Diane Crumley's blog

The San Francisco Press Club recently announced the winners of its 2021 Greater Bay Area Journalism Awards, and KDRT’s Davisville placed second and third among small noncommercial radio/audio public-affairs programs!

The winning episodes were an interview with Winters’ Nora Cary, “The Palms, on indefinite hiatus, is ending its lease in Winters” (Aug. 17, 2020), and a discussion with Ryan Easterday, a U.S. Navy commander from Davis (Feb. 17, 2020).

The contest recognizes excellent work by journalists and other communicators in 12 counties ranging from Monterey and Marin to Yolo. Davisville has previously won six S.F. Press Club awards for shows created in 2019, 2018 and 2017. On the program, journalist Bill Buchanan interviews people about events, news, and stories involving Davis. He produces the show, and his brother Jim Buchanan is the sound engineer. Both Davis residents have been volunteer programmers at KDRT for more than a decade.

This week marks the start of fall, the return of students to UC Davis, and the 17th birthday of KDRT. Our launch party was held on a warm Friday evening, Sept. 24, 2004, on the Davis Media Access backlot. It featured live music, hay bales for seats, speeches, cake, camaraderie, and excitement about having our own community radio station!

The event drew families, students, public figures, neighbors, artists, local business owners, and the many volunteers who had been working since 2000 to get this station on the air. Davis Enterprise columnist Bob Dunning was the evening's emcee, and Mayor Ruth Asmundson flipped the on switch to officially launch our broadcast.

Seventeen years later, we are proud to offer Davis locally produced radio that draws on the help and huge commitment of our 34 volunteer programmers, many of whom have been with us for a decade or more. We treasure this local resource, and look forward to the day when we can again come together with the community to celebrate in person. Until then, stay tuned to 95.7 FM, "where the grassroots grow," and stream our wide variety of shows at kdrt.org.

In honor of “Make Music Day” celebrated across the globe each June 21 on Summer Solstice, today we present the “Make Music Davis-DIMI Showcase 2021” which will air on KDRT 95.7 FM  at 10-11 AM and 6-7 PM. This song showcase highlights five emerging local young musicians/bands from the Davis Independent Music Initiative (DIMI) project recorded by Davis Media Access at the Davis Veterans Memorial Theatre. Additionally, from 11 AM to 1 PM June 21 we will air special extended live recordings of performances from DIMI 2021 Award winner Boca do Rio, and from multi-SAMMIE Award winners The Nickel Slots. We will also feature some highlight performances from the well-loved Thursday Live! community concert series recorded at Davis Odd Fellows Hall.

During the 24 hours of Big Day of Giving (BDOG) on May 6, KDRT and Davis Media Acccess received close to 100 donations, and we exceeded our 24-hour goal for the second year in a row. Thank you for the generous support of our grassroots community media!

The 98 participating nonprofits in Yolo County received $1.5 million -- up 75% from the pre-pandemic 2019 figures, according to the Yolo Community Foundation. Also shattering records was the total of $13.3 million for 688 regional  nonprofits reported by local BDOG organizer, the Sacramento Region Community Foundation.

Did you plan on donating to KDRT and just not get around to it? No problem. BDOG2021 served as the kickoff for our Annual Spring Appeal Fundraiser. You can donate throughout May and June at kdrt.org/donate.

The City of Davis will honor the legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a virtual celebration this year on Monday, Jan. 18.   This year's program includes highlights of speakers and entertainment from past years and current messages from local youth, as well as an introduction from Mayor Gloria Partida.  The program will be available beginning 9:00 a.m. on Monday, January 18, 2021 through the end of the month via the City of Davis website at  cityofdavis.org Additionally, it will be shown on DCTV Channel 15 and broadcast on KDRT 95.7 FM where you can also can live stream at kdrt.org   This year marks the 27th annual event sponsored by the City of Davis and the Human Relations Commission.

A beloved local tradition  - the"Home for the Holidays" concert - continues this year streaming online.  Concert producer Bill Fairfield has brought together many returning favorite local musicians, as well as adding some new special guests to this year's video program.  Familiar guests include Joe and Hattie Craven, the DHS Madrigals, Rita Hosking duo, Misner & Smith, Alaina Rose, Kora Feder, Boot Juice, Bill Edwards, the Fairfields, Dave Nachmanoff, and Mumbo Gumbo guitarist Brian Rivers. As usual, the event is a benefit for the Davis School Arts Foundation, and viewers are encouraged to make a donation there in lieu of the usual ticket purchase.  DMA and KDRT are thrilled to serve as partners and offer the community a variety of ways to view and listen.  The event will be simulcast Thursday December 17 at 7 PM on KDRT 95.7 FM and DCTV Channel 15, and will be available for video and audio streaming at kdrt.org ( a link will be provided there the day of the show).

As this unusual year comes to an end, we are particularly grateful to ALL our listeners, supporters, volunteers, and extended community. We have rallied together to adjust to social-distancing, and yet remain connected through our uniquely Davis local programming.  We invite you to tune in to KDRT 95.7 FM or stream via kdrt.org to enjoy some special holiday cheer that our DJs are happy to share with you Dec. 15 – 21, 2020.  As an extra special holiday treat, we are thrilled to be airing the 17th annual Home for the Holidays concert, Thursday Dec. 17 at 7PM and an encore presentation on Winter Solstice, Monday December 21, also at 7 PM. Link here for additional information.

Recently, the Owsley Stanley Foundation released the Sixth Chapter of  Bear's Sonic Journals : That Which Colors the Mind, a 2 CD-set featuring Ali Akbar Khan (known as the Bach of India). The album features a 2-hour live recording of a performance at the Family Dog at the Great Highway, in San Francisco on May 29, 1970. Recorded live from the soundboard by the legendary Grateful Dead soundman, Owsley Stanley, a.k.a "Bear", this release is thought to be one of the most evocative recordings of Ali Akbar Khan - a recipient of a MacArthur "genius grant", who has been identified as being a key influence on The Beatles, Grateful Dead, Rolling Stones and Santana. 

Starting in the late summer of 2008, Chris Mussen began airing "A Constant Grin" on KDRT every Friday afternoon 2 at for 30 minutes of hand-picked indie favorites from his substantial collection. Fast-forward 12 years, and today's show marked episode No. 500! In case you haven't  tuned in before, here's the show description, "All things modern indie, from shoegaze to psychedelic, dream pop to space rock, lo-fi to indie folk. Whatever you prefer on your indie playlists, A Constant Grin is sure to keep you smiling."  Today's episode looked back a bit at early shows, and we heard Chris' perspective on starting his program many moons ago.  Stream episode No. 500 at https://kdrt.org/audio/constant-grin-episode-500-12-years-indie-friday-a...