St. Louis on the Air

Welcoming new voices to opera is the core mission of Opera Theatre of St. Louis’ New Works Collective. The initiative provides opportunities for creators and performers like librettist Alicia Reve Like, whose 20-minute opera “Black Coffee” gets its world premiere Feb. 6-8 at COCA. Like and the theatre’s managing director Nicole Freber, discuss the role community engagement has played in bringing new perspectives to the opera stage.

Urban development projects are typically marked by groundbreaking ceremonies, months of building and handshakes for a job well done. But it’s often the case that community members are left out of critical discussions of what could make new developments in their neighborhood work for them. Christopher Peoples, equity and economic impact director for Great Rivers Greenway discusses the organization’s commitment to keeping residents in the center of development plans and how gentrification, when done right, does not mean displacing people or erasing a community’s identity.

Due to a delay in federal funding for many of its services and programs, the International Institute of St. Louis announced a pause on preparations for this year’s Festival of Nations. The next day, it <a href=”https://www.stlpr.org/government-politics-issues/2025-02-05/st-louis-immigrant-agencies-federal-funding-pause”>furloughed more than half of its staff.</a> Despite uncertainties in federal funding, and anti-immigrant actions and rhetoric on a national level, both former and current staff at the institute believe that St. Louis remains a welcoming place for immigrants — and that the St. Louis community can come together to bolster the work of the institute, including its beloved, annual celebration.

St. Louis’ best theater performances of the year are being honored again. The St. Louis Theater Circle announced its <a href="https://www.stlpr.org/show/st-louis-on-the-air/2025-02-04/2024-best-local-theater-unveiled-st-louis-theater-circle">nominations for 2024</a>. The Muny is the top contender, with 30 nominations across its seven productions. Approximately 112 productions were considered. St. Louis Theater Circle members Chuck Lavazzi and CB Adams discuss some of this year’s nominations and the state of local theater.

A number of St. Louis-area restaurants closed their doors in January but a fair number opened too. Among the closures were Peacock Loop Diner in University City and Schlafly Bankside in St. Charles. New restaurants include dart-themed restaurant Flight Club in Clayton and SweetArt Too in City Foundry. STLPR digital editor Jessica Rogen and morning anchor and host of the Gateway podcast Abby Llorico discuss the latest <a href="https://www.stlpr.org/economy-business/2025-02-02/st-louis-restaurants-openings-closings-january-2025">openings and closings</a>.

Late Friday afternoon, KDHX 88.1 FM announced that it was stopping live broadcasts and letting go of all of its volunteer DJs. The community radio station has experienced turmoil for several years. On this episode, STLPR arts and culture senior reporter Jeremy D. Goodwin and two former KDHX DJs, Caron House and River Reinsch, discuss this news. House hosted “Wax Lyrical” for nearly 11 years until she was let go in September 2023, and Reinsch hosted “Alternative Angle” from March 2024 up until his position was terminated on Friday.

<a href=”https://www.npr.org/people/302983377/bobby-carter”>Bobby Carter</a> was part of a major shift for NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Concerts. The St. Louis native (and Riverview Gardens High School alum) emphasized diversity in music genre and representation of race and gender for the viral video series which has gained nearly 11 million subscribers on <a href=”https://www.youtube.com/@nprmusic/featured”>NPR Music’s YouTube</a> channel alone. On this episode of St. Louis on the Air, Carter, who serves as Tiny Desk’s host, producer and judge for their annual contest shared his music career journey and upbringing in St. Louis with host Elaine Cha.

Kre8 Place's Quintrel Brown and Dwayne Ferguson join producer Miya Norfleet and host Elaine Cha for a roundup of new music releases from St. Louis musicians. Brown and Ferguson also explain how Kre8 Place provides a space for artists to grow and gain the resources in the St. Louis area. They also share details about the Hiphop Takeover event occurring at the end of February at the Dark Room.

