The OKPOP Radio Hour

🔥OKPOP Radio Hour GOES METAL🔥 Mitch Gilliam is one of Tulsa’s most beloved raconteurs. A scribe, a musician, a teacher and musical hierophant, his true love is the sledge-hammer beats teeming under frenetic guitar blasting from his band Blind Oath. But don’t let the metal facade fool you. Gilliam approaches music like any other fan with a guitar and a dream, and his efforts have encouraged many...

In Oklahoma, where the wind can sometimes sweep down the plains at terrifying speeds, folks will flip their televisions on to find Travis Meyer from KOTV Tulsa’s News Channel 6. This week, he joins the OKPOP Radio Hour to talk about Oklahoma’s wicked weather, how he chased storms and his dreams, and answers questions you’ve always wanted to know but daren’t ask! Garrett and Meg get right down into...

This week on the OKPOP Radio Hour… GETTIN’ THE BAND BACK TOGETHER! Tulsa’s own Hank Hanewinkel III wears many musical hats. His indie rock group Nuns recently released their third album, Hallucinations, to rave reviews. Years before, when they were just kids, Hank and his sister rocked their way across Oklahoma as The Red Stripes, a White Stripes cover band that got the attention and approval of J...

This week on the pod we have a must-listen interview for all our Leon Russell fans! Bill Janovitz, author, musician and founding member of Buffalo Tom, has written a captivating new book about the life and times of Leon Russell. Janovitz worked closely with the OKPOP team during his research phase, and many photos from our collection are featured in the book. Janovitz's insightful and intimate nar...

It’s another BIG popcast on the ol’ OKPOP Radio Hour featuring a true force to be reckoned with, Teresa Knox. Best known for resurrecting the legacy of Leon Russell’s The Church Studios, and continuing the tradition of the Harwelden Mansion, she talks to us about her journey from a gal with moxie who made her own way as an entrepreneur and has grown to be one of the biggest cheerleaders of Tulsa a...

It’s the big Bob Wills OKPOPcast! First, we hope y’all have marked your calendars for the Bob Wills Day at the Capitol, celebrating the birthday of Bob Wills. Also, the Very OK Podcast will be recording LIVE with a panel of Bob Wills experts. In this pod, we also talk about how the Bob Wills collection was the beginning of OKPOP, in many ways. And, we also get to speak with Grammy Award-winning, f...

Jen Loren, the senior director of Cherokee Film Office, stopped by the OKPOP Radio Hour to talk about how filmmaking has grown, especially for Native voices. Emmy-award winning Loren is pivotal in creating original content for Cherokee Nation on Osiyo: Voice of the Cherokees, now in its 8th season. Cherokee Film Office not only focuses on Native voices telling their stories, but also helps others...

Charlie Redd has been a mainstay on Tulsa stages for decades as a vocalist and bass player for Full Flava Kings. Charlie stopped by the OKPOP Radio Hour to talk about his musical journey, from playing in his family’s bands, to his own band in middle school, to his big break that came while he was working a shift at Red Lobster. Decades later, he’s still learning new tunes and keeping the crowds ho...

Actor, playwright, Grammy *and* Emmy award winning Tulsa native, Tim Blake Nelson, blesses the OKPOP Radio Hour with riveting repartee about growing up with a family of voracious readers, his time in Tulsa, then we dive into his acting roles and first novel, “City of Blows.”

American humorist, self-proclaimed “mirth maker,” writer, reporter, and bagel aficionado, Barry Friedman, blessed the OKPOP Radio Hour with his presence recently. We laughed; we cried; we laughed at jokes we probably shouldn’t have then cried again, but THAT is the magic or Barry—you buy the ticket and what a dang ride! His new book, Jack Sh*t, is a love letter to his charmingly idiosyncratic fath...

Luke Dick - if you don't know the name (shame on you!), you have definitely heard his work. One of Oklahoma’s most prolific music writers in the biz, he works with folks like Dierks Bentley, Eric Church, Kacey Musgraves, and even has a Grammy nomination this year for Miranda Lambert's album, "Palomino." But this multi-faceted auteur has his own albums, and own alter-ego band, Hey Steve! He sat dow...

IT’S HERE! The OKPOP Radio Hour’s LIVE podcast recorded on the 45th anniversary of the Sex Pistols show at Cain’s. If you made it out to the event, THANK YOU! If you weren’t able to make it, you can still be part of the action by clicking that link below or snagging this ‘cast wherever you pick ‘em fresh. OKPOP will be doing more of these so STAY TUNED, be sure to subscribe and catch a hot, fresh...

