WGN - The Download with Justin Kaufmann Podcast

The tremendous D.I.Y. punk musician Jeff Rosenstock joins Justin to talk about his career, why he’s playing the Pitchfork Music Festival despite writing “Festival Song,” a tune which rails against the corporate nature of festivals, his latest critically acclaimed record, “Worry.,” being considered an influential figure in modern punk music, the current state of the punk rock and independent music scene, when bands use the term “D.I.Y.” as a marketing term and his memories of playing in Chicago. Follow Justin […]

The Carry Out is the nightly segment where Justin reads the news so you don’t have to. Tonight’s top stories include the continuing saga of Donald Trump Jr. meeting with a Russian lawyer, Senate Republicans unveiling their new healthcare bill, the Sun-Times now officially owned by Edwin Eisendrath and a group of investors that include former television news anchor and reporter Linda Yu, Lake County officials bracing for more flooding, President Trump’s lawyer firing off a profane email, the Cubs […]

Josh Mogerman of the National Resources Defense Council joins Justin to discuss the horrible flooding in the Chicago area, how severe weather is happening more frequently due to climate change, the importance of investing in resources that will help when flooding happens, the need to lower our carbon footprint, the responsibility the government has to protect its citizens, President Trump’s Paris trip and the implications of pulling out of the Paris Climate Accord. Follow Justin on Twitter and give him a like on Facebook. The Download with […]

The legendary  singer, songwriter, bandleader, record producer and member of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame George Clinton joins Justin to talk about his career, his memories of playing in Chicago, recognizing Chicago’s rich musical history, the moment he realized he needed to create a new type of sound, when he started to feel that he was on to something with the P-funk style, the challenges of being a bandleader and working with such an immense amount of talent, finding […]

The Carry Out is the nightly segment where Justin reads the news so you don’t have to. Tonight’s top stories include the flooding in the Chicago area, the S&P moving Illinois’ credit away from junk status, the new Chief of Staff for Governor Rauner issuing a memo to employees Tuesday outlining four “critical areas” of focus, the Sun-Times reporting that the paper will be acquired by former alderman Edwin Eisendrath, Kim Kardashian dispelling rumors of cocaine use, more people watching […]

A Safe Haven co-founder and president Neli Vazquez Rowland joins Justin to discuss this weekend’s 5K Run to End Homelessness at Montrose Harbor. Neli talks about how A Safe Haven is dedicated to providing shelter, food and programs to help transform lives from homelessness to self-sufficiency, the news that Will County declared an end to homelessness for veterans, what needs to be done to make the transition from fighting homelessness among veterans to fighting homelessness among the general population and and […]

It’s Wednesday night so that means it’s time for the Swap Meet sponsored by Wolff’s Flea Market!  Greg Flamm aka The DuPage Picker is here to evaluate your memorabilia! Do you want to find out how much that old Bears poster is worth? What about that classic “Zoom” record? Or how about a letter signed by baseball hall of famer (and former Cub) Rogers Hornsby? Tell Greg what you have and he’ll tell you if you have the gold! Follow Justin on Twitter and give him a like […]

How about this for an eclectic show? On tonight’s episode of The Download, Mike Warner, Executive Director of the Stormwater Management Commission in Lake County tells us what we need to know about the flooding in the Chicago area, we meet a couple of high school students who are leading an effort to find better ways to communicate with the Chicago Police Department, local Renaissance man David Singer returns to the show to talk about the theatrical release of his […]

We have another extremely eclectic show for you tonight on The Download! Justin chats with SpotHero CEO Mark Lawrence about his goal to empower people to get everywhere, easier, our resident philosopher Al Gini pays us another visit to explore the Seven Heavenly Virtues, we are treated to some music from beatbox sensations Yuri Lane and Paris Reed, the tremendous musician Hamilton Leithauser discusses his career, collaboration and upcoming performance at the Pitchfork Music Festival and since it’s Tuesday, we end […]

The amazing musician Hamilton Leithauser joins Justin to talk about his career, his memories of playing in Chicago, how Chicago became a home base for him, the difference between playing clubs and festivals, the transition he made from being in a much beloved band (The Walkmen) to working as a solo artist, being a part of a New York music community, how that community has changed as more people move away from New York, his collaboration with former Vampire Weekend […]