The Buzz: The JJA Podcast

• It's All About the Music

  In fall 2023, three veteran jazz journalists, Bill Milkowski, Rick Mitchell, and Howard Mandel, sat down for a wide-ranging conversation, a portion of which is collected here to remind us all why we fell in love with music in the first place.From first album purchases to legendary festival moments, they share the records and live performances that impacted them. Whether it's Howard's early attraction to Bill Evans, Rick's reverence for Jimi Hendrix, or Bill's memories of Blind Faith, these are the musical origin stories behind three respected voices in jazz journalism.This episode captures what happens when writers stop analyzing and start remembering. It is all about the the music that made them who they are, and why. Yes, it's still all about the music.Check out our playlist of the music mentioned and excerpted in this episode. And here are the two episodes making up the discussion this episode is excerpted from:Part I: Jazz Journalism, Then and Now, with Veteran Writer Bill Milkowski and host Rick MitchellPart II: Bill Milkowski with Rick Mitchell and Howard Mandel, reminiscingTake a look at the Jazz Omnibus, the 600-page anthology of 21st century photos and writings by members of the Jazz Journalist Association, available online and wherever books are soldDon’t miss new episodes of The Buzz. Make sure you follow us wherever you listen to podcasts. For more from the Jazz Journalists Association, go to JJANews.org.

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• Beyond Category: How Three Music Writers Navigate a Genre-Fluid World

  Michelle Zeto, Geoffrey Himes, and Rob Shepherd have each built careers in music journalism and broadcasting. They discuss how genre categories shape both criticism and listening, the difference between being a savant and a polymath, and whether the post-genre world is liberating or limiting. The conversation explores the role of critics as translators, the rise of playlist culture, and why attention spans may not be as new a problem as we think.In this episode, we explore: How musicians themselves often resist the "jazz" label—and what that means for writers Why shorter attention spans might not be the crisis we think The tension between consumer advisor and cultural translator What human curation offers that algorithms can't Whether broad knowledge serves critics better than deep specializationLearn more about our guests:Michelle Zeto and "Jammin' Jazz" Geoffrey Himes and "Hard Rain and Pink Cadillacs"Rob Shepherd and PostGenre.orgOur host:Lawrence PeryerAnd our organization, the Jazz Journalists Association. Take a look at the Jazz Omnibus, the 600-page anthology of 21st century photos and writings by members of the Jazz Journalist Association, available online and wherever books are soldDon’t miss new episodes of The Buzz. Make sure you follow us wherever you listen to podcasts. For more from the Jazz Journalists Association, go to JJANews.org.

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• Jazz as Organizing: Music, Community, and Social Change

  Today we have JJA president Howard Mandel hosting a compelling discussion on political activism in jazz with three remarkable musicians who have dedicated their careers to both artistic excellence and social change.Our first guest is Terri Lyne Carrington, the four-time Grammy-winning drummer, composer, and producer who serves as Founder and Artistic Director of the Berklee Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice. As an NEA Jazz Master and Doris Duke Artist, Terri Lyne has spent four decades advocating for women, transgender, and nonbinary musicians while reimagining jazz's aesthetic possibilities. Her recent work includes the acclaimed album "new STANDARDS vol.1," featuring compositions by women, and a powerful reconceptualization of Max Roach and Abbey Lincoln's "We Insist!" for the modern era.Joining her is Orbert Davis, the Emmy Award-winning trumpeter, composer, and educator who co-founded the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic. As host of "The Real Deal with Orbert Davis" on 90.9 FM WDCB, Orbert has built extraordinary cultural bridges through his "Immigrant Stories" concert series and groundbreaking collaborations with Cuban musicians. His work transforms jazz into a vehicle for international understanding and social healing.Our third guest is Marc Ribot, the innovative guitarist whose extensive collaborations include work with Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, and John Zorn. Beyond his acclaimed recording career spanning over 25 albums, Marc has emerged as a fierce advocate for musicians' economic rights through his organizing work with the Content Creators Coalition and efforts to reform the American Federation of Musicians.Together, these three artists explore what jazz activism means today—from challenging gender inequities and supporting immigrant communities to fighting for fair compensation and workers' rights. Their conversation reveals how jazz continues to serve as both artistic expression and instrument of social change.Take a look at the Jazz Omnibus, the 600-page anthology of 21st century photos and writings by members of the Jazz Journalist Association, available online and wherever books are soldDon’t miss new episodes of The Buzz. Make sure you follow us wherever you listen to podcasts. For more from the Jazz Journalists Association, go to JJANews.org.

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• Jazz in the Age of AI

  Michael Ambrosino hosts this episode of The Buzz, a discussion with Josh Antonuccio, Matt Powers, and Jon Irabagon as they explore the effects of AI on journalism, music, production, education, and jazz. Josh is an associate professor within the media production and recording industry major in the School of Media Arts and Studies at Ohio University. He's worked extensively within higher education since 2007, establishing innovative music and media industry curriculums and developing the expansion of experience-based music industry education. He is also the director of Ohio University's Music Industry Summit.Jon is a multi-reed instrumentalist, composer, arranger, band leader, and faculty member at the University of Illinois in Chicago, where he teaches jazz saxophone and courses in jazz history. Winner of the 2008 Thelonious Monk Saxophone Competition, a Rising Star Award in DownBeat magazine's alto and tenor saxophone categories, and a recipient of the Philippine Presidential Award, Jon's latest album is "Server Farm," a musical exploration of how artificial intelligence affects our lives.Matt is a professor at the University of Washington's Department of Communication, where he's the co-director of the Department's Center for Journalism, Media and Democracy. His book, "The Journalist Predicament: Difficult Choices in a Declining Profession," explores journalism within the transformations confronting the profession. He's also the co-editor of "Rethinking Media Research for Changing Societies," exploring how researchers can make sense of the massive changes confronting politics and the media.Take a look at the Jazz Omnibus, the 600-page anthology of 21st century photos and writings by members of the Jazz Journalist Association, available online and wherever books are soldDon’t miss new episodes of The Buzz. Make sure you follow us wherever you listen to podcasts. For more from the Jazz Journalists Association, go to JJANews.org.

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• 2025 JJA Book Award Winners

  In this episode of The Buzz, JJA board member Bob Blumenthal speaks with two 2025 book award winners: Jonathan Grasse and Elijah Wald.Jonathan Grasse teaches music at California State University, Dominguez Hills, focusing on world music, theory, and composition. He wrote the definitive English-language study of Brazilian regional music in Hearing Brazil: Music and Histories, and Minas Gerais and examined Milton Nascimento and Lô Borges's 1972 album in The Corner Club. His latest work, Jazz Revolutionary: The Life and Music of Eric Dolphy (Jawbone Press), won JJA's 2025 Biography of the Year.Elijah Wald is a musician and author of over a dozen books, including Escaping the Delta: Robert Johnson and the Invention of the Blues, The Dozens (about insult games in rap development), and How the Beatles Destroyed Rock and Roll: An Alternative History of Popular Music. He also wrote Dylan Goes Electric, which inspired the film A Complete Unknown. With a PhD in ethnomusicology and sociolinguistics plus a Grammy for production and liner notes, Wald's Jelly Roll Blues: Censored Songs and Hidden Histories earned JJA's 2025 Book of the Year for history, criticism, and culture.Take a look at the Jazz Omnibus, the 600-page anthology of 21st century photos and writings by members of the Jazz Journalist Association, available online and wherever books are soldDon’t miss new episodes of The Buzz. Make sure you follow us wherever you listen to podcasts. For more from the Jazz Journalists Association, go to JJANews.org.

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