya and Algeria. He acquired his first real acoustic guitar in 1979. During this period he formed a band with Alhassane Ag Touhami and brothers Inteyeden Ag Ablil and Liya Ag Ablil to play at parties and weddings. While the group had no official name, people began to call them Kel Tinariwen, which in the Tamashek language translates as “The People of the Deserts” or “The Desert Boys.” // In 1980 Libyan ruler Muammar al-Gaddafi put out a decree inviting all young Tuareg men who were living illegally in Libya to receive full military training. Gaddafi dreamed of forming a Saharan regiment, made up of young Tuareg fighters, to further his territorial ambitions in Chad, Niger, and elsewhere. Ag Alhabib and his bandmates answered the call and received nine months of training. During such exercises, the band met additional Tuareg musicians and formed a loosely-organized collective, now known as Tinariwen, to create songs about the issues facing the Tuareg people. They built a makeshift studio and vowed to record music for free for anyone who supplied a blank cassette tape. The resulting homemade cassettes were traded widely throughout the Sahara region. // In 1989 the collective left Libya and moved to Ag Alhabib’s home country of Mali, where he returned to his home village of Tessalit for the first time in 26 years. In 1990 the Tuareg people of Mali revolted against the government, with some members of Tinariwen participating as rebel fighters. After a peace agreement known as the Tamanrasset Accords was reached in January 1991, the musicians left the rebel movement and devoted themselves to music full-time. In 1992 some of the members of Tinariwen went to Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire to record a cassette at JBZ studios. They played occasional gigs for far-flung Tuareg communities throughout the Sahara region, gaining word-of-mouth popularity among the Tuareg people. // In 1998 Tinariwen came to the attention of the French world music ensemble Lo’Jo and their manager Philippe Brix. That group traveled to a music festival in Bamako and met two members of the Tinariwen collective. In 1999, some members of Tinariwen traveled to France and performed with Lo’Jo under the name Azawad. The two groups organized the January 2001 Festival au Désert in Essakane, Mali with Tinariwen as the headliners, and in cooperation with the Belgian Sfinks Festival. Their debut commercial album, The Radio Tisdas Sessions, was recorded by Justin Adams and Jean-Paul Romann at the radio station of the same name in Kidal, Mali (the only Tamashek-speaking station in the region) and released in 2001. It was Tinariwen’s first recording to be released outside of northern Africa. // Since 2001 Tinariwen have toured regularly in Europe, North America, Japan, and Australia. Their 2004 album Amassakoul (“The Traveller” in Tamashek) and the 2007 album Aman Iman (“Water Is Life” in Tamashek) were released worldwide and gained the notice of celebrity fans including Carlos Santana, Robert Plant, Bono and the Edge of U2, Thom Yorke of Radiohead, Chris Martin of Coldplay, Henry Rollins, Brian Eno, and members of TV On The Radio. In 2005, Tinariwen received a BBC Award for World Music, and in 2008, they received Germany’s prestigious Praetorius Music Prize. The band’s 2009 album Imidiwan: Companions was recorded in a mobile studio by Jean-Paul Romann in the village of Tessalit, Mali. The band appeared at Glastonbury in 2009. // Also since 2001 the Tinariwen collective has added several younger Tuareg musicians who did not live through the military conflicts experienced by the older members but have contributed to the collective’s multi-generational evolution. New members include bassist Eyadou Ag Leche, percussionist Said Ag Ayad, guitarist Elaga Ag Hamid, guitarist Abdallah Ag Lamida, and vocalists Wonou Walet Sidati and the Walet Oumar sisters. // In 2010 Tinariwen represented Algeria in the opening ceremony of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, and completed a lengthy American tour. The band released their fifth album Tassili on August 30, 2011. Tassili included guest appearances by Nels Cline, The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, and Tunde Adebimpe and Kyp Malone of TV on the Radio. Ian Brennan was a producer on the album. The album later won the Award for Best World Music Album at the 54th Grammy Awards. In July 2011, the collective set out for a new world tour that included performances at the End of the Road Festival in September and All Tomorrow’s Parties in December. Tinariwen appeared on The Colbert Report on November 29, 2011 with Adebimpe and Malone to play “Tenere Taqqim Tossam” and “Imidiwan Ma Tenam” from Tassili. Group members Ibrahim Ag Alhabib, Alhassane Ag Touhami, and Eyadou Ag Leche participated in a translated interview with Colbert. // In early 2012 there was another Tuareg rebellion in Tinariwen’s home region of northern Mali, with the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) declaring independence and forming the short-lived unrecognized state Azawad. In August 2012, another party in the rebellion, the militant Islamist group Ansar Dine, denounced the presence of popular music in the territory and stated “We do not want Satan’s music. In its place will be Quranic verses. Sharia demands this. What God commands must be done.” Tinariwen was targeted specifically during this campaign. In a January 2013 confrontation, most band members evaded capture, except Abdallah Ag Lamida who was abducted while trying to save his guitars. A few weeks later, Tinariwen reported that Ag Lamida had been released and was “safe and free.” // During Ag Lamida’s captivity, several other members of Tinariwen fled from the conflict and resettled temporarily in the southwestern United States to record their sixth album, Emmaar, with guests including Josh Klinghoffer, Fats Kaplin, Matt Sweeney, and Saul Williams. Recording took place at Joshua Tree National Park in California, which features a desert environment similar to that of Tinariwen’s homeland. Emmaar was released worldwide in February 2014. Tinariwen then embarked on a tour of Europe and North America, but without group leader Ibrahim Ag Alhabib, who decided to remain in Mali to attend to family issues caused by the latest political crisis. Bassist Eyadou Ag Leche assumed the role of musical director, and a new singer/guitarist named Iyad Abderrahmane was recruited to perform Ag Alhabib’s parts during the tour. In 2016, the group returned to Joshua Tree National Park to record their seventh album, Elwan, with additional recording in France and Morocco. The album was released in February 2017 and features guest appearances by Matt Sweeney, Kurt Vile, Mark Lanegan, and Alain Johannes. Tinariwen then embarked on an American tour with Dengue Fever as support. The group also toured Europe and Asia in 2017, and toured Australia, New Zealand, and North America in 2018. // Upon returning from the international tour in support of Elwan in 2018, Tinariwen were unable to return to their home area in northern Mali due to ongoing sectarian violence and threats from Islamist militants. The group instead decamped in Morocco and embarked on a multi-month journey through Western Sahara and Mauritania, collaborating with local musicians at several stops along the way and writing songs while camped out in the desert. Their eighth full-length album Amadjar was recorded outdoors with mobile equipment near Nouakchott and was released on September 6, 2019. Amadjar features guest appearances by Noura Mint Seymali, Micah Nelson, Cass McCombs, Stephen O’Malley, Warren Ellis, and Rodolphe Burger. // The Tinariwen sound is primarily guitar-driven in the style known as assouf among the Tuareg people. The Tinariwen guitar style has its roots in West African music and other traditional styles practiced by the Tuareg and Berber peoples, and has often been categorized as “desert blues”. Tinariwen was also influenced by traditional Malian musicians, most notably Ali Farka Touré, and regional pop singers like Rabah Driassa. While the Tinariwen style is possibly a distant relative of blues music, via West African music, members of Tinariwen claim to have never heard actual American blues music until they began to travel internationally in the early 2000s. Tinariwen was also influenced by American and British rock bands whose bootlegged albums had made it to the Sahara region, such as Dire Straits, Santana, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan, and Jimi Hendrix. // Tinariwen has been named as a formative influence on a growing Tuareg rock scene, made up of younger musicians who were not rebels like the members of Tinariwen but have experienced their region’s recent struggles with poverty and terrorism. The band Imarhan is led by Sadam Iyad Moussa Ben Abderamane, who has collaborated with Tinariwen and is the nephew of longtime Tinariwen bassist Eyadu ag Leche. Kel Assouf and Tamikrest have also gained notice as younger Tuareg rock bands that cite Tinariwen as a fundamental influence. // Tinariwen is a collective of singers, songwriters, and musicians who come together in different combinations to play concerts and to record. This is because of the nomadic lifestyle of the Tuareg people and the difficulties of transportation and communication in the Sahara region. The group has never brought exactly the same line-up on its international tours, though several members tour regularly. // One of the group’s founder members, Inteyeden Ag Ablil (brother of guitarist Liya Ag Ablil) died of a virus in the desert in 1994, and singer Wonou Walet Oumar (sister of former lead vocalist Mina Walet Oumar; not directly related to another former member, Wonou Walet Sidati) died of a kidney infection in 2005.]
Gabor Szabo – “Fire Dance” from: Dreams / Fresh Sound Records / March 1969 [Reissued by Ebalunga 2021] [Dreams is an album by Hungarian guitarist Gábor Szabó featuring performances recorded in 1968 and released on the Skye label. The design was made by David Stahlberg, and features artwork by English illustrator John Austen entitled “Vision.” // Gábor István Szabó (March 8, 1936 – February 26, 1982) was a Hungarian American guitarist whose style incorporated jazz, pop, rock, and Hungarian music. // Szabó was born in Budapest, Hungary. He began playing guitar at the age of 14. In the aftermath of the Hungarian revolution of 1956, he moved to California and later attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston between 1958 and 1960. // In 1961, Szabó became member of a quintet that was led by Chico Hamilton and included Charles Lloyd, playing what has been described as chamber jazz, with “a moderate avant-gardism.” Szabó was influenced by the rock music of the 1960s, particularly the use of feedback. In 1965 he was in a jazz pop group led by Gary McFarland, then worked again with Lloyd in an energetic quartet with Ron Carter and Tony Williams. The song “Gypsy Queen” from Szabó’s debut solo album Spellbinder became a hit for rock guitarist Carlos Santana. During the late 1960s, Szabó worked in a group with guitarist Jimmy Stewart. He started the label Skye Records with McFarland and Cal Tjader. // Szabó continued to be drawn to more popular, commercial music in the 1970s. He performed often in California, combining elements of Gypsy & Indian music with jazz. He returned often to his home country of Hungary to perform, and it was there that he died just short of his 46th birthday. // On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Gábor Szabó among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire. // While visiting family in Budapest during the Christmas holiday, Szabó was admitted to the hospital and finally succumbed to the liver and kidney ailments he suffered from and died on Feb. 26, 1982. He was buried in Farkasréti Cemetery.]
