After a long hiatus, Native American programming has returned to KZSM! Beginning on Friday, April 3, tune in to “Indigenous Voices” hosted by me, “Uncle Gene,” from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. Often, when attending powwows and other events, I would be asked about the program I used to host. “We miss the music!” I would often hear.
Admittedly, I have enjoyed retirement and having so much time off to pursue other interests. However, producing a program like “Indigenous Voices” is not just an interest, but I see it as a responsibility! It always gives me great pleasure to share my culture! In my previous program, I focused more on powwow culture, the music, the dance styles, and some of our traditions.
“Indigenous Voices” will be more contemporary with music, poems, stories, and interviews of and by Indigenous performers as well as Indigenous friends and family members. The idea is to promote awareness of who we are — your friends, neighbors and coworkers. You will hear their stories, where they came from, where they are today, and how they honor their own traditions. I’ll also be discussing some of those traditions and explaining why they are important to us.
From hip-hop to rock ’n’ roll, from blues to country and western, and jazz, we’ll go on a journey of discovery to hear what Indigenous musicians have to offer. Of course, you will still hear some more traditional Indigenous performers and their music as well. Then there are more innovative artists to discover that have been able to blend the traditional with a new creative energy to create new vocal expressions such as throat singing from our relatives from way up north.
There will also be subjects to think about, news of current events, bits of history, and current pressing issues. As the program develops, I anticipate that we will also have news feeds from Native Voice One. I am pleased to mention that KZSM 104.1/KZSM.org will become an affiliate member of the Native Voice One broadcast platform.
I will still let you know where you can go to a powwow and how to make the most out of your visit to our native culture.
Don’t forget to visit the KZSM.org web page to check our schedule, and please check often to see what other great locally produced community programming KZSM has to offer!
