Ever hear your radio playing a song by a man...followed by another song by a man...followed by another song by a man...followed by a break with a male host? Hopefully, that hasn't been your experience with The Current, but it has historically been considered "normal" on radio stations across the country. Carmel Holt is out to change that.

Holt's new show, SHEROES Radio, is an hour-long celebration of women in music. Holt programs a spectacular variety of genres and eras. And her goal isn't to shut out men – it's to "turn up the volume" of women's voices on the air. Holt writes, "SHEROES Radio is an invitation to you to open your ears a bit wider to experience – perhaps for the very first time – what an hour of womxn's voices on the radio sounds like."

Holt is an experienced radio host and programmer, having spent years in New York radio before leaving WFUV to start SHEROES. Recently, she took a few minutes to tell The Current's Jill Riley why she's making this show. Listen to their interview via the audio player above, or read a transcript below.

SHEROES airs on The Current on Sundays at 9 p.m. Central.

Interview Transcript

Jill Riley: Hey, big heads-up: There's a new show debuting on The Current airwaves this Sunday, December 6. And it's called SHEROES Radio. It's a weekly celebration of women in music, and it's hosted by Carmel Holt. And this morning, I just wanted to take a few minutes to check in with the host of the show, Carmel, who is on the line, and just give her some space to tell you what it's all about. Hey, Carmel.

Carmel Holt: Hey, Jill. Thank you so much for having me. I'm really excited for this show to be on The Current.

Jill Riley: Yeah, I am, too. So you're the creator, the host, [and] the producer of SHEROES Radio. So just on a real basic level, what was the inspiration for the show? What's it all about?

Carmel Holt: Well, the inspiration for the show comes directly from my own experience as a woman in radio and a woman in music. I've been in broadcasting ever since I got out of college, and that's now a long time ago. [laughs] Over two decades ago. I've done it all; I was also a musician before I got into radio. So I have a pretty big, wide experience on both sides, and a lot of experience with [the] challenges that come with being a female-identifying person, trying to be in both of those worlds, and in the music industry in general. And in past years, a lot of these conversations would happen in closed-door situations, whether that be in interviews with artists or out at radio conferences, where I'd be with my peers in the business – in the radio and on the record label side – where we would all kind of commiserate about how hard it was. And I just decided, at a certain point, that it was time to bring conversations into the [forefront].

And I also have experience being a programmer. On the programming side, it really bothered me that we were so underrepresented. And that I would sit in weekly music meetings where people would say, "Oh, well, we already have too many women. And the balance would be off if we added another." And I'd be presenting music on the air where there was not as many women as men. I was told that there was never going to be women back-to-back on the radio. That's not true anymore, but it's still a rarity. [And] to have women even in the hosting chair. So all these things kind of went into the stew, where I decided, you know, it's really time to address this. And bring the listeners in – bring the audience in.

Jill Riley: Yeah, Carmel, so how is the show going to be structured? Is it really a "women in music" kind of show, just strictly female artists? Are you going to be interviewing people?

Carmel Holt: Yeah, it's a combo of playlist and interview, and it is all womxn in music. And I say "womxn" with an "x." So if there are trans artists that we want to include in the playlist, we will. And yeah, there's weekly conversations with a "Shero in the Spotlight" – that's the middle section of each show. And then we close each show by inviting a radio shero, which is to say, a colleague of mine from one of our affiliates, to close the show by picking a song to take us out every week. 'Cause I want to share the platform with my peers.

Jill Riley: I'm talking with Carmel Holt about SHEROES Radio, which will be debuting on The Current this Sunday night, and I'm looking at the list of some of the conversations that you have coming up, and it's pretty incredible. And Carmel, it fits right into The Current.

Carmel Holt: [laughs] Yeah, well, Triple A [format], you know, that's where I've been. That's my sweet spot. I've been working in this format, like I said, for a very long time, and so that's naturally where I gravitate. But also, one of the missions of this show is to be as diverse, both in age and in genre, [as possible]. And that's one thing that's so awesome about The Current: that you guys kind of stretch the boundaries of what this so-called format is. So it's exciting to be bringing a bunch of these guests to the airwaves, including Sharon Van Etten and Rhiannon Giddens, who've been already featured in the past, and Tank of Tank and the Bangas, and Vagabon, and Judy Collins, and Roseanne Cash, and the list goes on.

Jill Riley: That's a great list. SHEROES Radio is debuting this Sunday on The Current, hosted by Carmel Holt. And Carmel, it's been great to check in with you. I know you've been an enthusiast of this format for a long time. I haven't seen you in a couple years. I think the last time I saw you was at the Eaux Claires Festival.

Carmel Holt: That's right! Yes.

Jill Riley: My gosh, the day that we can get back together and attend music festivals and concerts – boy, we're looking forward to it. But in the meantime, we can bring you some great radio programming. And another great show, which you can certainly learn a lot from: it's debuting this Sunday on The Current. Carmel, I really appreciate your work that you're doing on this.

Carmel Holt: Thank you so much, Jill. It means a lot, and I'm just so excited to be part of the line-up at The Current.

Preview SHEROES Radio here: