Black Opry Founder Holly G On Creating Space for Black Artists in Country Music 

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Holly G is the founder of Black Opry, a platform for Black artists performing in country, Americana, folk and American-roots music. A self-described “music-industry disruptor,” Holly G started Black Opry as a website in 2021. It has quickly grown into a collective of sorts, encompassing the Black Opry Revue, a touring party of Black artists from all over the country.  …

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Bob Mould Crams a 40-Year Career of Alternative Noise into a Solo Electric Show

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Alt-rock pioneer Bob Mould, who founded both Hüsker Dü and Sugar (among other projects), performs a solo-electric show at the Ponte Vedra Concert Hall on Friday, October 14. He recently spoke with First Coast Connect host Melissa Ross about the gig, his 40-year career and his latest work. Listen to the interview below. Bob Mould performs at the Ponte Vedra …

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Watch JJ Grey Perform on First Coast Connect

Jax-native and Mofro frontman in the studio to promote the Blackwater Sol Revue

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With his signature voice, a singular fusion of musical styles and lyrics that draw on a deep sentimentality for his native city, singer-songwriter JJ Grey has amassed a formidable catalog of songs, as well as a large and dedicated following. As the frontman of Mofro, the Jacksonville native enjoyed early success with the band’s 2001 debut Blackwater. On the group’s …

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JME DJ Sessions | The beautiful noise of Northeast Florida on First Coast Connect

Listen to three new songs out of Jacksonville

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As temperatures are cooling here in Northeast Florida, local artists are heating up––setting streaming services ablaze with brand new tunes.  On October’s edition of JME DJ Sessions on First Coast Connect with Melissa Ross, we listened to three songs from some of the region’s most buzzed-about artists.  You can read reviews for each song on jaxmusic.org and listen to them …

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JME DJ Sessions | 3 dance-floor-ready local tunes

August's JME DJ Sessions featured three songs that are sure to set the dance floor ablaze.

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The delta variant has already caused live music to pump the brakes. While venues around the country are beginning to require proof of vaccination, some larger festivals, like the popular New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, are calling the whole thing off. Meanwhile, many nationally touring artists are postponing shows in areas struggling under the weight of the outbreak.  Still, …

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JME DJ Sessions | 3 local tunes to put you in a mellow mood

Listen to July's JME DJ Sessions on First Coast Connect

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With the humidity at or above 90% — and likely to stay that way for the rest of the summer (that’s another two months, at the very least, in Northeast Florida) — it’s perfectly normal to be moving a little slow. Knowing that, we kept the BPM’s low for July’s JME DJ Sessions on First Coast Connect with Melissa Ross, …

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JME DJ Sessions | Summer Jams

Three new tunes from Jax-based artists, all perfectly timed to invoke summer.

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We often think of summer music as the kind of breezy, carefree pop that emanates from, or at least calls to mind, paradisiacal places. Think your dad’s yacht rock; Jimmy Buffet in Key West, The Eagles and the whole Laurel Canyon scene. Maybe reggae. Or, my favorite summer sound, traditional Hawaiian music.  With Northeast Florida averaging something like six months …

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WJCT’s First Coast Connect Receives National PRNDI Award

Contact: Stan Cleiland, Vice President, Community Relations and Strategic Communications (904) 358-6366 • scleiland@wjct.org For Immediate Release WJCT’s First Coast Connect Receives National PRNDI Award First Coast Connect Wins First Place in The Call–In Program Category (Jacksonville, FL, June 29, 2015); WJCT’s First Coast Connect has received its fourth national award from Public Radio News Directors, Inc. (PRNDI). The program captured first …

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Studio 5 Sessions : This Frontier Needs Heroes “Just Because”

This Frontier Needs Heroes performs the song  “Just Because” for Studio 5 Sessions. Sample the incredible musical performances from WJCT’s First Coast Connect with video recorded in Studio 5 during the artists’ live radio appearance. We feature some of the area’s hottest bands and theatrical performers as well as big-name national acts who are coming through Jacksonville.These sessions are part …

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Studio 5 Sessions : Million Dollar Quartet “Blue Suede Shoes” LIVE

The cast of Million Dollar Quartet performs live for First Coast Connect in Studio 5 at WJCT in Jacksonville Florida. Million Dollar Quartet is the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, inspired by the electrifying true story of the famed recording session that brought together rock ‘n’ roll icons Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins for the first …

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Studio 5 Sessions on the GO! : Grandpa’s Cough Medicine

Grandpa’s Cough Medicine performing live for Studio 5 Sessions at the MOCA theatre during First Coast Connect on the GO! Live at One Spark.  Grandpa’s Cough Medicine is an outlaw bluegrass trio that ignores certain traditions of the genre, such as gospel themes and Blueridge mountain cabins, and instead focuses on frenetic picking, blazing tempos and dark subject matter. Bluegrass music …

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Studio 5 Sessions : Meredith Rae Woodard “Lucky I Found You”

Meredith Rae Woodard performs “Lucky I Found You”  for Studio 5 Sessions “In the Green Room” prior to her appearance on WJCT 89.9’s First Coast Connect. Meredith Rae Woodard grew up singing Joni Mitchell songs with her mother in their dining room in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her love of performance and music led her to musical theater productions — the love of her …

