KUNM Celebrates Six Decades With a Community Concert
Are you ready to gather and celebrate sixty years of music, news and community connection? We hope so, because KUNM is throwing a 60th anniversary party—and we want you to join us!
Join us at the outdoor stage at the Albuquerque Museum for a night celebrating six decades of KUNM's listener-supported radio in greater New Mexico. We'll have live music, food from Umami Moto and The Munchie Truck, and a way to leave our screens behind and gather together.
Event Details
The celebration will feature live local music:
- 4:00 p.m. - Doors
- 4:45 p.m. - Cadillac Bob & The Rhinestones
- 6:30 p.m. - Red Light Cameras
- 8 p.m. - Paul Pino and The Tone Daddies feat. Sherri Gonzalez
DJ sets by Three Deuce Luce and DJ Roselight and celebrations of long-running music programs throughout the evening.
Space is limited, so don't wait to lock in your spot.
Seating is available for the first 400 guests. So, if you plan to arrive late, bring a chair or picnic blanket!
Last year, the federal government eliminated all funding for public media. KUNM may be defunded, but we are undaunted and we are going strong! This is more than an anniversary gala—it's a chance to invest in the future of local, independent media for New Mexico. Your purchase helps to keep KUNM healthy and strong.
KUNM 60th Anniversary Art Contest Winner:
Avery Silfer
Artist Bio: I have lived in NM my whole life and grew up listening to KUNM. It has always been a door to the parts of New Mexico I wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity to know. People I can trust to keep me in the loop! Roadrunners have appeared on streets ahead of me during every stage of my life, and I did my best to honor this special bird!
Instagram: @averysilferart
Substack: Avery Rita Silfer
Merch with Avery's design available at the event!
KUNM's roots stretch back to 1960, when it began as KNMD, a student-led AM station broadcast through the power lines of campus buildings. The station received an FCC license for an FM frequency and began broadcasting from atop the UNM Student Union Building on Oct. 19, 1966 and in 1978 it joined the early cohort of NPR member stations.
The station has been a magnet for local talent, hosting local musicians alongside national acts and giving local journalists and journalism students a place to work and volunteer. Native America Calling, The Children's Hour and Peace Talks Radio all started at KUNM. Today, a staff of 25 professionals and more than 100 volunteers produce news, public affairs and live entertainment for about 1 million people across central and northern New Mexico.
"KUNM and public radio is much more than a broadcast facility or a format. It's a part of the connective tissue for communities across New Mexico and the country," said Jeffrey Pope, general manager of KUNM. "The student and volunteer programmers at KUNM, then and now, provide a direct link to the community and what was important in New Mexico."
About KUNM
KUNM's mission is to inform, entertain and engage New Mexicans with trusted journalism, exceptional music and vibrant cultural content. A service of the University of New Mexico based in Albuquerque, KUNM is an affiliate of NPR, Native Voice One, American Public Media and Pacifica. It reaches listeners throughout Albuquerque, Santa Fe and the Northern Rio Grande Valley, including full-power signals in Socorro, Española and the Taos area.
