In this time of COVID, WXNA has been keeping good music on the air with the help of some brave souls who are willing to come into the studio and even more braver souls who are recording brand new shows at home. We wanted to give you a glimpse of what goes into the pre-recording process for WNXA DJs. It’s a brand-new world that we are exploring, and everyone has their own take on it. Read below about what your favorite DJs and shows are doing to keep the X explosive.
Blog
National Poetry Month on WXNA
Dear WXNA listeners,
How are you doing? We hope you’re well. It may not have even occurred to some of you that it’s April yet, and we completely understand. It’s difficult to identify time as a relevant measurement at all these days, but we’re here to remind you: April is National Poetry Month! All month long—you still have three weeks left to celebrate! Perhaps poetry can be a comfort to you in such a surreal time—what better art form to mirror that?
Here are some ways you can engage with poetry this month:
- Subscribe to the Poetry Foundation’s Poem-of-the-day newsletter for a poem delivered to your inbox every day.
- Take a writing class from The Porch, Nashville’s nonprofit literary center, now offering online classes.
- Listen to the archive of DJ Lauren’s beautiful and expansive Poetry Month episode on her show Different Every Time last Monday!
- Listen to this archived episode of Transmission with Jmar, where he speaks with the folks behind Nashville-based independent press, April Gloaming (originally aired in February).
- Listen to DJ LT’s show The Crack in Everything, where it’s poetry month all the time! You can also participate in her new series, QUARAN-QUILT OF POETRY, by sending her a reading of a favorite poem (can be yours or someone else’s) to her email at laurenashturner [at] gmail [dot] com. It will be shared on-air alongside other readings, quilted into a communal moment of poetry.
And, most importantly—don’t forget to take some time to pause in stillness or listen to your radio or the birds singing their poetry month poems for you. Please, take care!
Love,
WXNA
Disaster Relief Resources for You
Our community’s response to the March 3 tornado has once again demonstrated what it means to be #NashvilleStrong. The work continues.
(Send your event/resource information to radio@wxnafm.org)
EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
- Our friends at DO615 have compiled this list of employment opportunities for people who have lost their jobs due to the tornado.
RELIEF AND RESOURCES
- Gideon’s Army has gathered all its relief information into a website: rebuildnorthnashville.com.
- The Nashville Tornado Volunteer Army Facebook group connects people who want to help with those who need it.
- Nashville Cavalry provides relief and resource information.
- From the Nashville Scene
- From DO615
- From TIRRC
DONATE FUNDS
- Contribute to the Middle Tennessee Emergency Response fund, managed by The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee, at CFMT.org
Photo Credit: Mobe Oner. Mural painted and designed by Jason Galaz, Milton Chavez, and Mobe Oner. Located on the side of Boston Commons at Five Points in East Nashville.
Dilla
“Most of our geniuses leave early. They leave us their legacy. They leave us their music and the music lives on forever.”
-Amp Fiddler
A Tribe Called Quest
Common
The Roots
The Pharcyde
Erykah Badu
Busta Rhymes
De La Soul
Black Star
Janet Jackson
Hi-Tek
Ghostface Killa
Slum Village
This list represents some of the cornerstones of the second golden age of hip-hop. James Yancy was the conductor that helped ring in that second age. A period where beats and verses were dense, “bling” was merely a sample that you may grab from a Raymond Scott album to add track texture, and producers were starting to step out from behind their MPC’s and 808’s to become superstars in their own light.
New Show: Reggae University
By Ahmid Sesay (Star)
Reggae University airs Wednesday nights at 9pm ct
What is Reggae? How does Reggae sound? This answer will vary depending on how many people you ask and the era in which they grew up. What is Reggae to me? Reggae is African music. Reggae is spiritual music. Reggae is educational music. How does Reggae sound? A baseline, rhythm guitar, and a one drop beat. It is African music because it resonates with Africans. I was born in Sierra Leone. The majority of my Reggae knowledge comes from being around my late father and my uncles. That is where my inspiration for music was born. The message in the music shows that we share a cultural bond and fight the same struggles universally. Reggae IS a culture.
I focus mostly on Roots Reggae. When I say “roots,” folks quickly associate that with “old school” reggae. Roots is just what most know to be the original style before Dancehall came in and took over. In my opinion, the two are not the same genre. Dancehall is to Reggae what Rap is to R&B. They come from the same people and culture, but they’re extremely different. I dislike the fact that when one is looking for Reggae, Dancehall is often first offered. That bothers me. If I’m hungry and tell you I want Curry, don’t give me jerk. Same culture, different food. Reggae is a style of music. It creates a melodic, yet relaxed vibration. Just because a man chats Patois on a song doesn’t make it Reggae.