Laura Mvula
Laura Mvula – “Got Me” from: Sharecropper’s Son / Easy Eye Sound / May 21, 2021 [Laura Mvula (née Douglas; born April 23, 1986) is a British recording artist, songwriter and composer. A native of Birmingham, Mvula has gained experience as a young member or leader of a cappella, jazz/neo-soul, and gospel groups and choirs. She was classically trained. In 2012, she signed with RCA Records and released extended play, She, to critical acclaim. // Mvula released her debut studio album, Sing to the Moon (2013), to favorable reviews, earning two MOBO awards and a Mercury Prize nomination. In 2014, orchestral re-recording with the Metropole Orkest was released. Her second album, The Dreaming Room (2016), was received to critical acclaim, won the Ivor Novello award and garnered a Mercury Prize nomination as well. Mvula then wrote the music for 2017 theatre production of Antony & Cleopatra by the Royal Shakespeare Company. While working on her third album, she released the 1/f EP in February 2021. // In 2018, Mvula received an honorary doctorate of music from her alma mater, Birmingham City University. // Laura Mvula grew up in the Birmingham suburbs of Selly Park and Kings Heath with two younger siblings. Her mother is a humanities professor and is from Saint Kitts. Her father is from Jamaica and is a youth legal protection educator. She took up piano and violin at primary school and later attended Swanshurst School for girls. In her teens, she sang with Black Voices, an a cappella group set up by her aunt Carol Pemberton; in 2005 they toured Italy and other countries. In 2008, Mvula formed a jazz/neo-soul group called Judyshouse, singing lead vocals and writing material for the band. She was Director of the Lichfield Community Gospel Choir, founded by Black Voices and Lichfield Festival in 2009. She has also previously directed the Alvechurch Community Choir in Alvechurch. // In 2008 Mvula graduated from Royal Birmingham Conservatoire with a degree in composition. She worked as a supply music teacher, and later as a receptionist for the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, when she began to write songs. Her sketches caught the attention of composer Steve Brown, and his manager, Kwame Kwaten, who also became Mvula’s manager. In a 2013 podcast for The Daily Telegraph, she admitted to suffering from “crippling stage fright”. // In May 2012, after several showcases, Laura Mvula was signed by Colin Barlow to Sony subsidiary RCA. She released her debut extended play, She, on November 16, 2012. The title track is the first song she ever wrote. On December 6, she was shortlisted for the Critics’ Choice award at the 2013 BRIT Awards. On December 9, she was nominated for the BBC’s Sound of 2013 poll and later finished in fourth position. On February 1, 2013, she gave her first live TV performance on The Graham Norton Show on BBC One, singing “Green Garden”. // Her debut studio album, Sing to the Moon, was released on March 4, 2013. She worked on the album with producer Steve Brown and mix engineer Tom Elmhirst. It was preceded by the single “Green Garden”, an elegy to her home in Kings Heath. Paul Lester from The Guardian described her music as “gospeldelia”, calling it a new musical genre. The album was met with a largely positive reception, receiving a perfect score from The Independent, and 3.5/5 from Rolling Stone. It reached number 9 on the UK Albums Chart and within the top 100 in seven other countries, and reached 173 on the US Billboard 200. // Mvula won awards for Best Female Act and Best R&B or Soul Artist at the 2013 MOBO awards, which took place in October. She was also nominated for two Brit awards, Sing to the Moon was shortlisted for a Mercury Prize, and during 2013–14, she garnered over a dozen award-nominations in different categories altogether. The same year, she recorded a cover of the popular 1935’s song “Little Girl Blue”, which ended up being part of original soundtrack for the 2013 acclaimed film 12 Years A Slave. The track was produced by Troy Miller as their first collaboration. // In March 2014, the artist re-recorded an orchestral version of her debut album in collaboration with the Metropole Orkest and conducted by Jules Buckley. This was released on June 23 as a high quality download via Bowers & Wilkins’ Society of Sound and on CD on 11 August. On August 19, she performed with the Metropole Orkest at the Albert Hall as a part of the 2014 BBC Proms Season, supported by Esperanza Spalding and ElectricVocals. // In July 2015, Mvula performed with fifty musicians of the Metropole Orkest at the North Sea Jazz Festival, one of the biggest indoor jazz festivals in the world. The same year, she recorded a track “You Work For Me”; director Guy Ritchie chose it as a part of soundtrack for his 2015 film The Man From U.N.C.L.E., the song’s clip was also used in the US trailer of the movie. // In January 2016, Mvula released “Overcome”, a collaboration with Nile Rodgers, and the lead single from her forthcoming second studio album, The Dreaming Room. She recorded “Sing to the Moon” with Snarky Puppy for their jazz fusion album Family Dinner – Volume 2, which was released on February 12. She began promotion for The Dreaming Room by performing “Overcome” on The Graham Norton Show on 29 January and on The Andrew Marr Show on February 14. On March 19, Mvula played the first live show of the album at the Jazz Maastricht Festival. On 22 March, she previewed the entire album at the Islington Assembly Hall. On 7 April, the singer released “People” from the album, a collaboration with Wretch 32. On April 19, she released the second single from The Dreaming Room, “Phenomenal Woman”. The third single, “Show Me Love”, was released on 27 May. // The Dreaming Room was released on June 17, 2016, and received universal acclaim from music critics. Writing for Exclaim!, Ryan B. Patrick gave the album a rave review, calling it “a subconscious succession of visuals, emotions and ideas – sometimes abstract, sometimes allegorical, but always dredging up something for the conscious mind to ponder. The Dreaming Room is this and more.”. This album is more political than her first; the sound, the orchestration and the rhythms more explicitly refer to her Jamaican and Caribbean influences. The song “Phenomenal Woman” is a happy feminist hymn, inspired by the book of poems of the same title by African-American writer and activist Maya Angelou. The Dreaming Room was produced with Troy Miller and the instrumental crew of The London Symphony Orchestra. In the same June, the singer performed on the Glastonbury Pyramid stage for a second time. In July, she performed with Tom Odell in the first UK event for “Global Citizen” and “Chime For Change”, at The View from The Shard in London. The evening followed the launch of #SheWill campaign, aimed at breaking down the barriers that prevent millions of girls worldwide from attending school. On October 30, she appeared on BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing singing her fourth single “Ready or Not”, the cover of The Delfonics’ song, which was released on 4 November. The song was used in 2016 Christmas campaign of House of Fraser. // The album was shortlisted for the 2016 Mercury Prize among others, and in May 2017, won the Ivor Novello award. Mvula was also nominated for four MOBO awards. In January 2017, the artist revealed that she had been dropped by Sony. She composed the music for the 2017 Royal Shakespeare Company production of Antony and Cleopatra, which opened at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon in March and later transferred to the Barbican Centre in November. In April, she presented a Woman’s Hour documentary discussing anxiety. // In April 2018, she performed “I Put a Spell on You” as part of BBC One’s The Queen’s Birthday Party from the Royal Albert Hall in London. The same year, Mvula and Buika were invited by Carlos Santana to collaborate on his band’s album Africa Speaks. // Mvula’s “Sing to the Moon” was performed at the 2019 BBC Last Night of The Proms. In that year, she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by her alma mater, Birmingham City University, for her services to music. // In February 2021, Laura Mvula announced the pending release of new music and a livestream concert on February 24, 2021, titled “Under a Pink Moon”. During the live stream, she premiered four new songs taken from her forthcoming album due to be released by Atlantic Records in 2021. The new songs were “Safe Passage”, “Conditional”, “What Matters” featuring Simon Neil of Biffy Clyro, and “Church Girl”. New versions of the songs “Green Garden”, “Show Me Love” and “Sing to the Moon” were also performed, which are included on the 1/f EP released the next day. Both Elisa Bray of iNews and Sylvia Unerman of The Upcoming gave the concert five stars 5/5. // The EP released on February 25 includes also a cover of Diana Ross’ 1971 hit “I’m Still Waiting”. As wrote Nick Levine of BBC America, this mini-album is a “heartening musical comeback” and “showcases an intriguing new direction: Mvula’s music is still soulful, but now has balmy ’80s beats underpinning her lush melodies. […] it’s a mouthwatering start to her second chapter”. Pitchfork’s Jessica Kariisa pointed out “daring musicianship”. // March 3, Mvula released the single “Safe Passage” alongside a video. The second single, “Church Girl”, was released on 17 March with details about Mvula’s third album, Pink Noise, which was released on 2 July. “Got Me”, the third single, was released on May 12. // When Mvula was a (very) young girl, her great desire was to be a member of the R&B girl group Eternal. In 2013, she said: “I think that is when I really started to pay attention to singing in a different way to the way we did in church”. Together with her siblings and encouraged by parents, who personally favored jazz and traditional gospel, she performed using their garage as a dance studio. // She stated her influences include Nina Simone, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, Des’ree, Omar, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Ella Fitzgerald, The Jackson 5, and Diana Ross.]
