WESA Reports: KING

Clara Kent is an Afro-Indigenous musician and WYEP DJ who hosts one of Pittsburgh’s most beloved radio shows, “More Bounce.” This year, she launched “Elevate the Underground” — where she highlights Black, queer and women artists rising in Pittsburgh’s music scene.

Melinda Colaizzi is the frontwoman of her Pittsburgh-based blues & rock band, Melinda and the Night Sky. And she’s also the founder of Women Who Rock, an organization that advocates for better women’s health research.

May Wilcher is a Pittsburgh-based sound artist and experimental musician whose practice spans glitch, ambient, noise, and drone. A conversation with May about finding community through Pittsburgh Sound Preserve's Open Improv Lab Sessions.

Casey Hanner is the frontwoman for the Pittsburgh-based band “Donora.” It’s a beloved local band she founded with her brother in 2006, but after she became a mother, the band went on hiatus for years.

Millie Dread is the stage name of Pittsburgh’s cyber gothic anti-pop star Hannah RB, a multidisciplinary artist who welcomes listeners into the macabre. A conversation with Millie Dread about her favorite band, Nine Inch Nails — and about just how rare women producers are in mainstream music.

INEZ is a Pittsburgh-based singer, producer and audio engineer who blends genres from R&B to world music. In 2020, she was named WYEP’s “Pittsburgh Artist of the Year” and now, she’s one of the city’s most visible artists.

Liz Berlin was a founding member of Rusted Root, a Pittsburgh band that rose to international fame in the 1990s, sharing stages with Sheryl Crow and the Dave Matthews Band. But after she left the band, she went on to find her voice as a solo artist and as the owner of Mr. Smalls Theatre in Millvale.

Introducing our new series, Taking the Mic, about the women in Pittsburgh's music scene, the neighborhoods that shaped their sound, and the moments that fueled their musical fires. Behind the series is WESA fellow Laura Fidalgo. She's a jazz vocalist and Ph. D student in Pittsburgh, but she grew up in the Canary Islands of Spain. WESA editor Susan Scott Peterson spoke with Laura about what pushed...

Introducing our new series, Taking the Mic, about the women in Pittsburgh's music scene, the neighborhoods that shaped their sound, and the moments that fueled their musical fires.

Part six of Designing Dignity explores how wrapping community around people who are declining cognitively helps to preserve their quality of life — and perhaps enrich everyone else's in the process.

Part five of WESA's Designing Dignity series explores how and if robots are able to step into caregiving roles to alleviate workforce shortages as populations age and require more support. And should they?

In episode four, we hear about how states in the U.S. are grappling with skyrocketing costs for elder care. Could Japan's long-term care insurance program be replicated at the state level?

In episode three, we hear about Japan's effort to keep hospital spending low by delivering dementia care directly to the patient's front door.

In episode two, we hear about how Japan's care managers provide guidance for people living with dementia and their family caregivers as the U.S. considers how to help families navigate its quagmire of social services.

Designing Dignity is a six-part series from WESA exploring one of the most pressing questions facing Pennsylvania: Are we prepared for an aging population? In episode one, we meet two families faced with a dementia diagnosis; one in Pittsburgh and one outside of Tokyo, Japan.

Designing Dignity is a new series from WESA that explores one of the most pressing questions facing Pennsylvania: Are we prepared for an aging population? Hosted by Kiley Koscinski, this series examines the realities of cognitive decline and caregiving through personal stories, expert insights and international reporting.

After the school year ends, Ms. Hoffman takes a midday break on a summer day. Despite the momentum carrying her into the new school year, part of her is still with the eighth graders who graduated.

King celebrates honor roll students and families kick back for a night of pizza, bouncy houses and bingo. Parents grapple with challenges with work, finding childcare, and where to live.

It takes a special kind of teacher to love middle schoolers. And an even specialer kind of teacher to be loved by middle schoolers. Introducing two of King’s favorite middle school teachers.

Second grade teacher Tiffany Basinger on why she loves second graders — and what it means to be a Black teacher in a majority-Black school.

On Halloween, two months into the school year, the first-day optimism has worn off. But as the school prepares for its fall harvest parade, King’s eighth grade class is a bright spot.

On the first day of school, hopes fly high at King. It’s Principal Dawn Gordon’s fourth year as principal, and it’s been constant flux. Things can only go up from here.

“King” is a series about a year in the life of a Pittsburgh Public school. It's a kaleidoscopic portrait of one school, over one year, where people show up and care for each other.