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88Nine Radio Milwaukee

4.4 (27 reviews)
Closed 9:00 am - 5:00 pm

88Nine Radio Milwaukee Photos

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Rachel F.

88Nine Radio Milwaukee is a pretty fantastic local addition to the MKE radio/music scene. Their commitment to keeping it local and keeping it real is impressive; they rock a diverse music catalog without being SO all over the place that there lacks a discernible undercurrent/common thread to it all. (While maybe not the easiest to put into words, once you spend enough time listening to Radio MKE you'll just sort of "get" that ubiquitous, unifying commonality within their diversity of sound.) The DJs are so great and just full of real person personality, which I adore. AMKE is a lovely way to start the day, and Sound Travels is an accessible way to expand one's world music horizons. I'm a big fan of the 5 o'clock shadow as well, it's an interesting avenue in which to hear cover tracks that I might not otherwise. Plus, Kallao rocks that time slot and he's probably my favorite DJ at 88Nine of only because of his whole stream of consciousness-style delivery on-air, which makes me laugh. (I feel like if I were a DJ I'd probably operate similarly. Plus, he played Michael McDonald the other day just for the hell of it, which was AWESOME.) If I'm being honest, the one big thing I wish were a little different at 88Nine? Frequency with which specific tracks are played... it's pretty dang obvious which tracks see heavy rotation on purpose and while that's par for the course in radio, it sucks to notice it happening on a great local/independent channel. That said, I can't complain too much, and they have to cover their operating costs, so I totally get it. They have a lovely station adjacent to the Stone Creek on Barclay, and sometimes they do live in-studio stuff for their members/the public. Fingers crossed that one day 88Nine will want to do an event with Yelp in that space, too! ;)

Vinyl Love!
Carrie G.

The arrival of this radio station was long overdue in Milwaukee! Most of the programming is great, with lots of exposure to new music not played elsewhere in Milwaukee. But the best thing about this station is their investment in the community. They strive to champion community organizations and non-profits and promote the efforts of those groups tirelessly. Radio Milwaukee has made themselves synonymous with Milwaukee!

Trent H.

I love seeing live music at 88.9! They often have live music over the lunch hour for bands that are in town playing another venue that evening and they also have live music in the early evenings sometimes. It's a very intimate setting so you're up close and personal with the bands which is nice being able to interact with them up close. It's great that it's connected to Stone Creek coffee so there's food, coffee, wine and beer at your fingertips. If you're in the neighborhood and hear music coming from the building make sure to stop in and see who's on stage!

Why didn't anyone bring me here before????
Rohan D.

It doesn't matter whether I'm rating this public radio station, this location as a place for live music, or 88.9 as a community supporting organization, it is the best. Arts and entertainment-wise, 88.9 is one of the best things about Milwaukee, it reminds me of WXRT back in the 1970s in Chicago. This is a great venue to see rising music acts in a very intimate setting, especially local products. The stage sound and lighting tech is great, there's a nice coffee shop adjacent and connected, as a place for music it's really a five star place. As an organization that supports Milwaukee neighborhoods and communities, 88.9 is a five star institution. As a music station that crosses genres and celebrates diversity, it's four stars in my book as they do seem to eschew the jazz they replaced, they generally avoid folk and they are weak on what Americans call "world music" (the rest of the world calls it, music) and there's too much rap and hip-hop for my taste. But generally I love the music and the on - air personalities. Check it out, 88.9 on your dial, and a modest donation gets you all kinds of swag. If you're old enough to know what a CD is, they have a great collection of performances from right here on a CD you get just for being the lowest level sponsor, totally worth it.

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Review Highlights - 88Nine Radio Milwaukee

Most of the programming is great, with lots of exposure to new music not played elsewhere in Milwaukee.

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WUWM 89.7 FM - NPR's iPhone app

WUWM 89.7 FM

4.9(8 reviews)
0.6 miDowntown, East Town

There are two main public radio stations in the Milwaukee area: WUWM (Milwaukee Public Radio) and…read moreWHAD (Wisconsin Public Radio). WHAD seems to have a much larger variety of Wisconsin-centric programming, but I prefer WUWM's lineup. I'm addicted to it, really. The majority of their programming is made up of the nationally-syndicated shows (All Things Considered, etc), but the locally-produced programs like Lake Effect are excellent. Perhaps I'm choosing not to notice a slant, but it seems like it's a rare feat for a talk radio station to be anything other than a constant stream of opinions. Consider this the panacea for Mark Belling-/Sly Sylvester-induced nausea, depending on your political stance. Can a positive Yelp review be a substitute for a monetary donation to WUWM? I hope so. Then maybe I won't feel so guilty when they do fund drives.....

I feel guilty about this review. You see, I've been a WPR gal for quite a while. I have a WPR water…read morebottle on my desk at work, and I see it every day and think happy thoughts about public radio. I have a whole grains cookbook somewhere in my kitchen for giving them money every month. There are two decals on my car, one is for WPR. But a few month ago, it must have been during a repeat of Prairie Home Companion, I decided to scan the radio in my car--something I have not done in a very long time. And I found WUWM, and I love it. I love the local shows and I love the national shows. It's not that I love WPR any less, and if there were some magical way to listen to two radio channels at the same time, I'd be good to go! Maybe once this honeymoon stage is over, I'll turn the dial up a MHz, but until then, I'm totally diggin' WUWM.

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WUWM 89.7 FM - The WUWM Station

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The WUWM Station

WHAD 90.7 FM, Wisconsin Public Radio

WHAD 90.7 FM, Wisconsin Public Radio

4.5(2 reviews)
0.9 miDowntown, East Town

The "other" public radio station in Milwaukee…read more I say "other," but honestly, it's just as good as WUWM. When the mood strikes me for more Wisconsin-based broadcasting (such as during the recent midterm elections) I'll turn the dial up a few notches to 90.7. They've got a decent run-through of the nationally syndicated shows (although I think WUWM's got a slightly better spattering) but the real draw here is the Kathleen Dunn Show. This woman is entrancing. Listening to her interview guests is like listening to my school-marm-ey aunt from Green Bay tell a story. The topic might not be particularly engrossing, the dialogue might not always be something particularly interesting, but there's just a certain "je ne sais quoi" that keeps me tuned in. Seriously, the amount of times I've sat in front of my house with the car on to allow Ms. Dunn's segment to finish is embarrassing. There's something about her voice or the way that she interacts with her guests that typifies "Wisconsin" to me, and that makes her an excellent face (well, voice) to represent Wisconsin Public Radio.

MKE outlet for WPR (Wisc. Public Radio) Ideas Network on main channel (Classical Music on their…read moreDigital subchannel). Some of their programming originates weekdays from their studio in MKE. Most Ideas Network programs come from the main studios in Madison, but much comes from other sources nation & world wide. (It's not just an outlet for mainly NPR as is the case with much of WUWM.) WPR has an illustrious 100 year history that tracks their development from an experimental broadcast radio station of the Univ. of Wisc. Physics Dept. through Educational & Instructional Radio for in school use and serving rural populations to it's present incarnation as one of the leading Pubic Radio operations in the nation. It's good listening regardless of which service you tune in, any time, day or night.

88Nine Radio Milwaukee - radiostations - Updated July 2026

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