New and experienced beekeepers aiming to hone their honey-making skills will meet Feb. 8 in St. Louis for an annual workshop from the Eastern Missouri Beekeepers Association. We get to know Tom and Melissa Sostman, founders of VIA Honeybees, who went from newbie hobbyists to maintaining 150+ hives throughout Franklin and Jefferson County. They discuss their journey and the skills they picked up along the way. We also get a preview of the upcoming workshop, where attendees will learn new techniques in the world of beekeeping, honey-making and honey-judging.

Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe is pushing for a state board to oversee the St. Louis police department because he says it will make the city safer in the long run. The GOP chief executive is brushing aside criticism that the idea is another example of Republican-controlled state government micromanaging the heavily Democratic St. Louis region. In a wide-ranging interview with STLPR the day after his first State of the State address, Kehoe discussed public safety and a host of other issues including taxes, education funding and diversity programs.

Missouri's yearslong failure to connect criminal defendants with mental health treatment is only getting worse. More than 400 Missourians are languishing in jail as they wait to be placed into court-ordered psychiatric treatment. That's up from around 300 at this time last year. Missouri Independent reporter Clara Bates has been investigating the issue — her latest piece reveals that some defendants have been forced to wait longer than even their maximum possible sentence for their crimes. Many are placed in solitary confinement. We also hear from attorney and social worker Annie Legomsky, who represents clients waiting for treatment in Missouri jails.

Before Reesha L. Archibald became a Hollywood television producer and started collaborating with Cedric the Entertainer and Eric Rhone, she was in St. Louis thinking about ways to use her artistic talents. Now that she’s made it big as an executive producer on shows including Bounce TV’s “Finding Happy” and “Johnson,” she’s focused on lifting up St. Louis’ talent and providing opportunities for creatives in her hometown. In this episode, she talks about her journey from St. Louis to Hollywood and her vision for storytelling that reflects the breadth of Black lived experiences.

Adrienne Siddens lost her husband Randall after he was struck by a distracted driver. In conversation with STLPR’s Abby Llorico, she shares how she’s worked through grief and become an advocate for a distracted driving law in Missouri — which went into effect on Jan. 1.

Vivial Lopez, a St. Louis native, shares what it means to help her community become comfortable with talking about death. She specializes in helping the Black community fill out advance directives and navigate death. An advance directive is important for an individual to ensure what their end-of-life care and values are.

A panel of attorneys discuss local and regional legal issues. Discussion will include the latest attempt to change the , allegations by a chess star against the U.S. Chess Federation, why a Wendy’s restaurant in Bridgeton is paying $5 million to a former worker who was a victim of sexual assault on the job, why Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey must sit for deposition, and more.

St. Louis County Executive Sam Page has officially entered politically treacherous territory. He’s leading Missouri’s largest county at a time of downward population growth, an uncertain budgetary future, and for the first time since he took office in 2019, Page is facing a county council with enough antagonists to override his veto. Politics correspondent Jason Rosenbaum sits down with Page in his office in Clayton to discuss criticisms, partnerships with leadership in the City of St. Louis and answer questions from listeners.

Republicans in the Missouri General Assembly want to place a board with gubernatorial appointees in charge of overseeing the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. It’s an idea with high-level support among police unions and Missouri’s new governor, but fierce opposition from St. Louis’ top elected officials. We talk about the proposal with one of its most vocal backers, Republican state Senator Nick Schroer from St. Louis County.

St. Louis County Library is spending more than half its collections budget on digital “eMedia” through subscriptions to services like Libby and Hoopla. The library told its patrons this month the cost would become “unsustainable” without changes. We hear from the library's director, Kristen Sorth, about the changing landscape for accessing books and other digital media, and the decisions facing libraries to maintain the public’s access.

Between now and Feb. 14, Illinois residents can vote on whether to change their state flag — and if so, which resident-submitted design they'd like to see flying in the wind. We hear from two Illinois Flag Commission members who helped whittle down the selection from nearly 5,000 designs to the top ten. Flag design expert Ted Kaye also shares his suggestions for how those designs could be improved.

