KGOU announced the launch of a new original production for its Friday Night Lineup.
According to the press release, KGOU is releasing Tonic: The Funky Groove Show as a new music program hosted and produced by Michael Bendure, OU Price College of Business director of communications and events. The show will be available starting June 12 from 9 to 11 p.m.
Bendure said the development of Tonic: The Funky Groove Show began after he told his idea of a podcast with recorded music to Jim Johnson, KGOU program director, in 2019.
“(Johnson) loved the idea and asked if I’d be interested in making it a regular addition to the KGOU lineup of original programming, so I spent more than a year researching The Funk’s unique history, context, and influence on the past 50 years of music," Bendure said.
Tonic: The Funky Groove Show includes funk, soul and groove music from the past six decades.
“From the Beastie Boys to James Brown, from Vulfpeck to The Crusaders, this new radio show encompasses more than 60 years of instrumental funk, groove, soul, disco, jazz, hip hop, and more.”
In an email with The Daily, KGOU general manager Dick Pryor said the new radio show follows the KGOU tradition of bringing music styles from around the world while enhancing a musical genre that is deserved to be heard by all generations.
“It adds to our diverse music program catalog and celebrates a musical genre that deserves greater exposure,” Pryor said. “Also, the music is fun and we expect it to serve and appeal to KGOU's diverse audience and listeners of all ages."
Bendure said he hopes his audience will appreciate cultural diversity by listening to the historic music he includes in the program.
“My sole expectations are that listeners will be exposed to music and songs they’ve perhaps never heard before and that it will help them enjoy and appreciate diverse music from a wide array of cultures,” Bendure said. “At the end of the day, I hope listeners will join me on a weekly adventure that discovers, honors, and celebrates historically significant music and artists from the past five decades and beyond.”
