AirGo

DJ Oreo is like the mayor of Chicago's cool kids, if the mayor was a backflipper who DJs around the world rather than a neoliberal despot intent on lining his buddies' pockets. The current DJ for beaded wonder Lil' Yachty, Oreo has been at the Chicago's hip hop and footworking scenes for years. He's the founder of Oreofest, an irregular and surreal pop-up hip hop festival in the city. Recorded liv...

Xavier Ramey walks through the different worlds of Chicago with a grace, humor, and devotion rarely experienced. A North Lawndale native, he currently works at UChicago teaching students how to build organizations, structures, and companies that work to address harm and inequality. A Louder Than A Bomb kid turned commodities trader turned mentor and activist, Xavier is a core member of the #LetUsB...

Leor Galil's work is some of the most thoughtful and writing about the city's creative renaissance. The music writer for the Chicago Reader, Leor grounds his features in the stories, neighborhoods, and sounds of the city with an open ear and a dedication to honest relationship with his subject. He also hosts the new Red Bull Music Academy radio show The Deepest Dish, which has already featured qui...

We've all heard "conscious" rappers preach their asses off in a song that nobody wants to hear–the onslaught of big words and holier-than-thou declarations can be exhausting. David Ellis' autotuned bars reverberate with a catchiness that help his thoughtful, loving ideas shine through clearly and without pretense. The other half of duo FYI (Fuck Yo Institution) with AirGo alum Ric Wilson, he's als...

Lester Rey is a singer and musician whose unflinching and infectious creations remold and reimagine in the spirit of boogaloo, overlapping the edges and sounds from Puerto Rico, across Latin America, and his home city of Chicago. His most recent project, entitled PROMESA, is a fierce and loving reflection based off the passage of the PROMESA Act, passed this past summer, which placed governance of...

DJ, curator, creator, radio-maker, and teacher Rae Chardonnay is one of the best vibe-creators and party-builders in the city of Chicago. Voted the best DJ in Chicago by the Reader, she is one of the cofounders of the remarkable Party Noire, alongside AirGo alum Lauren Ash and Nick Alder. If you haven't been to this remarkable celebration of Black Joy, make sure you come through the Party Noire Bl...

Because of a last-minute cancellation, Damon and Daniel take the opportunity to check in with each other and share some ideas and stories, from sphinxes to imagining new futures to Daniel's contentious dilemma about a moose antler. Recorded live 12/8/16 at WHPK 88.5FM Music from this week's show: I Need to Know - @kanyewest Cha Cha - @BigbabyDRAM Zombies (feat. @karifaux) - @childishgambino Strang...

Sir The Baptist is a preacher's son, rapper, and singer who is reimagining what it means to celebrate one's faith in public and in one's art. Born and raised in Bronzeville, he embraces challenging hypocrisy of the church as part of his religious practice, all while compelling folks to dance in celebration. He has recently performed at Afropunk, the Made in America festival, and the Tidal Showcase...

This week's episode shares some of the voices, stories, and experiences of the Standing Rock occupation on indigenous land in North Dakota. First, Daniel and AirGo alum Kristiana Colón discuss their experience visiting last weekend. Then, we share three audio portraits by the podcast series "Voices of Standing Rock," produced by Bo Hakala and Bill Prouty. Hear "Voices of Standing Rock" here: https...

You should listen to Jhon Myquale. The emcee found his way to Chicago a couple years back, and has quietly been putting in work with folks across the city. He's put out a string of dope tracks this year, and is poised to break through. He brings his thoughts and some bars to AirGo. Recorded live 11/17/16 at WHPK 88.5FM in Chicago Music from this week's show: wavs - @JhonMyquale Summer '04 - @JhonM...

On days like these, we need the proper vibes dealt more than ever. Drea Smith is a singer, songwriter, and member of the Medicine Woman collective with AirGo alumnae Via Rosa, Ravyn Lenae, and Jean Deaux. The elder statesperson of the crew, Drea has traveled the country as the singer for indie pop band He Say She Say and duo Pyyramids. She drops by AirGo to help figure out what the hell we do now....

Singer, poet, and activist TASHA shines. A Chicago native, she has recently released her fiercely warm Divine Love EP. She's also on the staff of Black Youth Project-100, serving as assistant to BYP National Director Charlene Carruthers. TASHA's brother is old-school AirGo alum Ethos, who was featured on the sixth episode of the show. Recorded live 11/3/16 Music from this week's show: Ocean Floor...

