WKCR 89.9FM NY

WKCR is ecstatic to announce the return of a very special three-day birthday broadcast celebrating Lester “Prez” Young and Charlie “Bird” Parker. Each year we celebrate these saxophone legends, starting with Prez’s birthday on August 27th and ending with Bird’s birthday on August 29th – bridging the two with a shared day of celebration on the 28th. This special broadcast will preempt all regularly scheduled Thursday, Friday, and Saturday programming from midnight on the 27th until midnight on the 29th.

WKCR is thrilled to announce the second and final installment of this year’s celebration of the legendary Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong. The birthday broadcast, which will take place from midnight to midnight on August 4th, 2026, will preempt all regularly scheduled Tuesday programming.

This Sunday, July 26th, Isadora will present an all-female, all-Cancer and Leo lineup.
In honor of the end of July, you’ll hear a multi-birthday broadcast with sounds of R&B, disco, soul and hip-hop.
Prepare for tracks from Gwen Guthrie, Missy Elliot, Evelyn “Champagne” King, Lil Kim, Debbie Sledge of Sister Sledge, Goapele and more.
Tune in this Sunday from 2-7PM on WKCR 89.9 FM or online at wkcr.org!!

This coming Monday (9-10pm), hear Clinamen on WKCR. Clinamen is a composition by Celeste Boursier Mougenot, in which ordinary porcelain bowls drift and clink, creating a spontaneous composition. Clinamen was recorded at Park Avenue Armory specifically for this broadcast. On WKCR, this long-form recording will be played alongside interviews from Armory president Rebecca Robertson and Celeste Boursier-Mougenot, hosted by Eva Elizabeth Arroyo. Many thanks to the staff of The Park Avenue Armory for their support in recording this piece.

Seeing as it's a known fact that the loveliest sound in the universe is Milton Nascimento's voice with Wayne Shorter's music, can we all just agree to set aside 3 hours this week to luxuriate in it? We know what you're thinking: "Wayne's album 'Native Dancer,' great idea!" Yeah okay, but Deep Focus guest samchillianist Leon Gruenbaum asks host Mitch Goldman to do that one better. Does the WKCR archive have live recordings of those two together? If you don't ask, you don't get.

Tune in this Monday (7/20) from 6pm to 9pm NYC time on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR-HD or wkcr.org.

Sid Gribetz will present some Americans in Paris on "Sunday Profiles” July 12 from 2-7 PM.

There is a long history of American jazz musicians making the scene in Europe, and there are many expatriate stories of note. For Sunday’s program I’ve selected three significant aspects of Americans in Paris to comprise a five hour package for an afternoon of casual listening.

WKCR is celebrating the life and music of saxophonist Albert Ayler with a 24-hour broadcast marking his 90th birthday on July 13th, 2026. This special broadcast will preempt all regularly scheduled Monday programming. Known for a sound and style that even John Coltrane admired, Ayler remains a defining figure of avant-garde jazz.

WKCR is pleased to announce a special broadcast in honor of Manfred Eicher’s 83rd birthday, for 24 hours on July 9, 2025, on FM and HD radio and online. This special broadcast will preempt all regularly scheduled Thursday programming.

WKCR is pleased to announce the return of a special broadcast in honor of Gustav Mahler’s 166th birthday, for 24 hours on July 7, 2025, on FM and HD radio and online. This special broadcast will preempt all regularly scheduled Tuesday programming, featuring both his masterpieces and lesser-known works. From 9 AM until 9 PM, Charlie Kusiel King and Solène Millsap will program a Mahler Symphony Marathon, playing all 10 of his symphonies in order.

WKCR's On-Air Guide

The August 2026 Issue

WKCR is delighted to announce a 24-hour birthday broadcast celebrating the (alleged) birthday of the legendary trumpeter Louis Armstrong. This special broadcast will run on FM and HD radio and online from midnight to midnight on July 4th, preempting all regularly scheduled Saturday programming.

Tune in from 2-7 pm for this week's Sunday Profile, which will focus on the music of pianist and composer Abdullah Ibrahim. Following our Memorial Broadcast on June 16th, this 5-hour program, hosted by Maki Nientao, will take a deep dive into Ibrahim's music and career.

Listeners can tune in at 89.9 FM or at wkcr.org

WKCR is pleased to announce a 12-hour birthday broadcast celebrating the 88th birthday of musical director and bansuri player Hariprasad Chaurasia. This broadcast will preempt all regularly scheduled Wednesday programming from 6 am to 6 pm on July 1st. This special broadcast will include an interview with Pandit Chaurasia to be aired during David Ellenbogen's noon to 3 pm program.

