radioplasma podcast: Recent Episodes

iohann rashi vega

Bilingual Podcast and media platform dedicated to conversations and the exchange of ideas from a multicultural community, based in the surrounding areas of the Connecticut River Valley, and Western Massachusetts.

Music, arts, storytelling, conversations, performances, creative projects, and randomness.

Alexandra - Food Policy Council by iohann rashi vega

Recibimos con un mucha alegría, a Daliana Alvarado, creativa puertorriqueña, comunicadora, gestora cultural y co-creadora de un blog cultural llamado "Con Sabor a Coco".Daliana fue por varios años la voz anfitriona de un programa de radio producido por Iohann en los primeros años de la década del 2000 en WRTU en Puerto Rico, enfocado en la exploración de nueva música con influencias eclécticas de distintos géneros, épocas y culturas: Travel Lounge.Después de varios años sin contacto, Dalliana, ahora establecida en la ciudad de Nueva York comparte con nosotros y este episodio es una reunión en la que nos ponemos al día y conoceremos sobre el trabajo que Daliana ha hecho con su proyecto "Con Sabor a Coco", así como la aportación cultural de las tradiciones puertorriqueñas a través del trabajo de su familia en Orocovis. La Familia Alvarado. Para conocer más sobre el trabajo de Daliana puede visitar: http://www.consaboracoco.com/

Reyna Tropical at Millpond Live.

We welcome Fabi Reyna to Massachusetts, and after her amazing performance at Millpond Live on September 9, we got a moment to talk briefly about her work as Reyna Tropical, and the importance of her motto Queer Love, Afro-México.

Also we talked about her inspiration, the She Shreds magazine she founded a decade ago and continues being a forum to amplify the work of female guitarists and bassists.

Lastly, we addressed the deep meaning of Reyna Tropical's latest song, "Pajaritos", released this same day of the interview, and being this the last song made by Fabi and Sumohair, before his passing.

Find more about Reyna Tropical on lareynatropical.com

La celebración del Cinco de Mayo en Estados Unidos, conlleva ciertas prácticas comerciales y culturales que son particularmente únicas de la idiosincrasia estadounidense.

En esta breve sesión comparto información con el fin de explicar qué significa realmente el cinco de mayo en el contexto histórico en México, al igual que las posibles derivaciones que llevaron esta fecha a ser la festividad que se celebra actualmente en Estados Unidos.

Recibimos desde Puerto Rico a una amiga de muchos años, quien es y ha sido una creadora de múltiples proyectos artísticos en diferentes disciplinas. Ella es Miosoti Alvarado, Mio.

En esta sesión nos enfocaremos en su más reciente proyecto musical llamado Piquete, así como el lanzamiento de su primer sencillo, "Fluir".

Piquete es una innovadora propuesta musical afro-puertorriqueña que Mio la define como neo-plena y bomba-groove.

En su propuesta, Miosoti ha fusionado ritmos tradicionales de bomba y plena, con bases rítmicas de géneros contemporáneos, manteniendo la sonoridad de los barriles de Bomba, panderos de Plena, guicharo, maracas, alfaia y otros instrumentos de percusión caribeña y brasileña.

Recibiendo la primavera de 2022 y celebrando el Mes Nacional de la Historia de la Mujer en marzo, les invitamos a disfrutar de esta charla con Mio y desde luego, del sencillo "Fluir".

Para conocer más del trabajo curatorial de Miosoti en el quehacer de la actividad cultural y artística en Puerto Rico, pueden seguirla en Instagram y Facebook. @dimelomio

Para videos, música y actualizaciones de Piquete, pueden visitar @piquetepr y seguir el canal de Piquete en YouTube.

As we honor all women during March 8th, International Women's Day, we have a conversation with visual artist, educator, singer, songwriter, and musician, Carmen Callender.

A long-life resident of Springfield, MA, Carmen enjoys creating different pieces of art, in different mediums such as music and murals. In this session, we will learn about the creation of her latest song, "Call of Duty" which is now available for streaming on music platforms, and YouTube.

You can check some of Carmen's music on: https://soundcloud.com/carmencallender

New York-based Grammy-nominated Mexican singer and composer, Magos Herrera has been busy during 2021, making new music, and continuing her musical journey, putting together elements from realms like chamber music, jazz, and Latin American roots and influences,

And she is coming to present in an intimate concert, a tasting of these multiple sound flavors, exploring the fusion of a string quartet and a jazz ensemble, joined by a string quartet drawn from members of the orchestral collective The Knights. “Remanso,” (Backwater) is a musical scrapbook Herrera composed during COVID-19 isolation. In this conversation with Magos Herrera, we catch up on what she has been working while in isolation, so even there were no live concerts, the music has never stop flowing.

The program will include new arrangements commissioned by Americas Society, songs included in the 2020 album Con Alma, and new original music written by Herrera with support from a Chamber Music Americas New Jazz Works grant.

Magos Herrera is having her show at Bombyx, Center for Arts and Equity in Florence, MA, on February 11, 2022 at 7:00 PM. Tickets are available at bombyx.live

This program is also supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.

To learn more about Magos Herrera's work, you can visit: https://www.magosherrera.com/

Rachel Eckroth is a renowned singer, songwriter, composer, and keyboard player, with a multifaceted approach to music that fits into the jazz umbrella, and at the same time explores musical landscapes that offer dramatic views of places that exist in the vast realm of the creativity and inspiration, using electronic sounds, effects, and an experimental view to what music can be.

In this session with Rachel Eckroth, we talk bout her latest album, The Garden, a Grammy-nominated recording for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album. We learn about the inspiration behind this album and some of the pieces in it, all in preparation for her concert at Bombyx, Center for Arts and Equity, on December 29, 2021.

To learn more about Rachel Eckroth's work, you can visit racheleckroth.com

Listening to ÌFÉ performing live is to experience a cathartic, spiritual transmutation of what organically and digitally can be perceived as a purification through music. After the sublime performance of ÌFÉ at the Bombyx Center for the Arts & Equity in Florence, MA, we sat down with Otura Mun, leader and founder of ÌFÉ, to catch up and talk about his work.

And I say "to catch up" because we happen to know each other from the early 2000's rave and electronic music scene in Puerto Rico, when we shared the stage as DJs in multiple events. So, this session covers Mun's journey from his experience in Puerto Rico from 1999 until now, going from DJ and Selector, to producer and musician, now as ÌFÉ.

You will learn the meaning behind the concept of putting digital production elements into an organic performance of instruments that hold a sacred ancestry. Also, we go deeper into the concept of ÌFÉ's latest release, 0000+0000.

You can learn more about ÌFÉ, visiting ife-music.com Also, ÌFÉ is on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. We want to thank Cassandra Holden and Kyle Homstead at Bombyx Center for Arts & Equity; and Edo Mor at Collider, for making this experience possible.

On November 12, 2021, and during the celebration of National Native American Heritage Month, the new Bombyx Center for Arts & Equity, hosted a special event during its inaugural season, bringing for the first time in this new venue, Native American & Hip Hop artist Supaman.

Supaman is Christian Takes Gun Parrish. He is a member of the Apsáalooke Nation in Montana. As Supaman his musical career started in 2005 by putting together dance, hip hop lyricism, and music, by blending both, Native American, and hip hop sound elements, into a way of expressing the celebration of life, and a contemporary approach of what culture means for Supaman and his people.

During this conversation, we learn about his origins as an artist, the evolution of the hip hop fusion with Native American dance, music, and the representation as contemporary culture, and the importance of learning through an experience like his show for awareness and appreciation of the Native American people. And we also talk about his latest album "Medicine Bundle" its meaning, and the messages embedded in its songs.

To learn more about Supaman, his music, shows, and videos, visit supamanhiphop.net

Also, you can find him on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

We want to thank Cassandra Holden and Kyle Homstead for their support in making this interview possible. You can visit bombyx.live to learn more about this new center for arts, and get updates of their upcoming events that will feature multiple talents from all over the world.

Gateway City Arts is coming back!!

We are celebrating the good news shared by Vitek Kruta and Lori Divine, co-directors and founders of Gateway City Arts, that they have formed a partnership with DSP Shows and this will allow a return to activities for the multicultural complex.

One of them was Gateway City Arts, that in December 2020 announced they would not be able to return to operations after being hit by the closure of its whole complex due to the pandemic and the restrictions that came with it.

We wanted to share the details of the good news of GCA coming back, and join the moving force of what it will be a re-emerged Gateway City Arts, with a focus on arts, food, community oriented events, the Small Works Gallery, more intimate concerts, theater, classes, etc.

After a year of changes in our lives due to the pandemic, we have lost not only too many lives, but businesses, spaces, and venues. So these news are worth of sharing and celebrating.

The magic and spirit of GCA continues!

On this session, we welcome jazz musician and composer, Felipe Salles. We talked about The New Immigrant Experience, a recording release that represents a strong testament to the presence, experience, and inspiration by the lives of "Dreamers".

Dr. Felipe Salles who emigrated from Brazil to the United States, has served as a Professor of Jazz and African-American Music Studies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst since 2010, and is a 2018 Guggenheim Foundation Composition Fellow, among many other accolades.

We talked about the immigrant experience in his own life learnings, as well as the experiences from others, especially the "Dreamers" on whom is based his latest recording project.

Felipe Salles and the Interconnections Ensemble, a 19-piece ensemble, will have a concert at the Academy of Music Theatre in a live-streamed performance of the New Immigrant Experience on April 24, 2021.

Also, a panel discussion with composer Felipe Salles and activist Dreamers, will precede the musical experience for an expanded context.

For tickets to Felipe Salles and The New Immigrant Experience you can visit thirdrow.live

To learn more about Felipe Salles, you can visit his website: https://www.sallesjazz.com/

[INTERVIEW IN SPANISH]

Recibimos con mucho orgullo a la cantante y compositora mexicana, Magos Herrera.

Reconocida en la escena internacional de la música por su expresiva interpretación vocal, Magos se manifiesta musicalmente dentro de diferentes vertientes sonoras que se entrelazan en el espectro del jazz.

En esta conversación con Magos, hablamos sobre su trayectoria, su vida artística en la ciudad de Nueva York, la experiencia multicultural, la identidad, así como los detalles del concierto que estará ofreciendo el 17 de abril en el Teatro Academy of Music, en Northampton, Massachusetts.

Este concerto virtual, ofrecerá la oportunidad de escuchar a Magos desde cualquier punto en el mundo de forma virtual, a la vez que la audiencia podrá ser vista en el escenario por Magos y los músicos, gracias a la inventiva producción de ThirdRow.Live y Laudable Productions.

Para asistir a este concierto que celebra a las mujeres y también ocurre durante la celebración en Estados Unidos del mes de la apreciación del jazz, puede visitar: Thirdrow.live

Para conocer más sobre el trabajo artístico de Magos Herrera y escuchar la música de sus nueve álbumes, puede visitar: magosherrera.com

This is our conversation with Chilean jazz vocalist, songwriter, and arranger, Claudia Acuña. With the beginning of March as Women's History Month, and her virtual concert on March 6th, part of the International Women Rising Festival presented by Thirdrow.live and produced by Laudable.Productions, we talk about her background, and the inspiration to pursue a career as a singer and artist.

This is an interview in both languages, English and Spanish.

We are celebrating a virtual holiday, and this session has a special guest: a singer-writer, entrepreneur, and a talented multi-cultural artist who represents Turkey and New York. She is Sinem Saniye, and under her artistic name Saniyé, she shared a moment after a virtual show, to talk about her musical work, artist support and networking, her efforts to amplify women in the arts, music and performance, and she shares with is a very special acoustic version of her latest song "Baby, It's Still Christmas".

October 31, 2020. Attack Bear Press founders, Jason Montgomery and Alex Woolner share their thoughts and the process behind the creation of the 2nd Holyoke Community Ofrenda 2020 to honor the Day of the Dead, and at the same time, create a space to acknowledge, honor, and remember the lives lost during 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

For the second year, the Readywipe Gallery in Holyoke hosted the space for an indoor installation, featured on this video, and also an outdoor setting for the community ofrenda that was built to create a space for remembrance, for celebration of life, and to bring indigenous, mexican, and latinx people together, and share this meaningful ceremony with the community as an educational opportunity to learn about the Day of the Dead, that is celebrated in Mexico, and other Latin American communities on November 1st and 2nd of every year.

