Central Texas top stories for April 4, 2025. City leaders are working on shortening emergency response times. A new report by the City Auditor shows the City of Austin still faces challenges to prepare for extreme heat. Texas women’s basketball team made it to the Final Four of NCAA for the first time in over two decades after beating TCU last night. A panel of Texas Senators discussed yesterday a proposal to revitalize the state’s film incentive program.
Matthew McConaughey
The One With The Heartbeat
Austin FC home games can’t be complete without the pre-game heartbeat tradition. It’s become so iconic that the club used the heartbeat as inspiration for their new home jersey for this year. Hear about the origins of the tradition, the relationship between the teams front office and its supporters, and the role of a former Austin FC captain in the genesis of the tradition.
United We Stand?
Confucius and Fresh talk to Austin R&B artist Mélat about her new music, her experience in the Austin music scene, he collaboration with Austin FC, and how she ended up singing with Matthew McConaughey. Then they discuss how united the hip-hop community is in Austin.
You’ll learn Hip-Hop Facts about the connection between New Edition and Eddie Murphy, why Lil Wayne’s “Tha Carter III” track listing kept changing, why there’s no video for Jay-Z’s “Brooklyn’s Finest” and more.
Fresh states the Unpopular Opinion that Chad Hugo is the unsung hero — as opposed to the real genius — of the Neptunes.
Confucius talks about last week’s racially motivated shooting in Jacksonville, Mitch McConnel freezing at a press conference, and more in Confucius Reads the News.
Texas Standard: April 29, 2020
Tho COVID-19 seems to be receding in larger Texas cities but a rise of cases in smaller cities has those on the front lines getting hit especially hard. We’ll hear more on a Coronavirus outbreak among first responders in Abilene. Meanwhile in the biggest county in Texas, certain neighborhoods finding themselves most at risk. We’ll hear what they have in common and what’s being done. Also its not your imagination: why fire ants do seem to be getting nastier. And the Texas actor who’s found a role as home state cheerleader during this crisis. Matthew McConaughey and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 22, 2018
Texas plastic bag bans get sacked in a unanimous ruling by the Texas Supreme Court. We’ll take a look at the ruling, the reasoning and the impact. And: Warehousing migrants is big business, and right now business is good for those companies. Manny Fernandez of The New York Times joins us. Plus: The president’s proposed a sixth military branch, the space force. Though its not quite ready for liftoff. Science fiction or defense necessity? Those stories and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard: