Cultural Manifesto

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July 26, 2023

This week on Cultural Manifesto listen to an interview with singer-songwriter Steve Earle, best known for his work in country music. Earle’s songs have been recorded by artists including Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Carl Perkins, and Joan Baez — and in 2020, Earle was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. We’ll discuss Earle’s connections to Indiana, and how he’s used his music to advocate for social justice. Plus, a new edition of Finding Etheridge with Mat Davis for the second half of his conversation with poet Elizabeth Gordon McKim, Etheridge Knight’s partner during the final years of his life.

Poet Elizabeth Gordon McKim/ Taylor Hall and Oltanie Charles

July 19, 2023

On the latest edition of Finding Etheridge with Mat Davis, our guest will be the poet Elizabeth Gordon McKim, Etheridge Knight’s partner and companion during the final years of his life. We’ll also listen to new releases from two rising stars in the Indianapolis music scene: Taylor Hall and Oltanie Charles.

Bill Levin

July 12, 2023

This week on Cultural Manifesto, hear an interview with Bill Levin, best known as the founder of Indiana’s First Church of Cannabis. Levin also has a substantial history in the Indianapolis music scene, promoting punk rock concerts and managing punk rock bands - including the legendary Zero Boys.

Ziggy Marley / Dorian Phelps

July 5, 2023

This week on Cultural Manifesto we’ll talk with the reggae music icon, Ziggy Marley, about his work in the new Spiderman film, his history of performing for PBS Kids’ shows and more. And we’ll catch up with the Indianapolis-based jazz drummer, and hip-hop artist Dorian Phelps about his band, Hurricane and The Gang’s debut recording, Capture the Flag.

Parris Ladame / Hanna Benn

June 28, 2023

This week on Cultural Manifesto, we’ll talk with rapper Parris Ladame. She has a new album out titled “Pressure P”. And we’ll catch up with the Indianapolis vocalist and composer Hanna Benn about how 2023 is becoming her breakout year.

Labyris

June 21, 2023

On a special Pride month edition of Cultural Manifesto, we’re celebrating the legacy of Labyris, a feminist lesbian bar that operated near downtown Indianapolis from 1978 to 1984. Kyle Long speaks with the club’s founder Mary Byrne. He also talks with Lē Weaver, an Indianapolis musician who performed at Labyris, including rare recordings of Lē performing live at Labyris.

Celebrating Indianapolis' Hip-Hop History

June 14, 2023

2023 marks the 50th anniversary of the birth of hip-hop music. Explore influential figures in Indianapolis' hip-hop history, from the 1970s to today, including Reggie Griffin, Rickie Clark, B-Boy Chilly T, Paul Middlebrook, Grover Wilcher, Steve Weakley, Rusty Redenbacher, N.A.P., B.M.W. and Patrice 2 Fine, one of the first female rappers in Indianapolis to appear on record.

Too Black & The Pendleton 2 Documentary

June 7, 2023

Indianapolis-based poet and spoken word artist Too Black discusses The Pendleton 2: They Stood Up, which he co-directed. The documentary tells the story of the 1985 prison uprising at the Indiana State Reformatory, now the Pendleton Correctional Facility. Prison activists John “Balagoon” Cole and Christopher “Naeem” Trotter, known collectively as the Pendleton 2, were issued de facto life sentences for their role in the uprising.

Dwani Phiri / NB Nakita

May 31, 2023

Dwani Phiri, a Zambian-born Indianapolis-based artist who blends the afrobeat sounds of his homeland with the hip-hop music he grew up with in Indiana. And NB Nakita, a unique electronic music producer and vocalist who grew up in Indianapolis an makes music that reflects her bicultural background, freely mixing language and genre.

Boot Scoot USA / KPop Indiana

May 24, 2023

Boot Scoot USA country music dance party organizers, Kevin Hofmeister and Kyle Nagy, share their journey from rap to country music. And Sarah Acra, who formed KPop Indiana, discusses how she created a community for fans of South Korean popular music here in the Hoosier state.

Michael Kaufmann / Mar Mar Aye

May 17, 2023

Kyle Long speaks with experimental musician, artist manager, and Indianapolis civic leader Michael Kaufmann; and we celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month with music from Burmese singer, Mar Mar Aye.