That’s why I chose the name “Reggae University” for my show. I aim to teach people about Reggae from ALL eras. Being that I’ve never stepped foot in Jamaica but have a great knowledge of the music, I want to show the POWER of Reggae. Reggae music is a music full of activists. One would like to credit the Rastafarian faith, but it’s not just the Rastas. Jimmy Cliff, Culture, Burning Spear, Bunny Wailer, Peter, and of course Bob are just a few of the “activists” in Reggae. Most people know those names. I want to extend their knowledge to artists like Justin Hinds, The Maytones, and more. I also want to focus on educating people on the newer Roots Reggae artists like Romain Virgo, Lila Ike, Naomi Cowan, Protoje and more. Mi ave nuff fi teach unu (I have a lot to teach you all)!
The message in Reggae, especially in the earlier days, taught the Black race, wherever they may be in the world, to focus on and to cherish Africa. It is our home. It taught us the teachings of Marcus Garvey. It taught about peace and love. The beauty of Reggae is that you can never learn nor have enough. I have crates of records and boxes of cds and still feel like I need to double the amount of what I have. First you start with Bob Marley, then next it may be Gregory Isaacs, then Culture, then Morgan Heritage or Luciano. The music has a deep, rich history that I hope will be revered more as time progresses. So….when you’re chanced, come a mi school and sit dung inna de front row. Its a serious ting mi deh pon…..Reggae University.
Our Favorite Records of 2019
The year is nearing its end. At WXNA we commemorate this occassion by asking our volunteer DJ army a simple question: what is your favorite record of the year? Then they answer that question, and we present the results here. Just as the prophecy foretold!
So have a look and check out some of these amazing recommendations. It’s an excellent way to kick-start the new year (after all, music is forever).
Presented for you in no particular order…
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Fontaines D.C., Dogrel DJ Ed, Eighties Schmeighties |
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Justin Peter Kinkel-Schuster, Take Heart, Take Care Chad, Dustbin Days |
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Bill Callahan, Shepherd In A Sheepskin Vest DJ Trev, Our Golden Tones |
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North Mississippi Allstars, Up and Rolling Hound Dog Hoover, Goin’ Down South |
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Stray Cats, 40 Jammin’ James Riley, Rockabilly ‘n’ Blues Radio Hour |
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Orville Peck, Pony Erin Mock, Wishful Thinking |
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Jenny Lewis, On the Line Dave Brown, The Black Ark |
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The New Pornographers, In The Morse Code of Brake Lights DJ Hot Car, Hot Fudge Tuesdays |
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Hot Chip, A Bath Full of Ecstasy Grigsby, Set Records To Stun |
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Gauche, A People’s History of Gauche Anna Lundy, Untune the Sky |
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Ruth Garbus, Kleinmeister DJ LT, Shout, Sister, Shout! |
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Young Guv, GUV I & II Alexis, Free Association |
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The Highwomen, The Highwomen Laurel Creech, All About Nashville |
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Purple Mountains, Purple Mountains Brady Brock, Fidelity High |
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Ioanna Gika, Thalassa DJ Travis T, I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead |
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Billie Eilish, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? popGeezer, The English Breakfast |
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Guided By Voices, Zeppelin Over China Mello-D (aka Doyle Davis), Groovy Potential |
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The Chemical Brothers, No Geography DJ Rodge, Delicious Elixir |
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Brittany Howard, Jaime JMar, Transmission |
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Jazz Funk Soul, Life and Times Chris Nochowicz, The Future of Jazz |
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The Raconteurs, Help Us Stranger DJ Cajun Mitch, Sounds of the Bayou |
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Blood Incantation, Hidden History Of The Human Race DJAK, No Remorse |
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Frank LoCrasto, Lost Dispatch DJ rhatfink, Bedazzled Paradigm Jukebox |
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Elkhorn, Sun Cycle Mike Mannix, Psych Out! |
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Purple Mountains, Purple Mountains Mike Hester, Flying Lesson |
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Amyl and the Sniffers, Amyl and the Sniffers Laura Powers, Needles+Pins |
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Aldous Harding, Designer DJ Charlotte Rollerskates, The Maiden Voyager |
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Sharon Van Etten, Remind Me Tomorrow DJ Juan, International Echo |
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Nicholas Payton, Relaxin’ with Nick DJ Big Chief Chaz, Gilded Splinters |
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Quelle Chris, Guns BadN8, Coolin’ |
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Anderson .Paak, Ventura Jason Piffier |
