Fund Drive Special:
Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.
Hard Knock Radio
4:00 PM PACIFIC TIME: MONDAYS - FRIDAYS
Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting. Hosts Davey D and Anita Johnson give voice to issues ignored by the mainstream while planting seeds for social change.
Fund Drive Special: Journalist Roland Martin breaks down what a high profile Texas primary revealed about elections, voter turnout, and the real mechanics of winning statewide.
Davey D opened with the widely watched Democratic primary between Jasmine Crockett and James Talarico and asked Roland if he was surprised Crockett lost. Roland said he was not surprised and argued that endorsements and momentum do not win elections. Campaigns win through boots on the ground and infrastructure. He pointed to Talarico’s early start, … Continued
Fund Drive Special: What Kind of Bird Can’t Fly: A Memoir of Resilience and Resurrection
What Kind of Bird Can’t Fly: A Memoir of Resilience and Resurrection As part of a Black History Month celebration at San Francisco State University, Hard Knock Radio host Davey D sat in conversation with longtime organizer and formerly incarcerated activist Dorsey Nunn. What unfolded was not a ceremonial talk, but a grounded and at times raw discussion … Continued
Fund Drive Special: Iran, Gaza, and the Politics of Permanent Crisis
Davey D opens the conversation by naming the moment as intentionally chaotic and disorienting, with flashpoints piling up at once Iran, Cuba, Venezuela, Gaza, and ICE raids. He frames the goal as making sense of the noise, then brings in Medea Benjamin of Code Pink as someone who confronts power directly and has been in … Continued
Fund Drive Special: The Escalating Federal Crackdown tied to Immigration Enforcement in Minnesota
Hard Knock Radio host Davey D spoke with Rebecca Smith of Speak Minneapolis to unpack the escalating federal crackdown tied to immigration enforcement in Minnesota and its ripple effects on communities, journalists, and civil liberties. Smith explained that despite public claims from federal officials that Operation Metro Surge had ended, hundreds of federal agents remain active across Minneapolis and surrounding … Continued
Fund Drive Special: Why Willie Mae Thornton Matters by DJ Lynnee Denise
Davey D speaks with DJ Lynnee Denise about her book, Why Willie Mae Thornton Matters. A queer, Black “biography in essays” about the performer who gave us “Hound Dog,” “Ball and Chain,” and other songs that changed the course of American music. Born in Alabama in 1926, raised in the church, appropriated by white performers, … Continued
Fund Drive Special: Trump 2026 State of the Union Address: Takeaways
Davey D reconnects with Dr James Taylor to unpack the State of the Union and what it signals about where the country is headed. Taylor opens by saying the speech was heavy on grievance and spectacle and light on real policy, describing Trump as someone who thrives on division and public performance rather than governing. … Continued
Fund Drive Special: In Conversation with long-time educator Hodari Davis
Davey D interviews educator and scholar activist Hodari Davis during Black History Month, centering the urgency of teaching Black history in a moment when it is being restricted, distorted, and erased in schools across the country. Davey D opens by praising Davis as a teacher’s teacher and longtime community educator, noting the work Davis and … Continued
Fund Drive Special: In Conversation with Salvador Reza
On Hard Knock Radio, host Davey D welcomes longtime Arizona organizer and community strategist Salvador Reza for a wide ranging conversation that traces the roots of today’s anti immigrant policies back to Arizona’s political experiments of the early 2000s. Reza joins the show to discuss his book Macehualli Day Laborers Spiritual Roots of Our Fight Against Sheriff Arpaio, which centers … Continued
Fund Drive Special: In the Hour of Chaos: Art and Activism with Public Enemy’s Chuck D
On this Hard Knock Radio conversation, host Davey D connects with Chuck D of Public Enemy for a wide ranging talk that starts with loss and memory, then expands into technology, culture, and the stakes of how narratives get shaped. The immediate reason for the call is the passing of Reverend Jesse Jackson. Davey D … Continued