Three Song Stories

Dave Lapham became a professional guitar tech from 2003-2017, Touring the world with bands like QOTSA an MCR, and musicians Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains, Chris Cornell of Soundgarden, Peter Murphy of Bauhaus, Billy Idol and on and on… Dave grew up in Dearborn, Michigan surrounded by rock and punk music of the 70’s and through the 90’s, setting the tone for the rest of his life.  As a kid he w...

Tatum Bates is a sophomore Theatre major at Florida Gulf Coast University. She's acted in plays, musicals, and films produced all over Florida, and she also shows off her work in special effects movie makeup, on her TikTok. She's also the newest cohost on the Razzle Dazzle podcast. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re dipping back into our collection of songs that our musician guests have played for us at the end of their episodes. It’s one of our very favorite things about this show. This episode's music guests are: David Mayfield Sergio Munoz Max Hatt and Edda Glass Billy Kemp David Hintz Cody Smith Spencer "Duke Stamina" Elles Katie Lyon See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rendy Ramos is a videographer, editor, and avid cinephile. He has worked on shoots including ESPN, music festivals on cruises, nationally broadcast dog shows, wedding films, and music videos.  Rendy moved back to Southwest Florida in 2013 and was a Production Director for Waterman Broadcasting, the local NBC/ABC affiliate before shifting to Photojournalism and joining us here at WGCU developing co...

Whenever we have musicians on the show we ask them to play a song for us as that week’s parting tune. Over the years we’ve compiled quite a collection of songs, so today we’re putting some of them together for Volume 1. of our Music Guest Roundup. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Ebony Green has been a teacher, principal, district leader and is now nationally recognized champion for Equity at the Institute for Student Achievement, where she supports school districts nationally to ensure equitable outcomes for all students. Ebony has taught as an adjunct professor at Mercy College, Pace University, and is currently serving at Bank Street College in New York City, and Fo...

DJs Chad Cisneros and David Reed are the halves of the Austin Texas-based music duo Tritonal . As they have released five studio albums, including their latest Coalesce earlier this year. Chad and David host the show Tritonia on Sirius XM Electric Area, they were #65 on DJ Mag's Top 100 DJs of 2012, and one of MTV Clubland's "10 Artists to Watch in 2013" See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy inf...

Mike Braun is managing editor at WGCU working with our reporters to dig deeper and add context to stories affecting Southwest Florida. In his career in print media, he's been a general assignment reporter, copy editor, Sunday edition editor, designer, and chief of the design desk. In 1985 he convinced the editors that he could fill a page weekly with news about hunting, fishing and conservation to...

Jon Shain is a veteran singer-songwriter who combines improvised piedmont blues with bluegrass, swing, and ragtime, and is the 2019 winner of the International Blues Challenge in the solo/duo category. His most recent solo disc, Gettin’ Handy with the Blues: A Tribute to the Legacy of WC Handy, was released in 2018. In 1989 he founded the Chapel Hill-based folk-rock group, Flyin’ Mice and their sp...

Jenny Lapham is a mental health advocate and sociology fangirl who leverages her personal and professional expertise to change how we talk about mental wellness. Jenny has led an unconventional life full of chaos, magic and education. Her idea of a good time is obsessing over romance novels, crafting, and missing the 90s.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Judd Cribbs was a writer, reporter and editor for 25 years before becoming a teacher.  He's worked as a digital teletext news writer and editor at WKRC-TV in Cincinnati from 1985 to 1993. After a brief time as a freelance reporter for the Cincinnati Enquirer, he was an on-air television news reporter for WFTX-TV and WLWT-TV, also in Cincinnati, until 1998. Cribbs won a regional Emmy award in 1994...

Cadence Bakker is musician and a senior at FGCU studying Management, Marketing, and Entrepreneurship. She's been writing since she was six years old, and self-taught for piano, guitar, and ukulele.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mike Swindle is Superintendent of Hendry County Schools. A former teacher in Hendry County, Mike was instrumental in growing the Career and Technical Education program that gives opportunities for students and adults in the Hendry region.  He began his career as a public official in 2013 when was elected as a Hendry County Commissioner, and has been the schools Superintendent since 2020. See omnys...