11:30 – Marion Merritt thanks for being out Guest Producer on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
Marion is the creator of Records With Merritt, a small, independent, minority owned business, at 1614 Westport Rd. in KCMO. More info at: http://www.recordswithmerritt.com
Marion Merritt will be back with us in two weeks for our show #901 all about 90.1 with 9 guests who all make radio happen at 90.1 FM KKFI.
11:30 – Underwriting
Jairy
10:32 – Interview with Jared Bajkowski
KC native, bass player for Momma’s Boy, producer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jared Bajkowski about his pop music project Jairy. The music of Jairy explores dissociation, hallucinations, sexuality and the despair of living in a capital-driven world via smooth, sassy & theatrical 1970s & 1980s inspired pop sounds. Jairy released “Into the Morning,” in early 2020, offering a maximalist and melodramatic pop debut just before the pandemic went into full effect. Ironically, the song deals with coming out of hiding, but the rest of the year would see Jairy and the world lying low and working in the studio recording new music, including Jairy’s new single, “Pool Floors featuring: Momma’s Boy band mate Peter Beatty a.k.a. R.I.Peter and Manor Records label-mate Catty Cline. The single will be released Friday July 30, 2021. Info: http://www.manorrecords.com or http://www.jairy.bandcamp.com
Jared Bajkowski thanks for being with us on WMM.
Jairy is the pop project of Kansas City-native Jared Bajkowski, acting as producer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. The music of Jairy explores dissociation, hallucinations, sexuality and the despair of living in a capital-driven world via smooth, sassy and theatrical 70s- and 80s-inspired pop sounds.
Jairy “Pool Floors” Single Release Show @ Deep Space Co-op, 1664 Broadway Blvd, Kansas City, MO, Friday, July 30 PREMIERE PARTY – Pool Themed – Doors at 7:30 PM Music at 8:30 PM. Food, Drinks and More! AND Saturday, July 31, with Paris Williams, R.I.Peter, FACEFACE, Pale Tongue, Jairy with R.I.Peter & Catty Cline and the Jairy Band. Doors at 7:00 PM and music at 8:00 PM. http://www.jairy.land/merch/p/advance-ticket-pool-floors-single-release-show
The single delivers a one-two punch of atmospheric, Collins-esque introspection and a saccharine, ear-catching chorus that is perfect for basking in the sun near any body of water. The single will be released Friday July 30, 2021. Info: http://www.manorrecords.com or http://www.jairy.bandcamp.com
11:38
Jairy – “Pool Floors (feat: R.I.Peter & Catty Cline)” from: Pool Floors (feat: R.I.Peter & Catty Cline)” – Single / Manor Records / July 30, 2021 [Jairy is the pop-focused solo project of Jared Bajkowski, bass player of KC indie outfit Momma’s Boy. The music of Jairy explores dissociation, romance, hallucinations, sexuality and the despair of living in a capital-driven world via smooth, sassy and theatrical 70s- and 80s-inspired pop sounds. Jairy released “Into the Morning,” January 27, 2020 Info: http://www.manorrecords.com or http://www.jairy.bandcamp.com]
[Jairy “Pool Floors” Single Release Show @ Deep Space Co-op, 1664 Broadway Blvd, Kansas City, MO, Friday, July 30 PREMIERE PARTY – Pool Themed – Doors at 7:30 PM Music at 8:30 PM. Food, Drinks and More! AND Saturday, July 31, with Paris Williams, R.I.Peter, FACEFACE, Pale Tongue, Jairy with R.I.Peter & Catty Cline and the Jairy Band. Doors at 7:00 PM and music at 8:00 PM. Tickets are $10.00 in advance / $15.00 at door. http://www.jairy.land/merch/p/advance-ticket-pool-floors-single-release-show%5D
Jared Baykowski
10:43 – More Interview with Jared Bajkowski
We are talking with KC native, bass player for Momma’s Boy, producer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jared Bajkowski about his pop music project Jair. The music of Jairy explores dissociation, hallucinations, sexuality and the despair of living in a capital-driven world via smooth, sassy & theatrical 1970s & 1980s inspired pop sounds. The single will be released Friday July 30, 2021.
In early 2020 Jared Bajkowski’s musical project Jairy, released the single, “Into The Morning” through Manor Records. “Into The Morning” was produced by Ross Brown.
Jairy released “Into the Morning,” in early 2020, offering a maximalist and melodramatic pop debut just before the pandemic went into full effect. Ironically, the song deals with coming out of hiding, but the rest of the year would see him and the world lying low and working on recording new material, including the 2021 summer single, “Pool Floors (feat. R.I.Peter & Catty Cline)”, working alongside Momma’s Boy bandmate Peter Beatty a.k.a. R.I.Peter and Manor Records label-mate Catty Cline.
For the past 5 years Jared has played bass and sand lead on a few songs in the Kansas City based band, Momma’s Boy. Entering the world of music as a bass player (as seen in the KC indie outfit Momma’s Boy), Jairy’s music is groove-inducing and always seeks to get the body moving.
Jared Bajkowski is Senior UX Designer at H&R Block
Jared Bajkowski Studied Entrepreneurship at Missouri State University
Jared Bajkowski lives in Kansas City, Missouri
Jared Bajkowski is from Lee’s Summit, Missouri
Jared Bajkowski thanks for being with us on WMM.
Jairy’s new single, “Pool Floors featuring: Momma’s Boy band mate Peter Beatty a.k.a. R.I.Peter and Manor Records label-mate Catty Cline. The single will be released Friday July 30, 2021. Jairy “Pool Floors” Single Release Show @ Deep Space Co-op, 1664 Broadway Blvd, Kansas City, MO, Friday, July 30 PREMIERE PARTY – Pool Themed – Doors at 7:30 PM <iusicat 8:30 PM. Food, Drinks and More! AND Saturday, July 31, with Paris Williams, R.I.Peter, FACEFACE, Pale Tongue, Jairy with R.I.Peter & Catty Cline and the Jairy Band. Doors at 7:00 PM and music at 8:00 PM. Info: http://www.manorrecords.com or http://www.jairy.bandcamp.com
For WMM, and Jairy, I’m Mark Manning. Thanks for listening!
11:55
Jairy – “Into The Morning” from: Into The Morning / Manor Records / January 27, 2020 [Jairy is the pop-focused solo project of Jared Bajkowski, bass player of KC indie outfit Momma’s Boy. The music of Jairy explores dissociation, romance, hallucinations, sexuality and the despair of living in a capital-driven world via smooth, sassy and theatrical 70s- and 80s-inspired pop sounds.]
[Jairy “Pool Floors” Single Release Show @ Deep Space Co-op, 1664 Broadway Blvd, Kansas City, MO, Friday, July 30 PREMIERE PARTY – Pool Themed – Doors at 7:30 PM <iusicat 8:30 PM. Food, Drinks and More! AND Saturday, July 31, with Paris Williams, R.I.Peter, FACEFACE, Pale Tongue, Jairy with R.I.Peter & Catty Cline and the Jairy Band. Doors at 7:00 PM and music at 8:00 PM. Tickets are $10.00 in advance / $15.00 at door. http://www.jairy.land/merch/p/advance-ticket-pool-floors-single-release-show%5D
Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now” from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]
Wednesday MidDay Medley Celebrates 900 Shows!
Next week on WMM, on July 28, WMM presents our 900th show and we welcome back some of our Most Favorite Musical Guests: Calvin Arsenia, Krystle Warren, Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear and Ivory Blue
AND…In two weeks on August 4, we bring you our 901st show with 9 special guests who all help KKFI 90.1 keep going! These nine guests will tell stories about 90.1 FM that have never been spoken on the radio before. KKFI Guests include: Tom Crane, Judy Ancel, Barry Lee, Dorothy Hawkins, Marion Merritt, Maria Vasquez Boyd, Ebony Johnson, Catina Taylor and Leslie Pories.
Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information. Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org
Wednesday MidDay Medley Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning 90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
Wednesday, July 21, 2021
Spinning Records With Marion Merritt + A Visit with Jairy
Marion Merritt
Mark welcomes Marion Merritt, of Records With Merritt, who joins us as “Guest Producer” to share sonic discoveries and information from her musically-encyclopedic-brain. Records With Merritt is located at 1614 Westport Road, KCMO. More info at: http://www.recordswithmerritt.com.
Roberta Flack
Marion will play tracks from: Roberta Flack, Amythyst Kiah, Shabaka and the Ancestors, Terry Pollard Quintet, Female Species, Marcos Valle, Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Clairo, Sons of Kemet, Rhiannon Giddens, Terry Gibbs, Mdou Moctor, Tinariwen, Gabor Szabo, and Laura Mvula.
