Chad Radford: “I don’t see Atlanta as a purely hip hop town or a purely rock town”

This episode of Hybrid Atlanta features Chad Radford, the music editor of Creative Loafing, Atlanta’s iconic alternative publication. In this first part of the interview, he talks about covering Atlanta’s music scene for 20 years and its evolution under the tension of being labeled as a “purely hip-hop town or a purely rock town.” Radford also discusses the problem of looking at the South through New York lenses.

In the second part of the interview, Chad Radford talks about Atlanta’s cultural diversity, the impact of Trump’s election on our perception of cultural inclusivity, and how to cover beyond “four white dudes playing indie rock.” He recaps some examples of the Hispanic presence in the local music scene (from Victor Mariachi to Yukons, Kibi James, and Upchuck).

Hybrid Atlanta is a video series of interviews with local artists and creatives whose work establishes a dialogue with LatinX and global cultures.

Created by Paul Alonso, it is produced by Polivision, a multimedia and bilingual outlet based in Atlanta.