October 16, 2009
The Nigerian musician, activist, and father of Afrobeat inspired a generation of artists -- one of whom is choreographer Bill T. Jones. Kurt talks with Jones about his new Broadway musical "Fela!" which celebrates the art and life of a music legend.
(Originally aired: December 19, 2008)
Black is not just a skin color; it's a quality of voice. Sarah Jones, the Tony Award-winning performer, talks with linguist John McWhorter about what it means to sound black today. They look at how Barack Obama has used his "blaccent" to drive audiences wild. Produced by Studio 360's Derek John.
(Originally aired: October 24, 2008)
Novelist Jonathan Safran Foer, author of Everything Is Illuminated and the upcoming non-fiction work Eating Animals, explains how boxes by the artist Joseph Cornell inspired his own creative process.
(Originally aired: August 10, 2007)
Writer Elna Baker tells a story of how an elegant dress from her grandmother's closet became an oddly powerful talisman for her struggles with weight, her Mormon faith, and trying out new identities. The story is part of her new memoir, The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance. (Special thanks to Catherine Burns of The Moth.)
(Originally aired: April 11, 2008)
Although Annie Leibovitz is known for skillfully staged portraits, she still struggles to capture the moment as it unfolds. Kurt visits the photographer in her Greenwich Village studio and she reminisces about her work chronicling the lives of rock stars for Rolling Stone.
(Originally aired: December 26, 2008)
Studio 360 is a co-production of
Public
Radio International and
WNYC New York Public Radio, and is funded in part by
Ken and Lucy Lehman, the
National Endowment for the Arts, and the Lily Auchincloss Foundation. Studio 360's American Icons series is supported in part by the
National Endowment for the Humanities. Our series on creativity and science is supported in part by the
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Our series on Underground Heroes is supported in part by the New York State Music Fund, established by the New York State Attorney General at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors. 
