MinneCulture In-Depth

Series produced by KFAI Minneapolis

Series image

Stories, documentaries and music about Minnesota's rich heritage of arts, culture and history. All audio airs on KFAI, SoundCloud, Ampers.org, PRX and KFAI's MinneCulture page on Facebook. MinneCulture is made possible by a grant from the Minnesota Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.

Stories, documentaries and music about Minnesota's rich heritage of arts, culture and history. All audio airs on KFAI, SoundCloud, Ampers.org, PRX and KFAI's MinneCulture page on Facebook. MinneCulture is made possible by a grant from the Minnesota Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.


173 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
'Sissy' as in Sister
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: A meeting at A Woman's Coffee House, Credit: Janet Dahlem
In the 1970s and 1980s, feminists redefined what it meant to be a woman in the United States. These activists didn’t always agree on how to reach t...

  • Added: Apr 04, 2024
  • Length: 46:02
Minnesota vs. Big Tobacco
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Anti-smoking ad campaign, Credit: Minnesota Department of Health
Minnesota was the first state to take Big Tobacco to trial in the 1990s. Minnesota was also the first state to take the vaping company Juul to tria...

  • Added: Mar 14, 2024
  • Length: 28:53
Saving Minnesotan Old Time Music
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: "Clawhammer" Mike Sawyer, Credit: Britta Greene and James Napoli
Mike Sawyer is on a mission to uncover the roots of Upper Midwest folk music and keep it alive for future generations.

Bought by MPR News Stations


  • Added: Mar 07, 2024
  • Length: 30:20
  • Purchases: 1
Facing Danger in the Boundary Waters
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Aboard an LL6 rescue plane in the BWCA, Credit: Joe Friedrichs
Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area is known as one of the most beautiful places in the country. It can also be a dangerous place.

  • Added: Feb 29, 2024
  • Length: 27:05
BeatleMNia: The Beatles First (and Only) Visit to Minnesota
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Fans at the Beatles only concert in Minnesota, Credit: Minnesota Historical Society
In the summer of 1965, the Beatles were the hottest act in the world. And for the first — and only time — John, Paul, George and Ringo were coming ...

  • Added: Dec 13, 2023
  • Length: 35:39
Women of the Fur Trade
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Laura Powell-Marxen works in the basement of her Grand Marais home. Laura makes hats, mittens and other apparel from the fur from animals of the North Woods., Credit: Joe Friedrichs
The role of women, particularly Indigenous women, during the legendary fur trade in Minnesota is often overlooked. KFAI contributor Joe Friedrichs ...

  • Added: May 18, 2023
  • Length: 21:58
Doc Ames and Mr. Hyde
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Albert Alonzo Ames, 1897, Credit: Progressive Men of Minnesota
Mayor Albert Alonzo Ames turned the Minneapolis Police Department into the most powerful crime ring the city had ever seen.

  • Added: Mar 30, 2023
  • Length: 35:20
A History of Fire in the Boundary Waters
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Whelp Fire: The Whelp and John Ek fires lead, in part, to the closure of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in 2021. , Credit: Courtesy of the U.S. Forest Service
Minnesota's Boundary Waters is the most visited wilderness area in the country. Last summer, the entire Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness was s...

  • Added: Jun 09, 2022
  • Length: 30:00
Fly Robin Fly: That Disco-Crazed Moment When The Gay 90's Came Out Of The Closet
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: The Gay 90's in downtown Minneapolis. , Credit: Minnesota Historical Society
In downtown Minneapolis, there's a gay bar with several dance floors conveniently named the Gay 90's. The Gay 90’s hasn’t always been gay. The bar...

  • Added: Jul 09, 2021
  • Length: 28:06
A Living History of the Boundary Waters
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Swamp Canoe: Early season canoeing in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota, Credit: Matthew Baxley
In wilderness settings, there are connections people can make to the land, regardless of their age, race or gender, by walking in the footsteps of ...

