WNXP Podcasts

This week for What Where When-sday, we feature a local music festival centered on the holiday season’s iconic Handel’s MESSIAH. The Music City Oratorio Festival is a 2-day event: Saturday has sessions to learn about the music from scholars and artists, followed by a concert. Sunday is a sing-a-long that’s open to the public.The festival is hosted by Early Music City and Christ Church Cathedral. WPLN Afternoon Host LaTonya Turner talked with organizer and classical artist, Patrick Dailey.

Music Citizens Episode 5 goes inside the highest stakes job in the industry - A&R. Through the lens and life of A&R lifer Kim Buie, we get to see that this glamorous job is mostly about losing. Missing out on artists who become superstars (her near-miss tale of N.W.A. is amazing), knowing that the majority of albums you help shepherd into the world will flop and being the person who has to say no to a musician’s lifelong dream. Buie explains what’s kept her going through all that, what shaped her tastes and how her approach differs from the way most major labels are approaching talent acquisition in the TikTok era.·         Jason Moon Wilkins — Host·         Justin Barney — Reporter, Producer·         Kim Buie — A&R legend·         Pete Ganbarg — A&R Executive·         Ben Folds— Musician·         Aaron Lee Tasjan - MusicianThis episode was produced by Justin Barney, Emily Siner and Jason Moon Wilkins. Mixing and Mastering by Michael Pollard. Scoring by Jay Ragsdale. Special thanks to Tony Gonzalez, Jewly Hight, Tasha A.F. Lemley, Carly Butler, Stephanie O’Byrne, and everyone who helped.Institutional support from Tennessee Arts Commission, Metro Arts Thrive and First Horizon Foundation. Follow WNXP on social platforms as @WNXPNashville

Music Citizens Episode 5 goes inside the highest stakes job in the industry - A&R. Through the lens and life of A&R lifer Kim Buie, we get to see that this glamorous job is mostly about losing. Missing out on artists who become superstars (her near-miss tale of N.W.A. is amazing), knowing that the majority of albums you help shepherd into the world will flop and being the person who has to say no to a musician’s lifelong dream.Buie explains what’s kept her going through all that, what shaped her tastes and how her approach differs from the way most major labels are approaching talent acquisition in the TikTok era.

The alt/indie rock band Momma is co-fronted by singers, songwriters and guitarists Allegra Weingarten and Etta Friedman, who sat down to chat with WNXP between a couple legs touring the country this year. In the spring, the band's fourth album, 'Welcome to My Blue Sky," was released to critical acclaim.

We are officially in the holiday season and this week for What Where When-sday, we feature the Alex Murphy Trio presents Charlie Brown Thanksgiving happening at Rudy’s Jazz Room. Although this event isn’t until November 23rd and 26th, their previous Halloween show, The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown sold out. Murphy will bring A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving by Vince Guaraldi to life in an evening of soulful, swinging jazz that captures the heart of this Peanuts classic. Murphy, who performs regularly and teaches at the Nashville Jazz Workshop, describes Guaraldi’s work and how it influenced him.

Dystopian fiction has dominated screens and pages for a while now but a Nashville-based artist may have just crafted the first dystopian emo album. In some ways it sounds like what if the band Pinegrove made a soundtrack for a Hollywood doomsday epic with big choruses and a deeply personal backstory. Ok, maybe that’s a little reductionist, but it approaches some of the underlying sounds and themes presented on The Soft Apocalypse, the debut album by Henry J. Star. That's the artist name of Devin J. Badgett, originally from Knoxville, who says this truly is a concept album about the end of the world told through the lens of three characters. During his Sonic Cathedral interview with WNXP, Devin shared the stories behind the songs, the intense process of bringing this album to life and how he faces hard truths through music.

this week What Where When-sday, we feature Muse of the Macabre happening at Faeker’s Theater. Music City Muse is a Nashville-based arts platform connecting music, film, and visual art to highlight the creative side of the city that exists outside traditional genres. The event will be part film, part concert, part art installation with the goal of celebrating Nashville’s creative culture.

William Edmondson was the first African American artist to have a solo show at the Museum of Modern Art in 1937. He was a self-taught limestone carver who carved tombstones and garden ornaments at his workshop, which sat outside of his house in Edgehill. Although he had no intention of being a career artist, he became a trailblazer.For the last 20 years the site where he had worked and lived has been used as a neighborhood park in South Nashville’s Edgehill neighborhood. William Edmondson Homesite Park and Gardens formed in 2018 when the city tried to sell the property and their mission is to foster a creative, vibrant, and safe public space for all of Nashville to enjoy. The fourth annual William Edmondson Arts and Culture Fest (We Fest) happening this Saturday is a free, family friendly event looks bring to the forefront the importance of William Edmondson and his work. 