Help save WHPK here: https://www.facebook.com/SaveWHPK The University of Chicago administration has recently announced that personnel of WHPK 88.5FM will no longer have access to the station premises outside of the regular hours of the Reynolds Club, the on-campus building in which the station is housed. This change has cut out a third of our programming and ends a tradition of 24/7 broadcasting t...

Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib loves his city like Chicagoans love Chicago. He writes Columbus, Ohio with care and love, as a poet, essayist, and journalist with MTV. His new book of poems, "The Crown Ain't Worth Much," is raw as hell, and available now. Recorded 10/15/16 in Chicago, IL Music from this week's show: Piece of What - @RJD2 Follow AirGo - instagram.com/airgoradio bsky.app/profile/respairmedi...

José Olivarez talks about Chicago the way Kanye talks about Kanye. Originally from Calumet City, a southern burb of Chicago, he's a product of the Young Chicago Authors community and former staff member of the organization. He has since moved to New York, where he is the Program Director of youth poetry organization Urban Word NYC. He's the cohost of interview podcast The Poetry Gods, and isn't a...

Daniel Kyri is an actor and space-builder who is the cofounder of The Dojo, a radically inclusive performance, art, and community space in Pilsen. Built in principles of communal accountability and free expression, the Dojo has carved a beautiful, slapdash space for the city's turnup. In addition to his work at the Dojo, Daniel has acted on stages across the city, including The Second City and Chi...

Monica Trinidad's work as a visual artist and organizer has been pivotal in shaping the ways art and activism cocreate in this moment, movement, and city. The co-founder of For The People Artists Collective, she has illustrated how communal art-making is necessary for our fights and for our spirits. Recorded 9/16/16 Music from this week's show: Casanova- @lostclubmusic Complejo de Salvador Blanco...

Page May is one of the city's strongest voices in the fight for Black liberation. She is a cofounder of Assata's Daughters, and has been leading in different ways across the city, from the podium to the classroom to the streets. The day after the actions responding to Laquan McDonald's murder last November, she and Damon sat down on AirGo to process and heal together. She joins us again for a conv...

Once upon a time, way back on Episode 4, Nate Marshall came to the WHPK studio and everything went wrong. Damon was out of town, Daniel forgot an Aux cable, and the room was sweltering. An hour later, Daniel screamed obscenities when he discovered that the episode hadn't even recorded, and their conversation was lost to the AirGo ages. A year later, the BreakBeat Poet, rapper, and educator swings...

Melissa DuPrey is dope. You could say that about a lot of the people we've had on the show, but it's indubitably true with Melissa. She's an actress, comedian, and activist who is a native of the city's Humboldt Park neighborhood. She's also the General Manager of Free Street Theater, the amazing youth theater organization that has been a home for AirGo alumni Ricardo Gamboa and Sol Patches. Recor...

Why are your house, block, and city the way that they are? Daniel Kay Hertz has some ideas, and he's excited to share them with you. Hertz is an urban planner and Chicagoan who breaks down and reshapes housing and transportation policy in ways that illuminate how this city works, and often doesn't work. Get your crash course with the sexiest AirGo episode of all time. Recorded 8/25/16 in Chicago,...

On this week's episode, we celebrate our Associate Producer Chris Cannon, who has been holding it down as a member of the AirGo staff all summer. As he prepares to go back to college, we share his thoughts on working with the show, as well as an audio piece that he co-produced this past semester about street harassment. Get @neonpajama's new book "Paper Wind": http://dustyintl.com/paper-wind-by-be...

Diamond Sharp is a poet and essayist from Oak Park, whose words and presence celebrate the melancholy and the shadows we all carry in a way rarely seen in artist communities, organizing rooms, and simply in the world overall. A member of BYP-1oo and an editor for Rookie Mag, Diamond swings by AirGo Studio B (Daniel's house) for this week's episode while the station is getting fixed up. Recorded We...

When the world acts, AirGo creates and transforms, so this week's episode is a little different. Rather than lifting up one particular Strong Young Voices, Episode 53 brings together shorter conversations with several folks around Freedom Square, the now week-long occupation led by the Let Us Breathe Collective across from the infamous CPD torture site Homan Square. Listen, stop by the ongoing 24/...

Sonia Denis is a standup comic who has been tearing up stages across the city. A member of the cast for The Second City's Afrofuturism show, Sonia gracefully and gleefully dances the fine line between confessional and silliness. She hops on the show to talk standup, the city's comedy scene, and more. Recorded live 7/21/16 at WHPK 88.5FM Follow AirGo - instagram.com/airgoradio bsky.app/profile/resp...