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.
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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. -
Jazz United host Nate Chinen talks with the members of Sound Prints, including its co-leaders trumpeter Dave Douglas and saxophonist Joe Lovano, for a lively conversation about their latest recording, Other Worlds. -
Pianist and singer/songwriter Rachel Eckroth is a musical shapeshifter of the highest order. She speaks with The Checkout's Simon Rentner about her latest recording, 'The Garden.' -
Vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Melanie Charles joins The Checkout to talk about 'Y'all Don't Really Care About Black Women,' her major-label debut. -
Drummer and composer Nate Smith taps into his unique autobiography on his latest album, Kinfolk 2: See The Birds. On this episode of The Checkout, he talks about growing up in Chesapeake, Va., with an unorthodox taste for hard rock. -
'Talk Memory' is BadBadNotGood's first album in five years. Bassist Chester Hansen and saxophonist Leland Whitty join The Checkout's Simon Rentner to talk about it. -
The Checkout catches up with trumpeter and composer Steph Richards, who unleashes our sense of sound and smell on her latest recordings Supersense and Zephyr.
