Cultural Manifesto

Listen to an interview with rock and roll legend Felix Cavaliere of The Rascals. 

Vocalist, organist and songwriter Felix Cavaliere confounded Rascals in 1965. Originally known as The Young Rascals, the band would go on to chart 9 top 20 Billboard singles, including three number 1 hits. Today, The Rascals are considered one of the defining American rock bands of the 1960s. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997, and Cavaliere was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2009. The Rascals will be performing at the Brown County Music Center in September.

Listen to an interview with the New York-based musician John Roseboro. He describes his music as “post bossa,” a unique blend of American indie rock and Brazilian bossa nova. Roseboro will be performing in Indianapolis on September 14 at State Street Pub.

Carl Broemel started his career as a choir boy at Indianapolis’ Christ Church Cathedral, today he travels the world as a guitarist with My Morning Jacket. This week on Cultural Manifesto, hear Broemel discuss his roots in the Indianapolis music scene.

Broemel’s work with My Morning Jacket has received widespread critical acclaim. In 2007, he was named on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of “20 New Guitar Gods”. Broemel has worked with a wide range of musicians, from CCR’s John Fogerty to Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters. Broemel will be performing with My Morning Jacket at the Bourbon & Beyond in Louisville on September 22.

Listen to an interview with photographer Jacob Moran. He’ll discuss “Visual Aural”, a book and mixtape documenting the Indianapolis rap music scene. 

Also hear from two of the musicians featured in “Visual Aural,” rappers 4200Kory and Joosi.

Listen to an interview with the Indianapolis-based poet and filmmaker Too Black. He’ll discuss his new book, “Laundering Black Rage: The Washing of Black Death, People, Property, and Profits”, co-written with Dr. Rasul Mowatt. 

The book explores how the rage directed at the police murder of George Floyd was re-channeled away from the Black Lives Matter movement into corporate advertising and questionable leadership.

Listen to a preview of this year’s edition of Chreece, an all-day hip-hop festival happening in the Fountain Square neighborhood of Indianapolis. 

Hear a conversation with Chreece organizers Oreo Jones, Jane Kim, and Jay Brookinz; along with interviews and music from Chreece performers 4200Kory, and Joosi Got Bars.

Plus a conversation with Yung Rev, the organizer of Dystopia, a multimedia event series happening in Fountain Square.

Listen to a special podcast edition of Cultural Manifesto, featuring an unedited conversation with Oreo Jones, Jay Brookinz, and Jane Kim — the organizers of Chreece, an all-day hip-hop festival happening in the Fountain Square neighborhood of Indianapolis.

Listen to an interview with the Hobart, Indiana pop star Omar Apollo. He will discuss his new album “God Said No”, his memories of growing up in northwest Indiana, and his upcoming concert in Indianapolis.

Listen to an interview with the Bloomington-based jazz keyboardist, bandleader, and author Monika Herzig. She’ll discuss the latest album from her band Sheroes, titled “All In Good Time”.

Monika Herzig’s Sheroes is an all-star group, featuring prominent women in jazz music. Sheroes is one of many projects Herzig has created to support women in jazz.

Listen to an interview with the composer and multi-instrumentalist Leon Todd Johnson. He creates classically inspired ambient music under the name Airport People. 

Johnson will discuss the new Airport People release “Midwest Dispossessed”, a collaboration with photographer Michael Ginda. The album includes a 136-page book of photography by Ginda, along with Johnson’s score. “Midwest Dispossessed” has been described as a “blend of visual and auditory art, that explores the current state of rural communities in and around the Wabash Valley.”