Mike Pengra shares his thoughts as Radio Heartland turns six
by Luke Taylor
December 11, 2014
On Dec. 11, 2008, Minnesota Public Radio's Morning Show with Dale Connelly and Jim Ed Poole (aka Tom Keith) made its final broadcast. In a live broadcast from a packed-to-the-rafters Fitzgerald Theater, the program started at 6 a.m. and, as Connelly proudly announced, the show "came in right on time" at 9 that morning.
The very moment The Morning Show went off the air, a new stream got started: Radio Heartland. Former Morning Show producer Mike Pengra is now the service's program director, and the stream continues its popularity with fans of acoustic music.
Pengra recently sat down to reflect on Radio Heartland past, present and future.
Describe the original vision for Radio Heartland.
It was Dale Connelly's vision; and I think that was, first of all, to hang on to that audience who already appreciated the music we were doing on The Morning Show — the eclectic mix of folk, Americana and other things. So it was basically the same as what The Morning Show was, but I think the fact that we were a stream allowed us to be a little more experimental, and a little more broadly defined.
How has the programming on Radio Heartland evolved over the past six years?
I try to be loyal to what it was at the beginning, but it's changed, I think. There's a lot of new stuff out there that I love, and I want the playlist to be a little bit broader. Our boundaries are a little bit wider now.
I think we're a bit less eclectic than before, with more of a focus on the broader boundaries of Americana music, however one chooses to define it. Everybody's got their own definition, but generally, it's folk music. That's the broad term I think. And lot of different kinds of work fit inside that category.
Certainly the resurgence in Americana music over the past few years has affected Radio Heartland.
Yes. And overall, it's what I like. If I don't like something, I'm probably not going to put it on just because it fits into our category. I have to like it first. But yes, over the years, the whole genre has changed I think, and I work to stay up to date with it. I try to follow along with what's happening on Americana playlists and charts around the country, to see what they're doing and to take hints and suggestions.
There seem to have been a number of recent in-studios; any particular highlights?
I don't know that we've had any more than before, but as for highlights, I thought Pieta Brown was a lot of fun. All the in-studios are fun for different reasons, but that one stuck out.
Another one that stuck out to me was Kelly Willis and Bruce Robison. I had loved their music, and they're really big names, and I was just impressed to have them in the studio. I was nervous.
And Slaid Cleaves, that was another one I was really nervous about — only to find out he was more nervous than I was!
Of course, Stuart Duncan and Noam Pikelny. They're a couple of the best players in the country with what they do. To have them in front of me was a real kick.
And I love getting the local people in. I love sitting in my little booth with Peter Mayer, just talking. He's such a great guy; we got along so well.
Which record labels seem to have you on their radars?
Red House for sure, because I'm local and they're local, and we've always had a good relationship with them, and I think I play 99.9 percent of everything they put out, mostly because I get a copy of it. Other labels include Signature Sounds, Rounder, New West, those are all big labels in my genres. True North is a Canadian label — I play a lot of Canadian artists. They're really good about sending me stuff, too.
Truth is, a lot of record labels aren't putting out CDs anymore; they can't afford to. They're cutting back on the number of stations they ship to, so lately I haven't been seeing as much as I used to, which scares me. They're going to digital things; if I see it in an email, it can be hard to keep track of that. Honestly, I prefer to have something in my hand that I can open up and look at, and read the liner notes. But stuff does come in digitally, that's the way of the future.
Do you get music sent to you directly by artists?
Yes. And if there's somebody I know about but I don't have in the library, I'll contact the artist directly, which is definitely the case for local artists; if I know they've got a new CD they're working on and they don't know about me or if they sent one to The Current and I didn't' get a copy, I'll call them up and have them send me one.
And I get stuff I didn't ask for too, from local people and from people around the country who like Radio Heartland. They'll say, "Hey, I think you'll like us — we heard your stream, I think our band will fit into your station very well." Sometimes it works out, sometimes not.
What are some recent discoveries you've made?
The Last Revel — they're a band that I saw live that I didn't have a CD of anywhere. I heard them a couple of times and really liked what they did and had them send me a disc. I think they're excellent, what they do. And they're not getting played anywhere I don't think. But I think they're going be the next big thing, really. Or at least one of the next big things.
And the band treVeld — I saw them at Erté, a restaurant in northeast Minneapolis.
What's your longer-term vision for Radio Heartland?
To have more voices on the air, more in-studios if I could, if time allows. And as far as being out in the community, I'd like to be involved more with sponsoring live shows, if we could do that, and being tied to more special events around the area, such as concerts, festivals, and wherever we can put our name that makes sense to get more exposure to the audience who will like us.