A growing and significant body of research suggests that students benefit from having a teacher of the same race or ethnicity. Yet most teachers in the U.S. are white women. St. Louis entrepreneur Angelica Harris founded <a href=”https://www.toptutorsforus.com”>Top Tutors for Us</a> to pair Black high school students with tutors who look like them. She shares how their services have led to improved test scores and higher college acceptance rates of their students.

About 15 years ago, Jason Cerrano was working for the Pattonville Fire Protection District when he conceptualized a way to make it more efficient for firefighters to put out fires. He wanted to automate how a fire truck selects its water source and pumps water, and allow pump operators to pay attention to other critical firefighting tasks. Cerrano, a graduate of Missouri S&T, discusses how he invented the SAM Control System that more than 120 fire departments employ. We also hear from Chief Hans Mueller of the Freeburg Fire Protection District in Illinois about his department’s use of the technology.

<a href="https://www.facebook.com/people/Some-Black-People/61558559185558/”>Some Black People</a> is an all-Black St. Louis improv team dedicated to refining craft, building community, and diversifying an artform that’s historically been predominantly white. Founding members Jessica Nicole, Charles Harris, and Aaron Moore discuss the personal and community impact of Some Black People, and their definition of “success.”

A NASA mission that aims to launch a small satellite into Earth’s orbit in 2029 is named after Arlo Landolt, a renowned astronomer with roots in the Metro East. The goal of the Landolt Space Mission is to help scientists calibrate telescopes to more accurately measure the brightness of stars. We talk with Jennifer Boutte, the daughter of the late Arlo Landolt, about the honor. Peter Plavchan, the principal investigator of the mission, also discusses the mission’s goals.

The young ladies of Incarnate Word Academy’s varsity basketball team have managed to defeat every last one of their opponents for 141 games running. That makes them the national record holder for girls basketball consecutive wins. Guards Nevaeh Caffey and Addi Owen join their coach Dan Rolfes to discuss their schools 5-year winning streak and what the record means to them.

The sound of music took center stage at the St. Louis County Justice Center in Clayton this week. Two St. Louis Symphony Orchestra musicians visited the women’s residence to announce “Melodies of Hope,” a music education program for people incarcerated there. We talk with STLPR Arts and Culture reporter Jeremy Goodwin about his coverage of the new program. We also meet Dustin Politte-Bender, a music therapist overseeing the Maryville University students leading music exercises in the program.

Chicago Bulls player E.J. Liddell talks about his journey from Belleville to becoming a professional basketball player in the NBA. Liddell shares what has helped him in pursuing his dreams. He goes into depth about the community he surrounds himself with and the steps it took for him to become the best version of himself. He also reminisces about life in the Metro East.

The latest snowstorm turned into an icy nightmare has unified people across the region. On this episode of <i>St. Louis on the Air</i>, listeners shared their grievances, hopes on how to make the next bout of winter weather easier on residents and the good they saw in neighbors helping each other out.

The inauguration earlier this week of Mike Kehoe as Missouri’s 58th governor heralded a moment of possibility — like being able to solve problems and work beyond partisan and personal divides. But the sugar high of inauguration day can fade pretty quickly. STLPR politics correspondent Jason Rosenbaum explains why and looks at internal schisms among Republicans.

By her own admission, Melissa Price Smith never aspired to be in public office. But when it was clear in August that Wesley Bell would be departing as prosecutor to serve in Congress, Price Smith’s mindset about vying for an elected position changed. STLPR’s Rachel Lippmann and Jason Rosenbaum talk with Price Smith about her priorities and first days in office on the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air.

Former Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan will soon depart from the agency responsible for managing federal procurement and the government’s real estate holdings. As administrator of the GSA, Carnahan’s mission was to make the federal government work better, faster and cheaper. That work included implementing elements of Biden’s 2021 infrastructure improvement plan and the Inflation Reduction Act — and revamping the country’s border crossings. Carnahan joins the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air.

