Kai Turner The "Blues Vassal" has been on the airwaves since 1991. During that time 100's of artists have appeared on the show either via live performances or interviews. With "Strictly Blues" Kai Turner has created a show that has garnered a reputation for being upfront and blunt about the importance of Blues music in today's society as well as the vital role it has played in American history and pop culture.
Strictly Blues has routinely been cited as the best show on the radio.
Kai Turner The Blues Vassal has been chosen as Denver's Top Radio Personality by5280 Magazine
and received the
"Best Blues Show" award from WestWord..
Michael Roberts Writes About Kai on theWestword Blog
Press Release Kai Turner, the host of "Strictly Blues," has been named the recipient of the 2009 Keeping the Blues Alive Award (Commercial Radio) from the Blues Foundation, which also produces the Blues Music Awards, the Blues Hall of Fame Induction, and the International Blues Challenge. A panel of blues professionals select a recipient each year from those who work behind the scenes to make significant contributions that keep the rich history of this uniquely American music at the forefront of American culture. The award will be presented Saturday February 7that the Downtown Doubletree Hotel in Memphis Tenn., during the 25th International Blues Challenge, the world's largest gathering of blues bands, as well as seminars, presentations, and receptions for blues societies, fans and professionals. Besides broadcasting the blues in Colorado for more than 17 years, Turner, known as "The Blues Vassal," has acted as its "happy and humble servant" by developing an infrastructure for local and national artists to thrive. Turner encourages venues and promoters to include blues music in their events and his show on one of the country's top classic rock stations provides access to tremendous reach with well-crafted play lists and effective cross-promotion to foster support of blues music throughout the region. In 2000 "Strictly Blues" was chosen as the best blues show in Denver, and in 2004 Turner was chosen the city's top radio personality. Turner was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and lived in several countries as a child before his family settled just outside of Chicago, where he first heard the blues when he was 12 or 13 years old. By the time Turner was 15 he was herding family and friends to the annual Blues Festival in Grant Park. Soon after he could drive, he was finding his way into the city's blues clubs to meet the artists in person. "I always figured I'd grow out of it, but the more I heard it the more I continued to love it," Turner said. "After realizing that I have no musical talent, I focused on being a good listener instead." Turner moved west to attend college in Fort Collins in 1989. "I had a hard time finding blues," he recalled. "This led me to the campus radio station where I demanded that they play more on their station." They asked him to play the blues and share his knowledge on-air. "I stayed as long as I could, but after running out of classes to take they gave me a degree and told me to leave," he said. Turner then turned an invitation for a tour of the facilities at KRFX into a job as the blues deejay, where the show is still going strong after 13 years. For more information about the Blues Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, visit http://www.blues.org/.
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