Jairy
At 11:30 Mark talks with KC native, bass player for Momma’s Boy, producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Jared Bajkowski about his pop music project Jairy. The music of Jairy explores dissociation, hallucinations, sexuality, and the despair of living in a capital-driven world via smooth, sassy & theatrical 1970s & 1980s inspired pop sounds. Jairy released “Into the Morning,” in early 2020, offering a maximalist and melodramatic pop debut just before the pandemic went into full effect. Ironically, the song deals with coming out of hiding, but the rest of the year would see Jairy and the world lying low and working in the studio recording new music, including Jairy’s new single, “Pool Floors” (featuring: Momma’s Boy band-mate Peter Beatty a.k.a. R.I.Peter and Manor Records label-mate Catty Cline.) The single will be released Friday July 30, 2021 on Manor Records. Info: http://www.manorrecords.com or http://www.jairy.bandcamp.com
On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org
Wednesday MidDay Medley Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning 90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org
Wednesday, July 14, 2021
Kian Byrne + Redder Moon + pure xtc + Stacy Busch
“Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks” from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979 [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]
Monta At Odds
Monta At Odds – “Other Side of Yesterday (feat. Your Friend)” from: Other Side of Yesterday (feat. Your Friend) – Single / The Record Machine / June 11, 2021 [This is the third single from Monta At Odds upcoming new album, PEAK OF EYERNAL LIGHT due on July 24, 2021, through The Record Machine. For this song, the Kansas City-based band once again collaborated with Taryn Blake Miller, AKA Domino Record Co. artist Your Friend. Follow up single to the Republic Tigers remix of Monta At Odds’ “When I’m Gone” with Kenn Jankowski joining with Teri Quinn on vocals. The two bands are label mates on The Record Machine. Band leader Dedric Moore tells us that after this album Teri Quinn is leaving the band and Kenn Jankowski is joining the band. Monta At Odds released the single, “When I’m Gone. (feat. Teri Quinn)” on March 5, 2021. Monta At Odds has traced its adventure from its inception to vocalist Teri Quinn’s addition to their sleek, indie-Tronic cascade of the band’s latest recording. An electric drum punch and layers of buzzing synths anchor Quinn’s pleading words, depositing the fact that “we both know you’ll feel better when I’m gone.” It’s the hard choice of ending a relationship and hanging on for dear life. // Monta At Odds is a Kansas City combo led by the brothers Dedric and Delaney Moore. The two have played music together all their lives and have been exploring the Monta At Odds sound since the band’s debut in 2000. Dedric’s pulsing, melodic bass and Delaney’s artfully unhinged synthesizers frame the band’s central character, which is fleshed out by a talented cast of musicians and collaborators. The result is a heady sonic pool that has been inscrutably referred to as ‘Ummagumma meets Arthur Russell’s mutant disco at Vangelis’s house.’ // 2020 finds the addition of acclaimed vocalists, guitarists, and songwriters Mikal Shapiro and Teri Quinn to the band’s lineup. With Mikal and Teri’s otherworldly vocal contributions, Monta At Odds continues to push their alternate reality into streamlined consciousness. Lucas Behrens on guitar and synth and Matthew Heinrich on drums both rounds out the stellar lineup. The group released Zen Diagram in May of 2020 as a more post-punk leaning follow-up to Argentum Dreams. Expect minimal rhythms set to maximum noise, shoegazed guitar signals, slo-mo psychedelic darkwave, endless dub echo, and extended-cut warped disco. Live musicians manipulating time and space via knob turning, cymbal cracking, and pedal pushing as they interlock into hypnotic moments of heavenly bliss that seem to hold forever, captivating the mind. // This single is a follow-up to the December 18, 2020 released A GREAT CONJUNCTION their 5-song EP released just in to coincide with the ‘double-planet’ convergence of Jupiter and Saturn on December 21 which last occurred in 1226. These tunes form a soundtrack to the planetary event, five songs linked together by the vastness of space and as a meditation on our infinitesimal place in the universe. The EP featured Krystof Nemeth, Teri Quinn, Alexander Thomas, Dedric Moore and Matthew Heinrich. Monta At Odds released their 4-song EP Zen Diagram last year on May 1, 2020. Monta At Odd’s seventh full-length album, Peak of Eternal Light, is to be released in 2021 on The Record Machine. In late 2020 Monta At Odds released the single “When Stars Grow Old.” Monta At Odds released their 6th full length album Argentum Dreams on Oct 19, 2018. More info at: http://www.facebook.com/montaatodds%5D
[Monta At Odds play a PEAK OF ETERNAL LIGHT – Album Release Concert at recordBar, 1520 Grand Blvd., KCMO, on Friday, August. 20, with Emmaline Twist. The evening ends with a New Order Tribute Set. Doors at 7:00 PM, Show at 8:00 PM. http://www.therecordbar.com ]
Lava Dreams – “Galaxies” from: “You’re The One” – Single / R.I.O.T. LLC / July 9, 2021 [“Galaxies,” is the 5th single from Lava dreams full-length, self-titled debut album, released exclusively on Youtube on June 25, 2021 and features a music visualizer, seen here: https://youtu.be/0VSjokOCQGk.. More info at: linktr.ee/lavadreams. Solo artist Lava Dreams aka Julia Hamilton writes songs influenced by pop, soul, RnB, jazz, trap, house, funk, reggae, rock, and world music. Lava Dreams is planning to release an 11-song album later this year and will be releasing a new single every month leading up to the release. This is one of several single we’ve played. “Simple Magic” released April 30 as a video, “Surprise!” was released on March 26, “You’re The One” released February 26, and “The Amazing Wave” released Jan./ 8, 2021 through R.I.O.T. LLC Music and produced by Duncan Burnett. Lava Dreams released their debut EP “Good Energy + Focus” on June 13, 2020. Written by Lava Dreams and produced by Duncan Burnett. Lava Dreams aka Julia Hamilton is from Kansas City, MO, her guitar-based music is both dreamy & electric. Lava Dreams began writing lyrics and melodies as a young child. Growing up, she learned to play her first guitar chords from her father – who played around the house and in local bars. After playing guitar & singing in several KC bands as a teenager, she set out to become a solo artist in 2018. Julia Hamilton is also a filmmaker who received her Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Film from Avila Unversity. http://www.LavaDreamsMusic.com]
Stacy Busch
Stacy Busch – “Breathe Deeply” from: “When/Time” / Stacy Busch / (Unreleased) [“When/Time” was presented in Charlotte Street Foundation’s Black Box Theater, 3333 Wyoming St., KCMO, on June 25 & 26, 2021. Busch was named a 2020 Charlotte Street Foundation Generative Performing Artist. This project, intended for 2020, was delayed due to the pandemic. “When/Time,” will now go on tours to health centers, behavioral health/addiction centers, and schools.. “What is certain is that Busch is an important emerging compositional voice, fearless in its vulnerability, and able to pull disparate musical genres into a cohesive whole without artifice.” -KC METROPOLIS. Stacy Busch is a composer and performer. Her concerts and productions are designed to be provocative yet accessible in order to cultivate broader artistic interest and, in particular, reach under-served and/or misrepresented communities. Stacy is the founder and president of No Divide KC, an arts and social justice non-profit that creates artistic events for social causes. Artistically, her work deals with internal conflicts that are often taken abstractly from her personal experiences with addiction and bipolar disorder. These experiences of duality both in the mind and body are universal and her work expresses this underlying human vulnerability. Stacy’s work has been performed nationally as well as in France and Iceland. In 2020, Stacy’s non-profit No Divide KC is producd the 1st Annual Queer Narratives Festival. Also in 2020 Stacy worked on composing the new music and theater production, When/Time in partnership with Charlotte Street Foundation. COVID-19 has changed the dated of this performance. Stacy also has collaborative projects in the works with The Mid America Freedom Band. Recently, Stacy released a new project and subsequent album, titled Mass, which she premiered at MTH Theater. Stacy has performed at Splice Electroacoustic Music Festival, she scored the documentary “The Ordinance Project” which premiered at the Kansas City LGBTQ Film festival, she partnered with Gilda’s Club KC, Owen/Cox Dance Group and Charlotte Street Foundation to compose and perform the music for “Collective: Our Stories of Cancer,” other service with No Divide KC includes partnerships with the Kansas City Ballet School and the Johnson County Library. In addition to Kansas City, Stacy’s work has been featured at the University of Colorado-Boulder, UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance, Western Michigan University and Central Michigan University. It has also been performed by ensembles including: loadbang, Bent Frequency and the Beo String Quartet. She is a 2020 Charlotte Street Foundation Generative Performing Artist Fellow. Stacy has received grants from ArtsKC, ArtSounds, Charlotte Street Foundation and the UMKC Women’s Council. Stacy received her MM In composition from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and her BM in composition from Western Michigan University. Her teachers include Rome Prize winners Paul Rudy and James Mobberley as well as Pulitzer Prize winners Zhou Long and Chen Yi. Other influential teachers include Guggenheim Fellow Curtis Curtis-Smith, Christopher Biggs and Lisa Coons. Prior to studying music, Stacy studied print journalism at Boston University.]
Stacy Busch
10:15 – Interview with Stacy Busch
Composer & Performing Artist Stacy Busch shares details about the 2nd Annual Queer Narratives Festival, August 2-7 2021 at The Black Box 1060 Union Ave, West Bottoms, KCMO, with workshops, talk backs, & open mics. We’ll also talk with Stacy about her recent production “When/Time,” presented in Charlotte Street Foundation‘s Black Box Theater, 3333 Wyoming St. KCMO, on June 25 & 26, 2021. Busch was named a 2020 Charlotte Street Foundation Generative Performing Artist. This project, intended for 2020, was delayed due to the pandemic. Stacy will share details about the future of “When/Time,” which includes touring to health centers, behavioral health/addiction centers, and schools. Info at: http://www.nodividekc.org
Stacy Busch, thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
Kansas City nonprofit organization, No Divide KC is presenting the second annual Queer Narratives festival to be held August 2 – 7, 2021 at The Black Box in the West Bottoms will highlight performing and visual artists of various backgrounds. The week-long festival.
