Join us for the music of Crystal Gravy, of DeKalb, IL. They are a love-struck duo who even spent their first date writing their first song. We'll hear their performance in Studio A and talk with Crystal Gravy about their writing process, their relationship, and much more. We will even learn what "Hotel Stew" is. Keep up with Crystal Gravy by following their Facebook page. Find more of their music streaming on Spotify and available for download on Bandcamp! Crystal Gravy performing "Krug" live in WNIJ's Studio A Crystal Gravy performing "First Blood" live in WNIJ's Studio A Crystal Gravy performing "One More Storm" live in WNIJ's Studio A

When Víkingur Ólafsson was about 5 years old, he already knew what he wanted to be. "It sounds crazy, but I always saw myself as a concert pianist," he says. "Even if I wasn't a good pianist." The Icelandic musician, who turned 36 last month, has become a very good pianist indeed. Whether playing baroque or contemporary music, Ólafsson's technique is formidable, but it's transparency combined with warmth that has defined his singular sound. He is sought after by the world's top orchestras and concert venues and has signed on with the swanky Deutsche Grammophon record label. After well-received albums of Philip Glass and J.S. Bach , his latest album, Debussy – Rameau , was released March 27. The recording unfolds almost like a classical mixtape, with Ólafsson juxtaposing tracks by two French composers, born almost two centuries apart, who both broke new ground in music. The pianist says he tried to create a conversation between Jean-Philippe Rameau , the baroque master who literally

Someday, the COVID-19 pandemic will be history. And that’s why one DeKalb County photographer is urging people to document it now. Bob Myers took his wife’s advice. She’s DeKalb County historian Sue Breese, and she encouraged him to photograph the empty store shelves, the empty parking lots, and the altered daily interactions that are now part of life under the State’s stay-at-home order. In turn, Myers turned to social media to ask other DeKalb County residents to join the effort. For him, it’s important to keep the project local because it “makes it hit home more.” Myers has received photos of closed businesses, school lunch distributions, the parking lot tents at Kishwaukee Hospital, and a mother and daughter touching hands through a closed glass door. Of course, there’s a touch of humor, too. One photo is of a downtown Sycamore icon, the statue of Pumpkinfest founder Wally Thurow standing next to his old-time bicycle. Someone had already thrown a scarf around his neck for winter.

Krzysztof Penderecki , one of the world's leading composers, died Sunday at the age of 86. The Polish Ministry of Affairs announced his passing in a tweet. No cause of death was given. The Polish-born composer established himself while still in his 20s with jarring atonal works such as Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima , and came to be widely admired by music fans and musicians far outside traditional classical music circles. Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood noted the passing of one of his idols on Twitter , "Penderecki was the greatest - a fiercely creative composer, and a gentle, warm-hearted man" he wrote Sunday. "My condolences to his family, and to Poland on this huge loss to the musical world." Untold numbers of people are familiar with Penderecki's music – perhaps without knowing it – thanks to films such as Shutter Island and especially The Shining , the Stanley Kubrick thriller that included the compositions Polymorphia and The Awakening of Jacob to frightening effect.

Rockford is getting not just one, but two poets laureate -- an adult and a youth. The adult poet laureate position will be a two-year position, and probably one year long for the youth. Rockford Area Arts Council (RAAC) Executive Director Mary McNamara Bernsten said the committee is still working that out. But, she said, people may start nominating poets next week. To be qualified for the positions, candidates must have lived in Rockford for at least one year. Adult candidates must be at least 18 years old by Oct. 23, 2020. Youth candidates must be aged 13-17 by that same date. McNamara Bernsten said the poets laureate will appear at public functions. She gave examples like Stroll on State, high school and college graduations, and the swearing in of officers in the police and fire departments. "You may be reading poems at ceremonial events," McNamara Bernsten said. "You could at the unveiling of a new building or bridge. You could be at city council meetings or other public meetings."