Also, The Wistariahurst Museum placed a giant screen at their garden, where these images were projected in real time as this live broadcasting was made, allowing the public to see from a remote location, what was happening at the Readywipe Gallery.

In this virtual session, we welcome Anne Thalheimer, Treasurer of the Holyoke Local Cultural Council, who shared with us the details of the currently open season for grants proposals for 2021.

Due to the impact of COVID-19, the deadline has been moved to December 14, 2020, and you can submit your proposal online visiting https://mcc.smartsimple.com/s_Login.jsp

The HLCC encourages individuals and organizations to apply for financial support through its annual grant program which is part of a statewide grant program administered by the Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC).

All the information regarding the Holyoke Local Cultural Council is available online at https://www.mass-culture.org/holyoke

After an unexpected hiatus due to COVID-19, here we are. Radioplasma is back in the cyber-ether.

We return to our conversations and randomness, with a session and a story of resilience, adaptation, and a reminder of self care, with Iréne I-Shea Shaikly, emcee, poet, percussionist, dancer, singer, actress, youth worker, and educator.

On this session we talked about Iréne's process and adaptation through COVID-19, the experiences of a trip to Senegal that inspired some of her most recent musical work with the Lost Tribe. A song titles "Say Their Names"

Betsayda Machado y su Parranda el Clavo, se presentaron en Gateway City Arts en Holyoke, el 1 de marzo.

Después de una cálida y energética sesión musical, Betsayda nos brindó unos momentos para conversar sobre su trabajo musical, así como algunos detalles de los instrumentos de la cultura musical de Venezuela y una pieza teatral que esperamos poder disfrutar en el futuro.

Produced in partnership with Holyoke Media.

On March 5th, 2020, Dr. Stephen Mahoney, Executive Principal at Holyoke High School, met with students, teachers, parents, school committee members, and community members, to listen to their feedback on the implementation of this policy.

This meeting continued showing the different angles of how the random searches policy seems to be creating more problems than solutions, and it brought some moments of tension, and statements worth of scrutiny regarding data, research, and consistency in the reasons for the implementation of a random search policy.

This second public meeting was held at the Tea Room in the Holyoke High School Dean Campus, and had the participation of students of both campuses of Holyoke High, teachers, school committee members from wards 1, 2, and 3, students from Smith College and UMass, the Pa’Lante Restorative Justice Program, and Ethnic Studies, among partners and members of the community.

Dr. Mahoney opened the session with a timeline of the events that led to the implementation of this policy, followed by questions from the attending public, that started with a focus on medication.

Dr. Mahoney announced he will be conducting lunch meetings with students, in order to continue gathering input on this matter, however he didn’t provide a specific date for when those meeting would happen.

This audio recording captures the dialog between Holyoke High principal, and the attending audience, from the moments of the medication discussion, until the conclusion of the meeting.

This is the recording of the public meeting, held at Holyoke High School, North Campus, regarding the random searches policy.

Dr. Stephen Mahoney, Executive Principal at Holyoke High, met with students, teachers, parents, and community members, to listen to their feedback on the implementation of this policy. Recorded on February 27, 2020.

Nicole Ortiz is a young entrepreneur, who is also a student at the HCC Culinary Arts Institute. In this conversation, we learned about CRAVE, her new business, a food truck with a plant forward menu, focused on using local ingredients, and exploring different culinary influences.

An inspiring session, that sets a standard for taking action and pursuing dreams and goals, while giving back to the community.

Our teen host Shayleena, shares a conversation with Micah Katz Zieger, who is in charge of the programming and activities with the House of Colors LGBTQ Youth Group, based at Enlace de Familias in Main St. in Holyoke, MA.

This youth group engages in different activities to provide a safe space and create awareness in different spaces around the city. House of Colors has been meeting at the Teen Room in the Holyoke Public Library for the past months, and as a way to recognize their presence, Shayleena and Micah talked about House of Colors in this radioplasma episode.

El Centro de Periodismo Investigativo de Puerto Rico es una organización creada en el 2007 para fomentar el acceso a la información del pueblo de Puerto Rico mediante las vías del periodismo de investigación, la litigación y la formación periodística.

Como parte del trabajo investigativo del CPI, resaltan los recientes eventos en Puerto Rico que resultaron en la renuncia del gobernador, Ricardo Rosselló en el verano de 2019.

Durante la visita del CPI a la ciudad de Boston, se llevó a cabo una conversación sobre el trabajo de este grupo de periodistas y la importancia del trabajo investigativo.

La periodista Cristela Guerra, fue la moderadora de este charla con Omaya Sosa, fundadora del CPI, Carla Minet, directora ejecutiva, y Rígel Lugo, directora de desarrollo. Agradecemos a Ágora Cultural Architects por todas las facilidades otorgadas para la cobertura de este evento.

Grabado el 26 de enero de 2020, en Boston, MA.

Para conocer más sobre el CPI y su contenido informativo, pueden visitar: http://periodismoinvestigativo.com/

Our very special guest, is Pasqualina Azzarello, City Arts Coordinator at Easthampton City Arts, Painter, Public Muralist, and educator. In this conversation, Pasqualina shares with us the work process that took place on the creation of COALESCENCE, an exhibition that opens the residency program at the Readywipe Gallery, inside the Baustein Building in Holyoke, created as a collective work with artists Zoe Sasson, and Jason Montgomery.

PodCamp WesternMass is celebrating its 12th edition on February 29th, 2020 at Valley Venture Mentors (VVM), in Springfield, MA.

We got the chance to talk with the new team in charge of putting together this un-conference about social media, online networking, podcasting and media creation.

In this session, we talked with three young entrepreneurs and professionals in the social media, marketing, and branding industry: Robyn Lee, owner of MorningBird Media. Jamie Cocco, owner of Empowered Social Media, and Aimée Boettcher, owner of Two Moons Creative.

We welcome Lady Moon & the Eclipse, on their first show and visit to Holyoke.

Being this show, their last of 2019, we got the opportunity to have a conversation with all the band about its origins, the meaning of representation of Cosmic Soul, with a multi-cultural proposal that fuses soul, R&B, afrobeat, jazz, and Congolese roots. This diverse band work together as an alignment of talents, that creates music connected to the cosmic soul energy.

The voices of Lady Moon & the Eclipse are sisters Ngonda Badila, on lead vocals; Ntangou Badila, and Nkoula Badila, on backup vocals, representing Congo. The rest of the band includes Arlen Ginsburg, on the Keyboards (from Chicago, USA); Jonathan Camuzeaux, on the Bass (from France); and Ken Reichl, on the Drums (from Japan).

Our podcast session includes the performance of their songs "Augmented" as the opening track, and it wraps up with "Vibrations".

This is the video recording of our podcast interview, on November 23, 2019, at the New England Media Lab studio, in Gateway City Arts, in Holyoke, MA.

Meet Ta'Naya. She is a blind 15 years-old black girl, who recently joined our teen group for media literacy. She writes poetry, and plays piano. She is a high school student, and she is full of positive energy. In this conversation with our teen host, Shayleena, we got to learn more about Ta'Naya's story, and to be more aware of what it means to live with a disability. A powerful and moving experience, we wanted to share with everybody.

We welcome Monte Belmonte to talk about Monte's March. A fundraiser for the Food Bank of Western Mass. intended to provide food for people in need, and create awareness about hunger, and the need to end food insecurities in the region.

In this conversation we got to learn about the march's origins, and how it has been an event that has engaged different members of the communities in Hampden, Hampshire, and Franklin counties, to address the issues of hunger. Monte's March, is happening on November 25, and 26, of 2019, starting in Springfield, and ending in Greenfield.

We welcome our guest, singer songwriter, teacher artist, Kimaya Diggs to an interview about her musical work, and the opportunity of enjoying a couple of songs recorded live in our session.

Kimaya is an artist who explores music from different streams, and creates a unique sound, reminiscent of the vibes of folk, soul, jazz, in a soothing, vibrant, and personal musical experience.

We got the opportunity to talk about her personal story, her debut album, Breastfed, her process making music, and also, her teaching experiences.

We welcome singer, songwriter, educator, Amy Porchelli. A local talent who embraces art as the way to share stories and empowerment. Amy released her album "Bigger Than Me" in September 2019, and she shares a live performance of the title song with us, in this session.

This radioplasma session with Amy, was an intimate conversation that approaches her process creating this musical storytelling production, and how it connects to her work as an arts educator through her program, ArtSong.

Session recorded at the Readywipe Gallery, in occasion of the celebration of the Day of the Dead, titled: "Por Nosotros y para Todos Nosotros, Día de los Muertos Holyoke Community Altar."

This was an emotive, colorful, beautiful collective experience, created by Neftalí Duran, Jason Montgomery, and the Readywipe Gallery, to make a space to honor, remember, and celebrate the lives of the dear departed friends, and family members of the community, in a ceremonial ofrenda that connects to the Mexican celebration of the Day of the Dead, celebrated on November 1st, and 2nd.

In this conversation with Jason Montgomery, we discussed the meaning of this altar for the Chicano, Mexican, Indigenous people, and how this event became a shared experience for members of the community in general to feel part of it, ensuring there is a respect for this tradition, ritual, and cultural manifestation, while we celebrate together being alive, and being able to remember our dead.

Michael Thomas Siciliano is a candidate for Ward 4 at Holyoke City Council. On this conversation, he addresses his continuous interest on joining local government, in hopes of improve the public service, putting politics aside, and taking care of the issues that are of concern for neighbours and constituents.

Jordan Lemieux is a candidate for Holyoke City Council at-large. As a retired firefighter, and skilled on negotiations, Jordan wishes to continue serving the City of Holyoke at City Council, and we had an engaging conversation about all the possibilities available to Holyoke, his motivations to serve at City Council, and his priorities to take care of, on behalf of the constituents, should he join City Council.

We welcome Jens Michaelsen to our series. Jens is a candidate for Ward 5 at Holyoke City Council. As a challenger to the incumbent Linda Vacon, Jens shared his motivations to run for office, his priorities for Ward 5 and the city, the experience, expertise, and skills he brings to the table, and his ideas on how to bring fresh energy to City Council.

Gladys Lebron-Martinez is the incumbent City Councilwoman for Ward 1.

Running unopposed, she shared her reasons to continue serving at City Council, as well as the main concerns with Ward 1 and the city, that would be part of the work in this new two-year term at City Council.

Also we addressed some issues regarding representation, holding power in local government, and ways to engage better with the underrepresented members of the community.

Juan Anderson-Burgos is the City Councilor for Ward 6 in Holyoke. Running uncontested for this election, he spoke with us about the work as Councilor for the past two years, and the priorities to continue looking forward to a new term.

In this conversation we addressed issues of safety, the importance of listening to everybody's concerns, the middle schools, and overall, how his work looks to be a mediator that integrates all parties involved in a discussion, to find a common ground where decisions are made, thinking about the benefit of the whole city of Holyoke.

Our guest is Joe McGiverin, City Councilor at-large, seeking a new two-year term at Holyoke City Council. McGiverin joined us for a great conversation in our series Know Your Candidates, and we addressed some of the details about the work being done at City Council, regarding the Middle Schools, and what are some of the priorities for the City Council to take care of.

We welcome Rebecca Lisi, City Councilor at-large, who is seeking for a new term at Holyoke City Council. On this conversation, we covered her campaign, her priorities for the City of Holyoke as City Councilor, and we addressed the need for more civic engagement, and leadership development in the community. Also, we pointed out issues on gender, race, and social equity in local government.

Sgt. Wilmer Puello, is a candidate for Holyoke City Council at-large. After serving his country in the Air Force, now Puello wants to serve as City Councilor, and we had a good conversation about the issues that are important for him to pursue a seat at-large. We discussed the two middle schools, safety, democracy, and how he is planning to work at City Council, should he be elected.

This is the audio excerpt, taken from the archives by Holyoke Media, of the Development and Government Relations meeting of September 9, 2019, with statement by Clr. David Bartley, in regards of Whiting Street Reservoir.

