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Kansas City Today

2 of Kansas City's Black women trailblazers

By Brian Ellison,
Byron J. Love
Published June 20, 2022 at 4:00 AM CDT
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One African-American chef from Kansas City is creating a new community around food in the 18th and Vine District. Also, we hear about a Kansas City jazz singer who made waves across the nation 75 years ago for her specific type of blues.

Along one of Kansas City’s most storied avenues, a new mission is taking shape inside the 140-year-old stone structures near 21st and Vine Streets. That’s where Chef Shanita McAfee-Bryant is working to create a new, food-based solution to urban hunger and unemployment. KCUR’s Luke Martin shares her story.

Seventy-five years ago this week, a Kansas City jazz singer by the name of Julia Lee, known for pioneering a specific type of racy blues, recorded her first big hit. But there’s a lot more to her story than just lyrical wordplay and double entendre. Mackenzie Martin of the KCUR Studios podcast A People's History of Kansas City shares the legacy of Julia Lee.

Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR onTwitter andFacebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love, Trevor Grandin, and KCUR Studios and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

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Kansas City Today Juneteenthlocal food18th and Vineblues/jazzKansas City HistoryPeople's History Kansas City
Brian Ellison
As a host and contributor at KCUR, I seek to create a more informed citizenry and richer community. I want to enlighten and inspire our audience by delivering the information they need with accuracy and urgency, clarifying what’s complicated and teasing out the complexities of what seems simple. I work to craft conversations that reveal realities in our midst and model civil discourse in a divided world. Follow me on Twitter @ptsbrian or email me at brian@kcur.org.
See stories by Brian Ellison
Byron J. Love
As an on-demand producer, I am focused on using my skills and experiences across multiple digital applications, platforms and media fields to create community focused audio, video and on-demand products for KCUR Studios. The media that I produce aims to inform, entertain and connect with the Kansas City metro area as we continue to learn from each other. Email me at byronlove@kcur.org.
See stories by Byron J. Love
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