The Rockford Area Convention and Visitor's Bureau (RACVB) wants you to stay home and write songs. "Stay Home Songs" is a community song writing contest that is open to all ages and all types of musicians. There is no fee to enter and all genres of music are welcome. Musicians who live in Winnebago County and may enter one original song that is less than three minutes long. Nick Povalitis is the vice president of marketing and sports development for the RACVB. He believes this contest creates an engaging way for people to stay together during Governor J.B. Pritzker's stay-at-home order. "We want to do our part to tell stories and connect people," Povalitis said. "Musicians are some of our best creators and there are a lot of talented musicians within Winnebago County and the Rockford region." This includes the contest judges. Jodi Beach, Vince Chiarelli, Duntai Mathews, Miles Nielsen, and Antonio Ramirez will select the winning songwriter. The winner will receive a $200 gift card to a

Dark Heart News is a high-energy rock and roll trio from Chicago. They have a wide range of influences from rock legends like Led Zeppelin, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and The White Stripes, to blues masters such as Stevie Ray Vaughan. Hear Dark Heart News' full performance in Studio A right here! You can keep up with the band and purchase their music at their website . Dark Heart News performing "Snake Eyes" live in WNIJ's Studio A Dark Heart News performing "Driven and Lonely" live in WNIJ's Studio A Dark Heart News performing "House of Kings" live in WNIJ's Studio A

Some people respond to suffering by turning it into art. That's true even with the harrowing experience of a pandemic. In the early 1400s, an Englishman named John Cooke composed Stella celi , a hymn to the Virgin Mary referencing the Black Plague which, according to some sources , wiped out half of Europe. Its text speaks of the "ulcers of a terrible death" but also the assurance that "the star of heaven ... has rooted out the plague." Cooke's hymn is unlikely the first direct musical response to a major pandemic, but it is one of the earliest. Many more composers, over the millennia, have been inspired to write music in times of crisis. YouTube As pandemics resurfaced and new ones cropped up, people centuries ago were, in general, keenly aware of the precarious nature of life. Johann Sebastian Bach was no exception. He was orphaned twice by age 10 and lost half of his 20 children and his first wife. Bach wrote music that could comfort in times of distress and music that directly

Art fairs are common around springtime but for a lot of vendors this year, it’s not business as usual. That’s due to COVID-19 and social distancing. Two Fox Valley Area artists found a way to help bring in revenue, despite what's going on. Kelsey Rankin is the founder of Hemp Club Jewelry . She worked with her friend Laura Lynne to create a Virtual Artisan Market. “We kind of handpicked our vendors that we wanted to participate. It was an invite only, artisan handmade is what we wanted to stick with,” she said. “Because there’s a ton of people that we know out there but we wanted to keep it small in manageable for this first one.” Rankin said she understands that people are hesitant about receiving packages in the mail. She refers to advice from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC. “So just wash your hands. Make sure you are being careful with any foreign object coming into the house. And if you feel like you need to wipe it down, do so. Just follow the

Ean Miles Kessler is a Chicago playwright. He's originally from Hamden, Connecticut, but has also lived and worked in New York City and Miami. In 2018, he "made the leap" and moved to the Edgewater neighborhood in Chicago. "It's a great neighborhood in a great city," he said. Usually for State Of The Artist, I follow artists to the places that inspire them. I interview and photograph them in the locations that are meaningful to them. Because of the quarantine, instead of interviewing Ean in Edgewater or the theaters where he works in Chicago, I had to interview him over the phone. Not only that, in order to get the best possible audio, I had to ask him to sit for 40 minutes under a hot blanket to absorb echoes and other ambient room sounds on a day the temperatures soared into the 70s. Several minutes into the interview, Ean said, "Can I just hop out from under this blanket for a second?" He laughed and said, "Because I'm going to have a small heatstroke." It was such a funny moment,

Listen to a special edition of Sessions from Studio A this week, as celebrate the first ever Public Radio Music Day. Sessions has been on the air for 4 years and has had over 100 artists featured on the show. In this episode, we'll take a listen back through the years to a variety of performances recorded for Sessions from Studio A. Local musicians need your support now more than ever. Download an album, buy some merch, and most importantly, go see a local artist live once you are able. We at WNIJ would like to thank all the artists who have performed on Sessions from Studio A and all of the listeners who support the show. You are what keeps music on public radio alive and strong. Thank you. Don't forget, you can find the full episodes of these performances here in our show archive and watch behind-the-scenes video on our YouTube channel .

