Public Radio Music Day - ON AIR

Tune in for a special day of music at KPFK! 

The noncomMUSIC Alliance will host the first-ever Public Radio Music Day on April 16, 2020. Stations across the country will celebrate the special role noncommercial stations play in the music world both locally and nationally with on-air and online events, studio sessions, special guests, and more.

KPFK invites you to join Global Village host John Schneider, Music Director Maggie LePique and KPFK rock music host Andrea Love on Thursday April 16th from 11am to 4pm in celebration of Public Radio Music Day. At 1pm Maggie presents a concert by Ladysmith Black Mambazo originally produced by CAP UCLA and KCRW. The concert became a posthumous tribute to Ladysmith's founder Joseph Shabalala presented without an audience in UCLA's Royce Hall after the onset of the coronavirus. The concert will begin with an interview with UCLA's Center for the Art of Performance Artistic Director Kristy Edmunds. 

Music Director Maggie LePique quoted saying, "The noncomMUSIC Alliance is hosting the inaugural Public Radio Music Day with its partner stations across the country including KPFK Radio. I'm thrilled KPFK will be participating in this historic broadcast. Music has proven to help reduce stress and anxiety, and I can't think of a better time for healing through music."

Grammy Award winner John Schneider said, "Independent radio is a priceless resource. Genius often grows in the hidden corners, overshadowed by the corporate giants that dominate the airwaves. It's not only our job, but our great pleasure to help talent shine, as we continue to give voices to the voiceless. When that happens, everyone wins." 

KPFK host Andrea Love said, "The importance of non-commercial music on the radio is that it opens the door to find the musicians that we don't know and to dig deeper into the musicians that we do." 

More than 20 million listeners tune in weekly to hundreds of local public radio music stations like KPFK across America to discover, learn about, and enjoy a mix of music selections, artists, and genres that are, in many cases, available only on public radio. Announced this past February with the introduction of bipartisan Congressional Resolutions, Public Radio Music Day was created to raise awareness about public radio's contributions to audiences, artists, and communities. 

Although the COVID-19 health crisis has placed constraints on live and on-site events, KPFK is proud to move forward with Public Radio Music Day with stations from nearly 30 states that will host the special broadcast and digital programming, such as virtual concerts, dedicated studio sessions, handcrafted playlists, and fan and artist stories, to help connect their community with local musicians and artists.