Jason Teeters is an Industrial Organizational Psychologist. He's worked with the United Nations, the U.S. Center for Disease Control,  The Rockefeller Foundation, SecondMuse, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the NGO Movember, where he delivered the first ever mental health and wellness program for Black men. Jason is currently Nurturing Lead at the Collaboratory in downtown Fort Myers, where he hel...

Sheldon Zoldan has been producing Song of the Day since about 2020. He describes it as part history, part trivia, and all music. In it, he tells a short story every day that ties into music history or historical events and features a song. Born in Youngstown, Ohio, Sheldon graduated with a degree in journalism from Ohio State University. In the late 1970s he worked as an editor at Ohio Magazine, w...

Andy Spaulding is a Southwest-Florida based drag entertainer who performs as Alyssa Lemay, the “comedic, Broadway belting, bingo calling alter ego” of Andy. Originating from Canton, Ohio, Andy is a graduate of Ashland University, with a Bachelor of Music in Music Education.  His alter ego Alyssa has held many titles, including Miss Cape Coral Pride in 2020. Alyssa is frequently a guest judge for l...

Brendan Rivers is the lead reporter for ADAPT, which is WJCT’s digital magazine exploring how Northeast Florida is adapting to sea level rise and other effects of climate change. He also hosts the ADAPT podcast. Brendan originally planned to pursue a career as a composer, arranger, music producer and recording engineer, but he got an internship at WGCU and that convinced him he belongs in broadcas...

Kiara Roman is a 17-year-old senior theatre major at Cypress Lake High School’s Center for the Arts in Fort Myers, Florida. In her free time Kiara says she loves to watch Marvel movies and tv shows, hang out with friends, including Mike's 17-year-old daughter Guinevere. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mark Danni is the Founding Producing Artistic Director of TheatreZone, a professional Equity theatre company in Naples, Florida and he created and runs the theatre program at The Community School of Naples. He’s been involved with many Broadway, Off-Broadway, and regional productions as a Director, Music Director, Conductor and Drummer/Percussionist including New York City directing credits for Wh...

Camryn Cole is the premier Secretary of Student Organization at FGCU called “Coalition of Collegiate Musicians of Color”, a member of CGO Music International’s Naples-based vocal group “VOYCES”, and is a Voice Major at FGCU. She also studies Music Theatre and Jazz vocal technique and is planning to get her masters in Vocal Pedagogy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jennifer and Amelia Ford are two-thirds of the Fort Myers-based family power trio, The Shytunas. Jennifer has been writing and recording her own songs since she learned how to press Record and Play at the same time. Her daughter, Amelia, will be a 5th grader this year. Amelia’s a member of the National Elementary Honor Society, an award winning cross country star, wants to be an astronomer when sh...

Michaela Berres is a junior at FGCU studying music therapy. She has been studying as a musician since she was 13 years old, originally training in jazz, songwriting, and musical theatre. Earlier this year she came into the studio with a group of musicians studying under the FGCU Bower School of Music’s Director of Jazz Studies Brandon Robertson (Ep 93) to perform live on our radio show Gulf Coast...

Radu Paponiu is the new Artistic and Music Director of the Southwest Florida Symphony Orchestra. He’s also Associate Conductor of the Naples Philharmonic, and Music Director of the Naples Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. Since 2017, Radu has conducted the Naples Philharmonic in more than 100 different classical, education and pops programs. He’s been a guest conductor with orchestras around the world...

Randall Kenneth Jones is an author, podcaster, actor, and public speaker. Over the years he has interviewed more than 100 people of note, both for the Naples Daily News and for his podcast JONES.SHOW, which he produces with Susan C. Bennett (the original voice of Siri), including Erin Brockovich, Pat Benatar, Brian Boitano, Rita Rudner, Shirley Jones, Suze Orman, Vanessa Williams and many more. Hi...

Janine Zeitlin is an investigative and enterprise journalist for the USA TODAY Network-Florida. She has also written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Vice and BBC. Her journalism has received more than 50 state and national awards. Her reporting on Florida farmworkers and migrant students during the pandemic was recently honored by the national Association of Health Care Journalists an...