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Jody Denberg (at right) with KGSR's Andy Langer, Bryan Beck and Susan Castle (l to r)
Next week, when Jody Denberg winds up almost three decades on the radio in Austin, Texas, I’ll be tuned in and you should be too. We all know Austin as one of the premier music cities in the world, with many clubs and a strong tradition in several genres of music. Jody and KGSR are one of the unique media outlets that helped make Austin’s music scene huge. Outlaw Country, also known as alt-country or americana, is the city’s dominant style of music.
Other positive forces all united around this style of music include South by Southwest, the popular Austin City Limits, the massive public station KUT, countless clubs, all patronized by a large and thoughtful University population. The growth of the Sun Belt and having large technology firms located in the area has been a huge benefit to Austin over the past 20 years as well.
It’s strange that he is stepping out but I am writing to show my appreciation for his support of my artists Shelby Lynne; Willie Nelson; Jonathan Elias; Laura Cantrell; Lucinda Williams and recently TheNewNo2. He was well known for hanging with Patti Smith, Yoko Ono and other “legends” which weren’t always an easy fit on a typical classic rock/triple a station. History and legacy mattered to him!
Jody Denberg with Mick Jones of Carbon/Silicon (The Clash and Big Audio Dynamite too)
I’m sure most artists would agree KGSR and Jody played them earlier and more than most radio stations. KGSR is also the station that treats artists like Patty Griffin and Alejandro Escovedo as household/core artists.
Who knows why it’s changing? Maybe this idea is old and doesn’t pay any more? Whatever the case, Jody Denberg knows a lot about music and I hope he isn’t finished sharing his views with the world.
Jody was one of the few radio people to send me music! I hope he finds a new venue. In the meantime, here are a few clippings:
“An Open Letter to Jody” in Austinist
“KGSR Moving to 93.3 FM” on Fox TV Austin
Jody will be hosting the station’s anniversary show and doing two more Sunday mornings in the interim. In a climate where icons like Oprah and KCRW’s Ruth Seymour are also on the move, this seems typical. But it will most definitely be a huge change in Austin’s musical pantheon.
Good luck Jody!
