About the Jacksonville Music Experience (JME) - JME - The Jacksonville Music Experience

About JME

A nonprofit, publicly supported music platform based in Jacksonville, Florida, the Jacksonville Music Experience from WJCT Public Media is your ticket to the local scene. In addition to WJCT's three music stations (Classical 24, Anthology, and The Independent), Music Thursdays on Jax PBS, and live events from the WJCT Soundstage, JME features curated playlists, reviews, profiles, music history, think-pieces and concert recommendations.

JME Contributors

Matthew Shaw

Matthew Shaw is a writer, editor and musician. His writing has appeared in Folio Weekly, Edible Northeast Florida, the Surfer's Journal and Surfer Magazine, and he's reported on national stories for the New York Times. He's the former Editor of Void Magazine, and currently WJCT's Arts & Culture Editor.

David Luckin

David Luckin joined WJCT Public Media in 2000. He has more than four decades of broadcast experience and has developed and hosted popular music programs such as "NightFlight" and the long-running "Electro Lounge", showcasing the laid-back sounds of “downtempo” and “chillout."

GeeXella

GeeXella is a singer, writer, and DJ, as well as the founder of Duval Folx, inclusive dance parties with the goal of providing safe spaces for Black, Brown, Queer and Trans People. Their work was recognized in Void Magazine’s “35 under 35” issue, and they were a recipient of the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville’s 42nd Award for Advocacy.

Daniel A. Brown

A former longtime resident of Jacksonville Beach, Daniel A. Brown is a musician and AAN-award-winning writer based in London, U.K. In addition to his work featured in JME, Brown has been a contributing writer for Aquarium Drunkard, DownBeat Magazine, The New York City Jazz Record and NPR #NowPlaying. As a musician, he’s played bass guitar with Royal Trux, ’68 Comeback and Hans Chew.

Mr. Al Pete

Mr. Al Pete is a musician, podcaster, journalist and the founder of The MPN Network, a website that covers arts, music, and culture and hosts podcasts from various Jacksonville personalities under the Neighborhood Podcast Network banner.

Shelton Hull

Shelton Hull is a writer and broadcaster with over 25 years' experience in the Sunshine State. His writing has appeared in Void Magazine, Arbus, the Florida Times-Union, Orlando Weekly, Creative Loafing Tampa, Edible Northeast Florida and Folio Weekly. He is a regular contributor to "First Coast Connect with Melissa Ross" on WJCT News 89.9.

Josué A. Cruz

Josué A. Cruz is a writer and musician. His writing has appeared in Folio Weekly, Roast Magazine, Void Magazine, Eastern Surf Magazine and Edible Northeast Florida. He’s the lead singer of LPT, a 10-piece salsa orchestra.

Glenn Michael Van Dyke

Glenn Michael Van Dyke is an audio engineer, musician and writer. Her writing has appeared in Void Magazine and She Shreds Media. She's the founder of Jacksonville-based music festival and record label Winterland Presents.

Rain Henderson

Rain Henderson is a designer, photo-journalist and writer. She contributes the “In This Climate?!” and “Listen Locally” columns at Folio Weekly, where she serves as the magazine's Creative Director. A former creative director for Void Magazine, Henderson's the editorial designer for Edible Northeast Florida Magazine and co-founder of local zine Ladies Night.

Toni Smailagic

Toni Smailagic is a photographer and founder of Cre8Jax, a platform dedicated to highlighting cultural development, creators and events in Jacksonville. He's also a founding member of NexxtSpin, a collective of vinyl enthusiasts in Jacksonville that hosts music-themed monthly meetups.

Carissa Marques

Carissa Marques is a writer, podcaster and avid concert-goer. She works at Jacksonville-based advertising agency Wingard, bringing local stories to the community as a public relations coordinator. After her 9-to-5, Marques interviews rising local and nationally touring artists for her podcast, The Indie Popsicle.

Hurley Winkler

A Jacksonville native, Hurley Winkler is the founder of Lonely Victories, an online community for writers and readers. Her writing has appeared in The Millions, Hobart, and The Believer. She facilitates workshops for fiction and nonfiction writers. Hurley lives in Neptune Beach with her husband, the musician Alex Kane.

Ulysses Owens Jr.

Ulysses Owens Jr. is a Grammy Award-winning drummer, Director of Small Ensembles at The Juilliard School, and a published author. His writing has appeared in Downbeat Magazine, Florida Times Union, Jazz Times Magazine, Percussive Arts Magazine; and his books have been published by Hal Leonard, and Simon and Schuster. He was named 40 under 40 by Jax Business Journal in 2022, is a member of the 2023 Leadership Jax class; and a recipient of the Ann Baker McDonald Art Ventures grant from the Community Foundation of Northeast Florida.

Scott Russell

Scott Russell is a writer, editor and avid show-goer with two dog sons and many, many tweets. He's the former Music Editor of Paste Magazine, and a current editor at Law360. His work has appeared in FLOOD Magazine, InsideHook, The Line of Best Fit and more.

Keanna Faircloth

Keanna Faircloth is radio personality, writer and artist advocate. From 2019-2022, she served as the host of Afternoon Jazz on WBGO 88.3 FM in Newark, NJ. She is the creator and host of the podcast Artimacy, where she has interviewed artists like Robert Glasper, Dionne Warwick, Wynton Marsalis, Melba Moore, and countless others. In 2019 she was named a “Future African American Leader in Radio” by Radio Ink Magazine in 2019. She has written for WBGO, WRTI, The New York Times, and NPR Music. She is also a contributor on NPR’s New Music Friday edition of All Songs Considered, and a music contributor on NPR’s Here and Now. She is currently the Artist Relations Coordinator for jazz and classical piano at Yamaha.

The Jacksonville Music Experience is a production of WJCT Public Media. Financial support for JME comes from our readers and listeners, with additional support from the Jessie Ball DuPont Fund.