From the Agenda: Item 9: Bartley 8/6/19: Ordered, that in accordance with M.G.L. Ch. 30B and the Holyoke Code of Ordinances procurement ordinance, the City Council declare a lot on Easthampton Road as surplus property available for disposition. Said parcel is identified by the Holyoke Board of Assessors records as Map 212, Block 00, Parcel 001 consisting of vacant land of approximately 53.5 acres in size. The property is more particularly described at the Hampden County Registry of Deeds in Book 5574, Page 41. On May 21, 2007, the property was awarded to the City via a Land Court Decree with a Final Judgment recorded in Hampden County Registry of Deeds Book 16740, Page 126. The property is zoned Business General (BG) and has an assessed value of $1,112,300.

Nelson Lopez is a Candidate for Holyoke City Council, at Large. Born and raised in Holyoke, Nelson shares his story, reasons to run for City Council at Large, and we discussed some of the main concerns that the city needs to have as priorities to take care of.

Recibimos con mucho orgullo, la visita de Raquel Obregón, quien es la anfitriona y productora del espacio radial "Tertulia", que se transmite en NEPR, los Domingos de 8-10 de la noche.

En celebración del Mes Nacional de la Herencia Hispana, Raquel, quien es originaria de Lima, Perú, es una de las homenajeadas en las celebraciones a realizarse en Holyoke durante Septiembre y Octubre.

En esta sesión conversamos sobre su trayectoria y la importancia de espacios como Tertulia para la difusión cultural de la representación Latina en la región, tanto para el disfrute de estas comunidades, como del público en general.

This is a special coverage of the Rainbow Supper Club's Interfaith Panel, recorded at the Holyoke Council on Aging and Senior Center on September 4, 2019, presented by WestMass Elder Care. During this event, the panelists had a dialogue examining the intersections of faith, gender, and sexuality, linked to the LGBTQ+ community.

As part of the Millpond.Live series of concerts, the third show, offered a powerful experience with Haitian artist, Vox Sambou.

In this backstage conversation right after his show, we talked about the amazing experience we all had, and also the importance of representation, multi-cultural awareness, and diversity.

After the interview, you will enjoy a sample of his performance in this free series of concerts in Easthampton, MA. Thanks to Laudable Productions for all the support and access to produce this interview.

Recorded backstage at Millpond.Live in Easthampton, MA on September 7, 2019

City Councilor for Ward 2, Terry Murphy, is running unopposed for the 2019 Holyoke Municipal Election. In this conversation, we talked about his plans for the new upcoming term, the challenges and needs for the communities in Ward 2, and also we addressed some important topics like safety, quality of life, and the schools. More than a campaign conversation, a deep review of the work being done.

This is part of the series "Know Your Candidates" that also includes conversations with candidates who are running unopposed, in order to know more about their work and performance at City Council, and to learn about their plans for a new term.

We welcome Dr. Diana Alvarez in this beautiful conversation and music session, with all the recent and most relevant activities by this Chicanx singer, songwriter, activist, educator, and inspiring human being. Also, this session is an invitation to join Diana at Millpond.Live this September 7, 2019 in Easthampton, MA.

We welcome our guest, El Oso Azul, representing Attack bear Press. We talked about lucha libre as a way of representation of culture, heritage, values, sports, fun, and the link to the arts, through the fantastic art initiative Attack Bear Press, developing all sort of cultural events in the Valley, connecting Holyoke, Easthampton, Northampton, and more.

We experienced a great music session and conversation with the band Sodada. Celebrating the release of their EP "Phase", we learned about the story and evolution of this musical project, created by Hannah Rose and Andy C. This session includes the live performance of their songs "Ultraviolet", and "Lit Up".

Libby Hernandez is one of the candidates for Ward 4 at Holyoke City Council. As part of the series "Know Your Candidates", we talked about her personal and professional background, her motivations to run for Ward 4, and the priorities she identifies for the community of Ward 4, and the City of Holyoke.

Esta es nuestra conversación con el proyecto musical Cimafunk, directamente desde Cuba. Previo a su presentación en Millpond.Live en Easthampton, tuvimos esta charla con Erik Iglesias Rodríguez, sobre el concepto de CImafunk y sus fusiones, la escena musical de Cuba, y algunos de los artistas que han influenciado el trabajo musical de Cimafunk.

Interview recorded in Spanish. For an English subtitled video version, visit radioplasma.com.

Rachel Dowd, Teen Librarian at Holyoke Public Library, hosts this session, with a deep conversation with Shayleena Figueroa, junior student at Holyoke High School, about the new school year, and some topics around school, teen life, goals, struggles, advice, and expectations.

We welcome community leader, Israel Rivera, "Izzy", as we know him in the community. He is a candidate for Holyoke City Council At-Large, and we talked about the reasons for him to run in this Municipal Election, bringing a wide view of the different scenarios the city of Holyoke has, and his life experiences that can contribute to a better understanding of different matters in the policies and decision making in local government.

We welcome Amy Johnquest, the BannerQueen, in this conversation about the third anniversary of her space, Spot 22, and we also talked about her work as an artists, some of her creations, and the arts in general.

Erika Slocumb talks about the most recent activity around her research on the project Black Holyoke. As a way to showcase this research, there will be a series of events at the Wistariahurst Museum, that include performances, and an exhibit of stories and images of the Black community of Holyoke, compiled by Erika, through several interviews.

We visited the PRX Podcast Garage in Boston, a space dedicated to podcast creation, production, and access for independent producers to learn, develop, record, their own podcast content. We had a conversation with Palace Shaw, Community Manager at PRX Podcast Garage, and a podcaster herself. This visit allowed us to know more about this fantastic project, that is celebrating its 3rd anniversary during August. The Public Radio Exchange (PRX), is expanding, and now is opening a new site in D.C.

We welcome the Colombian band Cimarrón, with a musical sample of their performance at Gateway City Arts, and the conversation we had with singer Ana Veydó, and harp player, Carlos Cuco Rojas, after their show. This conversation is in Spanish.

This is the conversation describing the story and process behind the creation of the two murals at the Holyoke Public Library, made by Girls Inc on their summer externship program, along with teens from the Holyoke Public Library, and three artists from Colectivo Moriviví, from Puerto Rico.

In this session, we talk with Salomé Cortés, Raysa Rodríguez, and Sharon González, from Colectivo Moriviví, and Rachel Dowd, Teen Librarian at the Holyoke Public Library.

This is the interview with Dennis Birks, Holyoke City Council Candidate for Ward 3, in the Municipal Election of 2019.

As part of the series “Know Your Candidates”, we welcomed Candidate for Ward 3, Dennis Birks to talk about his experience as member of the School Committee, as an aid for City Council, in a better decision making, and the need for changes in Ward 3.

Our teen host, Shayleena, received a surprise visit by Bevan Brunelle, Theater and Media Literacy teacher at Holyoke High School, and they had a conversation about the upcoming activities that include a Haunted House at Wistariahurst, and a new play, featuring Clue (yes, that same Clue as the board game).

We welcome Edo Mor, one of the organizers of the music festival Barbès in the Woods, a full day multi-cultural event, celebrating the blending of cultures from the New York City's bar, performance space, musical incubator Barbès in Park Slope, Brooklyn, doing a midsummer special event in the Bartlett Farm, in Montague, MA. On this conversation, we talked about the details and backstory of this festival, happening in August 17, 2019.

The Lineup for this gathering of international artists include:

Antibalas Combo Chimbita Underground System Slavic Soul Party! Anbessa Orchestra Alsarah & The Nubatones Stephane Wrembel Big Lazy Klezperanto The Berkshire Bateria & Bossa Triba

July 25, is a relevant, historical date for Puerto Rico. in 1898, The United States invaded and seized Puerto Rico as part of the Spanish-American War. In 1952, Puerto Rico became self governed commonwealth of the U.S. under the name of Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico. In 1978, two young men were killed by police at the sad events of the Cerro Maravilla massacre. Today, July 25th of 2019, Puerto Rico is celebrating the resignation announcement of its governor, Ricardo Roselló, scheduled for August 2, 2019, after several large demonstrations from the Puerto Rican people in the island, and the diaspora in the U.S. and around the world, as a reaction to several acts of corruption and a series of comments and expressions made by the governor in a chat conversation, and exposed to the public.

Natalia Muñoz, News Director of Holyoke Media, joins the conversation to discuss the backstory of these events, and its relevance for the Puerto Rican society, moving forward.

As part of the series "Know Your Candidates", we welcome Deborah Aloisi, Candidate at-large for City Council in the Holyoke Municipal Election. We had a conversation about her campaign plans, structure, and goals in this process to become part of the Holyoke City Council at-Large.

Olivia Mausel and Robert Comeau are our guests in this fascinating conversation about several important updates and announcements related to the preservation and history of Holyoke, like the Stained Glass Windows restoration project at City Hall, a tour of the Clock Tower at City Hall, and different tours through cemeteries, parks, and the canal system.

As part of the series "Know Your Candidates", we had a conversation with Anne Thalheimer, Candidate for Ward 3 in the City of Holyoke. This interview covered her motivations to run for City Council, her campaign, and some relevant points about local government and civic engagement. Also, Sarah Oelker joined the conversation, as Anne's Campaign Manager.

This session is part of the media literacy activities at the Holyoke Public Library's Teen Room, where our Teen Host, Shayleena, interviews Rachel Dowd, Teen Librarian, about the activities for this summer of 2019.

Radioplasma is celebrating Immigrant Heritage Month in June, with stories of immigrants in our community, who share their experiences coming here. This is the story of city planner, Insiyah Mohammad Bergeron, from Pakistan.

Con motivo de su gira 2019 por Norteamérica, la agrupación Rio Mira regresa a Massachusetts, para presentarse en Valley View Farm con su música representativa del Afro-Pacífico, fusionando Ecuador y Colombia con instrumentos de percusión y la marimba.

En esta conversación con Esteban Copete (Marimba, Colombia), Karla Kanora (Vocalista, Ecuador) y Carlos Loboa (Percusioón, Colombia), conocimos sobre la importancia de la herencia Afro-Latina, la preservación cultural, la diversidad que no siempre es 100% visible en nuestra cultura Latinoamericana, y la trayectoria de Rio Mira como embajadores culturales del Pacífico, representando a Ecuador y Colombia como una sola. También podrán disfrutar de una pieza capturada durante su presentación en Valley View Farm, en Haydenville, Massachusetts.

Una forma perfecta de celebrar Junio, Mes de la Herencia de los Inmigrantes; Juneteenth, conmemorando la abolición de la esclavitud en Estados Unidos; y recibir el verano.

Gracias a Odelia, World Music Collider y Laudable Productions por su apoyo para continuar ofreciendo estas sesiones.

Journalist, Director, Meagan Murphy, shares the story that inspired the creation of "The Breast Archives", a storytelling documentary about the experiences, thoughts and feelings of different women and their breasts. This is a deep, open conversation about wellness, and body wisdom, that chimes on religion, patriarchy, and self awareness.

Radioplasma is celebrating Immigrant Heritage Month in June, with stories of immigrants in our community, who share their experiences coming here. This is the story of artist, painter, arts advocate, fine art and antiques restorer, Vitek Kruta, from Czechoslovakia.

Radioplasma is celebrating Immigrant Heritage Month in June, with stories of immigrants in our community, who share their experiences coming here. This is the story of documentalist, photographer, musician, and media creator, Luis Salazar, from Peru.

On May 28, 2019, the first of several conversations with the community of South Holyoke, will look for the feedback, input, and participation of neighbors, about the redevelopment, and housing opportunities coming soon around the Carlos Vega Park. We talked with the Holyoke Housing Authority Executive Director, Matthew Mainville, and the HHA Director of Development, Sarah Meier-Zimbler, about this event and the possibilities for the community.

In a session recorded at the Holyoke Public Library Teen Room, our teen host, Shayleena, is inviting the youth in Holyoke to attend the Late Night at the Library event, on May 17th, 2019.

From 5 to 8 PM, there will be games, music, dance, food, and activities for teens, ages to 13 to 18 to gather and have a fun time at the Library, after hours. This event is an initiative of the Teen Advisory Group at the Holyoke Public Library. Activities youth driven, youth led.

We are honored and humbled to welcome Professor, Filmmaker, Samba Gadjigo. In this conversation, we talked about the power of stories, how we are made of stories, their impact in communities all around the world, and the details of the screening of his documentary, Sembene! at The Academy of Music in Northampton, on May 5, 2019, at 2:00 PM.

