St. Louis on the Air
St. Louis on the Air creates a unique space where guests and listeners can share ideas and opinions with respect and honesty. Whether exploring issues and challenges confronting our region, discussing the latest innovations in science and technology, taking a closer look at our history or talking with authors, artists and musicians, St. Louis on the Air brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region.
Episodes
April 25, 2025 • 25 mins
When Emilio Hernandez and Patrick Lawrence started Occults, they had no intention of building a fanbase. The two best friends of nearly 25 years had a very simple goal — create music that they’ve loved as teens as an outlet during the global lockdowns at the start of the pandemic. Now, they are hitting the road and touring across the country with a stop in St. Louis — their hometown and where their friendship began.
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April 25, 2025 • 23 mins
Muhammad “Mvstermind” Austin, founder of Mvstercamp, joins producer Miya Norfleet for April’s new music show on St. Louis on the Air. They discuss some of their favorite new songs from St. Louis-area artists, including Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s “luther” and “Kerosene” by Lani Rose.
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April 24, 2025 • 21 mins
Several St. Louis streets have given way to gaping holes in the past week, exposing a side of our city's built environment most of us have never seen. But are these sinkholes, or cave-ins? Historian Chris Naffziger goes beneath the surface of these definitions to share some of the stories hiding beneath our feet.
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April 24, 2025 • 10 mins
Missouri provided a spark to the abortion rights movement that’s warily monitoring a GOP-controlled federal government, Planned Parenthood President and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson said Wednesday at an event in Clayton. STLPR politics correspondent Jason Rosenbaum discusses McGill Johnson’s visit.
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April 24, 2025 • 19 mins
Pope Francis, who died Monday at the age of 88, was a trailblazer in many ways. He was the first Latin-American pontiff and the first non-European to lead the Roman Catholic Church in more than 1,000 years. He was also the first Jesuit ever elected pope, a detail that’s often overlooked. That Jesuit background is especially relevant in St. Louis, a city with deep religious and cultural ties to the Catholic Church. The Rev. Thomas F...
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April 23, 2025 • 49 mins
Michael Politte spent 23 years in prison for the murder of his mother — a crime that evidence now suggests he did not commit. He won parole in 2022, but a juror who helped put him in prison won’t rest until his name is cleared. Politte shares what he’s been up to in the three years since his release, and we hear from the juror who’s fighting for his innocence.
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April 22, 2025 • 25 mins
Missouri Republican legislators are trying for a second time to prohibit local law enforcement from enforcing federal gun restrictions. Missouri Newsroom investigative reporter Kavahn Mansouri shares the latest development in the saga of the Second Amendment Preservation Act, and why police groups and officials say the law creates the same problems as its predecessor.
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April 22, 2025 • 25 mins
The Center for Bosnian Studies has a new home base. Two decades after its founding as the Bosnian Memory Project at Fontbonne University, the Center is in the process of moving artifacts to St. Louis University. The Center’s director Adna Karamahic-Oates, Bosnian Memory Project founder Benjamin Moore and Jennifer Nutefall, dean of libraries and museums at St. Louis University, share what this transfer means for the Center for Bosni...
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April 21, 2025 • 28 mins
It’s been more than two years since Missouri voters approved the legalization of cannabis for adult recreational use. We explore the two sides of the growing industry — first by checking with several cannabis chefs competing for the approval of hundreds of weed-loving St. Louisans. Then, Missouri Independent cannabis reporter Rebecca Rivas takes us through the latest twists in the state’s embattled program for cannabis microbusines...
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April 21, 2025 • 21 mins
Tower Grove Farmers’ Market is now in its 20th season. Chris Geden, known as its Mayor, has been there since its first Saturday back in 2006. He and general manager Bess Kretsinger Heffernan discuss Tower Grove Farmers’ Market’s rich history and development.
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April 18, 2025 • 22 mins
St. Louis went through a major transition this week with the inauguration of Cara Spencer as mayor and Donna Baringer as comptroller. 14th Ward Alderman Rasheen Aldridge discusses the latest elections and what leadership change may mean for the city’s future.
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April 18, 2025 • 27 mins
For years, the agency that oversees Missouri’s foster care system and investigates instances of child abuse and neglect has struggled with high turnover, massive caseloads, and inconsistent rollouts of some key legislative initiatives. Missouri Children’s Division Director Sara Smith is in her first month leading the agency. She shares her plan to keep her department on the right track — especially with less funding than in previou...
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April 17, 2025 • 20 mins
Tiny Desk Contest launched in 2014 to give unsigned artists a chance to compete for their very own concert at NPR headquarters — and some musicians have entered several years running. Rich Washington, aka Just Rich, and Jorge Valcárcel of Boxcar share their motivations behind entering in the Tiny Desk Contest seven and 11 years, respectively.
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April 17, 2025 • 30 mins
The 2025 NPR’S Tiny Desk Contest had 51 entries from musicians in the St. Louis area. Producer Miya Norfleet and STLPR’s Visuals Editor Brian Munoz discuss the local favorites and share their thoughts on the entries.
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April 16, 2025 • 17 mins
The Missouri Historical Society has flung open a vault of artifacts it’s been collecting since the 1860s. A new rotating exhibition at the Missouri History Museum gives visitors a chance to experience dozens of self-contained stories behind these objects — from a massive bird-hunting rifle to adorable kids' clothing from the last century. Museum tour manager Ryan Deloach shares his highlights from “Collected.” Also, the historical...
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April 16, 2025 • 33 mins
Historical, and cultural barriers have contributed to a disproportionate number of Black Americans’ not knowing how to swim. A 2024 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that more than a third of Black adults – compared to 15% of all adults – reported they could not swim; and only one in three Black adults said they’d ever taken a swimming lesson. Youth on the all-Black Makos Swim Team are learning to com...
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April 15, 2025 • 27 mins
When Michelle Dezember moved to St. Louis five years ago, she assumed that the region would have a significant affinity with the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers, the two longest rivers in the U.S. She soon realized that many residents don’t engage with them at all despite their cultural and historical relevance. Dezember — who serves as the Director of Learning and Engagement at the Contemporary Art Museum (CAM) — is the co-curator...
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April 15, 2025 • 16 mins
Amie Lepsky has always loved baking, but her passion for creating cupcake bouquets is what inspired her to start her own business. She shares the inspiration behind Bakery Blooms, the process of crafting the hyper-realistic flower cupcakes, and the enjoyment that baking for others brings her.
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April 14, 2025 • 37 mins
Ten years ago, an intrepid restaurant critic at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch decided to put a hefty meal on his food-writing plate: Listing, and ranking, the top 100 restaurants in St. Louis. That effort is still running a decade later. Food critic Ian Froeb discusses this year’s picks and shares his insight and reflections on the St. Louis food and restaurant industry in 2025.
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April 14, 2025 • 11 mins
St. Louis’ downtown has its share of well-documented challenges: large-scale vacancies, companies moving their offices and streets that can feel devoid of activity. The city has made progress on two prominent vacant buildings in its downtown the past year, but rebounding from what the Wall Street Journal has described as a “real estate nightmare” will take many more years. STLPR economic development reporter Eric Schmid talks about...
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