The Rockford Area Arts Council wants your kids to create short videos not just for fun, but for educational purposes. Alone Together is a film showcase for students in grades 1-12 in Winnebago, DeKalb, Boone and Ogle counties. They are encouraged to shoot a short, creative video about any subject that interests them. RAAC Executive Director Mary McNamara Bernsten said this includes artistic subjects like dancing and drawing but also math, science, and foreign language. "You know kids are online all the time," she said, "and they're thinking, 'Oh, I'm in my French class right now and I am just memorizing all these vocabulary words.'" She continued, "You could go to our file on YouTube and find some fun, kind of innovative ways to look at your vocabulary words using some film project that a student has created." Alone Together is the Arts Council's response to COVID-19. McNamara Bernsten said that artistic expression during the quarantine is a way to connect and relate to each other's

We have a unique episode of Sessions from Studio A this week. Like so many others, the current pandemic has put our normal work on hiatus. Join us for a special "quarantined" edition of the show featuring ambient music from Rockford's Micky Torpedo. Micky is releasing four ambient albums this year, based on the changing moods of each season. We'll hear music from his Winter and Spring Cycle albums this hour. We also sat down to chat virtually with Micky about his approach to writing music, as well as his involvment in Rockford's Rock and Roll Institute. You can keep up with Micky on his Facebook page and download his music on Bandcamp .

COVID-19 has caused uncertainty in the lives of many. During hard times, in the past, people found relief by attending comedy shows. But what do you do when comedy clubs are closed and the comics are left to find humor for themselves? A few northern Illinois comedians share how they are making it through this pandemic. Rudy Ruiz is a comedian from Aurora. He said he misses the stage. “Now that we’re not allowed into comedy clubs or open mics or even writing groups, it’s like a withdrawal,” he said. He said making people laugh is like a superpower and the pandemic is the enemy. “It’s like kryptonite right now. It’s like we can’t do anything and a lot of us are going crazy,” Ruiz explained. He said he knows some comics have tried to do virtual comedy shows but he doesn’t understand that concept. “We need the audience. You know we have that immediate response like, 'This joke did well,'” he said. He said he can’t capture key things like that without the live interaction. He also said

April is National Poetry Month. Aurora’s poet laureate Karen Fullett-Christensen and the City’s deputy poet laureates talked about the power of poetry and how this pandemic is influencing their writing. The conversation took place Monday on Facebook live. Fermina Ponce is one of Aurora’s deputy poet laureates. She said she can’t avoid writing about COVID-19. “I’m not unaware and my creation and my muse is not getting detached or free from what we are living,” Ponce said. Anthony Stanford, another poet laureate, isn’t writing much poetry these days. He said the pandemic has inspired him to write short stories about how things will look in 10, 15 or 25 years. “Because this will be with us. If not this, then something else. This has forced us to change in all manner of things,” he said. Quentin Johnson is the third deputy poet laureate. He said even though we are inundated with daily updates about COVID-19, he wants to take a different approach when he writes. “It’s been my mission to

An Illinois church is appealing a decision that upholds Governor J.B. Pritzker's stay-at-home order for religious gatherings. Pastor Stephen Cassell with the Beloved Church of Lena sought a temporary restraining order so it could hold in-person services. Over the weekend, a judge ruled the governor’s order is constitutional in order to prevent mass infections and death. Senior Counsel Peter Breen is with the Thomas More Society, which is representing the church. He said the current limit on attendees in the coronavirus executive order violates religious freedom. “There’s no other essential business or operation in the state that has to follow a 10-person hard cap," he said. "We want to have that reversed so that Pastor Steve and the Beloved Church are able to have their services unmolested by local law enforcement or state law enforcement.” Breen said he also has qualms about the governor's recent comments. “Governor Pritzker in his most recent press conferences is saying that people

In 1963, President John F. Kennedy designated May as Older Americans Month. Since then, the population of older Americans has steadily increased. To be considered an older American, you have to be at least 60 years old. During the Kennedy Administration, there were about 17 million Americans over the age of 60. Now there are more than 68 million. In Illinois, more than 15% of the population is comprised of people who are at least 60 years old. By the year 2030, it's expected that 25% of Illinoisans will have that designation. Lifescape Community Services assists older adults in northwestern Illinois. Zach Satterlee is its fund development and marketing director. Satterlee, who is 26, says that treating all people with kindness and respect helps build a healthier population. "We need to realize that though people are older, or seniors, or at a certain age, that doesn't mean that they don't have tons of things to give to society." He continued, "We can all think of older adults in our

