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Every Thursday at 7:00pmAbout the Show
Thursday Night Special
Thursday nights are special!
First Thursday: Jasmine Jones hosts Next Step Forward, a spotlight on millennials of Kansas City who are within a marginalized group, but are using their talents, business, activism etc. to help bring positivity within their communities. This program exists to be a place that is inclusive, safe, fun, inspirational and educational not only for the listeners but for the guest as well.
Second Thursday: Shots in the Night radio theatre; hosted and produced by various members of Shots In The Night. In 2023 SITN has received seven awards for podcast productions in the 9th Annual Hear Now Audio Fiction and Arts Festival produced by the National Audio Theatre Festivals, Inc.
Third Thursday: People Power Hour, brought to you by KC Tenants, hosts a rotation of speakers featuring members and leaders from KC Tenants and other tenant unions across the country to analyze, inform, and inspire listeners about the power of tenant unions in America. Every episode will showcase a different lesson about tenant unions and America's problematic history with housing by providing in-depth historical analysis, testimonials and stories from leaders who organized in their communities, and collectively brainstorming a vision for a better world where housing is treated as a human right.
Fourth Thursday: Sirisha Naidu and Taki Manolakos host Economics For the People, a journey to explore the transformative power of economics when it is harnessed for the working classes, to advance social justice, and to create an inclusive and equitable society. It is an open invitation to participate in collectively shaping and reimagining an economy that prioritizes the needs and aspirations of the working classes, marginalized communities, and individuals of different gender expressions, sexualities, and abilities. The show features diverse voices, experiences and perspectives that often remain unheard in mainstream conversations about economics, markets and numbers.
Fifth Thursday: The provocative "From Ark to Microchip", produced by Dwight Frizzell, mixes commentary, dramatic re-enactment, original music, historic voices, audio art and sound effects in a pan-historical, pan-cultural milieu. Programs in the program series have received several awards.
Note: These programs may be preempted by special presentations.
Hudie Ledbetter was one of the giants of early American music. He was also a pawn in the game of “discovering our roots,” brought to New York by the Alan and John Lomax and dressed in prison garb to capture the public’s attention. Truth be told, Lead Belly earned the prison stripes – he did hard time at Angola. This RocknRoots edition of Initiative Radio on the Thursday Night Special, at 7:00 pm, tells the Lead Belly story through his own music, and through influences (Bessie Smith, Alberta Hunter) and contemporary interpreters (Dylan, Taj Mahal). We’ll follow Lead Belly’s life and times from the hardscrabble beginnings in Texas and Arkansas, through the prison years, then to New York, we’ll listen to Van Morrison, Tracy Chapman, Jimmy Lunceford. And we’ll explore the compelling journey of a man who knew a thousand songs, wrote huge hits, and left a giant footprint.