The American Dental Association calls the mineral fluoride "nature's cavity fighter." But the practice of adding fluoride to drinking water has long been a target of conspiracy theories and opponents of public health measures. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Trump administration's pick to be the next American health secretary, has called fluoride "an industrial waste” associated with various diseases. Dr. Dwight McLeod, dean of A.T. Still University’s Missouri School of Dentistry & Oral Health, and Dr. Poonam Jain, a professor and vice dean at ATSU and the St. Louis Dental Center, discuss fluoride, the scrutiny over its use, and the importance of dental health.

While blank spaces, silences and gaps may appear empty, is true emptiness possible? St. Louis University Professor Jonathan Sawday explores that question — and addresses the opportunities, pitfalls and stories behind such gaps — in his award-winning book, “Blanks, Print, Space, and Void in English Renaissance Literature: An Archaeology of Absence.”

Turning over to a new calendar brings about many declarations around changing habits and making improvements. But you don’t have to create a wholly new version of yourself to do and be better. Nico Marie McNeese is known locally for her skills behind the turntables as DJ Nico Marie and as a yogi to her 190,000 followers on YouTube. She’s combining her love of music, movement and mental wellness in her first album, “Meeting Myself For The First Time.” Multidisciplinary artist Damon Davis helped produce the album and joined her in conversation about the goals of this project and how they collaborated to bring the album to life.

The United States is home to one of the largest populations of people of Korean descent. On the occasion of Korean American Day 2025, we talk with Julia Sim – a decades-long St. Louisan and president of the Korea Academy of St. Louis – about how she’s approached Korean language and culture education, for children and adults. Hyung Kyu Choi, current KASL teacher and parent, also shares personal reflections about language’s place in the experience of diaspora Koreans like himself, and in raising his young Korean American children in St. Louis.

In its series “Unhoused/Unschooled,” the Midwest Newsroom and its regional partners explored the complicated federal system designed to support K-12 public school students experiencing homelessness, particularly in rural communities. Midwest Newsroom managing editor Holly Edgell discusses the reporting project’s mission and conclusion.

Cahokia Mounds in Collinsville hosts about 350,000 visitors each year. Much less well-known are the sites where 27 monuments once stood in St. Louis. The mounds, carefully constructed and engineered by Indigenous people between 800-1350 CE, were destroyed by white settlers to make way for urban development during the 19th century. In this encore episode, “Mound City” author and historian Patricia Cleary details the history of the mounds, the strange paradox of local settlers claiming the moniker of “Mound City” while destroying them, and the mounds’ contribution to the cultural identity of St. Louisans and Americans across the country.

Robbie Daymond was bitten by the acting bug at a young age. The Warrenton native has gone from the stage to the recording booth, bringing life to animated characters like Marvel’s Spider-Man, Japanese anime fan favorites including “Sailor Moon” and “Jujutsu Kaisen” and a host of video games across several genres. Daymond joined the show to discuss his career, the art of voice acting, and some of his favorite characters.

The Joseph Sappington Log House is preparing for the start of its new life with a January 11 groundbreaking at a historic park in Crestwood. Like a giant Lego set, the house was disassembled piece-by-piece in 2022 from its original location in Affton. The house will be rebuilt near the brick home built by Joseph Sappington’s cousin, Thomas Sappington. Antique Logs Unlimited owner Mark Pratt, who has dedicated his life and career to restoring and building historic log homes, discusses the vast work to disassemble and then rebuild the log home. We also meet Dyann Dierkes, president of the Sappington House Foundation and a descendant of Thomas Sappington, who shares the history and meaning behind the home’s preservation.

Lead is a concern not just for people, but for animals. At the World Bird Sanctuary, two Bald Eagles were recently treated after being found with high lead levels. Both eventually died. The sanctuary is now trying to raise more awareness about the danger of lead. Winter is one of the highest risk times for birds to either be shot by hunters or ingest food that's been contaminated with lead, according to World Bird Sanctuary Rehabilitation Director Kira Klebee. Klebee discusses the recent cases of lead-poisoned bald eagles, how hunting and scavenging behaviors are involved in this problem, and what people can do if they see a bird in distress. Klebee also shares her experience at the sanctuary preparing for and treating birds with avian flu.