Misinformation, bias, the perpetuation of presenting a city and its community as dangerous with the only purpose of generating audience traffic for the media outlet airing irresponsible content, are the most dangerous, not only in Massachusetts, but everywhere.

We can not remain quiet about this shameful act of mediocre journalism by WWLP 22 News. So this is a little piece of our mind.

We welcome singer-songwriter Carolyn Walker in a musical session and interview at our new space in the New England Media Lab. After a hiatus, Carolyn is back, and getting ready to record new music, performing, and creating a new path on her musical development. In this session, we got to know about that process, and also enjoy of some of her songs, including new material that will be part of her upcoming album.

Recibimos la visita de Silverio Pérez y Mikie Rivera, desde Puerto Rico, en donde platicamos sobre su presentación musical de "Sabinadas y Serraterías" en El Mercado, 413 Main St. en Holyoke, así como la trayectoria musical y artística de Silverio y Mikie, juntos e individualmente. Una cálida entrevista con una introducción musical muy especial, con sabor a Puerto Rico.

From Argentina, Mica Farías Gómez and Manu Uriona shared with us this interview, and an acoustic performance, previous to their show at New City Brewery in Easthampton, part of the Planetary Party series by World Music Collider. Recorded on March 30, 2019. (Interview in Spanish)

This is our conversation with Nadav Peled, guitar player, and leader of The Anbessa Orchestra, from Brooklyn, honoring music from Ethiopia, in their show at New City Brewery in Easthampton, part of the Planetary Party series by World Music Collider. Recorded on March 30, 2019.

Laura Clampitt and Ken Lefebvre are our guests, and we talk about "The Question", that was approved in early April, 2019 by City Council. This question that will be on the November's election ballot, reads "Should the Holyoke Gas and Electric conduct a feasibility study on a gradual roll out of fiber optic internet for residents of the City to purchase, and the findings be presented at a City Council meeting by April 2022 or sooner?"

Our teen host, Shayleena Figueroa, hosts this session and interviews with Sandy Ward, organizer of the Mini Golf at the Library, in a session recorded at the Holyoke Public Library Teen Room, describing the details fo this community event that transforms the Holyoke Public Library in an 18 holes mini golf course, happening Saturday, April 6th, 2019.

The ValleyBike Share Program reopens on April 1, 2019. The bikes will be available for riding to all current users, and the Acces Pass Program is beginning to sign up eligible individuals for a more affordable way to enjoy the bikes. Several informative sessions are happening at Libraries across the towns and cities where ValleyBike is available. We had this conversation with Shannon Bliven, Marketing Coordinator of ValleyBike, at the Holyoke Public Library, about the program.

Pianist, composer, and educator, Miro Sprague is having a four-day residency at Gateway City Arts, performing with different musicians from the Pioneer Valley, from jazz standards, original pieces, fusions with Brazilian Music, and a celebration to the music of Stevie Wonder. Listen to our conversation about his personal journey through music, and the details of his residency in Holyoke from April 2 to 5, 2019.

This is the audio of the public event presentation "¡Jurakán! Holyoke and Puerto Rico linked by water", recorded at the Holyoke Health Center on March 14, 2019. This is a joint presentation on the Puerto Rican population in Holyoke, the connection between Holyoke and Puerto Rico, the effects of the financial crisis and the humanitarian crisis caused by Hurricane Maria on the Puerto Rican migration to the region, and the impact on local communities in New England.

Caryn Brause, and Joseph Krupczynski are our guests in this conversation about El Corazón: The Heart of Holyoke. This is a project that will have its kickstart on March 22, 2019, with a fundraiser campaign, and a free community party at El Mercado (413 Main St in Holyoke), where it will be presented this creative placemaking project for Main Street, celebrating the artistic and cultural vitality of Holyoke's Puerto Rican and Latinx Community.

We welcome soprano singer, Mary Hubbell, and pianist, and harpsichord player, Greg Hayes. In this session, we talked about their upcoming concert, "Bach and Friends", where they will be performing "The Wedding Cantata" (BWV 202) by J. S. Bach.

We welcome writer, performer, and artist, Nicole M. Young. In this conversation, we talked about her many talents, and how every step of her development as an artist led to her current phase, celebrating the release of the spoken word album IN/PUT.

Our guest is Erika Slocumb. A scholar from UMass, working on the research and community engagement around the project Black Holyoke. In a collaboration with the Wistariahurst Museum, Erika has been researching the archives of the museum, and the History Room at the Holyoke Public Library, and also compiling and documenting the oral history of black folks living in Holyoke, and the communities who have had a connection with the Paper City. Listen to this fascinating conversation, that also celebrates Black History Month.

Ward 2 City Councilor Terry Murphy, shared with us what it has been the first month of work since he was appointed. On this conversation, Murphy addressed issues regarding domestic violence and his support to the Women's Shelter Compañeras, the needs for speed limits, taking care of specific parks, the upcoming orders regarding disposal permit, housing, landlords allowing illegal activities, among other issues of importance not only for Ward 2, but the whole city of Holyoke.

We visited Mister G (Ben Gundersheimer) in his studio, to enjoy a music sample of what it will be his presentation at Holyoke High School on February 15th, 2019 at 6:00 PM. In this conversation with the Grammy-winner, Mr. G talked about his music, his work, the upcoming projects, and the beauty of music, when shared with children.

This session is all about sharing the love! We attended the Rainbow Soup Club at the Holyoke Council on Aging, where LGBTQ elders shared stories and a meal together. This is a series of activities organized byWestMass ElderCare, with the support of the Holyoke Council of Aging. Enjoy the stories, that are prompted by "My first..."

As part of the Holyoke Black Lives Matter at School event, there were three breakout groups focused on creating a mural project, a poster, and a media piece in a podcast format. This is the recording of the podcast conversation with the youth attending this day of learning and community action. A powerful and inspiring session with six teenagers from middle school and high school, all sharing their experiences and thoughts around Black Lives Matter. A MUST LISTEN.

As part of the Holyoke Black Lives Matter at School event, on February 9, 2019, a day of learning and community action, there were presentations by Holyoke High School students from the Ethnic Studies Class, and the Restorative Justice Program, along with a keynote by Whitney Battle-Baptiste, Director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Center at UMass, Amherst. This is the recording of her keynote, that brought a warming feeling to all the public in attendance during that cold morning at El Mercado, in South Holyoke.

The Breast Archives is a documentary film by award-winning producer, and director, Meagan Murphy. During the celebration of the 4th Annual Winter Festival at Gateway City Arts, Meagan Murphy offered a speech, followed by a Q&A session, to talk about her experiences making the documentary, her inspiration, and address the concept of body wisdom.

This feature includes her speech, recorded at Gateway City Arts, on February 2, 2019.

Get ready for an amazing live music session, and a great conversation with Boston based singer/songwriter, Melissa Mills. With her voice and ukelele, Melissa brought impressive energy to the studio, that amazed our group of high school students in the audience. This was a music clinic, and interview, full of motivational thoughts and teaching moments for our group of teenagers. Enjoy this interview and get to know Melissa's story, her music, her creative process, and the magical sound of her voice.

This is an inspiring conversation with Ms. Dana Altshuler, Ethnic Studies Director for Holyoke Public Schools, along with Shania, Kassidy, and Shantel, three students from Holyoke High School, involved in the community event, "Black Lives Matter at School". This is an initiative and collaboration between Holyoke High School and Paulo Freire Social Justice Charter School, to bring awareness and conversations that also become a call for action. Holyoke Black Lives Matter at School is scheduled as a community event this Saturday, February 9, 2019, from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm at El Mercado, 413 Main St. in Holyoke, MA. All are welcome.

Live music and a music conversation in the house, with The Dillatronics, an ensemble made for a special performance at "The Soul of Hip Hop: Live", an event dedicated to honor and celebrate J Dilla's musical work and influence. Our guests are Damany Gordon, from Genuine Culture LLC; Zack Cross (keys); Mtali Banda (sax), and Ted Sullivan (drums). The Soul of Hip Hop: Live is happening on February 8, 2019 at Gateway City Arts.

We visited Gateway City Arts to talk about the celebration of the 4th Winter Festival, happening from January 31st until February 3rd, 2019. This four-day community-focused event will offer a series of different events, shows, and activities, FREE and open to the public. In this conversation with Rachel McCandlish, and Cait Simpson, we covered the details of the planned events for the Winter Fest.

We welcome Amy Woolf, owner of Amy Woolf Color Consulting, and organizer of Podcamp Western MA. This is an annual event about social media and online marketing, formatted as an un-conference, where people from all different knowledge and experience levels can share, learn, talk, and collaborate in an open environment. On this session, we talk about the evolution of Podcamp during the past years, and the upcoming 2019 edition of Podcamp Western MA, happening on February 9, 2019, at La Quinta in Springfield, MA.

After his appointment as Ward 2 City Councilor, on a special session on January 8, 2019, Terry Murphy is our guest, and we had a conversation about his plans for the year he will be filling the position left by Nelson Roman, and connecting his own experience as a former City Councilor-at-large, and his vision for 2019, looking to benefit and impact in a positive way the Ward 2 communities, and the City of Holyoke overall.

We visited the Holyoke High School, to see the HHS Theater Company getting ready for the feature of the play "Caught in the Act", scheduled for January 11th and 12th, 2019. We had a conversation with some of the cast and crew, all of them Holyoke High students, and also with Bevan Brunelle, Director and also the Theater and Media Literacy Teacher at HHS.

Boston based band Jakals, visited Holyoke to do a special session in the studio to talk about their new album "Bat Brains", play some songs, talk about the independent music scene in New England, and invite everybody to their show in Gateway City Arts on January 18th, 2019.

Our guest is Bonnie Kane, musician and curator of the Thursday Experiment, a monthly music event happening at Gateway City Arts. Celebrating two years of experimental music sessions, Bonnie shared her experiences doing this series, and invites the local community to participate, either as audience or as performers.

This is a bittersweet, emotional, and beautiful conversation with Nelson Roman. Before his departure from Holyoke, and as he prepares to continue his journey in Chicago, Nelson visited the studio and we had one last conversation to reflect on all the work and accomplishments made during the past years and talk about the future.

We welcome Cait Simpson, singer, writer, and founding member of the band The Greys. As the band evolved from a duo into a four members group, they are currently working on their first full-length album, Abeyance. For this purpose, they have a Kickstarter campaign, and Cait shared a piece she wrote, and the dates of their upcoming shows, including First Night in Northampton, and a show on January 18th at Gateway City Arts with Jakals, and Ex-Temper.

Venezuelan music to celebrate the season holidays, with Betsayda Machado, Jorge Glem, and Diego Alvarez "El Negro". A musical gift and a great conversation with such talented musicians, previous to their show "Aguinaldos, Parrandas y Gaitas" at New City Brewery, in Easthampton.

Música Venezolana para celebrar las Navidades, con Betsayda Machado, Jorge Glem y Diego Alvarez "El Negro". Un bello regalo musical y una gran conversación con estos talentosos músicos, previo a su presentación de "Aguinaldos, Parrandas y Gaitas" en New City Brewery, en Easthampton.

House of Colors, a Youth LGBTQ program in Holyoke providing peer support, sex and risk-reduction education, and mental health resources for the LGBTQ community. In this session, we welcome House of Colors and also, Phil O'Donoghue, Director of Removing the Glove, and Professor of Theater and English at STCC, along with student Emmett Klitus-Flaim, playing the part of Will in Removing the Glove. This play scheduled for December 8th, 2018 at STCC, will donate the proceeds to House of Colors.

The Wistariahurst Museum and ArteSana, present Homespun, a fantastic exhibit, honoring one hundred years of Textile Arts in Holyoke. On this session, recorded at the Wistariahurst Mansion, Katy Moonan, Director of ArtseSana, and Kate Preissler, Director of Wistariahurst, explain the importance of this exhibit and the connection with generations, cultures, art, history, and textiles in our city. Homespun is open to the public from November 8 to the 18, 2018.

This is a session made by our youth, part of the Media Literacy Program. The Holyoke High School Theater Company will feature the play "Caught in the Act" in January 11th and 12th, 2019. We had a conversation with two of the cast members, Shayleena Figueroa, and Stephany Perez, and we discussed the play and some details about their roles.

