Longtime WRKF host Taylor Caffery will be honored at the 2025 International Folk Music Awards.
WRKF announced today that longtime host Taylor Caffery will join the Folk Radio Hall of Fame at the 2025 International Folk Music Awards (IFMAs). According to the IFMA's website, the awards ceremony will occur on Feb. 19, 2025, in Montréal, Canada, as part of the Folk Alliance International Conference.
The Folk Radio Hall of Fame honors DJs who have made an outstanding contribution to preserving, promoting, and presenting folk music and demonstrate exceptional leadership in the broadcast field. Taylor Caffery, host of “Hootenanny Power” on WRKF since 1981, joins a prestigious group of inductees celebrated for their dedication to the genre.
“Taylor has been an incredible ambassador for folk and roots music in Baton Rouge and beyond,” said WRKF General Manager Paul Maassen. “This recognition is a well-deserved honor for Taylor and reinforces WRKF’s role in providing quality cultural programs for our community.”
A native of New Orleans, Caffery’s love for folk music began as a teenager when he attended concerts by artists like Peter, Paul and Mary, Little Richard and Chuck Berry. He launched his broadcasting career in the Navy, hosting a bluegrass radio show in Spain, where the formats of programs on Armed Forces Radio heavily influenced him. Upon returning to Louisiana, he co-founded KSCL, the college radio station at Centenary College in Shreveport, where he created his first folk-centered show.
In 1981, Caffery brought his expertise and love for folk music to WRKF, launching “Hootenanny Power.” Over the years, the program has become a beloved part of WRKF’s lineup. Caffery’s dedication to public radio and folk music has earned him accolades, such as the WRKF Founders Award in 2022 and the Kari Estrin Founding President’s Award from the Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA) in 2024.
Listeners can tune in to “Hootenanny Power” every Saturday at 9 p.m. as part of WRKF’s Saturday night lineup, which includes “American Routes” with Nick Spitzer at 7 p.m. and “The Midnight Special” at 10 p.m.
For details about the Folk Alliance International Conference and the International Folk Music Awards, visit folk.org.
