Listen to an interview with the experimental Indiana hip-hop group 81355. Also hear music from their new album Bad Dogs. 81355 was formed in 2021 as a trio, featuring Oreo Jones, Sirius Black and David Moose Adamson. Each member brought a rich and varied history to the project, leading some to label the band an Indianapolis super-group. Their debut album This Time I’ll Be of Use was issued that same year on 37d03d, a label founded by Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, and Aaron and Bryce Dessner of The ...
Jul 16, 2025•39 min
Listen to an interview with the vocalist and lute player Joel Frederiksen. He’ll be performing in Indiana with the Ensemble Phoenix Munich on July 11th and 13th as part of the Indianapolis Early Music Festival. Joel Frederiksen is internationally recognized for his interpretations of early music. For over 30 years, Frederiksen has dedicated his career to reviving and reimagining this repertoire. He has collaborated with many of the world’s great early music artists, including Dame Emma Kirkby an...
Jul 09, 2025•31 min
Listen to new summer releases from essential Indiana musicians, along with interviews with them. Enjoy new tracks from Durand Jones & The Indications, Jlin, Wishy, Hanna Benn and Deantoni Parks, Los Aptos, Oltanie, Kristin Newborn, Dwani Phiri, Wife Patrol, and more.
Jul 02, 2025•26 min
The Indiana Brothers are a Carnatic music duo from Central Indiana, featuring twin brothers Sarvagh Shrianandh and Suragh Shrianandh. Though they’re just 20 years old, the Indiana Brothers have been studying and performing Carnatic music for several years. The Indiana Brothers have performed frequently across the Midwest United States. The duo has also played dates on the West Coast and India. Carnatic music is a traditional form, of South Indian classical music characterized by intricate melodi...
Jun 25, 2025•30 min
includes animation, painting, sound design, and interactive installations. In her hometown Indianapolis, Jessica is perhaps best known for her work with Brain Twins, a creative studio she co-leads with Justin Shimp, specializing in animation and design. Jessica also teaches at the Herron School of Art + Design, where she’s an Associate Faculty member in Drawing and Illustration. In recent years, Jessica has gained notoriety for her work in music, creating experimental electronic soundscapes unde...
Jun 25, 2025•21 min
For over 50 years, the Indiana Fiddlers’ Gathering has attracted old-time music fans to Battle Ground, Indiana, for a weekend of concerts, workshops and jam sessions. This week on Cultural Manifesto, listen to interviews with musicians and organizers connected to the festival, including Dave Samuelson, Cliff Harrison, and fiddle player Stephanie Coleman. Coleman began performing at the Indiana Fiddlers’ Gathering as a child. Along with her musical partner Nora Brown, she’s one of the headliners ...
Jun 18, 2025•45 min
This June, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra will premiere a new work from the Indianapolis composer, vocalist and musician Hanna Benn. Benn’s piece is a double concerto for oboe and bassoon titled "A Through Line." Listen to an interview with Hanna Benn, along with ISO’s principal oboe Jennifer Christen and principal bassoon Ivy Ringel. Benn’s solo work defies classification, featuring intricate vocal layering with refined electronic production. She’s contributed to high profile projects acro...
Jun 11, 2025•11 min
Listen to a 2017 interview WFYI’s Kyle Long recorded with Brian Wilson, the visionary composer and producer behind the Beach Boys. He died on June 11, 2025, at the age of 82. The Beach Boys are one of the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful bands of all time, selling over 100 million records and charting 37 songs in the U.S. Top 40. Much of that success was due to Wilson’s visionary production style. which included unorthodox instrumentation, innovative recording techniques, an...
Jun 11, 2025•6 min
Listen to an interview with Fort Wayne, Indiana-based musician, composer, arranger and producer Nitish Kulkarni. His latest album Indigo blends traditional Indian music with contemporary electronic sounds. Kulkarni began his musical journey as a tabla player, later expanding to keyboards and production. He released his debut album Synesthetic in 2015, and since then he’s released a steady stream of recordings. In addition to his solo work, Kulkarni has performed alongside legendary artists like ...
Jun 04, 2025•41 min
Listen to an interview with the acclaimed Gary, Indiana composer and electronic music producer Jlin. Her music has been praised by Pitchfork, NPR, Vogue, Rolling Stone and The New York Times, and she’s collaborated with artists including Björk and Philip Glass. Born Jerrilynn Patton in 1987, Jlin’s bold, genre-defying work has reshaped the landscape of experimental electronic music. Her rhythmically dense and emotionally intense style emerged from footwork, a high-speed dance music rooted in the...