This is a conversation with students from the Ethnic Studies class at Holyoke High School, North, and Dean Campuses, about the election, the importance of voting, and some perspectives on current issues happening in our society. The purpose of this session is to remind the registered voters of the importance of their right, and how this impacts the ones who can not vote, yet. Also, this is an engagement tool for our youth to get involved in conversations about social issues and politics.

We welcome a very special guest from Boston. This is a delightful conversation with Paloma Valenzuela, who is the writer and creator of the web series "The Pineapple Diaries". On this session, we talk about the ideas that inspired the web series, her work, and the workshop on monologue writing she is doing at Gateway City Arts in Holyoke.

Music brings us together! And as we continue celebrating the National Hispanic Heritage Month, we welcome Edo Mor, from World Music Collider to talk about an exciting Latinx music and multi-cultural event, The WorldMusic Super Collider, Latinx Edition. With the Berkshire Bateria, Río Mirá, Ladama, and La Orquesta El Macabeo.

It's that time of the year to apply for grants at the Holyoke Local Cultural Council. With a deadline of October 15, 2018, all proposals for cultural, educational, community, events, activities, workshops, ideas, are welcome to apply for a grant. We visited the HLCC Drop-in session at the Holyoke Senior Center and met with Anne Thalheimer and Mark Dunlap, to talk about the grant, the deadlines and ways for applicants to submit their proposals.

It's time to Celebrate Holyoke! And with a change of dates this year, set for October 5, 6, and 7, 2018, this free event is a vibrant music, food, games, arts, and community gathering, at the Holyoke Heritage State Park, in Downtown Holyoke. MA. In this session, we explore the fantastic music lineup and all the plans for this very special edition of a classic event to close the summer season.

The Taste of South Holyoke 3, is scheduled for September 22, 2018. This special feature, showcases some highlights from last year performances, to warm up the festivities taking place in front of Capri Pizza, in Cabot Street in Holyoke, MA. Enjoy of the recorded performances by Dawn Tallman; Diana Alvarez; Lily Rose, Synthia Figueroa, and Willie Valentin; and Danny Pease and the Regulators.

Tessa Murphy-Romboletti shares with us the news about the changes happening at the local entrepreneurship program Spark, now named Spark EforAll Holyoke. With this new model, local businesses and entrepreneurs will have more resources and support to start, to continue growing and to become successful.

The Holyoke Public Schools year 2018-19 is now in session, and after a two-day delay due to a heatwave, we got together at the Media Literacy Program to listen to Shayleena, one of our youth voices and her experience on the first day of school at Holyoke High School. This narrative is one of the most important to have, and to listen to, as is the reality from the student's point of view, and there are many important things to know from them.

This is a beautiful session, filled with inspiration, harmony, beauty, and live music in our studio. Pioneer Valley trio, Eavesdrop, are celebrating their tour, and release of their first full album, "Tides". We welcome Kara Rose Wolf, Kerrie T. Bowden, and Laura Marie Picchi in a conversation about their work, their album, how their inspiration works, and the details of their presentation at Gateway City Arts on September 7, 2018.

Holyoke Craft Beer is a new nano-brewery, currently in development. In a visit to the new brewery space at the STEAM Building, Mike Pratt welcomed Radioplasma, and we talked about the concept of Holyoke Craft Beer, its one barrel system, and the all the potential in this business.

As the new school year, 2018-2019 is getting ready to start, Enlace de Familias hosted a community conversation with Receiver, Superintendent of Holyoke Public Schools, Steve Zrike. This informational session includes all the current information on changes, updates, and new structure in all Holyoke Public Schools.

As part of the Media Literacy program for youth by Radioplasma, we feature this special session recorded at The Care Center, with author Steve Bernstein and a group of students, who have been participating of a summer reading program, and now they interview Steve Bernstein on their experiences learned from his book "Stories from the Stoop".

Singer-songwriter Greg Hall, shares with us his music, stories, and experiences recording a live album, ready to be released on September 7th, 2018. As a way to celebrate this release, Greg Hall and the Barnhouse Band will be performing at Gateway City Arts on September 9th, 2018 in Holyoke, and we have a musical sample, recorded in the studio.

On this session, combining audio, and video, we welcome Cait Simpson, from Gateway City Arts, who is the organizer of Undisclosed Holyoke: Secrets and Stories of the Valley. This is a collaboration between Gateway City Arts, Holyoke Media, and Radioplasma, on the exploration into where we have been, and where we can go - all told through anonymous stories directly from the locals who have lived and loved in the valley.

On this episode, we welcome Hailee Enriquez, Ali Pinschsmidt, D'Lena Duncan, and Jaylynn Rentas, to talk about the campaign "Don't Take That Receipt" to bring awareness about the presence of bisphenol-A (BPA) and bisphenol-S (BPS) in receipts. A powerful team of women, with an important message of public health awareness.

Nathalie Vicencio comparte con nosotros en esta sesión, los detalles de dos talleres gratuitos para las comunidades en Springfield y Holyoke, MA, acerca de las elecciones primarias y generales. Conozca a sus candidatos y lo que está en la papeleta de votación para que pueda estar preparado al votar.

Nathalie Vicencio shares with us the details of two free workshops for the voting community in Springfield, and Holyoke, MA, about the upcoming elections. Know your candidates and what’s on the ballot so you can be prepared to vote.

This is another session of Let's Talk. A conversation about a topic of relevance on current events. This time, our media literacy teenagers, made a pause on their own creative projects to talk about their thoughts on the incident of racism at Smith College on July 31, 2018, at 1:53 PM, where the Campus Police were called on a black student that was perceived by the caller as "out of place". We are watching nehind the Tofu Courtain

THIS IS AN ENGLISH DUBBED VERSION Listen to the backstage interview with Alejandro Luján, "El Gambimbas", singer, or "cantaor"; Victoria Macias, dancer, or "bailaora" and Pablo Giménez, guitar player. They are the young members of Flamenco trio Corazón de Granada, in a conversation about their art, their inspiration, and their performances at New City Brewery in Easthampton, MA. and FallsFest. This session also includes a musical teaser of their fantastic performance and artistic work.

[AN ENGLISH VERSION WILL BE AVAILABLE] Escuchen la entrevista con Alejandro Luján, "El Gambimbas", cantaor; Victoria Macias, bailaora y Pablo Giménez, guitarrista. Ellos son los jóvenes integrantes del conjunto de Flamenco, Corazón de Granada, en una conversación grabada tras bastidores, previa a su presentación en New City Brewery in Easthampton, MA. Esta entrevista incluye una probadita musical de su hermoso trabajo artístico.

Marcos Marrero, Director of Planning and Economic Development for the City of Holyoke is our guest on this follow up on the Valley Bike Share program. We talked about the bike stations in Holyoke, accessibility, the advantages, benefits, and expectations for the community to enjoy from this program, and we addressed some questions and concerns related to this program, as a tool for information and education for the public.

This is the official ceremony, at Holyoke City Hall, swearing in Manuel Febo as the new Chief of the Holyoke Police Department. Thanks to Holyoke Media for providing the audio feed of this coverage.

This is a music session in the studio with singers, songwriters Ayla Brown, and Rob Bellamy, previous to their concert at Gateway City Arts. This is also a takeover interview, produced, recorded and hosted by our interns, Victoria and Rosa. Talent all over the place. Enjoy of this genuine inspiring conversation and some exclusive songs performed by Ayla and Rob.

The Valley Bike Share Program is starting this summer, and we wanted to share the details of how this program works, how you can sign up, and learn all about the technology enclosed in the 500 bicycles that will be located in docking stations across the cities of Holyoke, Northampton, Springfield, Amherst, and UMass. We visited the Planning Office at Northampton City Hall, where Wayne Feiden shared all the information of the Valley Bike Share.

We visited The Teens Room at The Holyoke Public Library, to talk with Rachel Dowd, Teen Librarian, about the plans for the summer. This was a beautiful conversation among many teens utilizing the resources at the library, and we discussed all the plans, activities, experiences happening in this safe and welcoming space that Rachel has shaped for the needs of our youth to enjoy and discover.

Natasha Colon-Ortiz, founder, and manager of Paper City Art Kids gives us an update of her work, the plans for the Summer, the growth of a unique business model, and her artistic involvement on some of the Volleyballs that will be placed in several points across the City of Holyoke.

Our guest is comedian Mike Lemme. After a successful series of presentations in a New York theater, Mike talks about his experience on this project, his story as a comedian and performer, and all the details of his presentation at Gateway City Arts,on June 29th, 2018.

Nueva Esperanza is celebrating 35 years. We wanted to take a look to all the work being done by Nueva, and we welcome its new Executive Director, Nelson Roman, to talk about the recent accomplishments, the activities in progress, and the plans for the future.

On this session, our guest is Naiomi Robles, community leader, and organizer, member of 413 Boricuas, a group created to bring awareness and support to the displaced families from Puerto Rico, after hurricane Maria. We discussed the vigil scheduled for Tuesday, June 12th from 4 to 7 PM at Veteran's Park, that will conclude with a march and a moment of silence at Holyoke City Hall, in solidarity with Puerto Rico's victims.

This is our first iteration of a series of conversational discussions on topics of interest, led by Holyoke local media, and open for everybody to participate and follow up.

"Let's talk - Hablemos" is an approach to generate a diverse and open series of conversations, where journalist, Natalia Muñóz, News Director at Holyoke Media, along with Radioplasma's producer and host, Iohann Rashi Vega, will share and present points of view on news, events, issues, and affairs of our local, regional, and national environment.

This session is a homage to Anthony Bourdain's legacy as a storyteller, and media creator, after knowing of his passing on June 8th, 2018. Journalist Natalia Muñóz joins this conversation to honor and remember Bourdain's work, and also to bring awareness about suicide, and how it is affecting people, everywhere.

Cait Simpson is our guest, performer, and organizer of the event Rootstock: Home. On this session, we discussed the reason to create this event to support Irida Kakhtiranova, who is taking sanctuary in Northampton, the current situation of many immigrants living in fear, and ways to engage in conversations to educate ourselves about these issues. Rootstock: Home is scheduled for June 9th, at Gateway City Arts.

We welcome Tahirah Amatul-Wadud, Democrat Candidate for Massachusetts' 1st Congressional District. On this session, we talked about Tahirah's campaign, her reasons to bring a new perspective to Congress, and the ongoing issues and struggles in the communities in Western Massachusetts.

The Holyoke Herald celebrated the achievements and professionalism of their staff reporters, Holyoke High School students, committed to reporting and write Holyoke's History, at the Melva Awards Ceremony, held on May 29th, 2018 at Holyoke High School. From being a newspaper, the Herald has adapted to the times, becoming a multi-platform media outlet, combining the newspaper with an online presence through its website, a live tweeter feed, video journalism, and podcasting. Listen to the recording of the event and join the recognition of Holyoke youth: promising journalists, media producers, and writers.

Andres Villada is our guest and the organizer of this year's Holyoke Farmer's Market, that is taking place from May 31st, until October 11th, every Thursday at High Street, in front of Holyoke City Hall. On this session, we talk about the plans for this year, and the importance of a Farmer's Market in our community, as a space for all to come together.

Legends, Beats & Grooves is a Hip-Hop DJ showcase to entertain and educate on the History of the DJ, Turntablism, and Hip-Hop Culture. On this conversation with Gary Thomas, owner of Gees Records, we talked about the relevance of every guest on this event, on the Hip-Hop, Pop, and Music Culture in general. Legends, Beats & Grooves is scheduled for Sunday, May 20th at 3:00 PM at Gateway City Arts

It's an honor to have Olivia Mausel as our guest, to talk about Holyoke's History, and all the dedication to research, preserve, and educate about the many places, times, resources, and people that are part of the history of the City of Holyoke. As she receives a recognition by The City for her decades of dedication as member of the Historic Commission, we honor Olivia on this episode as well.

This is our very first podcast session from Springfield, MA at the new Gándara Youth Acces Center, named The Impact Center. This is a safe, welcoming space for young adults to receive support, connect to resources for job, housing, education, mentoring, or just having a space where to be, without judgment. Kristine Rodriguez, Carmelo Torres, and Amanda Alicea talk about the services available at this new site, and we do the first official recording at the center's media room that will allow youth to learn how to create and produce their own media projects.

