Roberto Carlos Lange is a New York-based musician. Lange performs under the project Helado Negro. “It’s a name for something to give me the liberty to not think of my own name,” Lange says of the project. “It’s always been important for me to have a way to just start from nothing, there’s no history. I can build a history with that name.”

Helado Negro recently played the Marfa Myths music festival, where we caught up with him. In this interview he tells us about how growing up in Florida shaped the sound of Helado Negro and how his voice is the ‘strangest’ instrument he uses.

Growing up in Florida in the '80s, Roberto Carlos Lange heard a steady stream of Miami B... Hosted by for KRTS

Jana La Brasca speaks to William Middleton, author of Double Vision: The Unerring Eye of Art World Avatars Dominique and John de Menil.  In this conversation, Middleton talks about some of the individuals who influenced the Menils, and the vital role the couple played in the transformation of Houston as a vibrant arts destination. 

Middleton explains, “They felt very strongly that their position brought a responsibility to give back. To make the world a more intelligent place, a more beautiful place, and a better place… Everything they did was about that.” Hosted by Jana La Brasca for KRTS

Here is the full version of live stories from our "All or Nothing" event that took place on Friday, April 6, 2018 at the Crowley Theater. Thank you to the storytellers, Big Bend Brewing Co., and the Crowley Theater.

If you’re interested in telling a story at our forthcoming events, please shoot us an email as [email protected].

Storytellers from the event: 

00:00 - Alex Gates is the owner and chef at Cochineal in Marfa. She moved here with  her husband and daughter to pursue a life-long dream.

7:40 - Jeff has lived in Marfa for 6 years. He grew up in Illinois and studied philosophy in Kentucky. At one point in his life, he ended up in California.

... Hosted by Diana Nguyen for KRTS

Here is the full version of live stories from our All or Nothing event that took place on Monday, April 2 at The Rose Building. Thank you to the storytellers for sharing, Odessa Arts for sponsoring this event, the Roses for hosting us, and to Black Tulip for decorating the space. 

If you’re interested in telling a story at our forthcoming events, please shoot us an email as [email protected].

Here are the storytellers from the evening:

00:00 - General Manager Elise Pepple tells the story of when she moved to Alaska and became a park ranger.

19:00 - Corey Paul is a reporter for the Odessa American who covers local government and business. He moved here ... Hosted by Diana Nguyen for KRTS

On this episode, Diana Nguyen speaks to historian Lonn Taylor and Alpine-based artist Avram Dumitrescu about Taylor's newest book, Marfa for the Perplexed. 

The book is a collection of essays Taylor has written throughout his time in the Big Bend. The essays focus on important characters and historical events in Marfa and Presidio County. Marfa for the Perplexed is a Marfa Book Co. publication.

"The thesis of the book is really that Marfa has always been a refuge for individualists and eccentrics," Taylor explains. "he current crop are just the latest in a long, long tradition of people doing what they feel like doing here."

On Friday, March 30th, Lonn Taylor will speak about th... Hosted by Diana Nguyen for KRTS

On this episode, Diana Nguyen speaks to reporters Carlos Morales, Bayla Metzger, and Sally Beauvais about their most recent stories. Hosted by Diana Nguyen for KRTS

On this episode, Diana Nguyen speaks to Barak Goodman. Over the course of twenty years, he’s made more than thirty films, and has become an acclaimed nonfiction filmmaker. They discuss his work and changes in the documentary landscape over the years. Goodman emphasizes the importance of exploring complicated, nuanced perspectives in his films.

The filmmaker talks about his current production which examines the impact of gerrymandering on the United States' democracy.

Barak Goodman will speak as part of Midland College’s Davidson Distinguished Lecture Series on Tuesday, March 20 at the Al G. Langford Chaparral Center. The filmmaker's lecture, “Exploring the Gray: A Life in Docume... Hosted by Diana Nguyen for KRTS

On this episode, Jana La Brasca speaks to poet Adam Fitzgerald. He reads "The Lordly Hudson," "Oregon Trail," and "Dead Girls."

Fitzgerald will read at 6 pm on Sunday, March 11 at The Crowley Theater.

Adam Fitzgerald is the author of the poetry collections The Late Parade (2013) and George Washington (2016). The founding editor of poetry journal Maggy, he is currently a contributing editor for Literary Hub where he regularly features and interviews contemporary poets.

Hosted by Jana La Brasca for KRTS

On this episode, Diana Nguyen talks to Dominic Boyer and Cymene Howe about Energy Humanities and its role in finding a more sustainable energy future.

Boyer and Howe work with the Center for Energy and Environmental Research in Human Sciences at Rice University. They’re both professors of cultural anthropology and host the podcast “Cultures of Energy.” The podcast invites scholars, artists and activists to discuss the pressing energy and environmental issues of our times.

Howe and Boyer will speak as part of UTPB's Boom or Bust lecture series on Monday, March 5 at 12 pm in Lecture Hall 001 at the UTPB Library.  Hosted by Diana Nguyen for KRTS

On tonight's episode of West Texas Talk, a conversation with filmmaker, writer and horse packer, Ben Masters. Masters just wrapped filming on his forthcoming documentary, The River and the Wall, which chronicles a 1,200-mile journey along the U.S.-Mexico border by way of horse, mountain bike, and canoe.

During filming, Masters spoke with a wide range of people on both sides of the border to examine differing immigration viewpoints, and explore the impact a wall along the border would have on wildlife, public lands, private landowners, and all who call the borderlands home. Masters last full-length doc, Unbranded, chronicled a 3,000 mile trip he and his three friends did with 16 wild musta... Hosted by Bayla Metzger for KRTS