Artspeak Radio with Luke "Skippy" Harbur and Tj Templeton

·1 hr·5 clips

Luke 'Skippy' Harbur, a performer with 75 published songs and two life-saving surgeries, explains how he promotes the 'kind, goofy, and critical-thinking artists' inside everyone.

Kansas City Community Radio starts close to home. Maria Vasquez-Boyd sets Artspeak Radio in the feel of a Wednesday morning studio visit, with 90.1 FM KKFI, the online stream, and the guests all named up front. The welcome stays personal. Luke Skippy Harbour comes in as a performer, producer, and educator behind Music by Skippy, where live music, beatboxing, and arts experiences are built for multi-generational audiences. The intro gives his work a gentle frame: authenticity, social isolation, more than 75 published songs, nearly 600 tickets sold to original shows, and two life-saving surgeries. Then the episode gets useful. Skippy talks about reading a full script more than once and looking for themes that could pull in people outside the regular theater crowd. Toxic Avenger is the example. Instead of selling only the title, he follows the story's fight against global warming and corrupt politicians who profit from it. That angle gives him somewhere to go. He finds 20 to 30 activist groups in Kansas City, Missouri, and beyond, then hears back from environmental groups buying tickets in bulk. Renew Missouri becomes part of the story too: a state Senate lobbying group wants to interview him about live arts as a way to carry social justice issues to a wider audience. Maria is clearly pleased, and the room keeps its community-radio warmth, with quick affirmations and a little repetition keeping things moving. Skippy's point is plain: a show's mission can be easier to talk about, and sometimes more inviting, than the name on the poster. They also cover age guidance, noting Toxic Avenger is recommended for ages 13 and up because of gore and queasy moments. The close comes back to access. Tickets are described as very accessible, and the episode lands on support for community arts, whether 10 to 20 people show up or tens of thousands do.

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