The Motherland Influence
Starting in 1998 The Motherland Influence continues to bring you African, Latin & Caribbean music from wherever we can find it. Nigeria to Colombia to Haiti to Europe to USA. Soukous, Calypso, Rai, Reggae, Afrobeat, Salsa, Cumbia, Chaabi, the list goes on. We do it because it needs to be heard and we love it. We think you will too.
Anna C. March 28th, 2016
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Ambiance Congo / The Other Black Music
Ambiance Congo features the best of Congolese popular music. From the 1950s to the present day, Congolese music is the most widely distributed and appreciated music throughout the African continent. Congolese music is also appreciated worldwide from Western Europe to Japan, Colombia and the Caribbean.
I wanted the city to be able to hear the unrepresented sound in Black Music. I like Hip-Hop, top 40 oldies and smooth jazz but there is a LOT more. Blues, new and old Funk/Soul, Zydeco, Black Country, Afro-pop, Latin, Caribbean, Rock and much more. Thanks to WRIR I can do that. All you have to do is tune in and turn up the volume.
Anna C. March 28th, 2016
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Mellow Madness
Mellow Madness is a DeeJay radio show that focuses on Soul, Funk, Jazz, various International, Psyche and other genres and has an emphasis on original press vinyl records. The show is hosted by Michael Murphy but periodically has guest appearances from local DJs and even the occasional world famous record collector.
The host, Michael Murphy, has been a DJ in Richmond for over 15 years and got involved through an interest in Hip Hop and Dance music. He was part of the tag team duo Sleek and Ruckus in the mid 90s but continued working with other groups, notably The Infectious Organisms in the late 90s. Over the years Michael has DJed in many cities, including the opportunity to DJ at SXSW in Austin, Texas in 2007.
“While growing up in Richmond I was into Rock, Punk and Heavy Metal as a kid, but developed a taste for Hip Hop during my teenage years. A lot of the golden era Hip Hop beats were produced with samples of soul and funk records from the 60s and 70s. Once I started discovering the original sample sources for all of my favorite hip hop songs, I quickly realized that there was a whole other world of older music that I was not aware existed. My tastes over the years have branched out to many other types of music besides 60s and 70s Soul and Funk. On any given Sunday on Mellow Madness you might hear Deep Soul 45s, Brazilian Sambas, International Psyche Rock, Disco Boogie, Black Jazz, Post Punk, Afro Funk, Psychedelic Folk, Roots Reggae, and a lot more.”
Anna C. October 19th, 2015
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Paul’s Boutique / Due Diligence
Saturdays from 11-1pm, Paul G. brings you the best, the weirdest, the rockin-est sounds around! Tune in to hear free-form radio at it’s very best.
PAUL’S BOUTIQUE: Searching for something to fit your ears just right? Tune in to Paul’s Boutique alternating Saturdays to hear rock, indie rock, dance, punk, post-punk, pop, metal, Brazilian grooves, classic country & western, blues, jazz, kraut rock, afro-funk, French stuff, rockabilly, soul and rhythm & blues, funk, reggae, dub, experimental, garage, psychedelic, hip-hop, folk and more handpicked by me. Woo haw, you’re all in check!
Anna C. October 12th, 2015
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Activate!
Activate! is a concert calendar for your ears. Do you want to go to a show? Every week, I preview the next 7 days on Richmond’s live music calendar. Every band you hear on Activate! is playing in the River City sometime that week and you’ll get info as to when and where the show is happening.
The Richmond music scene is one of the best in the world. In order for it to maintain and grow, we need people like you to go to live shows. That includes supporting both local and touring bands. Every night of the week, you can catch a spectrum of live bands playing music that you want to hear. But, it’s not easy for musicians OR venues. So, tune in to Activate! every Thursday from 5 to 7pm, hear a band that sparks your interest, and go to the show!
Anna C. October 12th, 2015
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Commonwealth of Notions / Deutscher Jam
The Commonwealth of Notions is a reaction to the idea that good music is dead in the city of Richmond. While being a careful observer and participant in the music scene, I find myself constantly amazed by the creative energies put on display. Whether they are the songs played within the walls of living rooms, basements or bars, they should all be heard.