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Carl Perkins, Discovering Carl Perkins – Eastview, Tennessee 1952-53 Randy, Hipbilly Jamboree Pick |
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The Muffs, No Holiday Randy, Randy’s Record Shop |
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Brittany Howard, Jaime R Reid, Holistic Revolution |
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Lingua Ignota, Caligula Adam Ebb |
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Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Ghosteen Michael Roark, Slings & Arrows |
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Freddie Gibbs & Madlib, Bandana Blackcircle, The Root |
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Temporary High, Nick Piunti Tommy Womack’s Happiness Hour |
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Icejjfish, The Gospel DJ Jonni Downer, The Unlistenable Hour |
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The Raconteurs, Help Us Stranger Heather Lose, Aging Hipster |
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Dry Cleaning, Boundary Road Snacks And Drinks / Sweet Princess Jay Millar, Plural of Vinyl |
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Sunn O))), Life Metal/Pyroclasts Josh Mock, Sad Songs for Happy People |
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Green Ribbons, Green Ribbons DJ Lauren, Different Every Time |
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Darrin Bradbury, Talking Dogs and Atom Bombs Double-Shot with Joe & Sue |
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Jenny Lewis, On The Line DJ Nexus, Musical Mysticism |
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Juleah, Desert Skies Michael, The Scatter Shot |
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Gene Clark, No Other Ashley, Set Records to Stun |
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Crumb, Jinx DJ TJ, Static Wall |
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Steve Gunn, The Unseen In Between DJ Susan, The Inconsiderate Mixtape |
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Kali Malone, The Sacrificial Code popcorn brain, Dreambeat |
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Robyn Hitchcock/Andy Partridge, Planet England Anne McCue, Songs On The Wire |
A WXNA Holiday EP
Here at WXNA we would be remiss if we let the season pass by without suggesting a few seasonal tunes to play while baking cookies or wrapping packages or fretting about the future of democracy decorating the tree. But let’s be honest, there is no shortage of holiday playlists to be found around this-here internet. That’s why this year, we’re focusing on a holiday EP. Leave them wanting more, that’s what we always say. Also, life is chaotic. Who has time to compile the top 15,000 holiday songs of all time? Not us!
You can listen to this playlist on Spotify by clicking on these words.
“What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?”
DJ Sue of Double Shot with Joe and Sue
This 1947 Frank Loesser-penned song was a favorite of my parents, when Mom was pregnant with me for New Year’s Eve that year. She played it every year for the holidays, and now, so do I. My parents loved music and would have been thrilled to know that I am part of WXNA.
“I Believe in Father Christmas” by Greg Lake
DJ Joe of Double Shot with Joe and Sue
When that came on MTV for the first time every year, I knew it was Christmas.
“River” by Joni Mitchell
DJ LT of Shout, Sister, Shout!
Not a real crate-diggin’ choice, but I can’t imagine a holiday season without this song in it, providing a respite from the expectations of joyfulness and jingling.
“Christmas At the Airport” by Nick Lowe
Rick Pecoraro, WXNA Contributor
A relatively new entry to the Christmas canon (2013), and one of the few songs that really get to the nut of holiday travel: that it can all fall into chaos at a moments notice. When I hear this song I’m usually reminded of Christmas 2005 when my flight from Newark to Omaha was cancelled. I ended up flying to Chicago and then in a hail mary attempt at forward progression rented the last available car and drove the remaining 8 hours to Nebraska. I hadn’t slept the night before, was exhausted and falling asleep behind the wheel. When I hit the Quad Cities I pulled off, and went into a Best Buy in an attempt to stay awake. I bought a copy of Pavement’s “Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain” and Gwen Steffani’s first solo record. Anyway, this Nick Lowe song takes me back to that Christmas. To its credit I look back fondly.
“I Wish I Had More” by Andrew Bryant
DJ Chad Pelton, Dustbin Days
Andrew Bryant (formerly of the band Water Liars, and now a solo artist) has released singles around the holidays for the past few years (my count is at 5 on Bandcamp). This one should appeal to those that love the sadder side of things around the holidays, or maybe I shouldn’t say sad, but honest. It’s a reminder of those folks dealing with tough relationships, which the holidays have a way of amplifying, and although it’s a fairly brutal tale of a family amidst breakup, I find it uplifting, sincere, and quite heartfelt.
“Patti Smith for Xmas” by Kyle Hamlett Uno
“Merry Christmas From The Family” by Robert Earl Keen
DJ Houndog Hoover of Goin’ Down South
Funny, and gets all the details right!
WXNA Gives Thanks
This Thanksgiving, WXNA has so much to be grateful for. Last week was our Fall Pledge Drive, and thanks to YOU, we exceeded our goal of $30k! Because of your generous support, we’re keeping the home fires burning and the tunes spinning into the colder months. Here’s what we’ll be playing over the airwaves and in our homes tomorrow to celebrate the season (you can also listen along via Spotify)!