Sid Gribetz presents the music of vibraphonist Teddy Charles, this Sunday, June 21, 2026, from 2-7 PM on “Sunday Profiles”.

Teddy Charles was a hard swinging master of the vibes and also a sophisticated composer and arranger of forward looking sounds.

WKCR announces a special broadcast celebrating the birthday of pianist Erroll Garner, broadcast on FM and HD radio and online for six hours on Monday, June 15th from 12-3 pm and 6-9 pm. The broadcast will preempt regularly scheduled Out to Lunch and Jazz Alternatives that day.

We are very excited to announce a birthday broadcast on June 10th for 24 hours to celebrate the bossa nova pioneer, João Gilberto. This special broadcast will preempt all regular Wednesday programming from midnight to midnight.

WKCR is excited to announce our upcoming Anthony Braxton Birthday Broadcast, in honor of the musical pioneer’s 81st birthday. The broadcast will run for 24 hours from 12 am to midnight on June 4th in place of regularly scheduled programming.

This Friday and Saturday, May 29th and 30th, WKCR will air 48 hours of Sonny Rollins to honor the life and work of the renowned saxophonist, who passed away this Monday, May 25th, at the age of 95.

WKCR is thrilled to announce we will be broadcasting a 72-hour (three-day!) celebration for the Miles Davis centennial. This special broadcast will run from Tuesday, May 26th, to Thursday, May 28th, with a special introductory Sunday Profile hosted by Sid Gribetz on May 24th from 2 pm to 7 pm.

WKCR is excited to announce a two-part 10-hour birthday celebration for Bob Dylan, broadcast on FM and HD radio and online from 2 p.m. - 6 p.m. on Saturday, May 23rd, and from 8 a.m. - 2 p.m. on Sunday, May 24th. The special broadcast will preempt Something Inside of Me, Hobo’s Lullaby, Amazing Grace, the Moonshine show, and the Tennessee Border Show that weekend.

WKCR is excited to announce a 24-hour broadcast on May 22nd celebrating the 112th anniversary of the arrival of Sun Ra! This special broadcast will run from 12am to midnight on the 22nd and will preempt all regularly-scheduled Friday shows.

Tune in this Friday, May 8, between 9 am - 9 pm for WKCR’s Keith Jarrett birthday broadcast and collaboration between our jazz and classical departments!

WKCR is pleased to present a joint birthday broadcast on Thursday, May 7th, for composers Johannes Brahms and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky on the 193rd and 186th respective anniversaries of their birth. The special broadcast will run for 24 hours and preempt all regularly-scheduled programming.

WKCR is thrilled to announce our annual birthday celebration for the most recorded jazz bassist of all time, Ron Carter, broadcast on FM and HD radio and online 24 hours straight from 12:00 am to midnight on May 4th, 2026. Tune in to the celebration and join us as we honor the mastery and depth of Carter’s musical influence.

For the first time since 2022, WKCR proudly presents a 12-hour birthday broadcast for Pete Seeger, a dedicated social activist and a founding father of modern folk music. In his songs and performances, Seeger worked tirelessly to promote anti-militarism, workers’ rights, and racial equality. His songs, whether originals (“If I Had a Hammer,” “Turn! Turn! Turn!”) or covers (“We Shall Overcome,” “Guantanamera”), have inspired generations to organize and stand up for what they believe in.

WKCR is thrilled to announce a special 24-hour broadcast on April 29th, 2026 celebrating the 127th anniversary of the birth of Duke Ellington (1899-1974).

One of the greatest singers of the 20th century, a childhood of an abusive stepfather, becoming an orphan after her mother’s death when she was 15, and a state reformatory school did not keep Ella from fulfilling her destiny in jazz history. Her performing career began in November 1934 with a winning performance at the Apollo Theater's famous Amateur Nights.

WKCR is pleased to announce our annual birthday celebration for celebrated bassist and pianist Charles Mingus for 24 hours straight from 12:00 am to midnight on April 22, 2026.

WKCR is pleased to announce its 24-hour birthday broadcast honoring the life and legacy of El Rey of Timbales, Tito Puente, airing from midnight to midnight on Sunday, April 20th, 2026, in celebration of what would have been his 103rd birthday. This special programming will preempt all regularly scheduled Sunday programming.

WKCR is excited and honored to announce the 24-hour broadcast in celebration of the 98th birthday of one of the most iconic and influential voices in jazz history, Billie Holiday. Tune in on April 7 to WKCR 89.9 FM for a full day of music from the legendary “Lady Day,” whose haunting, soulful voice left an indelible mark on jazz and the American musical landscape.