As we prepare for OKPOP Radio Hour’s LIVE podcast recording for the 45th anniversary of the Sex Pistols show at CAINS BALLROOM, we sit down with drummer David Blue, whose Bartlesville-based band named “Bliss” opened for the Sex Pistols. He takes us through the night—from the protesters out front to meeting the punk rockers themselves.

How does an Oklahoma kid start playing the bass in a few cover bands to playing stadium-sized crowds with country superstar LUKE COMBS? We ask OKPOPcast guest Mat Maxwell to share his story about making it in the biz. This is an excellent show for all y’all musicians out there who wanna forge a path. Click that link below and give it a listen! . . . #OKPOP #OKPOPcast #MatMaxwell #OklahomaMusicians...

Some dads work in a bank—but what if your dad robbed banks for work? Oklahoma Author Susan Parrott talks with us about her new book about her father, Charles Parrott-Bank Robber. She spent 8 years collecting interviews, records and personal letters about her father’s remarkable run as a bank robber with a Robin Hood heart. You won’t wanna miss this fascinating interview on this edition of the OKPO...

🖤THIS POD’S FOR THE 90s KIDS🖤 For the IKON kids. For the kids who sweated it out at Cain's for a summer show. Davit Souders narrated our musical lives in the 90s, whether on the radio or through the shows he brought to Tulsa with his Diabolical Productions. On today’s OKPOPcast, he shares how he got his start as the voice of Tulsa Public Schools announcing the day’s lunch as a youngster, to hang...

Debbie Campbell had a versatile and memorable voice and stage presence, starting her career at the age of 15 with the Kandy Kanes. Later, she hit it big with the band Buckwheat, but eventually settling down in Tulsa, Okla. where she not only contributed to the Tulsa Sound, but produced solo recordings that covered genres from jazz to country. Her stepson, Lynz Floren, joins us to talk more about h...

Larry White may be an Oakland, California import, but these days he’s a bona fide Oklahoman. Larry chats with the crew about working with some of the most legendary folks in the music and film biz, from (hey, hey, we're) The Monkees to a couple of little bands called Red Hot Chili Peppers and REM. Maybe you’ve heard of ‘em? Larry regales us with tales about runnin’ around California with folks lik...

Buckle up for a LEGENDARY OKPOPCAST!! Larry Shaeffer joins us to talk about his journey from a “school bus boy,” to an early promoter working out of a barber shop, to purchasing Cain’s Ballroom and putting on some of the most iconic shows in the country! He talks to us about some of his more memorable, like Merle Haggard, Jerry Lee Lewis and, of course, The Sex Pistols. You won’t wanna miss this t...

This week we invite OKPOP’s own Curator of Pop Culture, Mickel Yantz. He tells us about what the heck a curator of pop culture does (it’s a lot!), and we nerd out over comic books, superheroes, and the importance of pop culture in the world.

The OKPOPcast crew is back with another insanely insightful episode! OKPOP’s Director of Storytelling, Ryan Allen, joins the pod to explain what exactly a director of storytelling does (it’s a lot!), takes us behind the curtain on the exhibit design process and the approach to creating a fun yet impactful museum experience.

Digital Editor of TulsaPeople Magazine Tim Landes stopped by to get a sneak peek of the museum and some special items in the vault. We dig into local music, lore, and about Led Zeppelin’s hidden album.

Celtic punk pioneers take on the subtle punk of Woody Guthrie’s words. Ken Casey chats with the OKPOP crew with special guest Deana Stafford McCloud with Museum Collective about the new album which features the lyrics of Guthrie and special appearances by the Turnpike Troubadours.

We’re feelin’ kookier and spookier than usual in this episode! So we invited our friend Teri French—Tulsa’s own haunted history expert—to chat about Oklahoma ghost stories, and we talk about our outing to Cain’s Ballroom and Tulsa Little Theater. Meg and Garrett also talk about their favorite scary movies and other famous Okie news.

OKPOP has solved one of the most enduring celebrity animal mysteries: is the *real* Mister Ed buried in Tahlequah, OK? We have answers! Then, JD McPherson crashes the pod with a surprise visit, and which means we are now officially best friends with one of Oklahoma’s finest musicians.