DJ Picks:
- “Thanksgiving Theme” by Vince Garauldi Trio (Sirena Bragg Wilson, Music For Grown-Ups)
- “I Thank You” by ZZ Top (Ken Rhodes, English Breakfast)
- Kirsty Macoll covering The Kinks’ “Days” (DJ Lauren, Different Every Time)
- “Thank You Friends” by Big Star (DJ Alexis, Free Association and DJ Candace, The Bright Side)
- “I’m So Thankful” by Reigning Sound (Michael Buhl, Scattershot)
- “Thanks A Lot” by Neko Case & Her Boyfriends (DJ Rhatfink, The Continental)
- “Thank You” by The Remains (Paul Glavin, Eargasm)
- “Kind and Generous” by Natalie Merchant (DJ Ed, Eighties Schmeighties)
- “Count Your Blessings” by Rosemary Clooney (Sirena Bragg Wilson, Music For Grown-Ups)
- “Give Thanks and Praises” by Bob Marley (Angie Lovins, WXNA alumni)
- “Thank You Too!” by My Morning Jacket (DJ LT, Shout, Sister, Shout!)
- “Thank You For…” by Bridget St John (DJ LT, Shout, Sister, Shout!)
- “Thank You- Live” by Fishmans (DJ Trev of Our Golden Tones)
It’s Halloween! An Introduction To The Surreal World of The Shaggs
It’s Halloween, and I know for a fact that I’m not the only WXNA DJ with The Shaggs’ 1969 Philosophy of the World album as their seasonal soundtrack. The band of sisters from Fremont, NH may not have looked as witchy as Stevie Nicks or sounded as ghoulish as Sunn O)))– but Helen, Betty, Dot, and (sometimes) Rachel Wiggin possessed something much deeper beneath the surface. And isn’t that, after all, the spookiest place imaginable?
The Wiggin sisters were managed by their father, Austin Wiggin, who organized their concerts in Fremont and depleted his savings on their studio sessions. It can be said that perhaps their cult following began with him, who may have bordered on obsessive in his attempt to make his daughters rock stars. Since Philosophy of the World was released in 1969, record collectors and music heads across the world have fulfilled his dream by becoming similarly obsessed with and possessed by this record and this band. The Shaggs’ sound demands a response in this way– you can’t listen to their angular, artless rock n’roll without feeling something. There’s a declarative kind of joy that emanates from their sing-song melodies. The obtuse jangle of it all is beautiful, like the broad strokes of a de stijl painting.
It’s time for games
It’s time for fun
Not for just one
But for everyone
The jack-o-lanterns are all lit up
All the dummies are made and stuffed
By just looking you will see
It’s this time of year again
It’s Halloween!
I’m not sure who made these dummies and what they’re stuffed with, but they sure sound terrifying! Even more terrifying to some might be the evidence of a recurring Shaggs theme– that something might be for everyone. In the title track of Philosophy of the World, they outline their worldview with a disarming simplicity:
Oh, the rich people want what the poor people’s got
And the poor people want what the rich people’s got
And the skinny people want what the fat people’s got
And the fat people want what the skinny people’s got
You can never please anybody in this world
It doesn’t matter what you do
It doesn’t matter what you say
There will always be
One who wants things the opposite way
In form and content, The Shaggs were champions of the everyday person– they didn’t have expensive equipment, glitzy outfits, or beautiful harmonies. They were sisters that sang about the universal struggle of obeying your parents, losing your cat, heartbreak, and God— but did so with an unnerving singularity. Sometimes they’d sing the melody, all at once, but each with different phrasing. What could be more witchy than that? These weren’t seances, perhaps, but spellbinding all the same in their dissonant, wide-eyed wonder.
Further reading/listening:
- New Yorker article about The Shaggs
- Light in the Attic Podcast about The Shaggs
- Pitchfork write-up of a Shaggs concert
DJ LT
Shout, Sister, Shout!
Sundays 1-2 pm
WXNA at Southern Festival of Books!
Editor’s Note: We asked WXNA DJ Leslie to report back from this year’s Southern Festival of Books, and DJ Laura Powers provided some photos and videos below of our WXNA stage featuring some of our favorite local artists as well as a tribute to beloved late songwriter, David Berman. Check it out, and join us next year!
This year’s Southern Festival of Books did not disappoint, as it kept it’s visitors bound together downtown at the plaza and library for three cheery days with live music, good food, prolific authors, and a ton of books, eliciting many meaningful discussions. Highlights for me included author Ottessa Moshfegh (My Year of Rest and Relaxation) and, of course, Friday afternoon when WXNA hosted the Music Stage on Legislative Plaza.
Karina Daza kicked things off at the Music Stage on Friday afternoon with a mesmerizing set of Latin-influenced soul. Kyle Hamlett Uno followed with a set of beautifully poetic acoustic tunes, and WXNA’s own Anne McCue had us spellbound with her set of songs that blended the personal and the political. The day ended with a tribute to the dearly missed musician and poet David Berman that reminded us of the power that words and art have to create community.
– Leslie Hermsdorfer
Daniel Pujol reading the poem titled “Interregnum Strange” that he wrote for the David Berman tribute.
DJ Juanny Cash spinning records
Anne McCue Performs