Radioplasma presents, a special session, recorded after the opening of a museographic comparative architectural installation between Museo Casa Cautiño-Insúa, Guayama, Puerto Rico, and Wistariahurst Museum, Holyoke, MA. Our guests are curators, Alvilda Sophia Anaya-Alegría, professor at Cambridge College; and visiting from Puerto Rico, Aníbal Rodriguez Ayala, historian and Museum Curator for el Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña. A conversation about the installation and the process of creating it.

Welcome to our audio tour of the fishway at the Holyoke Dam! It's the season to see the migration of the fish and witness the power of the Connecticut River, generating the electricity for the City of Holyoke. Kate Sullivan, Director of Marketing and Communications for Holyoke Gas & Electric, and Elizabeth Austin, Coordinator of Public Programs at the Robert E Barrett Fishway, are our hosts on this audio tour and they invite the public to visit the Robert E Barrett fishway from May 2nd until June 10th, 2018.

Cinco de Mayo 2018. An editorial about the perception of how the stereotypes, and systemic racism, through ignorance, becomes a problematic issue that not so many seem to even realize it exist. Recorded at the Holyoke Merry Go Round, during the celebration of Cinco de Mayo for Kids

As part of the screenings of "PROMESA", a documentary by Michelle Falcon, the audience has been offered the opportunity of having a conversation with the filmmaker and two activists from Puerto Rico, Samantha Medina Figueroa, and Johanyvette Rodriguez Gonzalez. On this bilingual session, we discuss the current events in Puerto Rico, the protests, activist movement, the crisis in Puerto Rico, the corruption in the local government, and the need to address all of these issues inside and out of the island.

We are meeting in the middle, for the River Roll & Stroll, 2018. Cassandra Holden and Kyle Homstead, are the producers in charge of the logistics for the second River Roll & Stroll, happening on May 6th, 2018, at the Veterans Memorial Bridge, between Holyoke and South Hadley. We talked about what is being planned for this ephemeral street festival where music, arts, food, and community, will meet to enjoy the view of the Holyoke Dam and the Connecticut River.

Filmmaker, Michelle Falcón (left), and activist, Nathalie Vicencio (right), are our guests on this session to talk about the screenings of Promesa, a documentary film by Michelle Falcón, telling the stories from families and people from Puerto Rico, and the economic crisis. Named after the acronym of the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act, that also means "promise" in Spanish.

San Juan Mayor, Carmen Yulín Cruz, visited Holyoke during the celebration of Holyoke Innovation Week, and offered a public session of questions and answers with the community at Gateway City Arts, on April 25th, 2018. This is the recording of the event, brought to you by Holyoke Media, and Radioplasma.

Wayfinders is offering for the Holyoke Community the opportunity of learning leadership skills and get connected with the local elected officials, organizations, and neighbors, through the Resident Leadership Program, being held from May 9 through June 14. Sarah Page, Senior Vice President, Community Building, and Engagement, and Chakai Duany, AmeriCorps VISTA Member with the Holyoke Office of Wayfinders, are our guests, and they share all the information about the program and other Wayfinder's updates.

Puerto Rican Author, Rafael Rodríguez Cruz, from Guayama, offered a lecture at Wistariahurst Museum, about the history and cultural connection with the Bomba Francesa of Guayama. This lecture is part of the Installation, Museo Casa Cautiño-Insúa: Romance, Arquitectura y Economía, curated by Alvilda Sophia Anaya-Alegría. Recorded at Wistariahurst Museum on April 17th, 2018.

This is the recording of the Neighbor 2 Neighbor Legislative Breakfast, a public event recorded at El Mercado, 413 Main St. in Holyoke, MA. On this community conversation, State Representative, Aaron Vega; Ward 2 City Councilor, Nelson Roman; City Councilwoman At-Large, Rebecca Lisi; Ward 4 School Committee member, Irene Feliciano-Sims, along with Andrea Nyamekye, Climate Justice Program Director with Neighbor2Neighbor, addressed the priorities for the City of Holyoke, the work being done, and answered questions from the audience. This event was organized, and moderated by Jacqueline Velez.

Our guest is Insiyah Mohammad Bergeron, Holyoke Innovation District Manager, and Transformative Development Initiative Fellow for MassDevelopment. We talk about Holyoke Innovation Week, happening from April 22nd to the 29th, in Downtown Holyoke, and the process of showcasing the assets of Holyoke, for the community to connect with all the potential available in the Paper City.

Enjoy the beautiful and powerful poetry, wrote in seven days, with Fair Housing as core and inspiration point. This event celebrates National Poetry Month and National Fair Housing Month by commemorating the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Listen to all participant poets, get moved by the history lessons, true stories of struggle, and an impromptu conversation, remembering the riots after Martin Luther King's assassination, before knowing the winner of this inspiring event at South Hadley Public Library.

After a series of videos posted on social media by The Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce, depicting a stereotypical and offensive image of Mexican culture, taking them down after the backlash, is not enough to make amends. This is a call out to awareness, respect, and recognition of a disrespectful organization towards People of Color.

This is a special event coverage of Radioplasma, in collaboration with The Holyoke High Herald. Staff Reporter, Charlie Brunette, gives us the summary, notes, and comments as a Holyoke High student, on the Teen Town Hall, organized by Youth Rise Together, that took place at Holyoke Community College, on March 31st, 2018. Youth journalism, and analysis of the content, by our own local Holyoke High Herald.

Michael Moriarty and Israel Rivera from One Holyoke CDC, share the upcoming presentation of The Great Gatsby in Holyoke, at Holyoke High School and Wistariahurst in May, along with the updates on several projects that include a Basketball court, a Community Center for The Flats, a house relocation, and a series of cleanups.

Jackie Velez, from Neighbor 2 Neighbor, Holyoke Chapter is our guest to talk about the work being done at N2N, the current changes to the Criminal Justice Reform Package at the State Level, and an invitation to a Legislative Breakfast on April 18th, 2018 at El Mercado, in Holyoke

Puerto Rican author, Esmeralda Santiago, visited Holyoke on March 29th, 2018. During her visit, she spoke at Holyoke Community College and The Holyoke Public Library. This special coverage features the HCC event.

We welcome Verónica García, host and producer of "Presencia", WGBY's bilingual magazine TV program, featuring stories of the Latino communities of western New England. Now in its third season, we got an update on the evolution of the show, Veronica's dream, and the plans for workshops and internships for youth.

We welcome saxophone player and composer, Mtali Shaka Banda, in a conversation about his debut album "Rites of Passage". Also, Damany Gordon, from Genuine Culture LLC, joins the conversation.

Erika Slocumb is a scholar, artist, and community organizer who is working on a project with the Wistariahurst Museum, uncovering the stories of the black community in Holyoke, from the time the area was settled in 18th Century to the present. Listen to our conversation with Erika about "Black Holyoke: Uncovering the History of the Black Community in the Paper City."

We celebrate Black History Month with a conversation around the first year of Genuine Culture LLC as an initiative to educate and bring together the community through music, arts, conversations, seminars, history, and special events, organized by Theresa Cooper-Gordon, and Damany Gordon.

Tessa Murphy-Romboletti, Director of SPARK, supports businesses in development to connect, learn, and thrive, through a series of courses, and access to tools and resources they need to be successful. One of these initiatives is Holyoke Soup, a community gathering to know and support new emerging local businesses. The first Holyoke Soup event of 2018, also is taking place at a new venue, The HCC Culinary Arts Institute. We talk about it and the plans for SPARK in 2018.

John L. Grossman and Dawn Cordeiro are our guests, sharing their experiences over the first year of opening the Holyoke Hummus Cafe on 285 High Street. A celebration of food, community, family, conversation, engagement, local connections, a welcoming experience, and a business inspiration.

Listen to the 2018 Inaugural Ceremony, held at Holyoke City Hall, where Mayor Alex Morse was sworn in for his fourth term, along with the sworn in of City Clerk, Treasurer, City Council, and School Committee. For the very first time in Holyoke's history, a Mayor will serve a four-year term.

The chronicles of a three week journey to Puerto Rico by Jossie Valentin and Myriam Quiñones continues in this second installment of The Boricua Care Package Project - A Journey of Love.

Puerto Rico is suffering a humanitarian crisis, after hurricane Maria, that hit the island on September 20th, 2017. The urgent need for help to provide food, water, shelter, to the people of Puerto Rico inspired Myriam Quiñones and Jossie Valentín to organize and send care packages to different families on the island. This initiative led to a three weeks journey to bring these packages, and other good donated by the community and the diaspora. This special two parts feature, tells the story and experiences by Jossie and Myriam, on this journey of love and hope.

Lesley Birk is the District Executive of the Boy Scouts. On this session, we talked about the work by the Scouts in Holyoke, the ways to get involved, and also the recognition by The Boy Scouts to Eddie Caisse in a special event at the Log Cabin, on November 30th.

Chris Medina, Izzy Rivera, and Justin Chavez are organizing the Second Community Dinner at Kelly School on December 6th. This is a community effort to bring together all Holyoke neighbors to gather, break bread, and enjoy food, music, and entertainment for all ages.

The Puerto Rican Flag Raising at City Hall is dedicated to Carmen Ocasio, President of the South Holyoke Neighborhood Association for her community work. Recorded on November 6th, 2017.

The Holyoke Municipal Election is almost here. And after a series of interviews and forums, do you know your candidates?

We have questions. And this only makes natural to continue having conversations and follow-ups that engage the elected officials with the community about the issues that matter and concern the constituents.

Don't forget to vote this November 7th, and remember, to vote is just the beginning in the process of change.

Jeff Bianchine is the Director of the Holyoke Creative Arts Center. This institution is celebrating its 100th anniversary, with a Fundraiser Gala, on November 11th, 2017. On this episode, Jeff talks about the beginnings of this institution as a women-led initiative that evolved and inspired generations to continue the creative, artistic work, utilizing today, new techniques and technologies as a model for economic development.

Listen to the City Council Ward Candidates from wards 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6, on this special broadcasting of the Holyoke City Council Ward Candidates Forum, at Kelly Elementary School, recorded on November 1st, 2017.

The Struggle is Real, is a kids podcast produced by our youth group, and today, on Halloween day, they had a conversation about the most important topic of the day: Candy!

Día de Muertos, Day of Dead, is a complicated date that goes beyond the sugar skulls so much visible everywhere as evidence of cultural appropriation. On this session, Mexican Chef, Educator, and Activist, Neftalí Durán(Oaxaca); Artist, Performer, and Dancer, Michelle Marroquín (México DF); Xicanx Artist, Songwriter, Singer, and Educator, Diana Alvarez (Texas); Chicano Playwritgh and artist, Jason Montgomery (California); and Radioplasma's Host and Producer, Iohann R Vega (México DF), we had a conversation to share and learn from each other's perspectives, backgrounds, experiences, and meaning of what Day of Dead is, and is not.

Incumbent City Councilwoman, Gladys Lebrón-Martínez, shares her experiences as a City Councilwoman, and her plans for a new term to continue the work for Ward 1, if re-elected.

City Councilwoman for Ward 4, Jossie Valentin is running unopposed. We took the opportunity to talk about the work made for the past four years, and the new challenges for this new term at City Council.

Local journalism, youth-led. The Holyoke Mayoral Candidates, Alex Morse and Jason Ferreira, answer questions by the Herald Staff Reporters, Brendan Leahy, Isabella Courchesne, and Feroze Sibdhanni, in a special broadcasting of Radioplasma, in partnership with The Holyoke Herald. Recorded in the Shevlin Studio at Holyoke High School, on October 24th, 2017.

This is the entire recording of the Holyoke Mayoral Candidates Forum, recorded on October 23rd at the Holyoke Council on Aging. This forum was brought to you as a collaboration of The Holyoke Chamber of Commerce, The Holyoke Taxpayers Association, The Holyoke Youth Task Force, The Gandara Youth Development Center, HolyokeMedia, and Radioplasma.

Mayor Alex Morse is running for a fourth term, and he shares his campaign, plans, and answer our questions in the series, Know Your Candidates.

Mayoral Candidate Jason Ferreira, shares his campaign and motivations to run for Mayor in our series, Know Your Candidates.

This is the full recorded session of the Holyoke City Council At-Large Candidates Forum. This is a collaboration of The Chamber of Commerce, The Holyoke Taxpayers Association, The Holyoke Youth Task Force, The Gandara Youth Development Center, Holyoke Media, and radioplasma. Recorded on October 16th, 2017 at the Holyoke Council on Aging at 291Pine St. in Holyoke, MA.

