KSUT will offer the following special programming in celebration of Black History Month in February:
Black History Month Sunday specials from 2 to 3 PM
• February 5: The Invention of Race
A historical documentary that tells the story of the construction of race and racism as we live with them today.
• February 12: The Black History of the Banjo
Tracing the history of this most American of instruments from its ancestors in West Africa through the Caribbean and American South and into the present, as a new generation of Black women artists reclaims the banjo as their own. Rhiannon Giddens, Bassekou Kouyate, Bela Fleck, and more talk claw-hammers, trad jazz, Appalachian folk, African ancestors, and the ongoing story of American music, which would be woefully incomplete without a Black history of the banjo.
• February 19: Langston Hughes – I Too Sing America
Langston Hughes, an enduring icon of the Harlem Renaissance, is best known for his written work, which wedded his fierce dedication to social justice with his belief in the transformative power of the word. But he was a music lover, too, and some of the works he was most proud of were collaborations with composers and musicians.
• February 26: Louis Armstrong’s New Orleans, with Wynton Marsalis
Veteran radio producer Joe Bevilacqua hosts this entertaining, informative hour, recorded in the French Quarter of New Orleans and featuring jazz great Wynton Marsalas, jazz author, and historian Donald Newlove, WNYC Radio talk show host Leonard Lopate, members of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, and others, on the origins of jazz, and the life and music of legendary trumpeter, Louis Armstrong.
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KSUT Specialty Shows:
Barrelhouse Blues, Tuesday, February 28, 7 to 9 PM
Host Rob Rawls will feature Songs of the Revolution – the soundtrack to the civil rights movement.
Tales of the New West, Wednesday, 7 to 9 PM
Host Chris Aaland will celebrate Black History Month by featuring African-American artists in American roots genres like country, bluegrass, Americana, folk, blues, and R&B, during the first hour of each episode. Festival Focus kicks off each week’s program with rarities from the KSUT vaults. It celebrates with performances from Reservoir Hill from War & Pierce, Jackie Venson, the Tray Wellington Band, and Gangstagrass.
The Ike's America Radio Program, Thursday, 7 to 9 PM
Ike's America will honor Black History throughout February. Many of the most celebrated voices on Ike's America, including Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat "King" Cole, Billie Holiday, and Cab Calloway, often were treated as "Second Class Citizens" in American cities north & south despite their celebrity. This month, we'll spotlight some of the challenges these and other influential artists overcame to create some of the most memorable and significant music of the 20th century.
Friday Featured Artist and trivia with Jim Belcher, 11:08 AM during the Morning Blend, featuring new music from the following Black artists:
- February 3: Danielle Ponder
- February 10: Sunny War
- February 17: Dom Flemons
- February 24: Eric Bibb
Friday Matinee - Celebrating Black Voices in Music, 2 to 3 PM during the Afternoon Blend: Susie B will feature pioneers and important and influential voices each Friday Matinee throughout Black History Month.
San Juan Sunrise, Saturday, February 11, 6 to 8 AM
Stasia honors Black History Month with a Sunrise featuring both contemporary and classic Black musicians, including Marvin Gaye, Allison Russell, Mavis Staples, Arlo Parks, Miles Davis, Devon Gilfillian, Hannah Jadagu, Percy Sledge, Valerie June, Charles Brown, The Isley Brothers and more.
Strange Brew, Saturday, February 25, 7 to 9 PM
Jim Belcher celebrates Black History Month with a special "brew" featuring Black musicians from many genres.
Women Be Wise, Sunday, February 19, 1 to 2 PM
Musical Firsts, Susie B celebrates groundbreaking Black women in music.
Close Enough For Jazz, Sunday, February 26, 7 to 9 PM
While every episode of CEFJ celebrates the artistry of Black musicians, jazz is Black music and history. On February 26, the show will feature a historical perspective of how this art form came to be.
