This week on Cultural Manifesto we’ll talk with the reggae music icon Ziggy Marley. Hear about his work in the new Spiderman film, an upcoming biopic about his father Bob Marley, and his history of performing for PBS Kids’ shows — including Sesame Street, and Arthur. 

We’ll also catch up with the Indianapolis-based jazz drummer, and hip-hop artist Dorian Phelps. His band, Hurricane and The Gang, just issued their debut recording Capture the Flag.

This week on Cultural Manifesto, we’ll talk with rapper Parris Ladame. She has a new album out titled “Pressure P”. We discussed her early years growing up in Indianapolis, and the teacher that inspired her love for poetry. 

And we’ll catch up with the Indianapolis vocalist and composer Hanna Benn. 2023 is becoming a breakout year for Benn — her voice was featured on the Oscar-nominated soundtrack for “Everything Everywhere All at Once”, her composition “View (Un)titled” was recently premiered at Carnegie Hall by the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and she’s a featured performer on the new Meshell Ndegeocello album.

Tune in this week for a special Pride month edition of Cultural Manifesto. We’re celebrating the legacy of Labyris, a feminist lesbian bar that operated near downtown Indianapolis from 1978 to 1984. Labyris hosted live performances from some of the biggest names in the women’s music movement, including Holly Near, Toshi Reagon, and June Millington, founder of the legendary rock band Fanny.

Kyle Long speaks with club’s founder Mary Byrne. He also talks with Lē Weaver, an Indianapolis musician who performed at Labyris, including rare recordings of Lē performing live at Labyris.

2023 marks the 50th anniversary of the birth of hip-hop music. Explore influential figures in Indianapolis' hip-hop history, from the 1970s to today, including Reggie Griffin who created beats for early rap classics including “The Message,” WSYW 801 A.M.’s rap radio format co-originator B-Boy Chilly T, Hit Makers Showcase host Paul Middlebrook, Mudkids’ co-founder Rusty Redenbacher, and Patrice 2 Fine, one of the first female rappers in Indianapolis to appear on record. Plus more from Rickie Clark, Grover Wilcher, Steve Weakley, N.A.P. and B.M.W.

Listen to words and music from artists including:

Reggie Griffin — He created the beats for many early rap classics at Sugar Hill Records, including Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five’s “The Message”.

B-Boy Chilly T — In 1991 he helped launch Indianapolis’ first radio station dedicated exclusively to rap music, WSYW 810 A.M., better known as “Yo! Eight-One-Oh!”.

Paul Middlebrook — During the 1980s he created and hosted “Hit Makers Showcase”, a public access cable program that documented early Indianapolis hip-hop culture. 

Rusty Redenbacher — Co-founder of the The Mudkids, one of Indianapolis’ most influential underground hip-hop groups.

Indianapolis-based poet and spoken word artist Too Black discusses The Pendleton 2: They Stood Up, which he co-directed. The documentary tells the story of the 1985 prison uprising at the Indiana State Reformatory, now the Pendleton Correctional Facility. Prison activists John “Balagoon” Cole and Christopher “Naeem” Trotter, known collectively as the Pendleton 2, were issued de facto life sentences for their role in the uprising. The film explores the policies of the Indiana Department of Corrections, KKK-associated prison guards, solitary confinement and the community effort to push for Cole and Trotter’s release.

This week on Cultural Manifesto Kyle Long speaks with Dwani Phiri, a Zambian-born Indianapolis-based artist. Dwani's music blends the afrobeat sounds of his homeland with the hip-hop music he grew up with in Indiana.

He'll also speak with NB Nakita, a unique electronic music producer and vocalist who grew up in Indianapolis. NB Nakita's music reflects her bicultural background, freely mixing language and genre.

Boot Scoot USA country music dance party organizers, Kevin Hofmeister and Kyle Nagy, share their journey from rap to country music.

And Sarah Acra, who formed KPop Indiana, discusses how she created a community for fans of South Korean popular music here in the Hoosier state.

This week on Cultural Manifesto Host Kyle Long speaks with the experimental musician, artist manager, and Indianapolis civic leader Michael Kaufmann; and we celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month with music from Mar Mar Aye, an important Burmese singer living in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

This week on Cultural Manifesto, an hour of words and music with the classical music pianist, and arts activist Lara Downes. She’ll be performing the Florence Price piano concerto with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra later this month.

Downes has become a significant advocate for African American voices in classical music. She’s the host and creator of Amplify, an NPR series that features Downes in conversation with a wide range of Black musicians. She’s also creator and curator of Rising Sun Music, a recording label that focuses on the work of historic and contemporary Black composers.

This week on Cultural Manifesto Kyle interviews singer/songwriter Morgan Rae Webster. We’ll listen to her debut single “Let Go”, a song dedicated to her sister, who died from COVID-19.

We’ll also have another edition of Finding Etheridge with Mat Davis, a new segment exploring the people and places connected to the late Indianapolis poet Etheridge Knight. This week’s guest will be Etheridge Knight’s great-niece Hanako Gavia.