Arts and Culture
Ryan Kattner: On Oni Pond
The leader of the experimental indie group, Ryan Kattner, speaks to WBHM's Sarah Delia about the group's latest album On Oni Pond. Kattner also reveals insights to his creative process and his constant source of inspiration: heartbreak.
Javacia Harris Bowser: 365 Days of Fitness
Our guest blogger, Javacia Harris Bowser, speaks to WBHM's Sarah Delia about her fitness goal for 2014.
Musician Preforms Online Concerts for Birmingham Students Stuck Overnight at School
There were many ways Alabamians banded together to help each other during this week's surprise winter storm. A doctor walked six miles to the hospital to perform surgery. A Facebook page linked trapped motorists with good Samaritans to provide aid. Even a musician in Tennessee found a way to help. Roger Day heard about the thousands of children stuck at schools. So he treated them to impromptu online concerts. He tells WBHM's Rachel Osier Lindley how the concerts came together.
Strong is the New Skinny
I have declared on my blog, on my social media networks, and to all my close family members and friends that I am going to exercise every day in 2014. Yes, I plan to work out 365 consecutive days.
Neko Case: The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight
Singer song writer Neko Case opens up about her struggles with depression and the role it played in her latest album.
Shaheed and DJ Supreme
Rapper Shaheed and his producer DJ Supreme have been a mainstay of the Birmingham hip-hop scene for more than 10 years. But they aren't your typical southern hip-hop artists. As Muslims and fans of traditional rap, the duo aims to create socially conscious music with old school beats. Their latest release is called "Knowledge, Rhythm, and Understanding" and they perform Saturday at the Bottletree Cafe.
Leroy Stover: Birmingham’s First Black Police Officer
Leroy Stover joined the Birmingham Police Department in 1966 as the city's first black police officer. He recounts his career, struggles, and triumphs with WBHM's Sarah Delia.
Act of Congress: Christmas Vol. 2
The Birmingham acoustic quartet features influences from jazz, rock and pop and just released an album of Christmas songs. WBHM's Michael Krall spoke with band members Adam Wright and Chris Griffin and produced this audio postcard. (Note: Click the title bar above for music downloads.)
Dar Williams: Finding Her Musical Voice
Singer-songwriter Dar Williams has been compared to Joni Mitchell and Joan Baez but with a bit of an acidic twist. Her ninth studio album is called In The Time of Gods. Williams performs in Birmingham Tuesday night and she spoke with WBHM's Michael Krall.
Restoring the Lyric
As officials work to restore the Lyric Theatre in downtown Birmingham, some obstacles could be expected -- funding the project, removing lead paint and plumbing issues. But there are tougher, less obvious challenges too. When the Lyric opened in 1914, Birmingham was a city with lines of segregation and the theatre reflects that. So how do you faithfully restore a historic building still physically marked by the city's racist past?
Stephen Hough: Playing the piano isn’t enough
Stephen Hough is one of the world's leading pianists, but he's also been described a as a renaissance man -- excelling as a writer and composer. It's all part of his creativity beyond the piano. But it also adds to his creativity and his musical personality. He performs with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra Friday and Saturday night.
Birmingham Author’s JFK Assassination Book Inspires Play
Next Friday, November 22, marks the 50th Anniversary of the assignation of President John F. Kennedy. It's a story James Douglas of Birmingham knows well. He's the author of the 2008 book "JFK and the Unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters." It’s a detailed account of his research into President Kennedy's work for peace and his assignation. The book has been adapted into a play, entitled "Noah’s Ark," by Pittsburgh playwright Ginny Cunningham. The Birmingham Festival Theatre will present a staged reading of the play this Sunday, November 17, at 2 p.m. As Douglas and Cunningham describe in this interview, there were many challenges involved in turning Douglas's 500-plus page book into a 90 minute play. The version presented in Birmingham this weekend is three years and 20 drafts in the making.
Birmingham Ghost Tours: Revealing the Unseen
Walk around downtown Birmingham and you see many old, vacant buildings. But Wolfgang Poe argues just because you can't see someone in one of those old buildings doesn't mean nobody's there.
Meet Danail Rachev: ASO Guest Conductor
Since the 2011-2012 season the Alabama Symphony Orchestra has been led by esteemed guest conductors from all over the world. One of these conductors could eventually become the new Music Director and Principal Conductor of the orchestra. This weekend Danail Rachev continues that trend and pays a return visit to Birmingham.
Yotam Haber: A More Convenient Season
A work of new music by composer Yotam Haber will have its world premiere Saturday night at UAB’s Alys Stephens Center. Featuring the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, “A More Convenient Season” was written specifically for and about Birmingham’s Civil Rights struggle. WBHM’s Michael Krall spoke with Haber about the piece….
WBHM Looks Back On 1963
Throughout the past year WBHM has marked the key moments from the civil rights movement and explored the legacy of events of 1963. Today we take a look back on some of those stories and voices.