Ahead of their show in Nashville, Alex Kapranos stopped by the WNXP Studio to talk to Jude Mason about Human Fear, the community-building power of radio and the joys of stumbling across your new favorite band. 

Indianapolis band Wishy, co-founded by high school friends Kevin Krauter and Nina Pitchkites, burst through with debut LP 'Triple Seven' in 2024 followed quickly by the 'Planet Popstar' EP this year. They talked On The Record with WNXP at Kilby Block Party festival in Utah in May and will return to Nashville for a show on November 10.

This week for What Where When-sday, we feature DRKMTTR Fest 2025 happening on Friday and Saturday. Celebrating 10 years of the local, all-ages music venue that has built a community in the underground music and arts scene in Nashville. The event will feature vendors and live music and a few of them tell us how important the DIY space was for them.

This week for What Where When-sday, we feature the fourth annual You Got Gold, celebrating the life and songs of John Prine. Starting on Thursday through Sunday featuring tribute shows at The Basement East, Ryman, CMA Theater and a finale at Imogene + Willie along with events from a Trolley Ride around Nashville to a Guitar Pull and Brunch at Brown’s Diner. Jack Prine, one of the event producers says these shows and daytime events are located at places that hold a very special place in his family's and his dad's heart.

Nashville indie crew Snooper went from the city’s underground DIY scene to international festival favorites and critical darlings thanks to their over-the-top live shows and their Third Man Records release Super Snooper, a compilation of re-recorded versions of their previously released material. While they emerged from the “egg punk” sub-genre, they’ve set themselves up to grow beyond that scene with their debut Worldwide. It was produced in Los Angeles with John Congelton the studio whiz who has worked on everyone from Phoebe Bridgers to Earl Sweatshirt, and explores the edges of the band’s sound while still retaining their furious pace and sharp, social commentary. In their discussion with WNXP they cover the choice of Congleton, why the egg punk label doesn’t bother them, how Devo’s art-first ethos inspired their approach and, when it comes to their aesthetic, why “fun doesn’t mean that it’s silly.”

This week for What Where When-sday, we feature Esencial happening at the Blue Room this Friday. The community dance party highlights Latin cultural roots through music featuring local DJs spinning records backed by live percussion players. 

This week for What Where When-sday, we feature The Wiz happening at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center through Sunday September 28th. The Tony-Award winning musical will kick off TPAC’s 2025-26 season and features a couple of Nashville members in the cast. They spoke with WPLN afternoon host LaTonya Turner about the show.  

The west coast sister trio HAIM returns to Nashville September 30 for their 'I quit' tour, named for their fourth LP released this year. Este, Danielle and Alana Haim joined Celia Gregory before they hit the road to discuss the album, being funny on the internet and quitting what no longer serves them.

The Forge Nashville is a nonprofit organization founded in 2012 with their mission to advocate for artists and makers and provide a pathway and place to pursue their craft in the community.Located on 217 Willow Street, The Forge offers a makerspace, wood and metal shops, art gallery, private creative offices, and artist studios. This Saturday The Forge Front Lawn will be a celebration of all the makers and artists who call The Forge their creative home and future makers of the space.

Stay;Fest is a one day, multi-genre festival happening this Saturday (Sept 13) promotes mental health resources in the Middle Tennessee area through music with the goal to help build community and ending the stigma of getting help.Rebekah Cole, event promoter for RAC Books Nashville, says she's struggled with mental health since she was a kid and music has always been a safe refuge. She knew she wanted to bring the two together, but it wasn't a one person thing. As soon as she met Zhaklina Spencer, founder of Mental Health Songwriter Nights in Nashville, it all came together in a perfect marriage.

Shades of Black Theatre Festival came together in 2006 when Shawn Whitsell was apart of a theatre company called Dream 7 Productions. They booked the Darkhorse Theater at the same time as production company Sista Style and Robin’s Nest, which were all owned and operated by black artists. They thought it was a unique coincidence and decided that they were going to help each other promote each other’s shows. That idea grew into some events and workshops and eventually turned into a festival. Its purpose is to provide an outlet to uplift the voices of Black artists.

For The Black Keys Radio Special WNXP’s Jason Moon Wilkins sat down with the Keys’ Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney at Easy Eye Sound studio around the release of their new album No Rain, No Flowers. The duo share how Nashville changed the way they make music, how they’re highly publicized tour cancellation changed their approach to the music business and share their unique perspective on the Old Nashville vs New Nashville debate.