Episodes

  • Cleveland rock trio C-Level finds voice in community

    Cleveland rock trio C-Level finds voice in community
    Aug 7 2025
    Cleveland band C-Level has spent nearly 15 years shaping a sound that's uniquely theirs—blending reggae, blues, punk, and funk. Bandmates Dave Deitke and Coda Crose joined drummer Jay Sparrow for an in-studio performance at the Idea Center and talked about their start at an open mic night and their upcoming concept album.
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    27 mins
  • Independence's Tori Kurtz sings her way through heartbreak and healing as Willingness

    Independence's Tori Kurtz sings her way through heartbreak and healing as Willingness
    Jul 24 2025
    Tori Kurtz, who records under the name Willingness, has always approached music with vulnerability. But on her latest album, “Sunflower,” that vulnerability becomes a lifeline — a way to process a relationship in real time, from first spark to heartbreak to healing.
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    41 mins
  • Medina cardiac nurse Ben Marthey finds healing as Van Arlo

    Medina cardiac nurse Ben Marthey finds healing as Van Arlo
    Jul 10 2025
    Ben Marthey spends his days assisting with open-heart surgeries as a cardiac nurse. Outside the hospital, he’s Van Arlo, a Medina-based singer-songwriter using music to process the emotional toll of his work. On this week’s Shuffle, Marthey talks about how music became his outlet — and his lifeline.
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    22 mins
  • DJ $crilla finds his groove in music for TV, film and, now, a new album

    DJ $crilla finds his groove in music for TV, film and, now, a new album
    Jun 26 2025
    You might not know the name DJ $crilla — but you’ve definitely heard his music. From Super Bowl ads to video game soundtracks, Chris Harris has quietly built a music licensing empire from Cleveland. On this week’s Shuffle, he talks about the unexpected turn that launched his career in TV and film and the personal inspiration behind his new album The Impact.
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    21 mins
  • Cleveland’s Country Honk brings the sounds of Nashville north

    Cleveland’s Country Honk brings the sounds of Nashville north
    Jun 5 2025
    Thor Platter and his bandmates are bringing classic outlaw country and honky-tonk tunes to Cleveland, one honky-tonk heartbreaker at a time. Country Honk joins Shuffle and Applause Performances for a special in-studio session and interview to talk about their latest album.
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    16 mins
  • Upstream Drifters looks to breathe new life into the old-timey sound of folk

    Upstream Drifters looks to breathe new life into the old-timey sound of folk
    May 22 2025
    Northeast Ohio folk duo Upstream Drifters has released two albums this year, blending traditional old-time dance music with lyrical storytelling. Aubrey Helmuth Miller and Craig Mast join Shuffle to talk about their musical journey.
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    24 mins
  • Cleveland noise artist Slugg turns heavy sounds into healing

    Cleveland noise artist Slugg turns heavy sounds into healing
    May 8 2025
    Kristal Mills was settled in her life, working in the corporate world in Cleveland. But the pull to explore her creative side led her down a new path. For this week’s Shuffle, Mills talks about the industrial techno beats she produces under the name Slugg.
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    24 mins
  • Canton musician Scott Paris chronicles a year of gigs, guitars and goodbyes in new book

    Canton musician Scott Paris chronicles a year of gigs, guitars and goodbyes in new book
    Apr 24 2025
    For more than three decades, Scott Paris was a fixture of Northeast Ohio’s live music scene, performing up to 200 shows a year in bars, clubs, casinos and festivals. Now, the longtime Canton-based musician is reflecting on his career in a new book, “A Guitar Called Harry V and the Cover Band Conundrum,” a memoir told through journal entries chronicling his life with one special guitar.
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    25 mins