Friday mornings on 1st Sky Omaha in the Morning have a particular kind of energy, and this past Love Supreme Friday was no exception. Hosts Paul B. and Buddy the God kicked off the show by steering the conversation away from the week’s political noise and toward something that feeds the soul — creativity, community, and the quiet but powerful work being done right here at home.
“We’ve been talking a lot of politics for a while and it’s time to change our mindsets over to something else — love supreme, creativity, living alive with one another,” Paul B. told viewers as the show got rolling. It was a fitting frame for what turned out to be one of the more inspired episodes of the season.
Before settling into the morning’s main interview, the hosts paused to celebrate a few local wins worth shouting about. Core Science Bio Diagnostics took home a $52,000 prize, Omaha North’s engineering program earned national recognition, and Film Streams is set to screen Boots Riley’s film I Love Boosters — a reminder that Omaha’s creative and entrepreneurial ecosystems are very much alive and producing.
The conversation also touched on Nebraska’s midterm primary results, and the numbers were sobering. Buddy the God read aloud a post from Raquel Henderson of the mayor’s office: “Only 339,000 out of more than 1.2 million registered voters in Nebraska showed up. And yet everybody has something to say. Posting on Facebook is not enough. Awareness without action changes nothing.” Viewer Kimber Snipes pushed back thoughtfully in the chat, writing, “I don’t think we should be slamming people for not voting when the system is really what has caused this. I think we need to have more education and deep dive discussions.” It was the kind of productive tension the show handles well — holding people accountable while making space for nuance.
Buddy summed up the dual mandate simply: “We got to do both — build our own ecosystems and continue to do the things that keep us in the political fight. In the long run, we got to figure this out as a nation, but for now, there are other things we got to figure out as far as how we can do for ourselves.”
That idea of ecosystem-building found its fullest expression in the morning’s featured guest: Dana Murray, executive director and founder of the North Omaha Music Academy, located on North 24th Street. A musician and educator who spent eleven years in New York City before returning home, Murray has become one of the more compelling voices shaping the future of North Omaha — not through politics, but through art, infrastructure, and an unwavering belief in young people.
Murray wasted no time connecting the dots between music education and community development. “The arts are the core of who we are as people — definitely as black people — and the history of North Omaha, and really Omaha overall,” he said. “With all the development and infrastructure work going on, very little is talked about the social, people development, the healing that has to happen to even take advantage of all the opportunities.”
At NMA, kids don’t just learn to play instruments. They learn live sound production. They run a broadcast lab, produce podcasts, and interview visiting artists — sometimes conducting those interviews themselves. “It’s not just telling them ‘you can be this’ — no, you can be this right now,” Murray said. “Once you remove those barriers, the sky’s the limit.” Viewer Senator KML captured the sentiment in the chat simply: “Thank you, Uncle Dana. You’re changing lives in big ways. We are the students.”
Murray is equally intentional about the history he teaches alongside music. Rather than simply name-dropping local legends like Buddy Miles and Victor Lewis, NMA gives students the full context of who those men were and what they meant — to Omaha, to their craft, to the world. “Now you’ve got a critical-thinking human,” Murray explained. “They’re not hearing someone say ‘oh, Buddy Miles is from here and he played with Jimi Hendrix’ — that’s in one ear and out the other. We’re teaching them who Buddy Miles was, what he represented for the community and for the world.”
Paul B. identified what he called the “secondary matrix” at work in everything Murray does. “Dana Murray teaches kids music, but the secondary matrix is to create critical thinkers who can go further in whatever field they choose.” Viewer Pops recognized the same idea in his own life, writing, “I experienced my secondary matrix in junior high when I took algebra. I was gaining proficiency and noticed I was suddenly able to think outside the box on several different levels. Music the same.”
Murray’s vision extends well beyond the current footprint of NMA. He spoke of a planned $20 million capital campaign and a future campus that could do for North Omaha what the Omaha Performing Arts complex does for downtown — functioning not just as a cultural anchor but as an economic engine. “If you can have bigger entertainment, bring larger attractions, people will come,” he said. “The larger the attractions, the larger the crowds, the more fuel you have to develop an area.”
His vision for North 24th Street — what locals affectionately call “the Deuce” — is equally bold. Murray described a fully self-sustained corridor with housing, services, eateries, and entertainment destinations, crowned eventually by a hotel that could host larger music festivals and conferences. “The area that has the most history and can truly claim to be a cultural and arts district is the North 24th Street corridor,” he said. And he sees NMA as part of the bridge that gets the community there. Viewer Pops added a piece of living history to the conversation: “Artists like Fats Domino used to stay at your grandfather’s home when he came to town to perform. So yes, more infrastructure for the artist around the Deuce corridor would be a godsend.”
Perhaps the most powerful thread running through Murray’s interview was his conviction that Black culture is not just a social asset — it’s an economic one. “Our culture is equity. Our brilliance, our artistic genius is equity. The sooner we understand that, the better off we’re going to be.” Paul B. echoed the sentiment with characteristic warmth: “We are just plain rich as a people. We are just plain rich.”
Music instructors interested in joining the NMA faculty can reach Dana Murray at dmurray@northomahamusic.org or his assistant, Andrew Bailey, at abailey@northomahamusic.org.
The show closed the way the best Love Supreme Fridays do — with gratitude, good energy, and a sense that the work is worth doing. As viewer Pops put it on his way out the door: “Thanks for another great week of shows. You and the Chat Chimers have made First Sky a true pillar in the community. Have a great weekend, and I’ll see you on Monday.”
We couldn’t have said it better ourselves. Tune in Monday morning and bring a neighbor — there’s always room at the table.