May 28, 2025•35 min
Listen to an interview with the musician and activist Taylor Hall. May is Mental Health Awareness Month, so Hall chose the month of May to release her latest collection of songs, Cheaper Than Therapy. During her recent conversation with WFYI’s Kyle Long, Hall said she hopes the project will help to destigmatize mental health and provide her fans with a message of hope. Also hear a conversation with Jenny Boyts, CEO of Forty5, a locally owned Indianapolis production company specializing in live m...
May 21, 2025•50 min
Celebrate Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Heritage Month with music from musicians and composers connected to Indiana. Listen to pop, folk, electronic, classical, hip-hop, and psychedelic rock music featuring Indiana musicians representing Afghanistan, Vietnam, China, India, Myanmar and more.
May 14, 2025•18 min
Listen to an interview with historian Nicole Martinez-LeGrand, director of a new documentary titled Beyond el Barrio. The film focuses on the history of El Barrio, a small community of Mexican immigrants living on the Near Eastside of Indianapolis during the mid-20th Century. Also, hear an interview with musician Rick Espinoza. He grew up in El Barrio during the 1960s and performed Mexican music with the Indianapolis band Los Latinos.
May 07, 2025•48 min
Listen to an interview with legendary jazz saxophonist and composer Gary Bartz. Bartz has performed with Charles Mingus, Max Roach, Art Blakey, and McCoy Tyner. In 1970, Bartz joined Miles Davis' band, contributing to the seminal Live-Evil sessions. But its Bartz work as a bandleader during the 1970s that cemented his reputation as a jazz icon, from his recordings with the Mizell Brothers, to performances with his group Ntu Troop. A two-time Grammy Award winner, Bartz was recently named an NEA J...
Apr 30, 2025•18 min
Listen to an interview with the percussionist, composer and technologist Deantoni Parks, known for his genre-blending approach and boundary-pushing performances. Parks has collaborated with an extraordinary group of musicians, including Flying Lotus, Thundercat, Andre 3000, Mars Volta, Meshell Ndegeocello, John Cale, Sade and more. He’s also an accomplished composer, releasing critically acclaimed albums, under the name Technoself, and scoring films for directors including Paul Schrader and Mark...
Apr 30, 2025•35 min
Listen to an interview with Kate Lamont and Devon Ashley. Kate Lamont is a versatile musician, singer, and songwriter known for her soulful voice and genre-blending approach to music. She rose to prominence in the early 2000s with MAB LAB—an experimental, Indianapolis-based band that explored jazz, rock, soul, and hip-hop. She was also a member of the folk ensemble Blueprintmusic. Kate launched her solo career in 2010 with the release of her album After the Rain. Her latest project is a remaster...
Apr 23, 2025•49 min
Listen to an interview with Todd Rundgren, a pioneering musician, songwriter, and producer known for his eclectic style and innovative approach to technology in music. Rising to fame in the late 1960s with the band Nazz, Rundgren gained widespread acclaim with his 1972 solo album Something/Anything? which included the hit singles “Hello It’s Me” and “I Saw the Light.” Rundgren is also a sought-after producer, working on landmark albums by the New York Dolls, Hall & Oates, XTC, Meatloaf, The ...
Apr 16, 2025•45 min
Listen to an interview with Indianapolis-based saxophonist, bandleader, composer and educator Sean Imboden. He’s the director of the Sean Imboden Large Ensemble, a 17-piece modern jazz big band. The Sean Imboden Large Ensemble will be issuing their debut recording Communal Heart later this month, and the band will be hosting an album release party at The Jazz Kitchen, on April 26th. Sean Imboden was born and raised in Central Indiana. Local music fans may know Imboden for his work with The Tucke...
Apr 09, 2025•35 min
Listen to a conversation with the vocalist and actor Micky Dolenz, best known for his work with The Monkees. Dolenz will be performing in Central Indiana on April 25 at the Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts. In 1966, during the height of Beatle-mania, The Monkees premiered on NBC. The show focused on the lives of a fictional California rock band, featuring Davy Jones, Peter Tork, Michael Nesmith and Micky Dolenz. The Monkees would quickly grow beyond their television roots, recordi...
Apr 02, 2025•38 min
Explore a new album from the Steve Allee Big Band, titled Naptown Sound. The project pays tribute to the musicians, teachers, mentors, history, and places that contributed to the development of the Naptown sound. The pianist, composer and bandleader Steve Allee has been part of the Indianapolis jazz scene since the 1960s. He came of age at a time when many historic Naptown jazz players were still active on the scene. Allee was befriended and mentored by legendary Indianapolis musicians, includin...
