University of Washington lecturer-turned-DJ amplifies Indigenous music on Seattle radio show

Think Out Loud

Tory Johnston is an enrolled member of the Quinault Indian Nation and a lecturer in American Indian Studies at the University of Washington. He grew up in the Quinault Indian reservation on the Washington coast with a love for music, whether it was the loud guitar riffs of Metallica or the jazz improvisation of Thelonious Monk.

In 2023, with no prior experience as a radio DJ, he applied to work on a new show Seattle radio station KEXP was launching that appealed to his academic and personal explorations of Indigenous music. He got the job and is today the co-host and DJ of “Sounds of Survivance.” Airing on Mondays, each episode exposes listeners to artists spanning musical continents and styles, from classical piano compositions by Navajo musician Connor Chee to thrash metal songs performed by New Zealand band Alien Weaponry in English and Te reo Māori. Johnston joins us to talk about the show’s eclectic catalog and what’s currently on his music playlist.