Dave Popkin
WBGO news/music contributorDave Popkin joined the WBGO news and content team in 2023. He has interviewed many of the top blues artists in the world for the station. Additionally, Dave is a features writer for Blues Blast Magazine, a member of the North Jersey Blues Society, and a regional judge for The Blues Foundation's International Blues Challenge. He is a former host of "The Blues Show" on WVUM in Miami. He's also a radio announcer for Seton Hall basketball and was named the 2024 New Jersey Sportscaster of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Dave is a singer in the NJ-based band Porch Rockers. He has chaired and played in eight ROCK HUNGER concerts that raise funds for the food pantry at Nutley Family Service Bureau, where he also serves as Board President. He lives in Nutley with his wife Cindy and faithful friend Clarence.
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WBGO’s Dave Popkin recently spoke with 17-year-old guitarist and bandleader Marel Hidalgo about beginning to play guitar at the age of four, Hidalgo's Jamaican roots, upcoming performances, and learning to arrange for an orchestra. -
WBGO’s Dave Popkin recently spoke with Joe Bonamassa about the life and music of BB King, the two’s 25-year friendship/mentorship, and Bonamassa’s new project honoring King “B.B. King's Blues Summit 100" -
WBGO's Dave Popkin chats with pianist John Beasley about touring with Miles Davis in the 1980s and the invaluable education of that experience, as well as Beasley's current tour entitled Unlimited Miles – Miles Davis at 100 which makes a stop at Birdland in New York, March 31-April 4. -
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On this episode of The Art of the Story, WBGO's Dave Popkin speaks with blues guitarist and singer Solomon Hicks -
WBGO's Dave Popkin recaps the 2026 Jazz Congress at Jazz at Lincoln Center -
The Future of Public Radio was one of the many panel discussions at the 2026 Jazz Congress at Jazz at Lincoln Center in NYC -
WBGO's Dave Popkin chats with guitarist and radio host John Pizzarelli at the 2026 Jazz Congress -
On this episode of The Art of the Story, we celebrate Lee Mergner who received the Bruce Lundvall Visionary Award at the 2026 Jazz Congress -
WBGO's chats with Herlin Riley at Jazz Congress following the Jazz Legacies Fellowship panel discussion
