Welcome to the Gutsy Radio newsletter! We‘ll keep it short and sweet letting you know about all the amazing music and DJs you can find on gutsyradio.org.

Gutsy Radio is a decentralized community radio station featuring music, talk, performance, and experiments broadcast live from around the United States. Each program is curated solely by its DJ, host, or performer. We present an eclectic and exciting variety of ad-free shows every night of the week and weekend mornings.

What do you need to be a Gutsy DJ?

1. A love of music and a great idea for a show!

2. A laptop or desktop computer.

3. An extensive music library OR a monthly membership to a streaming service like Apple Music.

4. Software (see details below)

5. 2 hours a month

We'll help from there! Fill out this short form to tell us more about the kind of show you want to host. Our DJs use a variety of options for broadcasting software: Mixx (Mac or PC, free), Virtual DJ (Mac or PC, Tidal streaming, $19/month), or DJay Pro (Mac only, allows Apple Music streaming, $50 annual license fee) which is to be used with AudioHijack ($70 one-time purchase). Gutsy Radio aims to make broadcasting accessible and provides onboarding and support!

🌟 Thank you 🌟

We met our goal! Many thanks to those who donated during our May Marathon. If you forgot to donate, please know that we happily accept donations all year round to keep the station on-air. We are so grateful for your support and listenership! Gutsy is a non-profit and your donations are deductible.

Click here to donate

Bite-size Album Reviews

DJ Kitty, host of KITTY LITTER, reviewed the 2024 release Moon Mirror by Nada Surf. Catch her next show on August 10 at 8am ET.

Moon Mirror by Nada Surf — My 2024 single of the year was “In Front of Me Now” from this album.  The perfect single from a more seasoned, more mature Nada Surf for more mature power pop fans. The harmonies are perfect and something you rarely hear outside of Mutt Lange productions. I’m a huge Fountains of Wayne fan, and if you miss FoW, the pop sensibility and level of craft in the songwriting and lyrics will fill that black hole, but in their own way.  The album opener, “Second Skin,” has all of that, but “In Front of Me Now” was a gut punch of what I’ve been missing. Other stand-out tracks are “Losing” and “New Propeller” – more dreamy jangle pop, “Intel and Dreams” – a high energy banger, “Open Seas” and “Give Me The Sun” – guitar driven rockers. But honestly, there is not one bad song on this album.  All killer, no filler.  This was the album I needed in my life.

DJ Emily, host of NOT A PHASE, shares 3 super bite-sized reviews of albums released in 2025. Catch her next show on August 11 at 9pm ET.

Bambi by Anxious — The Connecticut pop-punk outfit embraces a bigger and broader sonic palette on their sophomore album, which speaks to loss, conflict, and the enduring power of friendship. Read more in Emily’s newsletter.

The Longer This Goes On by Forth Wanderers — The New Jersey quintet rises from the ashes after a seven-year hiatus, bringing back their singular odd time signatures and meandering basslines with a new sense of maturity.

Phonetics On and On by Horsegirl — The young trio of indie rock scholars hone their sound on their sophomore album, produced by Cate Le Bon. The stripped-down production allows their jangly playfulness to shine.

Welcome New DJs!

Robert & Kathy in South Carolina will bring a mix of sounds from the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s highlighting rock, alternative and punk to Friday night. Catch their first show at 7pm ET on August 8!

Tim in Pennsylvania will be hosting a show every third Sunday at 12pm ET, starting on August 10! The show is called “The Matter of Ohio,” and will explore the diverse musical landscape of the state of Ohio, hosted by a lifelong Pennsylvanian.

Hop onto our Discord server to let them know you’re listening!

See our Gutsy schedule here

Top 5

This month, we present DJs Chris and Sydney’s Top 5 Songs for Summer. Tune in once a week on Saturdays from 12-2 PM ET for Coffee with Chris, a show with great conversation, hot takes and even hotter tracks from today, yesterday and tomorrow. Next show is on August 2.

5. 🔥 Africa by Toto 
4. 🔥 Too Hot by Kool & The Gang
3. 🔥 Boots on the Ground by 803Fresh
2. 🔥 Before I Let Go by Beyoncé 
1. 🔥 Feels Like Summer by Childish Gambino 

Playlist of the Month

DJs Sandie and Mark put on an excellent Camp Gutsy show for the 5th year in a row. Come for the outdoorsy and old school hits and stay for the loon song. It’s a great tribute to summer and summer camps and biting insects! And after you listen, check for more Camp Gutsy in the archives and get your S’mores supplies and fire pit ready.

The Cure - A Forest
Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers - Hey There Little Insect
The Standells - Dirty Water
Thee Oh Sees - Tidal Wave (Live)
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Mosquito
The Models - Bend Me, Shape Me
Big Country - In a Big Country
Thomas Dolby - Flying North (2009 Remaster)
Sparks - Angst In My Pants
Toni Basil - Hey Mickey
Blackalicious - Blazing Arrow
Soul Devalents - Grasshopper
Willie Nelson - Mountain Dew
Willie Nelson - Devil In a Sleepin' Bag
The Tallest Man On Earth - Like the Wheel
Arlo Guthrie - Highway In the Wind
Paul Simon - Slip Slidin' Away
Howard Jones - Like To Get To Know You Well
Kraftwerk - Numbers
KW Griff - Bring in the Katz (L-Vis 1990 Dub)
James Brown - I Got Ants In My Pants (Pt.1)
Cha Cha Slide - Cha Cha Slide (Party Mix)
Natsu Fuji & DJ Chipman - Peanut Butter Jelly Time
Wet Leg - CPR
PinkPantheress - Mosquito
Looper - Bug Rain
Perfume Genius - Slip Away
Simple Minds - Don't You (Forget About Me) [12" Version]
George Michael - Careless Whisper
Tennis - Pillow for a Cloud
Ty Segall Band - Diddy Wah Diddy
Prince - Hot Summer

. . . Blips . . .

☀ Check out the Songs of Summer playlist in Gutsy’s Mixcloud archive! It’s sure to turn up the heat! 

👏 The Gutsy Board. We know that Gutsy Radio has great DJs but several of them also help to steer the Gutsy ship! The ideas generated by our volunteer board members know no bounds and we want to thank them for the extra work they do to pay artists, update the schedule, onboard new DJs and plan promotions. Thanks to Mark, Vince, Shari, Emily, Brian, Kitty and Slaz! And extra applause goes to outgoing board members Evan and Jamie.

👋 Join us on Discord! Did you know you can chat with DJs and other listeners while listening to the radio? Some of our DJs also take requests and post links to Bandcamp during their shows. It’s a lively and fun way to chat about music and more.

To join Discord, head over to gutsyradio.org and click on the pulsing black circle in the bottom righthand corner. Accept the invite, continue to Discord and then create your username and password. You’ll be all set to join the conversation live over at Discord.

📻 Gutsy, Too! kicks off our broadcasting Monday through Friday from 5 to 7pm ET. Hand picked from our growing archive of over 2,300 shows, re-listen to all the variety that makes Gutsy Radio great. The schedule is listed each week on Instagram and gutsyradio.org.