Governor J.B. Pritzker has released a five-part plan to allow certain regions of the state to open up to more activity. The governor is calling it Restore Illinois. The plan sets up four regions of the state. Each could open to more business every month if they were to improve on COVID-19 cases and treatment. Currently Illinois sits at phase two, with partial stay-at-home rules. Pritzker says if certain regions have improved enough by late May, they might see restrictions eased. “At that point, with face coverings as the norm, non-essential manufacturing and other non-essential businesses can open in accordance with safety guidance,” he said in his daily news conference. That would include barbershops and salons along with some retail and offices. If enough improvement is shown, schools and colleges could open in certain regions. The gatherings of large crowds will still be prohibited until there is either a vaccine or better treatment of COVID-19. As reported by Bill Wheelhouse, WUIS

With the onset of COVID-19, social media platforms show their virtues and vices once again. Millions are finding connection, entertainment, and solace, a lifeline of virtual community during a truly twisted time. Connection with friends is a blast, until someone begins posting conspiracy theories like big pharma, the World Health Organization, and the Centers for Disease Control are a cabal secretly making the world sick for profits, or opining on highly technical epidemiological research, calling into question both findings and researchers’ assumed unethical motives. COVID-19 is a new phenomenon and it takes time for researchers -- experts -- to understand it, and how to effectively and safely deal with it. Public questioning is important, but when a supermajority of experts form an informed opinion you don’t like, developing conspiracies is not a healthy path. Now, I truly believe in free speech. After all, I’m on radio. I’m just leery of the effect of unfettered, ill-informed

Coronavirus has highlighted the digital divide among low-income as well as rural students. Schools that don’t send students home with laptops rushed them equipment so they could do their homework online. School administrators say some parents claim to have internet access, but it may only be through a phone plan. Districts have distributed hot spots for families without a plan or where service is undependable. Particularly in rural communities like Montmorency, reliable internet connectivity is a major hurdle. Montmorency is a K-8 district in Whiteside County with around 230 students. Alex Moore is the superintendent. “On a good day, I get four megabytes per second download speed, so I knew that was going to be an issue. About half of our families probably have decent internet,” said Moore. Even that “good day” download speed doesn’t meet the FCC’s minimum recommendation for e-learning. For many younger students, remote learning has to be pencil and paper. Schools like Somonauk set up

The coronavirus crisis has changed the way we congregate but it hasn’t changed the way we come together. The DeKalb community is supporting nonprofits that provide much needed services to the community. The Give DeKalb County campaign, a 24-hour fundraiser, takes place May 7. Ben Bingle is the director of the DeKalb County nonprofit partnership. He said they’ve had to cancel their walk-in donation option due to COVID-19. This option was replaced with a mail-in one. Bingle said this change hasn’t impacted the generosity of the community. “We’ve seen a really strong response so far through the mail,” he said. “And so, we believe we’re going to have a very strong turnout.” Bingle said donors can also support by using the Give DeKalb County website or their mobile phones. He said the website will include profiles for each organization. Bingle suggested that the community may not even know what services are out there for them and the profiles allow them to see what’s available. “It’s

Illinois U.S. Representative Cheri Bustos is pushing for expansion of health insurance enrollment during the Covid-19 pandemic. She made the comment after leaving a House hearing Wednesday regarding the successor to the CARES Act. “I believe it’s shortsighted of the Trump administration not to reopen the enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act when we’re in the middle of a worldwide pandemic.” Bustos cosponsored a bill in April that would create this very enrollment period. It is currently in committee. Also after the hearing, she said a key area that needs to be included in future legislation is contact tracing of people who have been exposed to an individual with COVID-19. “If we don’t get a plan figured out for that, not just the money, but a plan, it is going to be very difficult for our country to get back into some state of normalcy," she said. "And that was clear in the hearing that we held today that that will be absolutely critical for our nation’s future.” Bustos also

I love words. But sometimes this romance is a curse. I am not a word expert. But I should be. I read and write. A lot. Oh, and I’m a journalist. Words are my foundation — bricks for building stories. My touchstones for telling it as it is. And always, always my friends … for being there when I need them. But … I am not a word expert. I keep a dictionary nearby. If you’re in a newsroom you can just shout. “Help! Who knows the rule on lay vs. lie?” “No one!” someone shouts back. “Find a different word.” I use little tricks to remember proper spelling. I pronounce words wrong to get the spelling right. Like “paradigm.” I know how to pronounce it but instead tend to say pair-a-dig-em to make sure I spell it correctly. For years I stumbled over the word “facade.” I pronounced it “fay-kayed,” like it’s spelled. Silly me. I do get edgy when people abuse words. Perhaps I’m too sensitive. Like most married people, I announce my plans when leaving a room. Such as, “I’m taking my shower now.”

