WKCR is pleased to announce its annual 24-hour birthday broadcast honoring the life and legacy of legendary Brazilian giant, composer, pianist, guitarist, and bossa nova innovator, Antonio Carlos Jobim, airing from midnight to midnight on Sunday, January 25, 2026, in celebration of what would have been his 99th birthday. This special programming will preempt all regularly scheduled Sunday programming.

Born in Rio on January 25, 1927, Antonio Carlos Jobim stands as the father of bossa nova and as one of the most celebrated songwriters of the 20th century. He became integral in merging jazz and samba during the 1960s, developing the bossa nova that saw worldwide success. In 1965 Getz/Gilbert, the definitive album by João Gilberto and Stan Getz, transformed Jobim’s works and became the first jazz record to win a Grammy for Album of the Year and Best Jazz Instrumental Album – Individual or Group, and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical, and the record Garota de Ipanema (Girl from Ipanema) took home Record of the Year.

Jobim went on to compose songs and collaborate on an album with Frank Sinatra in 1967. That collaborative album went on to be nominated for Album of the Year in 1968. The ensuing decades of his life found Jobim collaborating with a diverse array of international stars while expanding his own rich solo discography, having his album Antônio Brasileiro awarded the 1995 Grammy Award for Best Latin Jazz Album.

Listeners can join us in honoring the great Antonio Carlos Jobim on 89.9FM or stream his birthday celebration live on our website, wkcr.org. Online listening is available 24/7 at wkcr.org via our web stream.