Legendary Breakbeat Lou visits Holyoke for a special performance at The Vinyl Sessions, produced by Genuine Culture LLC. Breakbeat Lou stopped by the radioplasma studio to have an inspiring conversation about music, community, hip hop, and youth.

Nelson Roman, City Councilor for Ward 2, is running for re-election and he joins us in the series of conversations "Know Your Candidates", to talk about his campaign.

Dori Digenti is the founder of Breathing Space Yoga & Mindfulness Studio, a space for community connection. On this episode, we talk about her mission and activities happening in Holyoke, and the benefits of Yoga and Meditation.

The conversations with Holyoke City Council Candidates continues, with J'Anthony Smith, candidate for Ward 2 at City Council.

Jharikem Borrero Irrizarry visits the plasma media lab to invite all of us to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Nuestras Raíces at The Harvest Festival on September 30th. On this conversation, Jharikem shares her experience working at Nuestras Raícas and the importance of this organization for the communities in Holyoke and the Pioneer Valley. Bonus: Jharikem has a talented voice, and she shares a musical gift for us in this session.

The radioplasma series "Know Your Candidates", presents the conversation with James Brunault, Candidate for Holyoke City Council, Ward 6.

La Gringa is a theatrical piece about a young woman’s search for her identity. Listen to this conversation in-situ at El Mercado with the whole cast and crew of La Gringa, TheUrban Theater Company, from Chicago, previous to the opening.show on September 22nd. La Gringa's showing is a part of the 2nd Annual Taste of South Holyoke Festival in the heart of South Holyoke and the Puerto Rican Cultural District.

This is the recording of the Holyoke Mayoral Candidates Forum. Listen to the entire session with the four Mayoral Candidates, Michael Siciliano, Jason Ferreira, Paul Bowes, and Mayor Alex Morse, at El Mercado, in South Holyoke. This is a radioplasma special presentation, in collaboration with The Holyoke Neighborhood Associations, El Sol Latino, Holyoke Media, and Councilor Nelson Roman.

Candidate for Ward 3, Anne Thalheimer, talks about her motivations to serve at Holyoke City Council, and shares her campaign plans, previous to the Preliminary for Ward 3, on our series "Know Your Candidates".

Incumbent City Councilor for Ward 3, David Bartley, is running for re-election. On this conversation, he talks about his experience at City Council, and his campaigning plans for re-election, in our series of interviews, "Know Your Candidates".

Rebel Diaz is in the House! After a free workshop about Hip Hop and Activism at the Wistariahurst Museum, and a live performance at Millpond Live, we had a conversation with Rodstarz, G1, and DJ Illanoiz, about Hip Hop culture, community, history, youth, and music.

Alexis Diaz is a Holyoke young man, full of energy, drive, and new experiences that keep him on the path to success. Listen this inspiring and amazing conversation with Alexis, and his development as a leader, community activist and advocate, and aspiring artist.

This is the discussion of Item #34 for Holyoke City Council Meeting of Tuesday September 5th, 2017.

Special attention on minute 24:13 as the discussion brings some concerning statements by Kevin Jourdain. Share, comment, and discuss.

This is a random conversation with Anne Thalheimer, a woman of many hats (including Monster Hats). We discussed the opportunities for funding offered by the Holyoke Local Cultura Council, her creative work as an illustrator with a new book about Derby, her Monster Hat project, and music.

The Mater Dolorosa Preservation Society of Holyoke is a local organization dedicated to the protection and preservation of the historic Mater Dolorosa Church. Built in 1896 by Polish immigrants, it's now scheduled for demolition on October 1st. Our guest, John Fydenkevez, explains the efforts being made to purchase the building and transforming it into a Cultural Center for the community.

The Holyoke Herald Staff Reporters Isabella Courchesne, Siobhan Brennan, and Feroze Sibdhanny, interview Mr. Dana Brown, Principal at Holyoke High School, previous to the beginning of the school year 2017-2018.

The Holyoke Herald is partnering with radioplasma to create an expanded, local news outlet. On this session, we interview Joe Courchesne, to learn about the Holyoke Herald and other projects developing at Holyoke High. This session also was a training production for The Holyoke Herald Staff Reporters.

Josue Cruz Morales is a lawyer, and a youth advocate from Vieques, Puerto Rico. He visited Holyoke to provide a leadership workshop to the youth delegates participating in the Sustainable Holyoke Youth Leadership Initiative. After the Summit at Martha's Vineyard, during the last week of June of 2017, this is the first follow up activity taking place locally, and Josue shares his story and encourages Holyoke youth to pursue their goals.

Artist Christina Gusek is a local talent that shares her story, inspiration, and invites the public to visit her exhibition "The Art of Christina Gusek - Year 2050 and Beyond" at the Holyoke Hummus Company at 285 High Street.

Also, on this session, our guest is interviewed by Holyoke Herald staff reporters Marty Keane, Isabella Courchesne, and Brendan Leahy.

Natasha Colón Ortíz is the creator of Paper City Art Kids, an educational program for children to have fun, and be creative by painting. On this episode, we will know about the development of this local business.

"Know Your Candidates" is a series of interviews with candidates for the Holyoke Election of November 7, 2017. Our guest is Michael Thomas Siciliano, the first certified Mayoral Candidate. In this session, you will have the opportunity to know Mr. Siciliano's motivations to run for Mayor, and he presents the platform for his campaign.

The Tapestry Needle Exchange Program celebrated five years of operation in the City of Holyoke, providing free testing for HIV, Hep C, overdose and prevention education, and syringe access and disposal. On this episode, Liz Whynott, Director of the HIV Health and Prevention Services at Tapestry, explains the history of the needle exchange program, the services being offered. Also, we discussed some of the misconceptions about the services and the program, in order to clarify and provide an informative session for the public.

Vocalist, composer, educator, poet, and video/audio artist, Diana Alvarez is our guest on this intimate session, full of beauty and inspiration. We had a conversation about her life, her artistic work, and then Diana created a magical ambiance with an acoustic musical performance.

The Storefronts of the Victory Theater were exposed for the first time in decades, on June 23rd, 2017. We went there to talk with Kathy McKean, Managing Director of the Massachusetts International Festival of the Arts, MIFA about this activity, and the plans for the Victory Theater. Also, we got to talk with Michael McLaughlin, who has a personal connection with this historical landmark.

Samantha Singh is an immigrant from Guyana. She is a strong, resilient, and determined woman, mother, and community member in the city of Holyoke. Get ready to be inspired.

Christopher Gibaldi and Hope Ross are the family team of Learn in Motion. A program designed to getting children ages 3 to 5, active and engaged in sports activities, combining fun and learning, through educational and movement-based programming.

On this session, the whole Learn in Motion family talk about the program, its development, and the positive impact is creating in the community.

For the celebration of Immigrant Heritage Month, artist Steven Huerta created the exhibition "Journeys: An American Mixtape", displayed at the Wistariahurst Museum. This colorful collection of 26 pieces, tells a story with music, songs, memories, and pictures. Steven shares his creative process and some of the stories behind this art exhibit, along with his own memories and reflections.

Meet Yusef. An immigrant from Venezuela. This session is full of surprises, and a compelling conversation, that addresses religion, identity, the current situation in Venezuela, memories, perceptions, and finding a safe haven. Radioplasma continues featuring a series of stories and conversations with Holyoke residents during the celebration of National Immigrant Heritage Month, during June. Immigration Makes Holyoke.

Professor Ginetta Candelario's lecture "Immigrant's Incorporation and Life Chances in Holyoke", is part of the events organized by The City of Holyoke and The Wistariahurst, to celebrate National Immigrant Heritage Month in June.

This special feature of radioplasma, presents the entire lecture by Ginetta Candelario. This event took place on June 14th, 2017.

Holyoke Herald Staff Reporters Owen Lavelle and Feroze Sibdhanny review the most relevant events of this week in the Holyoke High School.

Places that Matter is a project with the goal of collecting data from the community to create a map that connects the people from Holyoke with those special places that have a story, a background, a legacy, a relevance for the community.

Andres Villada is from Colombia. He is a mayoral aide for the City of Holyoke. Know his story and celebrate the National Immigrant Heritage Month. This is a series of stories of immigrants, Holyoke residents.

This is a special feature of the panel “Journeys Home: Perspectives on Immigration”, recorded on Wednesday, June 7th at Heritage State Park Visitors Center. The panelists are: Attorney Megan Kludt, an immigration lawyer from Curran & Berger, LLP, in Northampton. Professor Raul Gutierrez, a local Professor of Spanish at Holyoke Community College and a Mexican immigrant. Marikler Toensmeier, manager at the WayFinders office in Holyoke and an honoree of Immigrant Heritage Month. Lastly, Eduardo Samaniego is an undocumented immigrant who is attending Hampshire College and is working for the Pioneer Valley Workers Center in Northampton.

Mayor Alex Morse has partnered with Wistariahurst Museum to bring a month-long series of events to the City of Holyoke for Immigrant Heritage Month.

Holyoke Herald staff reporters Feroze Sibdhanny and Owen Lavelle, report on some of the most relevant topics of this week at Holyoke High.

Immigration makes Holyoke. June is Immigrant Heritage Month in Holyoke, MA and the City is celebrating its people, diversity, and multi-cultural heritage. Marikler Giron Toensmeier is from Guatemala, and also, one of the honorees by the Mayor at the opening event of this month long celebration. On this conversation recorded in the streets of Downtown Holyoke, during her Monday-noon walk, we got to know more about Marikler's story as immigrant.

Lighthouse Holyoke is a special place. A place to inspire, guide, explore, experiment, learn, share, engage with the community, and giving back. After two years of a successful development, Josiah Litant, Co-Director of Lighthouse Holyoke, shares the story of how this alternative for education started.

Holyoke Herald Staff Reporters Owen Lavelle and Feroze Sibddhany, report on the winners of the MelvaAwards Ceremony, celebrated at Holyoke High School on May 23rd, recognizing the best work by staff reporters of the Holyoke Herald, and their achievements in journalism.

The Great Holyoke Brick Race is a unique event, like no other in the world. It's simple: using a brick, participants have to add wheels and figure out ways to make it run the fastest possible, using gravity, and the combination of aerodynamics, engineering, physics, design, art, and most important, having fun. Our guests are Bruce Fowler and Dean Nimmer, creators of the Holyoke Brick Race, talking about the race story and development.

The City of Holyoke celebrates Immigrant Heritage Month during June of 2017. Mayor Alex Morse shares the details of the activities planned for this celebration, in collaboration with the Wistariahurst Museum.

The City of Holyoke Office of Planning and Economic Development, celebrated a Public Engagement Session to present the plans for the development of the Connecticut River Walk and Bikeway - Cabot Street Connector. This public meeting took place at El Mercado in 413 Main St. on May 18th, 2017. This is the recording of the session.

For more information and contact regarding this project, you can visit: www.holyokeredevelopment.com

Feroze Sibdhanny and Owen Lavelle, from The Holyoke Herald, interview Tessa Murphy-Romboletti, Manager of the SPARK Program, an entrepreneurial series of classes, workshops, tools, and network of business-oriented support for the community in Holyoke.

Marcos Marrero is the Director of the Office of Planning and Economic Development for the City of Holyoke. He is our guest on this session, sharing information about the Connecticut RiverWalk and Bikeway - Cabot Street Corridor, that will connect the Willimansett Bridge in South Holyoke, to the Canal Walk on Race St. Also, he invites the community to participate in a Public Engagement Session, and bring their ideas, suggestions, concerns, questions, and feedback.

The Holyoke Farmer's Market is one of the oldest in Massachusetts and also one of the oldest in the United States. Kathy Anderson, President of the Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce, and Andrés Villada, Mayoral Aide for the City of Holyoke, are our guests on this session about the Farmer's Market, that begins the 2017 season on May 18th, and every Thursday until October. Also, you will know the many programs and activities the Chamber of Commerce offers to the community.

Get ready for a tour and interesting historical facts about the Holyoke Canal System, with our guest, Robert Comeau. He shares his knowledge of the history and utilization of the Holyoke Canals, on this session that also explains the tour he is doing on May 20th, as we discuss its potentials to be an educational experience that should be permanent, for the benefit of the community.