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Studio 5 Sessions : Meredith Rae Woodard “Best Thing”

Meredith Rae Woodard performs “Best Thing” for Studio 5 Sessions “In the Green Room” prior to her appearance on WJCT 89.9’s First Coast Connect. Meredith Rae Woodard grew up singing Joni Mitchell songs with her mother in their dining room in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her love of performance and music led her to musical theater productions — the love of her …

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First Coast Connect

Florida Times-Union Report Topher Sanders on Their New Investigative Series About Juvenile Justice in Northeast Florida Dr. Kelli Wells, Duval County Health Department Director, on Flu Season Author and Biblical Scholar John Dominic Crossan Stage Aurora Presents Dreamgirls

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First Coast Connect

Analysis of President Obama’s State of the Union Address and Income Inequality Issues Bishops Rudolph McKissick Sr. and Rudolph McKissick Jr. Jacksonville’s Search for Identity Communities in Schools National Mentoring Month Programs

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First Coast Connect

New FSCJ President Cynthia Bioteau “One Family: Photographs by Vardi Kahana” Exhibit at the Cummer Museum Jacksonville’s Coming Out Monologues First Coast Sports Wrap Up with Cole Pepper

First Coast Connect

NOTE: Due to technical difficulties, the first five minutes of this episode are not available. Thank you for your understanding. Media Roundtable Week in Review Actress Sinda Nichols, The Lady with All the Answers Classical Group Sybarite5

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Studio 5 Sessions : Canary in the Coalmine “Leaving Tonight”

Canary in the Coalmine performing Live for Studio 5 Sessions. “Canary in the Coalmine” are an American folk band based in Jacksonville, Florida, fronted by songwriters Jessica Pounds and Sandy Wicker. A haunting quality underscores striking vocal harmonies that provide a focal point for the band’s Appalachian folk and alt country influences. It’s that uniquely characteristic sound of their voices together …

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Studio 5 Sessions : Canary in the Coalmine “Dancing Devil”

Canary in the Coalmine perform “Dancing Devil” Studio 5 Sessions. “Canary in the Coalmine” are an American folk band based in Jacksonville, Florida, fronted by songwriters Jessica Pounds and Sandy Wicker. A haunting quality underscores striking vocal harmonies that provide a focal point for the band’s Appalachian folk and alt country influences. It’s that uniquely characteristic sound of their voices together that …

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First Coast Connect

Same Sex Couples Sue Florida for Marriage Equality 2014 iStart Jax Startup Weekend Event Keith Haring’s Ghost Canary in the Coalmine Around Town with Kerry Speckman

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First Coast Connect

How a Jacksonville Case Could Impact Efforts to Reform Florida’s Juvenile Justice System UF Health’s Parkinson’s Awareness Weekend Going Green Series: Garden of Eatin’ Plants The Blue Man Group Visits Jacksonville

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First Coast Connect

How Should Florida Spend Clean Water Act Fines to BP from the Gulf Oil Spill? Local Author Chris Berman on China’s Moon Landing Journalist Bob Woodward, Speaking at UNF Courtesy of the World Affairs Council Tech Tuesday: FORGE 3D Printing Studio

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First Coast Connect

Valor Academy of Leadership First Coast Success Profiles Ray Hays, PRC Digital Media First Coast Sports Wrap Up with Cole Pepper Martin Luther King Jr.’s Entire “I Have A Dream” Speech

First Coast Connect

Media Roundtable Week in Review Actress Linda Purl, Appearing in Theatre Jacksonville’s Production of The Year of Magical Thinking Swamp Radio Jax Alhambra Theatre Presents Pump Boys & Dinettes

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First Coast Connect

The Debate Over Common Core Standards for Florida Schools St. Johns Riverkeeper Lisa Rinaman Leadership Jacksonville’s “Legacy Series” Special on WJCT TV Salutes Delores Barr Weaver Around Town with Kerry Speckman

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Studio 5 Sessions : Tom Shed performs “Florida State of Mine”

Tom Shed performs “Florida State of Mine” from his album “Mama’s Goin’ Out” in this “off air” bonus performance following his visit to 89.9’s First Coast Connect. Tom wrote “Florida State of Mine” as a jingle about the pride he feels for his home state.Singer-songwriter Tom Shed performs his “history, humor and the human condition” show across the U.S., Canada, the Caribbean, …

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Studio 5 Sessions : Tom Shed interview & performance of “Better Than Good”

Tom Shed interviewed by Melissa Ross host of WJCT 89.9’s First Coast Connect. He performs “Better Than Good” from his album “Mama’s Goin’ Out.” Tom Shed writes songs and performs his “history, humor and the human condition” show across the U.S., Canada, the Caribbean, Australia and New Zealand. Looking at life through his songs. Tom uses true stories along with …

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First Coast Connect

The Aftermath of the Shooting at a Tampa Movie Theater WJCT/Flagler College Black Heritage Series New St. Vincent’s LARIAT Stroke Treatment Boys & Girls Clubs of Nassau County Fundraiser Featuring Opera Singer Michael Amante Musician Tom Shed