Founded in 2024 by Main Street Book’s owners Ellen and Andy Hall, and their daughter Emily Schroen, the Main Street Books Literacy Foundation donates new books to elementary schools with students from low income families in St. Charles County. The Halls and fellow founding board member Shana Youngdahl discuss the nonprofit’s origins, and its approach to providing access to book ownership and related experiences that engender positive reading habits to last a lifetime.

More than a third of Americans age 16 and up are considered bird watchers — a figure that has more than doubled since 2016. St. Louis birders discuss the 125th annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count, the rising popularity of birding, and share tips for bird watching in the St. Louis region.

We're listening back to our conversation with Jeremy Boyer. Boyer is part of what makes going to a Cardinals or Blues game special. He’s delighted millions of fans over the years as an organist for both teams. Now, he’s racking up millions of views on TikTok for his in-game renditions of songs from artists like Kendrick Lamar and Taylor Swift.

On this encore episode, Missouri Botanical Garden scientist, Charlotte Taylor, names 500 new species of plants. That makes her the most prolific living female botanist — an accomplishment only revealed last year by researchers from Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the University of Cambridge. The researchers found Taylor is the third most prolific female botanist in the field — ever. Taylor discusses her contributions to the field of botany and takes us inside the world of a world-class taxonomist.

What kind of government did the founding fathers envision? Peter Kastor, a professor of history at Washington University, has spent years trying to address that question. He and his colleagues collected records of more than 37,000 people who worked for the federal government between 1789 and 1829. The results are now publicly viewable via the “Creating a Federal Government” digital archive. Kastor shares what he found in those records, the individual histories they contain, and what they say about the founders’ ideas about the federal government.

Jason Hall built a reputation as one of St. Louis’ most vocal cheerleaders in various positions at different economic development organizations over the past 12 years, most recently as the first CEO of Greater St. Louis Inc. Hall is leaving his post to take over the reins of the Columbus Partnership on Jan. 13. He talks with STLPR economic development reporter Eric Schmid about his time in St. Louis and upcoming transition.

St. Louis Zoo WildCare Park plans to open to the public in 2027, but the 425 acre conservation area in north St. Louis County is already home to 38 animals. Park leaders share what it takes to transform a golf course into a safari park, the zoo’s aim to bolster endangered species, and how the park will be a boon to local wildlife and the regional economy.

The Michelin Guide is a gold standard in the culinary world, but you won't find a single Michelin-starred restaurant in St. Louis or even Missouri. As STLPR Morning Newscaster Abby Llorico discovered through recent interviews with St. Louis restaurateurs, it turns out that it's not simple (or cheap) to get a Michelin scout in your city. Along with Llorico, St. Louis Magazine food writer Cheryl Baehr joins the discussion of Michelin rankings and more, including her reflections on the major events in St. Louis' food scene in 2024.

In 2024, Missouri voters got rid of the state’s near total ban on abortion yet overwhelmingly voted for Republicans who were opposed to doing so. St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell defeated Rep. Cori Bush in the Democratic primary. And, former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan went on trial for public corruption. On this episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, STLPR reporters discuss the top Missouri and Illinois political stories in 2024.

Growing up in St. Louis in the 1950s and 60s, Lee Hendrix was taught to fear the Mississippi River. But the sense of adventure it offered ended up being the seed that became a five decade career of piloting boats on the Mississippi. In this encore episode, Hendrix discusses his book, “Peep Light,” where he shares stories about the dangerous work of starting as a deckhand and later ascending to the pilothouse. He also talks about what it was like to pilot passenger vessels, including the grand American Queen, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ largest towboat, the MV Mississippi.

In 2024, we said goodbye to a number of remarkable people who lived and worked in the St. Louis region. In this episode, we honor those we lost this year by listening back to conversations with them or by hearing from those who knew them well.