Let's Talk #WVmusic

Hey, West Virginia. It’s me, Joni Deutsch, your friendly neighborhood public radio host. You have a second to talk #WVmusic? Cool? Cool.

It’s been almost a year since I started “changing tunes” on WVPB’s ‘A Change of Tune.’ Mind you, the original idea was to play music, different music, that West Virginia wasn’t receiving on mainstream radio. “Surely,” I thought, “I’m not the only who wants Alt-J and The Roots alongside Genesis and Stevie Wonder?”

It wasn’t too long before the program expanded to interviews with artists that I loved to play. This was all good and well and Ira Glass-y, but it still felt like something was missing from my music formula. Sure, I can mention pepperoni rolls to Iron & Wine and, yes, I can talk about coal musicals with Yeasayer’s Anand Wilder, but how are those non-WV artist stories keeping to  WVPB’s tagline of “Telling West Virginia’s Story?”

And that’s where #WVmusic comes into play. I’ve only scratched the West Virginia music surface with my recent artist/band chats (see: Rozwell Kid and Ona), but if you’re a lover of all things #WVmusic, the next week should be right up your alley.

Left of the Dial: A Conversation about Building West Virginia’s Music Scene

Moderated by WVPB’s Dave Mistich, this panel will consist of me, rocker/producer Bud Carroll, singer-songwriter Todd Burge and producer Eddie Ashworth talking about West Virginia’s music scene. If you’re a fan of the Mountain State’s music scene or a rocker with questions about how to “make it,” we’d love to see ya at The Boulevard Tavern from 4-6pm this Saturday.

Other FestivALL Charleston events

Speaking of which, have you checked out the FestivALL schedule? Walk around any ol’ part of Charleston this week, and you’re bound to find (and hear) some great West Virginia artists like Wilbur by the Sea, Carpenter Ants, Christopher Vincent and more.

The #WVmusic episode of ‘A Change of Tune’

Tune in this Saturday at 10pm EST on West Virginia Public Broadcasting for a West Virginia indie/alt music edition of ‘A Change of Tune.’ And since we can’t fit every bit of #WVmusic into our program, we’ve made a handy-dandy 3-hour playlist for you. Did we miss an artist/band? Let us know!

Oh, and one more thing…

My goal in the next year is to map out West Virginia’s music scene, and I mean literally map it out when it comes to artists/bands, hometown locations, venues and genres. Whether you’re a West Virginia singer-songwriter, you’re in a West Virginia band or you just know a lot about the West Virginia music scene, take a sec to fill out this survey and share it with others.