Running is more than exercise, it’s therapy. That’s what Jonah Garcia says. So he’s training now harder than ever. Garcia’s a senior distance runner on Auburn High School’s track & field team in Rockford. Like so many spring athletes, Jonah had his final high school season stolen by the COVID-19 pandemic. He says he was feeling good about the season and had personal records he figured he could easily break. “I was hoping to go Division-1 and maybe try and get a scholarship based off of my times this year,” he said. But, luckily, this isn’t the end for Garcia. He’ll be running at Iowa Central Community College next year. And running and talking to his coaches and teammates has been a salve, he says, as his high school journey winds down in the most unpredictable way possible. “Basically, people are saying just something along the lines of control that which you can control,” said Garcia. Many spring athletes aren’t continuing to the collegiate level. They took their last swings and

Coronavirus testing will continue at a drive-thru testing site in Rockford this morning, after the state health department and the Governor’s office intervened in a problem with receiving test results. Winnebago County Board chairman Frank Haney asked for help from the state, saying 2,100 tests taken at the site at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford were “missing.” Haney said test results were not available after nearly two weeks when they should have taken only a few days. He announced Wednesday evening that testing would be suspended at that site. However, the state determined the tests were never missing, but the laboratory the state had contracted with to process the samples used a paper system to report results, significantly delaying them. The site will now be served by a different lab, which can report results to the county electronically. The Illinois Department of Public Health told the Winnebago County Health Department late Wednesday it developed a

Attention bibliophiles! If you like e-books, but have missed holding and reading real books, the Rockford Public Library is providing curbside pick-up by appointment at all of their branches. Bridget Finn is the marketing director for RPL and she says customers can reserve items through the website or by phone. "After that," Finn said, "the staff will pull the items -- if they're available -- sanitize them, call the customer, set an appointment for them to come pick up the items, and get them ready for retrieval." Customers will get called up to the door and asked to show their library card or State ID through the window. Once the staff verifies the customer's identity and items, they will ask that person to step back six feet. The staff member will then place the items on a cart and roll it outside. When the staff member is back inside the building, the customer may retrieve the items. Customers may also reserve DVDs and CDs. To reserve items from the library and learn more about

We have a winner. "Stay Home Songs" is a songwriting contest sponsored by Rockford Area Convention and Visitors Bureau. It was launched in April to provide a creative platform for musicians to highlight the resiliencey of Rockfordians amid the coronavirus pandemic. Nick Povalitis is the vice president of marketing and sports development for the RACVB. He says there were 25 entries comprised mostly of individual songwriters, but, he said "a couple [of] bands, a couple [of] mother/daughter combos and a high school" also competed. Entries were reviewed by a panel of five judges comprised of local musicians Jodi Beach, Vince Chiarelli, Duntai Mathews, Miles Nielsen, and Antonio Ramirez. They selected Rockford native Clark Kelly's song "Up, Up, Up" as the winner. "It's really an awesome song," said Povalitis, "And we're super proud of the songwriting contest, the whole experience, and what the end result thus far is. It's really a fantastic song to show the community." Kelly won a $200 gift

All Illinoisans are required to wear a mask when they are doing things like grocery shopping, using public transportation or any other activity where they can’t maintain a distance of six feet. This order went into effect May 1. But what about other things like walking or running outside? The Illinois Department of Public Health’s guidelines suggest that masks are not needed when you are doing things like mowing your lawn or even running and walking in your neighborhood. Sandra Martell is the public health administrator for Winnebago County . She said that although a mask isn’t required, people should be prepared. “I think it always becomes important for people to always be intentional about it. To have one with them if they need to wear one,” she said. “They see someone approaching them to be able to put that on or if they are going to pass someone, to make sure that they can put one on as well.” She said there is a theoretical risk that extends past a direct encounter. Martell said a