The Mystery of Addie Mae Collins’ Remains
While Birmingham marked the 50th anniversary of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing this weekend, a mystery lingers about one the victims. Three of the four girls killed in the bombing were buried in Greenwood Cemetery near the Birmingham airport. There’s a gravestone for Addie Mae Collins, but her remains are not actually there. One woman is trying to figure out where they are.
Four Spirits Statue, Memorial to 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing Victims, Unveiled
City and civil rights leaders unveiled the “Four Spirits” statue in Kelly Ingram Park Saturday memorializing the victims of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, one day before the 50th anniversary of that tragedy. Other than a plaque on the side of the church, it's the first permanent memorial to the victims.
A Sunday School Lesson From the 16th Street Baptist Church
Verses from a Sunday School lesson taught the day of the bombing at the 16th Street Baptist Church will once again be shared with the church's youth this Sunday. WBHM's Sarah Delia visited the church to hear how those Bible verses resonate 50 years later.
The Story Behind Newsweek’s 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing Cover
Among many haunting images from the aftermath of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham is a Newsweek magazine cover from 1963. It shows Maxine McNair, whose daughter Denise died in the blast, grieving with her sister. That photograph came about in an unexpected way. Birmingham resident Reggie Holder tells how he stumbled across the story.
Black Women Don’t Exercise
Have you heard the stereotype that black women don't exercise? African-American women are at an increased risk of obesity and more likely to die from cardiovascular disease than white women. While WBHM Race and Diversity Blogger Javacia Harris Bowser is big on fitness, she's also making sure her mother doesn't become a statistic.
Saying Goodbye To Marty’s
Regulars at Marty’s in Birmingham’s Southside neighborhood will have to find a new bar to call home after August 31st. The institution is calling it quits after two decades of drinks, music, and the passing of the bar’s owner, Marty Eagle, earlier this year. Marty’s was a second home for many but also a home for jazz in Birmingham. WBHM’s Sarah Delia stopped by during the bar’s final week as staff, musicians and regulars say goodbye.
Rivers: A Debut Novel
Eight years ago today Hurricane Katrina roared out of the Gulf of Mexico leaving more than 18-hundred people dead with an estimated 125 billion dollars in damage. Now imagine a series of storms of that intensity parked over the Gulf all the time and you have the setting for a first novel by a young Mississippi author.WBHM’s Greg Bass spoke with Michael Farras Smith about his debut novel Rivers
Eric Essix Evolution
Alabama native Eric Essix has released his 20th record. "evolution" is a musical excursion from the times of Birmingham in 1963 to the progress of the city and its people, today.
WBHM Wins Seven AP Awards
WBHM 90.3 FM/WSGN 91.5 FM has won a total of seven 2013 Alabama Associated Press awards. The awards were presented at a luncheon July 20 in Birmingham. Here's the list of the winners.
The Civil Wars: Dust to Dust
Fans of The Civil Wars were heartbroken when Alabama-native John Paul White and Joy Williams announced they were putting the group on indefinite hiatus last year. The pair’s rich harmonies and onstage chemistry garnered praise from critics and fans alike. And while they are barely able to talk to each other now, The Civil Wars will release their new album "The One that Got Away" August 6th. NPR has an exclusive preview with their song “Dust to Dust.”
Susan Werner: A Musician With Big Ideas on Farm to Table Food
Folk singer-songwriter Susan Werner knows food. She grew up on a family farm in Iowa. She has strong opinions about what we should eat and where that food should come from. So she says it was a no brainer when she was commissioned to write a concept album about farming. Werner brings that music to Birmingham tomorrow night.
Spreading the Love on Loving Day
Loving v. Virginia is not as well known as other U.S. Supreme Court civil rights cases, but it has significant consequences for many people. The case overturned bans on interracial marriage and spawned an annual celebration called Loving Day. WBHM Race and Diversity Blogger Javacia Harris Bowser writes about one Birmingham couple who might not be together without that decision.
Tanya Ott’s final day at WBHM
On her final day as News Director and Morning Edition host, WBHM's,Tanya Ott speaks with Michael Krall about her time in North Central Alabama and tells us about her new position with Georgia Public Broadcasting.
The Postman’s March
All this year we’re marking the 50th anniversary of key moments from the civil rights movement. While many are familiar with the turmoil in Birmingham, Gadsden was relatively calm. That is until a white man named William Moore set out on a solo protest walk across the south. It ended with his murder in Etowah County, Alabama. WBHM’s Andrew Yeager has the story of the “Postman’s March,” a case still unresolved today.
I Was Told I Couldn’t Be a Feminist Because I’m Black
I remember the first time I wrote and published a piece for a newspaper declaring myself a feminist. I received a message from a black man who couldn't believe that a black woman would dare associate herself with a movement that was spearheaded by "racist, wealthy white women."
Remembering Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert has joined his friend Gene Siskel in the balcony in the sky, and according to WBHM blogger Billy Ray Brewton film criticism has died along with him.
