Jim Cargill , with Arvest Bank, explains the challenges of banking during a pandemic and beyond as part of this week's Northwest Arkansas Business Journal Report .

The first weekend of October brings with it the much anticipated FreshGrash festival in Bentonville, a legendary rapper in Fayetteville, and many other musical opportunities throughout the region. Thr, Sep 30 U of A World Music Ensemble at Walmart Museum (Bentonville) - 5 p.m. DJ Suzie Q, Little Yei at Turnbow Park (Springdale) - 6:30 p.m. Grace Potter at The Momentary (Bentonville) - free, registration required, 7:30 p.m. Ben Miller Band at Kingfish (Fayetteville) - 8 p.m. Casey Donahew at JJ's

This week, University of Arkansas music professor Lia Uribe celebrates the 50th edition of Sound Perimeter with a special rendition of Happy Birthday, and she contiues to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with a Cuban bolero from 1955. We hear works by Werner Elmker and Frank Dominguez, featuring Natalia Lafourcade with Omara Portuondo.

We start a Wednesday edition of the show with news about booster shots of Pfizer vaccine in Arkansas, poll numbers from Talk Business and Politics-Hendrix College about the Arkansas Legislature, and a settlement between Cherokee Nation and some drug companies.

Gema Zamarro , a professor & 21st Century Endowed Chair in Teacher Quality in the Department of Education Reform at the University of Arkansas and adjunct senior economist at University of Southern California's Center for Economic and Social Research, has been measuring the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on gender, and more recently on public school teachers. Her and research colleagues' findings are helping to shape federal, state and local policy.

We conclude our conversation with Nate Powell, a collaborator on the National Book Award-winning March series of graphic novels about Congressman John Lewis. Powell, an Arkansas native, spoke at the Fayetteville Public Library this month.

Arkansas lawmakers are returning to the state Capitol Wednesday following an extended recess to formally begin the process of re-drawing the state’s four U.S. Congressional districts. Our partners at KUAR News spoke with Heather Yates, Ph.D., an associate professor of American Politics at the University of Central Arkansas, on what to expect from this year’s redistricting session.

We begin today's show with news regarding COVID-19 in Arkansas, propsoals for Congressional redistrcting, and a chance to have your picture made with the latest piece of NWA Naturals' championship hardware.

Nate Powell collaborated with Congressman John Lewis and Andrew Aydin to create March, graphic novels about Congressman Lewis' life. The book was hnoroed with the National Book Award. This month Powell, an Arkansas native, spoke at the Fayetteville Public Library.

John Brummett, political columnist for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette , and Roby Brock, with our partner Talk Business and Politics , discuss the busy agendas for lawmakers in Little Rock and Washington, D.C.