By Beatrice Liebrecht, Franklin High School’s The Franklin Post
Jazz has been popular in Portland since as early as the 1930s, but it truly flourished after World War II, as the need for workers in the shipbuilding industry increased and so did the African-American population. Williams Ave. quickly became the center of the African-American community as former war-industry workers opened small businesses there. Due to racist animosity toward Black people settling in other parts of Portland, Williams Ave. and the Albina district quickly became a bustling community, embellished with jazz.
Throughout the 1940s, jazz clubs and venues began popping up. These stayed open around the clock to provide people with a place to stay to help with the congestion in the region. Soon, well-known artists from throughout the country were making stops in Portland on their way to other locations. Nearly 40 years later, Portland’s beloved jazz station, KMHD—which began at Mt. Hood Community College—has continued to carry on the lavish history of jazz in the area.
Now, KMHD is located at Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB), where they are able to run a listener-supported, non-profit 24-hour jazz and blues station. In 2020, KMHD was selected by the Doris Duke Foundation as one of five stations across the nation to receive an up to $275,00 grant, allowing them to hire more full-time employees and continue to air the shows they do now. Day after day, KMHD embraces their slogan, “Jazz Without Boundaries,” through their usual programming and guest producer shows. The station is committed to both widening and examining the definition of the genre, and they continue to work with all kinds of sounds that stem from jazz.
Bri Drennon, host of Takin’ Off, the Monday-Thursday, 4-6 pm drivetime show and Programming Coordinator at KMHD, believes the success and longevity of the station is attributable to “[their] global audience.” The station also has one of the fastest growing audiences under the age of 25 for a jazz station in the US. Drennon adds, “That growth has really happened since we came to OPB.” She continues, “One of the reasons KMHD is so successful is because we don’t gatekeep music. We’re not telling you what is jazz and what isn’t jazz. We respect that this art form has given birth to a million different sounds and various interpretations.”
Drennon emphasizes the importance of jazz, understanding that “jazz informs every other music that we think of as [popular American] music today.” She focuses on curating her show so her audience feels good. “My role is to celebrate Black genius,” she continues.
Alex Newman, host of The New Format, which airs Monday-Friday, 11 am-1 pm, sees his show as “[his] personal expression of what Jazz Without Boundaries is.” When it comes to the station blending classic jazz and contemporary artists and developments, they work to search for connections between the past and present. “The dots are all there and I think we find a lot of joy finding ways to connect those dots for our listeners and ourselves,” Newman continues.
A regular day at KMHD is versatile and always depends on what each host has lined up—whether that be interviews, pre-recordings or jamming along with listeners. Drennon adds, “Unless I have meetings I’m working around, for the most part, I spend a couple hours prepping for my show, pulling songs [and] trying to find things that are interesting.” As technology continues to advance, the options for radio have become vast, allowing listeners to stream on-demand and hosts to pre-record their shows.
Radio has survived so many emerging mediums throughout the decades, and Newman believes that “the future for radio is surprisingly bright. Time has shown that there is something special about the experience of hearing music presented on the airwaves.”
Drennon also loves the rush of playing music to a wide audience. “Being a radio DJ for me is all about being on the air and being live. The key thing for me is I don’t hit play and walk out of the room,” she continues. “If you’re listening to the radio and you hear me sound a little out of breath, it’s because I was dancing in the booth to the music.”
The future of KMHD is bright; this is seen in the station full of people passionate about jazz and the experience of playing music on the radio. “I think our excitement around discovering music—new and old—positions KMHD uniquely to be on the forefront,” Newman says.
One of KMHD’s many recording studios, where all things jazz, both classic and contemporary, are embraced. Photo by Beatrice Liebrecht.
