You might want to take off your AirPods the next time you're waiting for a train at the recently overhauled 95th/Dan Ryan Red Line Terminal. On Monday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the CTA unveiled two new installations created by local artist and Stony Island Arts Bank founder Theaster Gates, most notably a 200-square-foot broadcast studio and DJ booth that will produce audio programming for Red Line commuters.
Called An Extended Song of Our People, Gates's installation will broadcast real-time programming—including live music and sets from local DJs—over the 95th Street Station's public address system (a streaming version of the station that can be accessed online is also being considered). While no schedule has been released, plans for the installation's programming outlined by the CTA include regular weekday DJs, DJs-in-residence and time for Chicago residents to take part in conversations and debates. Gates told the Sun-Times that he wants playlists to reflect “the music of these times and the music of the past of black and brown people.”
On the south end of the terminal, Gates also revealed a pair of large hanging tapestries, entitled america, america. Made from decommissioned fire hoses, the works are meant to symbolize the history of the civil rights movement in America, referencing the high-pressure hoses that were turned against African American protesters in Birmingham, Alabama, in the ’60s.
Take a look at photos and renderings of the 95th/Dan Ryan Terminal's new broadcast studio and try to imagine the jubilant Friday afternoon platform dance parties that this facility will provide the soundtrack for.
Photograph: Courtesy CTA
Illustration: Courtesy Theaster Gates