Recently Stacy Busch recently produced: When / Time on June 25-27, 2021 at Charlotte Street Foundation in their Black Box Theatre
“WHEN/TIME” OFFERS A NEWER, FUNNIER AND FULLER VIEW OF ADDICTION.
“When/Time” is a new music with theatre performance. The performance is a coming of age journey that weaves together individual stories of young people dealing with addiction. The project’s titular phrase comes from the overarching question that is examined, “When is it time to…?” Each character is pressed with variations of this question like, “When is it time to speak up, act or stay silent?” The characters are tied through this conceptual question as well as through a 12-Step meeting they all attend. The portrayals of 12-Step programs and those who participate in them are primary goals for this project. Composer Stacy Busch says, “I got sober when I was 22 through 12-Step programs and have spent the last 8 years in these spaces. Stigma and misinterpretation of addiction – particularly the portrayals in film, TV and performance – are especially harmful because they can have a more significant impact on young people. These reductive portrayals that are overly dramatic and heavy-handed firmly implant in young people’s minds that addiction is the end of the road. The ‘degenerate’ stereotype is almost impossible to break down and we are losing lives because of it.” In addition to the premiere, the performance will travel to treatment centers, schools and halfway houses. The project follows the characters in more depth on the online vlog created to reach a wider audience of young people.
Created/Composed by Stacy Busch Written/Directed by Kalli Siringas Choreographer by Kyle Mullins Musicians: Stacy Busch, J.J. Pearse, Sascha Groschang Actors: Casey Jane, Christopher Lion, Courtney Hittle
Supported by: Charlotte Street Foundation, Francis Family Foundation, Martha Lee Cain Tranby Music Enrichment Fund, Neighborhood Tourist Development Fund and ArtsKC
“When/Time” Review by Libby Hanssen for KCSTUDIO – June 30, 2021:
There’s a lot of music out there about drinking, but how much about the hard journey to sobriety and healing? Composer and performing artist Stacy Busch took on that challenge in the premiere performance of “When/Time,” presented in the Charlotte Street Foundation Black Box Theater Friday evening, one of the first performances in their new space at 3333 Wyoming Street.
Busch was named a 2020 Charlotte Street Foundation Generative Performing Artist. This project, intended for 2020, was delayed due to the pandemic. With three actors and three musicians, the presentation was an amalgam of concert and theater performance, in the façade of an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. The work was written and directed by Kalli Siringas.
A semicircle of chairs and a coffee pot set up on a folding table in the back corner were the set, with a permeable fourth wall. At the start, Busch wandered into the room, turning to the audience: “I see we have a lot of newcomers.”
Busch, herself nearly nine years sober, is a proud proponent of sobriety and attributes much of her success to the relationships she’s developed in her journey to get there.
I see this presentation as not the culmination of the project, but the first step in something bigger, built around new songs and a handful of retooled ones.
Busch has a singular, mesmerizing musical style and is an exquisite beat maker, with an inquisitive ear and astute facility with a complicated synth set up of keyboard, percussion, voice, and computer. And she neatly integrates this lush soundscape with acoustic instruments, too. Busch vocalizes in many of her works, modulating her voice from deep and monstrous to Mickey Mouse-ish, and creates loops from phrases, stripped to their core consonant, or breathes, layered into ambient wash or brittle percussive effects.
Billed as “a newer, funnier, and fuller view of addiction,” the work did have bits of humor, but the overall emotion was anxiety. The characters, as three AA attendees, shared some of their story and struggles in emotionally agitated monologue, then moved through various abstract, anxiety-laden gestures during the musical works. Kyle Mullins choreographed.
Christopher Lion, Casey Jane, Courtney Hittle gave sympathizing performances as the attendees, with Busch, cellist Sascha Groschang and percussionist J.J. Pearse as attendee characters, too, albeit ones who periodically played instruments and sang during the meeting. Busch mixes melody and spoken word, leaning nearly into rap (coming powerfully and unexpectedly from Hittle), though from time to time issues in the mix subdued the power of the text within the texture.
We got to know why the characters where there and what demons they faced, but there wasn’t much opportunity for character arc, just a character meet-and-greet. It ended on a musically hopeful tone, but we’re not sure if the characters end up there, too.
The audience section of the theater was nearly full, roughly 100 people, but this work has a potential to appeal to a wider population, hopefully reaching more people to explain and empathize with those battling addiction, the various paths that lead them to it, and the challenges they face in starting in a new direction.
Reviewed June 25, 2021, with a repeat performance June 26. From more information visit http://www.stacybusch.com.
Stacy Busch is founder off No Divide KC who are also producing”
Come As You Are: Vulnerability in the Concert Space, September 10, 2021 at St, Mary’s Episcopal Church.
No Divide KC uses the arts as a vehicle for stimulating social awareness, participation and community building. No Divide KC partners with Kansas City-based artists and organizations to create artistic events that are focused on the stories of underserved and misrepresented communities in Kansas City. From http://www.nodividekc.org:
Stacy’s work has been performed nationally and in France and Iceland. The Mid America Freedom Band is premiered her double concerto piece for two drag queens. No Divide KC is produced “Stories from Under the Stars” a storytelling event focusing on homelessness in Kansas City as well as the 1st Annual Queer Narratives Festival.
Stacy released the project and album, titled Mass, which she premiered at MTH Theater. She performed at Splice Electroacoustic Music Festival, she scored the documentary “The Ordinance Project” which premiered at the Kansas City LGBTQ Film festival, she partnered with Gilda’s Club KC, Owen/Cox Dance Group and Charlotte Street Foundation to compose and perform the music for “Collective: Our Stories of Cancer,” other service with No Divide KC includes partnerships with the Kansas City Ballet School and the Johnson County Library.
In addition to Kansas City, Stacy’s work has been featured at the University of Colorado-Boulder, University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance, Western Michigan University and Central Michigan University. It has also been performed by ensembles including: loadbang, Bent Frequency and the Beo String Quartet.
She is a 2020 Charlotte Street Foundation Generative Performing Artist Fellow. Stacy has received grants from ArtsKC, ArtSounds, Charlotte Street Foundation and the UMKC Women’s Council. Stacy received her MM in composition from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and her BM in composition from Western Michigan University.
Stacy’s teachers include Rome Prize winners Paul Rudy and James Mobberley as well as Pulitzer Prize winners Zhou Long and Chen Yi. Other influential teachers include Guggenheim Fellow Curtis Curtis-Smith, Christopher Biggs and Lisa Coons. Prior to studying music, Stacy studied print journalism at Boston University.
Stacy Busch, thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
The second annual Queer Narratives Festival is August 2 to August 7, at the Black Box in the West Bottoms // Come As You Are: Vulnerability in the Concert Space, September 10, 2021 at St, Mary’s Episcopal Church.http://www.nodividekc.org
Taylor Hughes and Stacy Busch
10:28 – Underwriting
10:30 – Interview with Taylor Hughes
KC based dark pop artist, Taylor Hughes about her music project, pure xtc and her debut single “Ghost” released July 9. 2021. The idea of pure xtc was formed during an extremely isolating time for multi-instrumentalist, Hughes. Living truly on her own for the first time, she moved to the NYC metro in 2019. Time was spent crying on subways, climbing new rooftops, meeting new people, avoiding new people, feeling extremely fulfilled to feeling like a hollow empty shell. “Ghost” was produced and mixed by Walter Kazmier of Silk City Grooves Studio and mastered by Mike Piacentini of Sony Entertainment’s Battery studios. http://www.purextcmusic.com
Taylor Hughes thanks for being with us on WMM
Taylor Hughes talked about her music project, pure xtc and her debut single “Ghost” released July 9. 2021. The idea of pure xtc was formed during an extremely isolating time for multi-instrumentalist, Hughes. Living truly on her own for the first time, she moved to the NYC metro in 2019. Time was spent crying on subways, climbing new rooftops, meeting new people, avoiding new people, feeling extremely fulfilled to feeling like a hollow empty shell.
Pure xtc
From THE DAILY LISTENING – July 9, 2021
Kansas City, MO’s pure xtc – the project from EXNATIONS drummer, Taylor Hughes – is the epitome of lonely night drives. The idea was formed during an extremely isolating time for Hughes during her move to NYC in 2019. As EXNATIONS goes on hiatus, pure xtc allows Hughes to explore darker territories while delving into the highs and lows of adjusting to city life and all that follows.
Debut track, “Ghost,” takes the notion of loneliness, social isolation and anxiety to another level; one the listener can feel if that’s all they’ve known their whole lives. Deliciously haunting as it is relatable, “Ghost” is the perfect introduction to an endeavor that will surely break stigmas surrounding mental health while bringing her community of listeners closer together.
“Have you ever felt alone at a table of friends? Maybe you didn’t even make it to the restaurant because they stopped asking you to hangout, after you’ve said no too many times. Because laying alone in bed with pizza and tequila felt a lot easier than explaining why you ‘look so sad’ all the time. Yeah, I’ve been there. Isolating myself and then wondering where everyone went, turning myself into a literal ghost town.”
“Ghost” was produced and mixed by Walter Kazmier of Silk City Grooves Studio and mastered by Mike Piacentini of Sony Entertainment’s Battery studios.
