Pause/Play
Miles Bloxson and Elizabeth McQueen
January 18, 2023
Austin has a music union? Here’s what it is and how it works.
Learn all about the Austin Federation of Musicians –– how it works, what benefits it provides for freelance musicians, and why you may not know it exists. Read more about the Musicians Union Check out Tell Tchaikovsky The News
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December 21, 2022
Meet the Austin non-profit rethinking how record labels work: Spaceflight Records
In the latest episode of Pause/Play we spoke with Brett Orrison, Samara Simpson, and Jonathan Horstman about the non-profit record label Spaceflight Records.
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December 7, 2022
How can people get money into the hands of musicians, outside of being fans and going to shows?
Sonic Guild and DAWA are two Austin based that actually give musicians money. In this episode you’ll learn what they do, how they work, and why they were founded. You’ll hear from Matt Ott, co-founder of Sonic Guild, formerly known as Black Fret, and Jonathan “Chaka” Mahone, founder of DAWA.
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November 23, 2022
Do Musicians Need Corporate Support to Survive in the New Austin?
Miles and Elizabeth explore different forms of corporate support for music, and look at one company that’s making a big investment in Austin music.
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November 9, 2022
Take note U.S.: Canada actually gives its musicians money
Hosts Miles Bloxson and Elizabeth McQueen explore the Canadian system of support for the arts in general, and for commercial music specifically. They explain what they know to Pause/Play audio engineer Jake Perlman, with help from Jessica Deljouravesh from the Ontario Arts Council, Marina Adam from Ontario Creates, Eric Owen from Black Pistol Fire , and KUT transportation reporter Nathan Bernier.
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October 26, 2022
Why doesn’t commercial music in the U.S. get any financial support outside of, say, fans?
Hosts Miles Bloxson and Elizabeth McQueen talk to UT Professor Charles Carson about why American commercial music doesn’t get financial support outside of the capitalist market. They break down the idea that the best music comes from struggle. They also talk about what the city of Austin owes the music scene, and how the city might better support the for-profit music sector.
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July 5, 2022
NFTs and Music: Austin Musicians’ Thoughts on NFTs
Hear what Jackie Venson, Deezie Brown, David Shabani, and Erin Ivey have to say about NFTs and Music. You can check out the NFT for our song “What is an NFT?” It’s not for sale, but it is on the Solana blockchain! https://solsea.io/n/AaYykx8tvL4yzrmwwqwuB3H3NFaiV3kF7uEeAM9bfwHJ/ And you can listen to the song any time on our podcast […]
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June 30, 2022
NFTs and Music: What is a NFT? The Song!
Here’s your very own, very fungible copy of the soon-to-be hit song, “What is an NFT?”
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About
In each episode of “Pause/Play,” you’ll hear the stories of artists, venues, festivals, music non-profits and more.
Hosts Miles Bloxson and Elizabeth McQueen have been collecting first-person stories from across the spectrum of the live music scene about what the shutdown has been like, how people are adapting, their survival strategies, what help they’ve received and what they think is possible on the other side of the pandemic.
Listen to “Pause/Play” to learn about the experiences of the people make Austin the Live Music Capital of the World. Each one of them helps drive the billion dollar-plus live music scene that helped put Austin on the map and has made it one of the most desirable places in the country to live and work.
Miles Bloxson
Miles Bloxson is a producer and host for KUT 90.5 and KUTX 98.9. Bloxson co-hosts Pause/Play, a podcast from KUT and KUTX Studios about live music, a global pandemic and what comes next.
The Austin native and UT Austin graduate has a passion for technology, music and pop culture. She has interviewed such stars as Halle Berry, Samuel L. Jackson, Kristin Chenoweth, Morgan Freeman, Cee-Lo Green, Forest Whitaker and Robert Townsend.
She is the host and creator of the podcast and lifestyle brand Miles to Mogul.
Elizabeth McQueen
Elizabeth McQueen is an audio producer and podcast host at KUTX 98.9, Austin’s NPR music station. McQueen is also the featured host of the podcast, “This Song,” and the producer of “The Breaks,” a hip-hop podcast. Prior to her career in radio and podcasting, Elizabeth was a professional musician who started and played for the band, “Elizabeth McQueen and the Firebrands,” and later joined the legendary Western Swing band, “Asleep at the Wheel.”
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