Along with my initial motives of showcasing the local Richmond scene, the playlists act as a showcase of my love for music. If I spend the following week with a song stuck in my head, why wouldn’t I play it on the air? Perhaps that is what makes the show stand out in many regards. It isn’t limited to just being a show about Richmond local music. The Commonwealth of Notions acts as a showcase of myself and hopefully the songs I play will help establish and create conversations that wouldn’t happen otherwise.
At its core, the Commonwealth of Notions is my love letter to the great musical entities that have come and gone in Richmond and a way for me to never lose sight of it’s pulse.
Servus und Willkommen zu unseren Deutscher Jam!
Hey everyone and welcome to our Deutscher Jam. This show should serve as a connecting ground to showcase and play current and classic German Artists here in Richmond. We are going to be pulling away from the stereotypes and stigmas one may think when picturing modern day Germany through sound and music. The shows mission is to pull individuals away from viewing Germans as the stereotypical picture of solely drinking beer, eating sausage, wearing lederhosen, and the population only consisting of one race. Hip-Hop has created a platform for Germans to ignite change and rebrand the face of their society. 
This current generation of Hip-Hop artists are reshaping everything about what being “Made in Germany” means and how they are actively embracing the language. Germany has reshaped themselves into not only a fierce competitor politically and economically but now also in the music industry. Germans have taken a genre that had been introduced to them from across the Atlantic over 30 years ago, translated and interpreted it into their own version and have created a blend that has reshaped the music industry into possible pursuit of a global takeover. Viel Spaß und 
enjoy this insider listen into what Germany really has to offer!
Anna C. October 12th, 2015
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Breakfast Blend w/ Galaxy Girl & Friends
Melancholy songwriters, Riot grrls, local bands, retro French pop, international garage rock, Japanese punk, this decade, last decade, a multicultural and multigenre mix to get your energy flowing and start your day off right. Music from across the galaxy!
RIYL: Elliott Smith, The Coathangers, Serge Gainsbourg, Stereolab, thrift store music, quirky covers, songs about food, listening to under-caffeinated people try to pronounce foreign words.
Every Thursday morning from 6-8am right here on WRIR! Thanks for listening!
Anna C. October 12th, 2015
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The Church of the Ecstatic
Welcome to The Church of the Ecstatic, a freeform radio show exploring the magic found in music. We will traverse all genres, time periods, and places in search of the mystical, intangible, and transcendental. Expect to hear everything from the hypnotic drums of folk songs, to the raucous shouts of metal, to the sparkling synths of electronic dance music as your host, Sister Euphonia, guides you through the witching hours.
Anna C. October 12th, 2015
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The Breakfast Snob
The Breakfast Snob originally aired on Sunday mornings and is now airing every Thursday evening. The show features tracks by new and “under-known” artists of many genres and localities, highlighted with cuts by older, established- but often obscure- bands that helped influence today’s artists, and punctuated by brief, intense flashes of loud guitar- simply because I love loud guitar.
The show’s title is a reference to my old friend and mentor, Michael Hawkesworth (the original Breakfast Snob) who introduced me to a world of new music in the 1980’s…a tradition that I endeavor to continue today. As one of my favorite artists said:
“I used to think that music was a universal language, but I’m not so sure anymore it is any sort of language; not as we think of language anyway. It’s more like telepathy. It’s knowing, and the sense that you have known forever, and will know always, for those who can receive the transmission. It touches mind, body, and spirit, all at once, and moves them into harmony, or dissonance, or both, depending on how you define these things, and depending always on the intent of the artist, and the intent of the listener, not only at the moment of creation or the moment of listening, but from the infinite past to the infinite future, stretched between the points which are both closest together and farthest apart, a circular continuity of sorts.” -Cary Grace
Anna C. October 12th, 2015
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Louisiana Dance Hall
Zydeco, Cajun, Funk, Brass Bands, Swamp Pop … and more! Tune in for our eclectic jam of danceable sounds from across the great state of Louisiana!
Talia and Bill take turns hosting this show on alternating Mondays, 7 to 9 pm. In addition to crawfish, Talia serves up Cajun, Zydeco and Swamp Pop — and Bill adds a heaping helping of Funk, Brass Bands, Jazz and Blues to the mix!
Fan of Louisiana Dance Hall? You might also enjoy fellow WRIR program Edge of Americana. As always, thanks for listening — and we love to hear from you!
Anna C. October 9th, 2015
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