Tucson, meet KP.
He's a DJ and producer, an Army veteran who came home from Afghanistan, and the engine behind Soon Spins — Tucson's own internet radio station. But this conversation is really about a feeling: that somewhere after 2020, our city stopped smiling. KP came here from South Dallas and felt the culture shock — a place where strangers scowl instead of smile — and he's spent ten years trying to figure out why, and what it would take to bring the joy back. We get into the dance culture we lost, the grief under the surface, the people who quietly built something real, and why he believes Tucson already has everything it needs. It's fiery, it's tender, and it's a love letter to a city still deciding what it wants to be.
If this resonates, the best thing you can do is watch, drop a comment about something specific he said, and share it with a Tucsonan who needs to hear it.
— Gregorio C., El Tucsonan
⏱ CHAPTERS
0:00 — "We lost it" (cold open)
2:02 — Who is KP: DJ, producer & Soon Spins
3:51 — "Here, people scowl instead of smile": Tucson's melancholy
5:35 — A city unsure what it wants to be (transplants & development)
9:09 — Mountains, not high-rises
11:56 — Earth Day for the Hood & the TCE cancer story
14:42 — The Army, Afghanistan & coming home
21:16 — Finding music: the saxophone
23:06 — Debbie, the Dunbar & "let me be your intern"
32:36 — South Dallas to North Dallas: two worlds
34:38 — "Tucson was popping… and we lost it"
36:08 — Losing Isaac & the night COVID hit
39:34 — Power, complacency & who's really in the room
41:59 — What "not complacent" actually looks like
47:16 — Soon Spins: the dream & the mission
51:48 — George Floyd, walking out & starting over
56:34 — Bringing the dance culture back (El Tambor)
1:01:01 — DJing in Europe, paying artists & the end of the "American dream"
1:06:40 — On rap, Texas roots & Kendrick
1:13:50 — Teaching kids: Soon Spins in the schools
1:18:47 — Reagan took the instruments out of schools
1:24:23 — "Life starts right now": KP the mentor
1:29:57 — Last words & shout-outs
🎵 MUSIC & RELEASES (KP)
• No Titles No Masters — KP's album
• KPMADMAN — the "melancholy town" release
• "The Devil Wears a Suit and a Tie" — single
• Collaborations with Q (1202 / THEM&i)
• Live mixes & sessions on Soon Spins
(All linked below.)
🔗 LINKS
Watch ad-free + full episodes / support the show → https://eltucsonan.com/supporters/sign_in
Sponsor an episode → https://eltucsonan.com/pages/sponsor
KP → Instagram @kpmadman · https://kpmadman.bandcamp.com · https://soonspins.com
El Tucsonan → Instagram @eltucsonan · TikTok @el.tucsonan · Subscribe on YouTube ↑
📚 BOOKS, WRITERS & IDEAS REFERENCED
H. Rap Brown · The Last Poets · Patrice Lumumba · "critical regionalism" — the idea of making something rooted in where you actually are, instead of importing another city's identity.
🎬 NAMES & PLACES MENTIONED
In loving memory of Isaac — a cultural bearer in Tucson's scene.
People: Debbie (KP's OG at the Dunbar) · Q · Tim (built the Soon Spins site) · Ms. Sanders · Duke · the guest DJs who've spun on Soon Spins.
Places: Soon Spins · KXCI 91.3 · Dunbar Pavilion · Hotel Congress · El Tambor · the Sonoran Room · Utterback Middle School · Davis Elementary's mariachi program.
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This episode is a production of Self Media Productions LLC. Views expressed are the guest's own. Where on-screen text references a public event, it cites published news reporting.
© 2026 Self Media Productions LLC. All rights reserved.