We left Studio A for this week's episode and headed to Severson Dells Nature Center in Rockford, where we caught a set from Baltimore husband and wife duo, The Honey Dewdrops. The Honey Dewdrops performing "Silver Lining" live at Severson Dells Nature Center Performing Americana and bluegrass music, The Honey Dewdrops' suck you into their songwriting with visual lyrics and soaring vocal harmonies. Listen to their performance at Severson Dells and check out some behind-the-scenes footage right here! The Honey Dewdrops performing "Horses" live at Severson Dells Nature Center Find more music from The Honey Dewdrops at their website and keep up with them on social media . The Honey Dewdrops peforming "More Than You Should Know" live at Severson Dells Nature Center

We are living through historic times: How are you documenting them? Art? Poetry? Photos? Music? We’d love to see what you’ve been creating during our stay-at-home order. Send us your original poems, essays, and photos! Take pictures of your painting, drawing, sculpture, or whatever visual medium you’re working in. Send us a link to your performance of an original song. We’ll share them on our website. Email your submissions to WNIJpix@niu.edu If you have a statement about your work you’d like to include, send it along. Give us your name and the city or town where you live. We’d like our virtual talent show to represent how our community is dealing with the COVID-19 crisis. It’s not a contest or a place for critiques: It’s a place to show off your talent and see what everyone else has been up to these past few challenging months. Work from kids is welcome, too! A few simple rules: The work must be your own. No cover songs, no memes ripped from Facebook, no plagiarizing! Shorter is good!

I’ve been watching a pair of yellow-bellied sapsuckers excavate a cavity in a dead white oak behind the shed. Since I’m home all the time, I can wander over and look at them whenever I feel like it, which is more often than you might expect. Sapsuckers, a kind of woodpecker, aren’t supposed to be here. They nest in northern Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Canada. In fact, according to the Wisconsin Breeding Bird Atlas, there has never been a confirmed nesting of yellow-bellied sapsuckers in my neck of Wisconsin. Yet here they are anyway, doing their thing in my dead oak. I guess they got lost and didn’t have a Bird Atlas. You can’t watch a woodpecker batter the trunk of a dead tree for very long without thinking about... brain trauma. I’m sure you’ve also wondered how woodpeckers sustain such head rattling without concussing themselves. My father-in-law used to say that woodpeckers could wrap their tongues around their brains to soften the blows. What an image! Without ever looking up, I

Around 60% of DeKalb students qualify as low-income, according to the Illinois Report Card . That means they also qualify for reduced or free meals. When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, schools scrambled to keep providing food for students who rely on their district for much more than education. Pansy Oderio is DeKalb’s food services director. Her team serves around 700 meals a day. They have 10 locations either at schools or mobile sites in the community. She says it’s mostly a combination of fruit, cereal, sandwiches and milk, but they try to offer more variety when they can. The program is also largely run by dozens of volunteers. “It's community members. It's teachers, our administration, they all can sign up and pick time slots to help distribute the meals,” she said. Soon they’ll also be offering boxes with a week’s worth of meals at DeKalb High School. Oderio says that’ll double the number of meals they give out. They’re also exploring ways to get more pre-cooked options for

Hospitals, nursing homes, and doctors' offices take care of us and our loved ones, but who is taking care of them? Melissa Butts has one answer. She is the co-chair of the grassroots organization Taking Care of Our Caretakers - DeKalb County. TCOCDKC has provided meals, treats, and random acts of kindess throughout the community since March. Butts says many people are involved and though she is humbled by the response, she is not surprised. "Growing up here, I know what the community can do when it pulls together," Butts said, "and I've never been more 'proudly DeKalb' in my life." Butts talked about the impact her organization has made in less than two months. "We have fed 5,300 meals or treats. We have raised $28,350." She added, "We've already spent $26,000 of that, which is awesome -- it just went back into the community." Butts says they have supported 40 restaurants and bakeries and that all of them are in DeKalb County. Butts says after they raise funds from the community, they