Mar 26, 2025•35 min
Listen to an interview with the critically acclaimed singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega. She’ll be performing in Indianapolis on March 24th at the Tobias Theatre at Newfields. Vega is known for her poetic lyrics and distinctive voice. She helped to pioneer the acoustic folk movement of the 1980s. Vega’s influential hits, including "Tom's Diner" and "Luka" achieved international success, positioning her as a vital figure in contemporary music. Vega will be issuing her 10th album, “Flying With Angels”...
Mar 19, 2025•22 min
Listen to a 2022 conversation with David Andrichick, owner of the Chatterbox, an important jazz club located in Downtown Indianapolis. The Chatterbox made national news this week when a video depicting a dispute between the club’s bartender and a Trump supporter went viral online. But many news reports and social media posts about the incident left out crucial context about the club’s history. Here in Indiana, the Chatterbox is known for celebrating the rich jazz history of Indianapolis and embr...
Mar 19, 2025•57 min
Listen to an interview with Tarriona “Tank” Ball of Tank and The Bangas. They’ll be performing in Indiana this March. Tank is a native of New Orleans, but she spent time living in Indianapolis during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and graduated from Pike High School in 2006. Last month Tank and The Bangas won their first Grammy when their 2024 album The Heart, The Mind The Soul took home the award for Best Spoken Poetry Word album.
Mar 12, 2025•18 min
Hear an interview with rapper Sirius Blvck and hip-hop producer Scott Matelic. The duo issued their debut collaborative album, Daily Rituals of the Wild Heart. Sirius Blvck is among the most prolific voices in the Indianapolis music scene. Known for his poetic and introspective lyrics, Blvck’s music has attracted a devoted following among hip-hop fans, with songs like “Tribe Quest” receiving over a million streams on Spotify. In 2021, Black received national attention, with 81355, an experimenta...
Mar 12, 2025•19 min
Listen to an interview with the vocalist and actor Akili Ni Mali, one of four featured artists at Art & Soul, the Indy Arts Council’s annual celebration of Black artists in Central Indiana. Akili has been attracting attention for her unique music, a soulful blend of R&B, pop, jazz and classic hip-hop. She’s also earned praise for her work onstage; Akili recently portrayed the legendary musician Nina Simone in the Indiana Repertory Theatre’s production of “Four Women”. Plus, hear a 2023 i...
Mar 05, 2025•40 min
Listen to an interview with members of Sweet Poison Victim, an Indianapolis band known for their unique blend of West African music and rock and roll. The band also explores Latin American and Caribbean sounds, a reflection of the diverse backgrounds of the group’s members. The band’s leader, Kwesi Brown, was born and raised in Ghana. Brown’s background has shaped every aspect of the group’s sound and style, including their name. The band’s name was inspired by a medicinal alcohol that Brown cal...
Feb 26, 2025•32 min
Listen to an interview with the legendary producer and bassist Don Was. He’ll be performing in Central Indiana, with the Pan Detroit Ensemble on February 28 at the Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts. Born in Detroit, Michigan in 1952, Don Was rose to prominence in the 1980s, with the band Was (Not Was), the group’s music featured a surreal mix of funk, electronic dance music, new wave, and avant-garde jazz, along with an unexpected cast of guest performers that included Mel Torme, O...
Feb 19, 2025•39 min
Listen to an interview with John Lodge, bassist, songwriter, and vocalist for The Moody Blues. He’ll be performing in Indiana on February 28. The Moody Blues rose to prominence in the late 1960s, with a series of psychedelic hit singles, like “Tuesday Afternoon”and “Nights in White Satin”. Lodge wrote some of the band’s biggest hits, including “Ride My See-Saw”, “Isn’t Life Strange” and “I’m Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)”. Lodge has been performing and recording with The Moody Blues fo...
Feb 12, 2025•48 min
Listen to an interview with Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Anthony Davis. He’ll appear at the University of Indianapolis for a series of free events on February 10 and 11. The New York Times has called Davis one of the “greatest living composers.” Davis has received attention worldwide for his orchestral and chamber compositions, but he’s best known for his work in opera, including his groundbreaking 1986 production X, the Life and Times of Malcolm X. In 2020, Davis received the Pulitzer Prize ...
Feb 05, 2025•42 min
The legendary Indianapolis jazz club The Jazz Kitchen recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. Through the years, The Jazz Kitchen has hosted performances from some of the biggest names including J.J. Johnson, Billy Cobham, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Bob James, Ray Brown, Lakecia Benjamin, Kamasi Washington, and many others. In 2009, The Jazz Kitchen was recognized by DownBeat magazine, as one of the 100 best jazz clubs in the world. Listen to an interview with the club’s founder David Allee, as he s...
Jan 29, 2025•50 min