The Restorative Justice group Pa'lante at Holyoke High School, is facing a difficult time as funding to continue its operations for the next school year, in uncertain. Students, parents, teachers, administrators, elected officials, and community leaders, gathered to talk about the impact of Restorative Justice practices, and find ways to ensure the program continues.

A youth-led session, by Feroze Sibdhanny, interviewing Marianne Larned, Executive Director of Stone Soup Leaderhsip Institute and educator, musician, and the first Project Coordinator for the Youth Leadership Summit, Kutasha Silva, visiting from Vieques, Puerto Rico. The Youth Leadership Summit will take 20 youth from Holyoke to Martha's Vineyard for a series of leadership workshops, during the Summer of 2017.

For the very first time, the bridge that connects Holyoke and South Hadley will be the venue for a community event, filled with music, family activities, food, a parade, and the opportunity to enjoy the view over the Connecticut River. It's the River Roll and Stroll, happening on Sunday, May 7th, 2017 from 11:00 AM until 3:00 PM, at the Veterans Memorial Bridge bridge on Rt. 116. Free admission.

Listen to the conversation with Sean Condon, organizer, and creator of this idea.

Do you celebrate Cinco de Mayo? Do you know what it means? On this session, you will know about what happened in Mexico on May 5th of 1862, that later transformed into the most relevant celebration of Mexican Culture and Identity in the United States.

Let's try to break stereotypes and learn about other cultures. (I know, I know, the picture is the epitome of stereotypical, but hey, I'm Mexican, I can do it)

Support local authentic Mexican businesses, (That means NO CHIPOTLE or TACO BELL) and be respectful.

On this session, we have a takeover. FerozeSibdhanny, Staff Reporter for the Holyoke Herald, and youth reporter for the radioplasma podcast, hosts this episode, and interviews Mickey Buhl, Director of Secondary Education and Pathways for the Holyoke Public Schools in Holyoke.

You will know what are the redesign plans and expectations for Holyoke High and Dean Tech. This is the very first episode of the radioplasma podcast, produced and hosted entirely by youth.

Betsy Cortis is the Music Director at WCCH 103.5 FM, Holyoke Community College Radio Station. On this episode, we talk about her commitment to WHCC and creating a renewed concept, infusing diversity in content and music selection. This is also, a new joint effort to provide media content options for the community in Holyoke, through the air and podcasting.

From The Holyoke Herald, Feroze Sibdhanny and Owen Lavelle, report their activities during the school vacation, and also invite the audience to attend Latinas con Pluma at the Wistariahurst. Visit the Holyoke Herald website at hhsherald.com

The Treehouse Foundation's Heroes Youth Leadership Project is presenting their 5th Youth Truth event at Holyoke High School, in coordination with The Enchanted Circle Theater. This podcast session came up as the result of a vibrant energy from three participant youth, who came to the studio to record some poetry and music for the performance. Listen to the voices of Dan, Sam, and Sarah, along with Amina Jordan-Mendez, and Sage Curtis, Director of the Treehouse Foundation Heroes program.

From The Holyoke Herald, Feroze Sibdhanny and Owen Lavelle, report some of the events of the second week of April, 2017, like the trip to Europe by Holyoke High students, A vacation activity at Wistariahurst, The scores of recent local sport events, and their own plans for the school vacation. Visit the Holyoke Herald website at hhsherald.com/

Presencia is a bilingual TV Show produced by local PBS Television station WGBY, and hosted by Verónica García and Zydalis Bauer. This magazine show features stories of the Latino community in the Pioneer Valley and Western New England. On this episode, Verónica and Zydalis talk about the story of Presencia, and their experiences making this project.

The Children of the Wild are back in Holyoke to present "The Wastelands". A project that combines community engagement with music, theater, clown, and kinesthetic poetry, in an immersive experience that utilizes different places in an open space in the city, as the stage. On this session, Walken Schweigert, Lindsay Swan, and Gus Ganley, talk about the process for the creation and development of this Opera, and also you will enjoy of a sample in a form of a musical performance. The Wastelands in Holyoke is scheduled for May 5-7, 2017 at the Holyoke Creative Arts Center on 384 Dwight Street, Holyoke, MA.

From The Holyoke Herald, Feroze Sibdhanny reports some of the most relevant events of the first week of April, 2017, like the Leadership Opportunity For Holyoke Youth, the purchase of the Yankee Pedlar, and the opening day for the Red Sox. Visit the Holyoke Herald website at http://hhsherald.com/

Marikler Girón Toensmeier is the organizer of the Resident Leadership Program. A free workshop for Holyoke residents, ages 15 and up, providing tools for leadership development, community engagement, local government, organization, conflict resolution, and communication. Workshops are in English and Spanish. The program begins on May 4th, 2017 and runs for five weeks. Interested? Sign up calling (413) 302-2017

Sandy Ward, is the mastermind behind the Mini Gold in the Library. For the second year, this fundraiser transforms the Holyoke Public Library into an 18 holes golf course, for the enjoyment of kids and adults. On this episode, Sandy tells the story of how the Mini Golf in the Library started and invites the community to attend the 2017 edition on April 8th.

From The Holyoke Herald, Feroze Sibdhanny and Owen Lavelle, talk about recent events during the second half of March 2017, in the City of Holyoke, and Holyoke High School.

HUBS is The Holyoke Urban Bike School. A program dedicated to promoting a healthier life, and teaching youth how to maintain, repair, tune-up, and ride their bicycles safely. This episode describes the activities and workshops provided by HUBS at the Holyoke YMCA.

La Loba Loca, is an artist, researcher, and facilitator. Her core philosophy is based on (re)claiming and (re)membering Abuelita Knowledge and learning how to use our roots as a tool for liberation and transformation. As part of a lecture presented by SCOPES and Students for Food Justice "Growing in Confined Spaces" with Maurice Smalls and La Loba Loca at Smith College in Northampton, La Loba Loca, stopped by the Plasma Media Lab Studio to talk about her work and the importance of Abuelita Knowledge in our society. Thanks to Nathalie Vicencio, who coordinated this podcast session.

As part of the events presenting the book "Through the Eyes of Rebel Women" by Iris Morales, and the screening of the documentary "Pa'Lante Siempre Pa'Lante" in Holyoke, MA

The City of Holyoke will host the PodCamp Western Mass 9 at the Holyoke Community College on April 1st. Carey Baker, visited our studio to talk about PodCamp's evolution and opportunities for learning, collaborate, and networking, by attending this un-conference.

Poema "¿Qué les queda a los jóvenes?" de Mario Benedetti. Voces: Karimar Perez, Iohann Rashi Vega. Música: Metamorphosis IV de Philip Glass

Our conversations with candidates for the 2017 election in Holyoke, continue with Juan Anderson-Burgos, candidate for Ward 6 at Holyoke City Council.

Meet Feroze Sibdhanny and Owen Lavelle. Staff members of The Holyoke Herald and new youth podcasters, creating their first piece at the Plasma Media Lab. Radioplasma and The Holyoke Herald, joining forces to develop a local independent media outlet. News, information, culture, engagement, stories, and everything in between.

Our second approach to Holyoke politics during this local election for 2017, we invited Juan G Sanchez, candidate for Ward 1 at Holyoke City Council, to present his platform and talk about his motivation to run against the incumbent City Councilwoman for Ward 1.

Rachel Dowd is the Teen Librarian at the Holyoke Public Library. Always smiling and infusing positive energy, she has created a special environment for the Library, with tailored activities, programs, community engagement, and a safe space for youth to learn, play, and to be themselves.

Radioplasma, El Sol Latino, and The Holyoke Public Library worked together to bring you this special feature, with the presentation of "Cien Años de Feminismos Dominicanos" by Ginetta Candelario. This event took place at the Community Room of the HPL on February 27, 2017.

In our first approach to Holyoke politics during this local election for 2017, we invited Deborah Aloisi, candidate for Holyoke City Council at Large, to present her platform and talk about her motivation to run for the at-large seat.

From March 1 to the 12th, The Exhibit "States of Incarceration: A National DIalogue of Local Histories" will be open to the public, free, at the Wauregan. 420 Dwight St. in Holyoke, MA. Listen to Kate Preissler, Director of the Wisariahurst Museum, with the details of this exhibit and the activities programmed around this topic.

Una breve actualización sobre nuevos contenidos próximos a ocurrir en radioplasma

A quick update on what is coming up at radioplasma.

We visit David Yos at his Holyoke Tax Service office to talk about the income tax filing process and also David's community engagement in the City of Holyoke.

Holyoke City Councilman for Ward 2, Nelson Roman shares his story and talks about the connection between his own experiences and becoming a member of Holyoke's City Council, "putting people first".

Journalist Natalia Muñoz shares her thoughts on the current status of media, journalism, and the fake news phenomena. With the beginning of a new government in the Unites States, the relationship between the media and The White House struggles with "alternative facts", blackouts, limitations and questionable practices that we all need to be aware of, and take responsibility for a better handling of information. [Recorded Jan. 26, 2017]

Holyoke High School Principal, Stephen Sullivan, talks about the redesign of HHS, the engagement with families and community, and the projects and work being made to support students.

This is a special report for the MLK Jr's day ON! Youth Conference, organized by the Holyoke Youth Commission, The Enchanted Circle Theater, and The Holyoke Youth Task Force. Over 40 youth from different Holyoke schools gathered at the Holyoke Senior Center, discussed youth issues to present a 10 years vision plan at a later time. Listen to this inspiring report, explained by the youth involved in this event. Recorded at the Holyoke Senior Center on Jan 16th, 2017.

The powerful words and voices of the Holyoke High School students, Writing Change. A short session of poetry, spoken word, and storytelling, displaying the perspective of our youth about the city and its society. Raw, powerful, inspiring, eye-opener, visceral, pained, true.

Holyoke City Councilwoman for Ward 4, Jossie Valentin shares her story and talks about the issues that matter to her as educator, activist, mentor, LGBTQ woman, and as a member of the City Council.

ArteSana is a non-profit social enterprise in Holyoke, MA. They create high-quality handmade pillows and provide the community with creative workshops, English classes, and a safe space for conversation, learning, and creativity. ArteSana is focused on building a more equitable and sustainable world through community, creativity, and entrepreneurship.

This podcast session was recorded at the Artesana's workshop. Visit Artesana's website and support their work at artesana.co

State Rep. Aaron Vega talks about his origins, his life experiences, and features a music playlist hosted and curated by himself (available for streaming at radioplasma.com) This is our podcast interview series, featuring stories, conversations, and interviews with Holyoke's community members, elected officials, leaders, service providers, business owners and activists.

Holyoke Visible event at the H.H. Richardson Train Station in Bower and Mosher Streets in Holyoke. August 31, 2016. Celebrating the Culture of the Puerto Rican community with a showcase of dance, live music, history, and community engagement. This special feature presents the live performance by Jose Gonzalez and Criollo Clasico Trio from Puerto Rico, as the closing act for this series of activities by the Holyoke Visible project, recorded by radioplasma.

Evento de Holyoke Visible en la vieja estación de tren H.H. Richardson en las calles Bower y Mosher en Holyoke. 31 de Agosto, 2016. Celebrando la Cultura de la comunidad Puertorriqueña con una muestra de baile, música en vivo, historia y convivencia comunitaria. Esta edición especial del podcast de radioplasma, incluye la presentación de José González y el Trío Criollo Clásico de Puerto Rico, como el acto que cerró esta serie de actividades del proyecto Holyoke Visible.

Holyoke Visible event at the Train Station on Main and Dwight. August 24, 2016. Celebrating the use of the Spanish language in public spaces. A bilingual showcase of poetry, readings, performances and stories. Listen to all the participants at the even, recorded live by radioplasma.

Evento de Holyoke Visible en la estación del tren en las calles Main y Dwight, celebrando el uso del idioma Español en espacios públicos, en una ciudad que es bilingüe. Una variada selección de diferentes escritores, autores, y miembros de la comunidad con poemas. historias y presentaciones. Escuche todas las participaciones de este evento grabado en directo por radioplasma.

In the light of the tragic shooting in Orlando that ended with the death of 50 young latinx and lgbtq lives, the community of the City of Holyoke, MA celebrated a Standout and Memorial at City Hall and compiled a few messages of love to share.