
Simon Rentner
For more than 15 years, Simon Rentner has worked as a host, producer, broadcaster, web journalist, and music presenter in New York City. His career gives him the opportunity to cover a wide spectrum of topics including, history, culture, and, most importantly, his true passion of music from faraway places such as Europe, South America, and Africa.
He is the host and producer for The Checkout, which showcases new music “on the other side of jazz” by some of the best artists on this planet including Herbie Hancock, Robert Glasper, Hiatus Kiayote, Hermeto Pascoal, Kamasi Washington, Flying Lotus, Henry Threadgill, Cassandra Wilson, and many others.
Aside from working in media, he is a curator and producer of concerts in New York City at spaces such as The Beacon Theatre, Jazz at Lincoln Center, The Town Hall, Merkin Concert Hall, The (old) Knitting Factory, Le Poisson Rouge, and Bryant Park. Some of the artists he’s presented include Hugh Masekela with Abdullah Ibrahim, The Punch Brothers, Cecil Taylor, Rosanne Cash, and the late Andrew Hill.
In addition to The Checkout, Rentner has hosted and produced content for NPR, PRI, WGBH, and WNYC. He’s won PRINDI awards for his news stories on The WBGO Journal. He’s produced long and short content for Jazz Night in America, Jazz at Lincoln Center Radio (hosted by both Ed Bradley and Wynton Marsalis), Toast of the Nation, Afropop Worldwide, Marketplace, and The Leonard Lopate Show.
His radio shows also feature celebrated voices and minds, not limited to music, such as, Jessica Lange, Ellsworth Kelly, Lee Friedlander, Mark Morris to name a few. He’s also covered the music cultural histories from Colombia, France, Sierra Leone, Mali, Argentina, Madagascar, Venezuela, Peru, Canada, and, naturally, the United States.
-
Ring in the new year with music from Chucho Valdés, José James, Ibrahim Maalouf and Ranky Tanky with Ms. Lisa Fischer.
-
Mark Guiliana, Randy Weston, Herbie Hancock, Robert Glasper, Abdullah Ibrahim, and Kamasi Washington are the artists featured in this retrospective podcast celebrating the top Jazz Night In America and The Checkout productions over the years.
-
Flying Lotus joins Miguel Atwood-Ferguson and Brandee Younger at Carnegie Hall as part of its citywide AfroFuturism festival.
-
Winter Jazzfest artist-in-residence Angel Bat Dawid premieres 'Afro-Town Topics: A Mythological Afrofuturist Revue,' and talks about it on The Checkout with Simon Rentner.
-
As his trio settles in for a week at The Village Vanguard, pianist and composer Vijay Iyer stops by The Checkout to share insights, and a glimmer of hope.
-
On The Checkout, keyboardist Cory Henry pinpoints the album that marks his rite of passage as an artist.
-
Michael Bourne interviews Diana Krall and tells stories of Charlie Haden, Dave Brubeck, and Tony Bennett at the Montreal International Jazz Festival.
-
Ring in the New Year with music from the Quinteto Astor Piazzolla, Brandee Younger, Cory Henry, Keyon Harrold, and Louis Cole.
-
In 2003, legendary organist Booker T. Jones and pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph met for the first time at WBGO. That studio performance comes to light again as we celebrate the retirement of our own legendary jazz jock, Michael Bourne.
-
On The Checkout, José James explains why it's finally time for him to release a holiday recording, featuring his takes on Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, and Donny Hathaway.