10:37
pure xtc – “Ghost” from: “Ghost” – Single / Taylor Hughes / July 9, 2021 [Debut single from pure xtc, the musical project of Kansas City based Taylor Hughes. Taylor is also the drummer for the band EXNATIONS who are on hiatus. The idea of pure xtc was formed during an extremely isolating time for multi-instrumentalist, Hughes. Living truly on her own for the first time, she moved to the NYC metro in 2019. Time was spent crying on subways, climbing new rooftops, meeting new people, avoiding new people, feeling extremely fulfilled to feeling like a hollow empty shell. “Ghost” was produced and mixed by Walter Kazmier of Silk City Grooves Studio and mastered by Mike Piacentini of Sony Entertainment’s Battery studios. http://www.purextcmusic.com]
Taylor Hughes
10:40 – More Interview with Taylor Hughes
We are talking with Taylor Hughes about her music project, pure xtc and her debut single “Ghost” released July 9. 2021. “Ghost” was produced and mixed by Walter Kazmier of Silk City Grooves Studio and mastered by Mike Piacentini of Sony Entertainment’s Battery studios. http://www.purextcmusic.com
Taylor Hughes thanks for being with us on WMM
Taylor moved to Kansas City in January 2021. She is a multi-instrumentalist. She plays drums in the band EXNATIONS. Her Fender guitar is named “Little Edie”,
In September 2020 she got engaged to Ericka Kern
From Guitar Girl Magazine Tone Talk with Taylor Hughes by GGM Staff – June 14, 2021 – Photo by Anna Selle
pure xtc is the moniker of multi-instrumentalist Taylor Hughes. While writing my debut EP, I wanted to set a very specific mood… like, you’re driving through the city at night and it just stopped raining. Glowing neon signs are reflecting in the puddles between the cracked pavement and you’re ready to blow off some steam from a bad week… More like a really bad year. I wrote it about a time I was fresh out of a break-up and impulsively moved to New York City, experiencing the highest highs from exploring the city alone, but also the extreme lows of being alone.
For the last decade, you would have found me behind a drum kit, recording, and touring in various bands. Finally, I’ve found the courage to jump in front of the drum kit and revisit my gateway instrument, guitar. pure xtc is layered with gritty guitars reminiscent of music I grew up listening to, like Radiohead’s OK Computer era or Silversun Pickups’ Carnavas. Some songs have a more dreamy wet tone, lots of modulation. I’m obsessed with chorus and delay effects at the moment (and most of the time). My debut single, “ghost” is set for release on July 9, 2021.
What is your definition of tone, and how has it changed over the years?
Tone sets the mood for everything; from the first 10 seconds in, I want the listener to get the feel of the song, not just, “Woah! I found this new effect and I’m throwing it in every chance I possibly can!” because I’ve absolutely done that and the songs just had a disconnect. As years went by, I learned the song is king ideology. The more I’ve leaned into that thought process, the more dynamic my songs have become.
What are your favorite tonewoods?
I’m obsessed with koa; I dream of a new Taylor GS Mini in koa!
Which guitars, amps, and pedals are you currently using and why?
I have a Marshall Origin 20; it’s very clean and takes my pedals so well! It’s also the lightest tube amp I’ve ever carried. Paired with my Marshall head, I have an Orange 1×12 . I use a Blackbird pedalboard simply because they’re the cutest on the market, and I’m obsessed with cable mgmt – it hides all the ugly stuff really well. As for pedals, I use:
D’Addario tuner / Ernie Ball VP Jr. / Keeley Compressor / Swollen Pickle / The Rat
Walrus Audio Fathom and hopefully soon a SLARP! I’m absolutely obsessed with Walrus Audio; if you haven’t gotten your hands on their stuff, I highly recommend doing so!
TC Electronic’s June 60 – made to replicate the iconic chorus from Roland’s Juno synth, I died when I saw the wood-paneled sides!
JHS Morning Glory with a remote. I love being able to flip the switch from overdrive to a thick distortion. I have a song that goes from a dark pop vibe immediately into a hardcore breakdown within a matter of seconds. So that’s kind of a crucial one for me!
What about strings?
Elixir custom lights on my Taylor Big Baby; I’ve written every song of this upcoming EP on that guitar. It was a gift from a really special human, and I swear it has superpowers. On my Strat, I love D’Addario NYXL 1052’s.
Are there certain recording techniques you prefer in the studio?
I usually lay a bed of synth pads with just stagnant chords and start laying my drums down from there. If you were standing outside of my home studio, you’d most likely hear me singing and clapping out patterns along with a metronome, occasionally an OH F*CK if I’ve really had a break, though! Seriously though, I just turn the lights out and try my best to not overthink or doubt myself.
How do you keep your sound consistent onstage?
I plan on using a fair amount of synth, effected vocal, and sampled drum backing tracks live to help fill out the live sound. I always thought that it helps listeners have something to immediately recognize from the songs they’re used to hearing in headphones. I just really love production, so I try to include it in my live sound as well! I’m always excited to see how artist’s replicate specific moments that I’m obsessed with on a record.
What does your practice consist of?
Lately it’s been me playing along with the stems and a click track, just trying to get comfortable playing and singing while pedal dancing!
Favorite guitar riff or lick that inspired you to pick up the guitar and play?
Lately, Echo & The Bunnymen’s The Killing Moon.
What is your advice for young women who hope to work in the music industry?
Stand your ground, speak up, and don’t ever let yourself feel intimidated. You deserve your spot; you’ve earned it — keep going.
Taylor Hughes, thank you for being with us today on WMM.
pure xtc is the musical project of Taylor Hughes, The pure xtc debut single “Ghost” was released July 9. 2021. “Ghost” was produced & mixed by Walter Kazmier of Silk City Grooves Studio and mastered by Mike Piacentini of Sony Entertainment’s Battery studios. http://www.purextcmusic.com
10:50
Sunshine Lombre – “Affection” from: Fading Away / Sunshine Lombre / July 1, 2021 [Debut album is available on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, Soundcloud and all other major music streaming platforms. Though Sunshine Lombre was not Kansas City raised, she was born here, and has a lot of family here. Sunshine has been based in Kansas City for the majority of the pandemic. This track includes contributions from Kansas City artists: Deandre Manning, Kadesh Flow, and Eddie Moore. More info at: http://www.sunshinelombre.com]
[Sunshine Lombre plays the Soiree Steakhouse & Oyster Bar, 1512 18th Street, KCMO, TONIGHT, July 14, at 7:00 PM with Hypocrace, and Yomi & Bonita Appleblunt. Mask required. ]
Vince Staples – “Are You With That?” from: Vince Staples / Blacksmith-Motown-UMG / July 9, 2021 [Vincent Jamal Staples was born July 2, 1993. He is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor. He is a member of the hip hop trio Cutthroat Boyz alongside fellow Californian rappers Aston Matthews and Joey Fatts. Staples was once a close associate of Odd Future, in particular Mike G and Earl Sweatshirt. He is currently signed to Motown Records and Blacksmith Records. Staples rose to prominence with appearances on albums by Odd Future members and his collaborative mixtape titled Stolen Youth with Mac Miller, who produced the project. In October 2014, he released his debut EP Hell Can Wait, which included the singles “Hands Up” and “Blue Suede”. His debut album, Summertime ’06, was released on June 30, 2015, to critical acclaim. He was also featured as a part of the XXL 2015 Freshman Class. His second album Big Fish Theory, which contains the singles “BagBak”, “Big Fish”, and “Rain Come Down”, incorporates avant-garde, dance, and electronic influences. It was released on June 23, 2017, to further acclaim from critics. On November 2, 2018, Staples released his third studio album, FM!. On July 9, 2021, Vince released his self-titled fourth studio album.]
Kadesh Flow – “Cry For Me 2” from: Room Service 2 / Ryan Jamaal Davis / July 19, 2021 [Kadesh Flow told us that he “wrote my way through 2020, and while I wrote a ton of songs, I sequenced a few out that do the best job of telling the story of my 2020. Like its 2018 predecessor, this album started at MAGfest. The intention was to finish it gradually at some of the other conventions at which I was booked throughout 2020. Of course, those got cancelled, so I wrote in my basement. The project is called Room Service 2. 5 bonus tracks will be available via Bandcamp.” Kadesh Flow is Ryan Davis is a rapper with an MBA, an emcee, producer, & trombonist. At age 11, he began rapping and playing trombone within two weeks of one another. His music has been featured in multiple countries and Southeast Asia. Kadesh performs as a solo hip hop artist. He also plays with The Phantastics, Marcus Lewis Big Band, and Tiki Brawlers. // Kadesh Flow has released 16 new singles so far this year: Kadesh Flow & The Enclave released, “Soft Side,” on Jan. 21, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow released, “Assumptions feat. Shubzilla,” on Jan. 29, 2021. Kadesh Flow released, “Frosty,” on February 12, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow & The Enclave released, “Cry For Me 2,” February 12, 2021. Kadesh Flow released, “Not on My Watch,” on February 19, 2021, Inspired by Lord Beerus (Dragonball Super). Kadesh Flow released, “Held Me Longer,” on Marc written, produced, performed, mixed and mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow released, “Your Dream Isn’t Always Yours,” on March 12, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow & The Enclave released, “Forgot About Me,” on March 14, 2021. Kadesh Flow released, “Take Backs (feat. Ryan Heinlein),” on March 26, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow & The Enclave released, “But Hope” on March 26, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow released the single, “I Don’t Care” on April 9, 2021, written, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Produced by D. Professor. Kadesh Flow released the single, “That Way” on April 16, 2021, written, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow, and produced by Dominique “Bassman” Saunders. Kadesh Flow released the new single, “So Far” on April 23, 2021, written, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow and produced by Dominique “Bassman” Sanders. Kadesh Flow released the single, “On Target” on April 30, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow released the single ”Lighten Up”on May 7, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow released ”Elegant” on May 21, 2021. Written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. http://www.kadeshflow.com ]
[Kadesh Flow plays at Room Service 2 Release Show at Lemonad(e) Park, Friday, July 16, withNuBlvckCity, Mensa Deathsquad, and DJ Skeme More info at: http://www.centercutrecords.com]
[Redder Moon play recordBar, 1520 Grand Save, KCMO with on September 21, at 7:00 PM with Vision Video.]
