Aaron Johnson on Jazz Radio & His New Book Jazz Radio America
Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz Interview Series, featuring Professor of Music and Author Aaron Johnson. His latest book, Jazz Radio America (2025), delves into the rise and decline of jazz on the airwaves.
Currently an associate professor of music at the University of Pittsburgh, Johnson traces jazz radio from its roots in Black radio (1948) to its disappearance from commercial stations after 1980. He explores jazz’s role in shaping American culture, its classification as Black classical music, and its impact as the soundtrack of African American resistance.
In this in-depth…
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