Vernon Neal is the host of the podcast Rhapsody in Black, where we turn up the voices of Black artists in the world of classical music. He was born in Belize but raised in Los Angeles. After arriving in the Midwest as a teenager, he discovered an insatiable interest in learning how to create music and taught himself how to play various instruments. “Music has been my cheer squad at my proudest moments and a shoulder to lean on in my lowest,” he said. This passion for music was, for a time, matched by his passion for sports. This led him to start a strength and conditioning gym created for people of underestimated and underrepresented backgrounds to feel welcome, capable and whole in the world of strength and conditioning. He also focused on his freelance audio-production business fusing hip-hop, jazz, pop and metal while putting his degree in audio engineering and live sound to full use. He sharpened his chops in the production aspect of live television broadcasting at KSTP in Minneapolis before joining Minnesota Public Radio in 2022. He remains committed to building community and uplifting underrepresented groups through the healing power of music.
Recent Contributions
- 05-16-2024
Wynton Marsalis has jazz and classical chops - 05-09-2024
Billie Holiday's 'Strange Fruit' speaks to us about racial violence - 05-02-2024
Roberta Flack is the shepherd of a new R&B sound - 04-25-2024
Composer Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson was an advocate for the Black Community - 04-18-2024
Organist Alcee Chriss III is breaking down barriers in classical music - 04-11-2024
Grammy-nominated cellist Seth Parker Woods pushes boundaries of classical music - 04-04-2024
Black Violin mixes hip-hop and classical to create an unabashedly Black sound - 03-28-2024
Woman-powered trio String Queens making a difference in the world - 03-21-2024
Celebrating composer Julia Perry's 100th birthday - 02-29-2024
Composer Jessie Montgomery uses music to connect with the world