Brody Lowe, Jill McKeever and Jeremiah James Gonzales of Redder Moon
11:05 – Interview with Jeremiah James Gonzales, Brody Lowe and Jill McKeever
Jeremiah James Gonzales, Brody Lowe, & Jill McKeever join us to talk about Redder Moon. The band began as one of Gonzales’ many music projects, although more electronic than his other work with Knife Crime, Be/Non, Rhunes, Elevator Division, Umberto. Brody Lowe moved to KC from Portland, and met Jeremiah in 2019. Just as Gonzales and Lowe began collaborating on new material, Jill McKeever joined as a vocalist/lyricist during 2020. A violinist in her early projects led her to a degree in Electronic Art where she explored video & music recording. McKeever’s perfume brand, For Strange Women induced a 13-year detour from music before she found her way back during the quiet of quarantine. Their first EP, LAND OF THE BLIND, was released June 13, 2021, to be followed by an album, HELL IS OTHER PEOPLE, to be released on digital & vinyl in October 2021. Redder Moon launched an indiegogo campaign to fund production: http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/redder-moon-the-album-and-ep-are-almost-ready#/
Jeremiah James Gonzales, Brody Lowe and Jill McKeever thanks for being with us on WMM.
Redder Moon began as one of Jeremiah James Gonzales’ many music projects. A more electronic and obscure sound than much of his other work (including Knife Crime, Be/Non, Rhunes, Elevator Division, Umberto), the sentiment of a melodic post-apocalypse slowly developed for the first seven years, also involving past members Matthew Naquin (original collaborator) Nick Banister (drums) and Jon VanSickle (live drums)
Brody Lowe moved to Kansas City from Portland, in 2019 met Jeremiah and quickly found his place in reviving the layered synths and dance undertones of the moody, mostly instrumental music. Lowe is a quiet presence behind a large scope of music videos, album art, and other creative content, his music ranging from video game scores and band collaborations to his solo project, Loqsa.
Just as Gonzales and Lowe began collaborating on new material ranging from darkwave to shoegaze to synthpop genres, Jill McKeever joined as a vocalist/lyricist during the uncertain year of 2020. A violinist in her early music projects led her to a degree in Electronic Art where she explored video and music recording. McKeever’s perfume brand, For Strange Women induced a 13-year detour from music before she found her way back during the quiet of quarantine.
Each of this trio records their parts from their separate home studios. The result is a constant divergence from a single genre or style while consistently exploring dark themes articulated by a soft and sullen voice. Their first EP, Land of the Blind, will be released on digital and cassette on (date), to be followed by an album release on digital and vinyl in Fall 2021. Their music videos can be found on the Redder Moon YouTube channel.
In the last few months of 2020, and into 2021 the band has written and recorded an album’s with of songs, over 20 actually, without playing together, and with each member individually recording their parts at home. The result is a collection that explores synth pop shoegaze, to dark wave indie sounds, with dance undertones and haunting lyrics. More info at http://www.reddermoon.bandcamp.com
The current line-up consists of: Jeremiah James Gonzales on guitar, bass and analog drums, and producing, arranging and composing with my two new collaborators; Brody LOWE on synths and Jill McKeever (of the band For Strange Women) on vocals and lyrics. The band uses layered synths and production with live bass, drums, guitars, and vocals the Redder Moon tends to skirt the line between traditional electronic act and indie avant garde. With washed out guitars, thick bass grooves, and distant reverb soaked vocals, the songs beam with the almost tactile feel of a sound track to a lost movie but with enough dance-ability to pull you out of your seat.
Jeremiah wrote that this “was a welcome channel of creation in a time of restraint.”
Jeremiah James Gonzales is originally from in rural Idaho. After a couple years spinning his wheels at community college he discovered an outlet playing top 40 rock tunes with a non-profit organization that led him to spend months touring places like Brazil, India, Poland, as well as in the United States, from 1998 to 2001. Making many friends around the world, Jeremiah kept in touch with a drummer friend from Nigeria who had somehow landed in Kansas City. In March of 2001 Jeremiah James accepted what was supposed to be a 3-month tour of the Midwest playing bass in a hard rock band. One thing led to another and now it’s been 20 years in KC.
The Bands of Jeremiah James Gonzales (* All on guitar unless otherwise noted.) Elevator Division (2001 – 2006 , Reunited 2020) Lovers In Transit (Founder, 2006 – 2008) Monta At Odds (2008 – 2010) Be/Non (2009 – current) Mannequin Skywalker (solo project 2009 – 2010) Umberto (2010 – 2013 *drummer) Redder Moon (Founder 2013 – current) RHUNES (Founder 2014 – current) Knife Crime (2018 – current)
Jeremiah James writes, “My passion is and always has been and will be forever, to create and share music.”
Jill McKeever grew up in Kansas City and gradated from Oak Park High in 2002. She studied Video, Music/Audio design at Missouri State University where she also studied electronic arts. And graduated in 2006. She also studied at Earthship Biotecture Academy.
Jill McKeever is the author of The Spirit of Botany, Aromatic Recipes and Rituals, Published by Andrews McMeel Publishing; First Edition (October 13, 2020)
Jill McKeever founded For Strange Women Perfume in 2009. Combining her backgrounds in graphic/web design, video and audio production, photography, and music, she has developed a unique, synesthetic method of perfume construction. A passionate advocate for animals and the environment, Jill loves spending time in her garden with her cat, Onyx, and chickens, Patsy and Edina.
A visually entrancing and esoteric guide to connecting with plants through the senses. In The Spirit of Botany, artist and perfumer Jill McKeever reveals her personal rituals and creative methods of using aromatic botanical materials in incense, perfume, tisanes, ritual baths, and much more.
Jill McKeever joined Redder Moon in August 2020.
Brody Lowe moved his wife and three kids to Kansas City from Portland, Oregon. He also is originally from Idaho. Brody Lowe studied Design at Oregon State University. He founded the company Brody Lowe Design. Along with multiple projects in print, video, space, artwork for companies, banks, artists, podcasts, and others, Brody has designed hundreds of album covers.
[Redder Moon play recordBar, 1520 Grand Save, KCMO with on September 21, at 7:00 PM with Vision Video.]
Moon Vs Sun – “I’m Going to Break Your Heart (feat. Chantal Kreviazuk & Raine Maida)” from: I’m Going To Break Your Heart (Music from the Motion Picture) [feat. Chantal Kreviazuk & Raine Maida] / Megaforce Records / April 23, 2021 [I’m Going to Break Your Heart is a Canadian documentary film, directed by Annie Bradley and Jim Morrison and released in 2019. The film profiles musicians Raine Maida and Chantal Kreviazuk on a retreat in St. Pierre and Miquelon, detailing both their collaboration on the joint album Moon vs. Sun and their efforts to work on the fractures and conflicts that had emerged in their 19 years of marriage. // The film had select theatrical screenings before premiering on Crave in May 2019. // Reviewing the film for The Georgia Straight, Ken Eisner opined that while Maida and Kreviazuk appeared to have been attempting to make a version of Once, the 2007 drama film starring Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová, the film instead played like a marginally more hopeful version of The Swell Season, the later documentary film about the dissolution of Hansard and Irglová’s marriage. // The film received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Biography or Arts Documentary Program or Series at the 8th Canadian Screen Awards in 2020.] [Raine Maida CM (born Michael Anthony Maida; February 18, 1970) is a Canadian musician best known as being the lead vocalist and primary songwriter of the alternative rock band Our Lady Peace. He has come to be known for his unique countertenor nasal falsetto singing voice, as well as his cryptic and poetry-influenced song lyrics. He occasionally plays certain instruments, such as the acoustic guitar, while performing with Our Lady Peace. Following guitarist Mike Turner’s departure from Our Lady Peace in 2001, Maida is the only remaining original member of the band. // Maida began a solo career in 2006, releasing his first solo album The Hunters Lullaby in 2007. He also self-produced Our Lady Peace’s seventh studio album, Burn Burn, in 2009. Maida has been married to Canadian singer Chantal Kreviazuk since 1999, and together they have three sons. Maida has been intimately involved with War Child and other charities since 2003, and was an outspoken critic of the Iraq War and former U.S. president George W. Bush. // Chantal Kreviazuk was born May 18, 1974) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, composer, pianist, and actress. Born in Winnipeg, she played music from a young age before signing with Columbia Records in the 1990s. Her debut studio album, Under These Rocks and Stones, was first released in Canada in 1996 and saw commercial success before being issued in the United States the following year to critical praise. // Kreviazuk released two more studio albums with the Columbia label, Colour Moving and Still (1999) and What If It All Means Something (2002), both of which brought moderate commercial success worldwide. She signed with Sony BMG for her fourth album, Ghost Stories (2006), which reached number two on the Canadian Albums Chart. // Since 2003, Kreviazuk has co-written and composed numerous songs for other artists as well as film soundtracks, and has appeared in several Canadian independent and short films. Her fifth album, Plain Jane, was released by Canadian independent label MapleMusic Recordings in 2009. Her most recent albums, Hard Sail and Get To You, were released by Warner Music Canada in 2016 and 2020, respectively. She also released a Christmas album in 2019, called Christmas Is A Way Of Life, My Dear. // From the beginning of her career to 2016, Kreviazuk was the 51st best-selling Canadian artist in Canada.]