  • Added: Jun 11, 2021
  • Length: 29:59
Stay Young, Go Dancing
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Polka dancers: Polka dancing during Polka Days at the Gibbon Ballroom in Gibbon, Minnesota, circa 1975, Credit: Flip Schulke / U.S. National Archives
The most legendary venue in Minnesota history? It's not First Avenue, nor is it anywhere near the Twin Cities. Deep in the middle of the corn and s...

  • Added: Jul 02, 2020
  • Length: 30:00
Fighting Back: The Rise of Anti-Racist Action in Minneapolis
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: The Baldies, Credit: Kara La Lomia
In the days after Minneapolis police killed George Floyd, youth-led protests in the city helped spark rebellions around the globe. The police, mili...

Bought by MPR News Stations


  • Added: Jul 02, 2020
  • Length: 54:37
  • Purchases: 1
A Brief History of Women in Bars: A Minnesota Story in Three Rounds
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: A group of temperance advocates protest outside a saloon in Anoka, Minnesota, 1873.
One hundred years ago, two major constitutional amendments went into effect. The 18th marked the start of Prohibition and the 19th granted many wom...

Bought by MPR News Stations and Northern Community Radio - KAXE & KBXE, Minnesota


  • Added: Jan 05, 2021
  • Length: 45:10
  • Purchases: 2
A Fiery Unrest: Why Plymouth Avenue Burned
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Silver's Grocery on Plymouth Avenue in North Minneapolis in 1967., Credit: Minneapolis Star & Tribune Negatives, July 1, 1967-August 31, 1967: Box 263. Minneapolis and St Paul Newspaper Negatives Collection. Minnesota Historical Society.
During the summer of 1967, Plymouth Avenue in North Minneapolis went up in flames. This was during a period known as the Long, Hot Summer when frus...

Bought by KVSC and MPR News Stations


  • Added: Jul 18, 2019
  • Length: 52:58
  • Purchases: 2
Generation AIDS: Minnesota's HIV/AIDS Crisis
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Bruce Brockway and Rene Valdes, 1980., Credit: Alan Lessik
In July 1981, the New York Times published an article about a mysterious illness plaguing gay men in New York City. After reading the article, Bruc...

  • Added: Jul 09, 2019
  • Length: 01:31:39
Stolen Childhoods
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Kip Moon, Credit: Courtesy of Kip Moon
America's attempt to separate Native children from their families didn't end with boarding schools. In the decades after World War II, the U.S. gov...

Bought by KVCR, Prairie Public, KUT, Prairie Public, WYSO and more


  • Added: Nov 18, 2016
  • Length: 59:00
  • Purchases: 11
The Halloween Blizzard of '91: A Mix Tape in 6 Songs and 2 Feet of Snow
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Piece image
How can you forget the one Halloween in your life that came with two feet of snow? KFAI's Britt Aamodt was studying biology at Gustavus Adolphus Co...

Bought by WGZS, WGZS, WGZS, KKWE Niijii Radio, Northern Community Radio - KAXE & KBXE, Minnesota and more


  • Added: Oct 12, 2016
  • Length: 26:40
  • Purchases: 7
Jitney: A Conversation with Lou Bellamy and T. Mychael Rambo
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Abdul Salaam El Razzac, Doub; Terry Bellamy, Turnbo, Credit: Penumbra Theatre
Penumbra Theatre in St. Paul is one of America's first black theater companies. This month, "Jitney" — a play by the great August Wilson — returns ...

  • Added: Oct 11, 2016
  • Length: 28:34
Somali Week: A 7-Day Celebration
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Caption: Anab Isse (l) and Deka Aden (r), Credit: Nancy Rosenbaum
Minnesota is home to the largest Somali community in North America. Each July, thousands of people from around the world come to the Twin Cities to...

  • Added: Jul 12, 2016
  • Length: 04:00
Johnny Rex and the Nickel Eye-Opener
From: KFAI Minneapolis
Series: MinneCulture In-Depth
Piece image
Most people viewed the drunks on Minneapolis’ Skid Row as pariahs. Not Johnny Rex. He owned a bar, a liquor store and a flophouse there. To Johnny ...

Bought by PRX Remix


  • Added: Jun 28, 2016
  • Length: 05:02
  • Purchases: 1

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