KMUW's Beth Golay speaks with author Annie Hartnett about her novel "The Road to Tender Heart," and KMUW's Jedd Beaudoin visits with author Jason Bailey about his biography of the late actor James Gandolfini. Plus news from Wichita and around the state.

An East High senior is heading to the national competition for Poetry Out Loud. We talk to him about his passion for poetry. Plus we have news from Wichita and around the state.

Five For Fighting's John Ondrasik was initially disappointed when his songs stopped becoming Top 40 hits but he says that he soon discovered that there was more than chart success. More on that, plus news from Wichita and around the state.

April May Webb won the 2024 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition in part based on her performance of a notoriously difficult John Coltrane composition. Even her husband, trumpeter Randall Haywood had his doubts. We have Jedd Beaudoin's conversation with Webb, plus news from Wichita and around the state.

Jazz musician Peter Erskine has seen a number of changes in the genre since he began playing professionally in the late 1960s when, he says, he was aware of a changing of the musical guard that drew a line between him and one of his musical mentors. More on that, plus news from Wichita and around the state.

When researching the 15th century, author Jo Harkin noticed that sometimes there are holes in recorded history, opening the door for imagined history. KMUW's Beth Golay speaks with Harkin about her work of historical fiction, "The Pretender." Plus we have news from Wichita and around the state.

Andy McKee has won broad acclaim for his finger style guitar playing but he says that despite his passion for music, his career has required a lot of hard work. KMUW's Jedd Beaudoin recently spoke with McKee. We have that conversation, plus news from Wichita and around the state.

Yasmin Nur recently released the album "Slaughter." She says that throughout her life she's been told that she's too sensitive and wants to push back on that notion through her music. More on that, plus news from Wichita and around the state.

Benmont Tench was a founding member of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers and has spent decades as a session musician and writing songs for other artists. He's also just released his second solo album, "The Melancholy Season" and although he says some of the lyrics on the album have their roots in poetry he's in no hurry to declare himself a poet. We have Jedd Beaudoin's conversation with Tench, plus news from Wichita and around the state.

Over the past several decades, kindergarten classes have become much more structured. But some schools in Kansas are rediscovering what young children can learn through old-fashioned free play. We’ll hear how some Kansas schools are shifting schedules to give kindergartners more time to play. Plus news from Wichita and around the state.