11:28 – Underwriting
Kian Bryne – “You + Me” from: “You + Me” – Single / Kian Byrne Music / June 16, 2021 [Recorded, mixed and mastered by Joel Nanos at Element Recording & Mastering Studios in Kansas City, Mo. Music written and played by Kian Byrne. Lyrics written by Kian Byrne. On December 4, 2020 Kian Byrne released the 12-song album Morning Glow. \ Kian Byrne released the single, “Your Love” April 9, 2021. Kian Byrne released the single, “It’s Yours ‘Til The End” May 1, 2021. Kian Byrne is releasing his new single, “You + Me,” with a video, June 16, 2021. Info at: http://www.kianbyrnemusic.com]
Kian Byrne
11:35 – Interview with Kian Byrne
Kian Byrne is a Kansas City based multi-instrumentalist. He plays drums in The Elders, and drums for Hi-Lüx, and bass for The New Riddim, and for YUM. He recently rejoined the band The Grisly Hand as a drummer. He had previously been with the band on fiddle. Kian also tours with two others bands. Kian joins us to share details about his recent solo single releases “You + Me” released June 16, “It’s Yours Til The End,” released May 7, and “Your Love,” released April 9, 2021. Kian Byrne released the 12-track solo album MORNING GLOW on December 4, 2020. Kian’s earlier solo EP, “Up & Down” was part of WMM’s 118 Best Recordings of 2018. Info at: http://www.kianbyrnemusic.com
Kian Byrne, thanks for being with us on WMM.
You + Me – Single Release released June 16, 2021 Depression isn’t pretty for “You & Me” but it’s got lots of lessons to learn. Recorded, mixed and mastered by Joel Nanos at Element Recording & Mastering Studios in Kansas City, Mo. Music written and played by Kian Byrne. Lyrics written by Kian Byrne.
Video credits: Co-directed by Andreina Byrne & John Beatty Cinematographer – John Beatty Edited and animation – Ben Lee
Depression isn’t pretty for “You & Me” but it’s got lots of lessons to learn.
Kian Byrne plays drums in The Elders, and also plays drums for Hi-Lüx, and plays bass for The New Riddim, and plays bass or YUM.
The Pandemic gave him time to work on his solo stuff.
Kian Byrne’s Birthday is June 27, 1986
Hometown is Dublin Ireland
11:42
Kian Bryne – “It’s Yours Til the End” from: “It’s Yours Til the End” – Single / Kian Byrne Music / May 1, 2021 [On December 4, 2020 Kian Byrne released the 12-song album Morning Glow.from Kian Byrne released the single. “All The Love” on February 7, 2020. This is a follow-up to Kian Byrne’s solo EP “Up & Down” released July 11, 2018, part of WMM’s 118 Best Recordings of 2018. Kian Byrne released the single, “Your Love” April 9, 2021. Kian Byrne released the single, “It’s Yours ‘Til The End” May 1, 2021. Kian Byrne is releasing his new single, “You + Me,” with a video, June 16, 2021. Info at: http://www.kianbyrnemusic.com]
Kian Byrne
11:46 – More Interview with Kian Byrne
We are talking with Kian Bryne, KC based multi-instrumentalist who plays drums in The Elders, and Hi-Lüx, and bass for The New Riddim, and YUM. More Info at: http://www.kianbyrnemusic.com
Kian Byrne, thanks for being with us on WMM.
Mom – Kathy Quinn – WDAF Fox 4 News Dad – Ian Byrne – Singer Songwriter with The Elders Olan McDonough Bryne – Son
Kian Byrne Discography Kian Byrne – Single – “You + Me” – June 16, 2021 Kian Byrne – Single – “It’s Yours Til The End,” – May 7, 2021 Kian Byrne – Single – “Your Love,” – April 9, 2021 Kian Byrne – Album – MORNING GLOW – December 4, 2020 Kian Byrne – Single – “Write About It” – November 6, 2020 (Produced by Steve Phillips) Kian Byrne – Single – “My Friend” – October 30, 2020 Kian Byrne – Single – “It’s The Kids Time” Kian Byrne – Album – ISO COMP III – April 12, 2020 Kian Byrne – Album – ISO COMP II – March 28, 2020 Kian Byrne – Single – “Don’t Leave Me Now” – March 20, 2020 Kian Byrne – EP – ISO COMP – March 26, 2020 Kian Byrne – Single – “All The Love” – February 7, 2020 Kian Byrne – Single – “Rocksteady New Year (auld lang syne) – December 31, 2019 Kian Byrne – Single – “When I’m Gone” – December 21, 2018 Kian Byrne – EP – “Up & Down” – July 11, 2018 Kian Byrne – Single – “Sing That Song” – May 4, 2018
The Elders formed in 1998 with a passion for music rooted in Americana & Celtic folk rock. From the beginning The Elders seemed to be channeling something ancient and enduring, unaffected by fads, trends and the giant maw of mind-numbing commercialism. Their ability to bring together the art of story telling with elements both musically progressive and rooted in tradition, has won them a broad international fan base, as well as critical acclaim ifrom: PASTE Magazine, Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange, Music Row Magazine, Goldmine Magazine, TRAD Magazine, Chicago Sun-Times, Kansas City Star and more. Their 8th studio album, TRUE, builds upon The Elders’ song-writing reputation. The songs feature story lines with vibrant narratives that explore history, legends, tall tales & true-life experience. http://www.eldersmusic.com
The Elders Discography 2000 CD – “The Elders” 2002 CD – “Pass it on Down” 2004 CD – “American Wake” 2005 DVD/CD – “Live at the Gem Theater” (Live) 2006 CD – “Racing the Tide” 2007 DVD/CD – “Alive & Live in Ireland” (Live) 2009 CD – “Gael Day” 2010 CD – “The Best of The Elders” 2011 CD – “Wandering Life & Times” 2012 DVD/CD – “The Elders Hoolie” (Live) 2014 DVD – “Live at The Uptown Theater” 2014 CD “Story Road” 2017 CD “True”
Hi-Lux Julia Haile – vocals Tim Braun – guitar Nick Howell – keys Dan Loftus – bass Kian Bryne – drums
Hi-Lux is 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. After a string of single releases, including one on 7” vinyl through Sunflower Soul Records, followed by the release of their self-titled EP, Hi-Lux has introduced an eclectic and impressive collection of songs to give the world a small taste of what’s to come. Hi-Lux is on a journey of musical discovery, mixing old and new to create something unique.
Hi-Lux Discography “Revolution” – Single – The Record Machine – March 6, 2020 “Get What You Give” – Single – The Record Machine – March 6, 2020 “Don’t Blame Me – Single – April 20, 2018 “Dance With My Baby” b/w “Don’t Blame Me” – 7″ Vinyl on Sinflower Soul – Jan. 5, 2018 Hi-Lux – 6 track EP – January 2, 2018
Kian tells us that Hi-Lux will be releasing two separate 7″ vinyl singles, sides A & B, four songs total, produced with Chris Hazelton and released on Sunflower Soul Records
The New Riddim Kian Byrne – Bass Dan Loftus – Lead Vocals, Organ Marshall Tinnermeier – Sax Nick Howell – Trumpet Mike Walker – Trombone Conor Loftus – Guitar Rico Pierce – Drums
The New Riddim Discography Second Site – Album – Febraury 6, 2021 “Queen Majesty” – Single – October 18, 2011 Kidnapped – Album – January 1, 2011
The New Riddim are a Kansas City based ska, Rocksteady, Roots, Reggae, 2-Tone band.
Y U M New music from Kian Byrne and Danko Loftus.
The Grisly Hand will be playing at The Ship on July 24.
Kian Byrne, THANK YOU so much for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
Kian’s recent single releases “You + Me” released June 16, “It’s Yours Til The End,” released May 7, and “Your Love,” released April 9, 2021. Kian Byrne released the 12-track solo album MORNING GLOW on December 4, 2020. Kian’s earlier solo EP, “Up & Down” was part of WMM’s 118 Best Recordings of 2018. Info at: http://www.kianbyrnemusic.com
For WMM, I’m Mark Manning. Thanks for listening!
Kian Byrne
Kian Bryne – “Your Love” from: “Your Love” – Single / Kian Byrne Music / May 1, 2021 [On December 4, 2020 Kian Byrne released the 12-song album Morning Glow.from Kian Byrne released the single. “All The Love” on February 7, 2020. This is a follow-up to Kian Byrne’s solo EP “Up & Down” released July 11, 2018, part of WMM’s 118 Best Recordings of 2018. Kian Byrne released the single, “Your Love” April 9, 2021. Kian Byrne released the single, “It’s Yours ‘Til The End” May 1, 2021. Kian Byrne is releasing his new single, “You + Me,” with a video, June 16, 2021. Info at: http://www.kianbyrnemusic.com]
Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now” from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]
Next week on WMM, on July 21 we welcome special guest producer Marion Merritt of Records With Merritt who will play her latest sonic discoveries and offer information from her “Musically Encyclopedic Brain.” PLUS, at 11:30 AM – Jared Bajkowski AKA Jairy joins us to talk about his upcoming single and video “Pool Floors” (feat. R.I.Peter & Catty Cline) to be released July 30, 2021, on Manor Records.
Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information. Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org
Wednesday MidDay Medley 