The Illinois State Police on Friday made an announcement about the May 6 arrest in Iowa of Clark Terry Baldwin. He was wanted for the 1991 Tennessee murders of Pamela McCall and her unborn son, and the murders of two unidentified women discovered separately in Wyoming in 1992. In the ISP announcement, titled "Illinois State Police Announce An Update to the Tammy Zywicki Case," the ISP indicated that "at this time, Baldwin does not appear to have been involved with the murder of Tammy Zywicki." Zywicki, a 21-year-old college student, was abducted and killed by an unknown assailant after experiencing car trouble on I-80 near LaSalle, IL in August 1992. Reports at the time that she had been picked up by a trucker led nowhere. Baldwin was a long-haul trucker and suspected serial killer operating during the same time frame. He fit the profile of Zywicki's murderer and it was reported that authorities were investigating whether he might be involved. The ISP said it was continuing to

Families across Illinois have had to adapt to e-learning due to the stay-at-home order. But with the school year winding down, they’ll soon have to adapt to another new normal -- the lack of summer activities. A Rockford organization has made the decision to postpone its summer camp programs until 2021. The Rockford Area Arts Council has summer art programs for children of all ages. There’s ArtsPlace, ArtsPlace II and RAAC camp. Mary McNamara Bernsten is the executive director. She said although the programs are postponed, families will still have options. “We are now working collaboratively with New Genres Art Space and the United Way of Rock River Valley to provide Art Space instruction, mentorship and skill-building while practicing safe social distancing,” she said. She said children in the programs will also wear personal protective equipment, or PPE. McNamara Bernsten said New Genres Art Space uses cutting edge technology which allows them to work with two groups of six children

It’s gameday in Denver. Before the Broncos start playing football, players are announced as they sprint onto the field through a smoke-filled tunnel shaped like three wild, galloping horses.

Pines of Arcadia. That’s the name of a new artist residency and studio north of Manistee. The studio is built into a sand dune and surrounded by pine trees. Judy Jashinsky is the owner and came with the idea to start the residency.

Next week, the movie based on Doug Stanton’s book ‘Horse Soldiers’ will hit theaters nationwide. It’s about a small group of Special Forces who rode horses to fight the Taliban. “It’s a Western with lasers,” says Doug.

Songwriter and producer Luis Resto says other music scenes are more polished than Detroit, but that’s one reason why the Motor City is so special to him. “Detroit has this street grit, what we call ‘stank,’” he says. “Which is good.”

A well-known horse whisperer has passed away in northern Michigan. Alex MacLellan was the owner of H&H Stables in Leelanau County.

When "The Soldier's Tale" premiered in 1918, an influenza epidemic cut short it's European performance tour. Ironically, the flu caused some problems for Interlochen Arts Academy students as they practiced for the show earlier this year.

The Ford Mustang from the 1968 film “Bullitt” is currently on display at the Hagerty Insurance in Traverse City.

Michael Cleveland has been called “one of the premier fiddle players of his generation, if not in all of bluegrass history.” He's also been completely blind since birth.

Jeremy Reisig, better known as brotha James, is a one-man band from Elk Rapids. He’ll do all sorts of things — beatbox, play the guitar, rap, sing — sometimes all in the same song. He’s able to do all that because he often loops his own music tracks.

Parallel 45 Theatre is about to try something new. The professional theatre company started in Traverse City seven years ago and typically produces three to four shows throughout the year. Next year, the company wants to produce more shows, for more people.

When Anders Kelto listened to sports podcasts, what he usually heard was a couple of guys sitting around bantering with each other. “There was no good audio sports journalism in the world, at least that I had been exposed to,” he says. Anders is changing that. Today, the Traverse City native is out with his own podcast — it’s a sports documentary series.

The Boardman Review is a quarterly publication founded by brothers Nick and Chris Loud. They recently published their third issue, a winter edition.

Edward Beebe was a popular photographer in northern Michigan in the early 1900s. He created postcards with his photos but often deceived people regarding the location of the shots. “I think a lot of these cards were intended to take advantage of tourists and visitors,” says local author Jack Hobey.

The Dennos Museum in Traverse City has almost three-thousand works of art in its collection. At any given time, around 280 of those works are on display, including Inuit sculptures, contemporary paintings and modern photographs. But on April 14th, the museum wants visitors to ignore most of these works and just focus on a handful of them.

Ambrosia Sipping Chocolate is a brand new, gourmet hot chocolate that’s made in Traverse City. It hits the market on April 15th. “It’s literally like you’re drinking chocolate bars because that’s exactly what it is,” says co-owner Matt Shepler.