Podcast Of The Week: Walkman World

Hey! On Saturday’s I highlight a podcast about being a creative professional. Sometimes it’s direct, sometimes it’s indirect, but it’s always entertaining and educational. This week I’ve got a CRAZY story for you…

How does art get into places that intentionally keep art out?

Through the cracks. And by the cracks, I mean the strangest, smallest, most bizarre, jewel-cased cracks.

Radiolab has a new series out called “Mixtape: Dakou.” In the first episode, they discuss the history of the Walkman, the banning/censorship of Western music in 1980s China, and how a mysterious man known as Professor Ye became the Pablo Escobar of mixtape distribution for rock and bass heads (both puns intended).

Only Radiolab can give us a story like this – about how discarded cassettes were destroyed, recycled, and then reassembled on the other side of the world in the name of spreading art to people starved for “fresh.”

If this idea grabs you, give this some time. What a story.