Multidisciplinary artist JG Everest hosted and curated Making Music, a conversation series at the Whole Music Club (University of Minnesota) and the Walker Art Center, from 2005 to 2013. Everest interviewed dozens of local and national musicians for the series, including the Kronos Quartet, Alan Sparhawk, Jason Moran, Andrew Bird, Dirty Projectors, Dessa, Christy Costello, Jeremy Messersmith, Mankwe Ndosi, Ed Ackerson, Dan Wilson, Slug, Lazerbeak, P.O.S, Wendy Lewis, Lori Barbero (Babes In Toyland), Ryan Olson (Poliça), and Dave King (The Bad Plus, Happy Apple).

As of April 6, Making Music lives again, now hosted by local legend Mark Wheat. The rebooted Making Music series opens with Mark Wheat—marking his return to the music scene—joining original host JG Everest for a lively conversation about JG’s career, the importance of talking with musicians about their creative process, and the show’s legacy. This show is a symbolic handoff as the series begins a new chapter and is supported by DEMO’s Minnesota Music Archive.

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Mark Wheat is a Twin Cities radio legend. He started his local radio career as a volunteer in 1993 on KFAI, hosting the Local Sound department until 1998, when he was employed by the U of M to be program coach at the student-run station Radio K. In 2005, he was the first DJ to be hired by Minnesota Public Radio to help start The Current, continuing as the evening host for 15 years before taking an early retirement.

Wheat has always been a member of and booster for Minnesota nonprofits striving to support local musicians. He helped organize and host the Minnesota Music Academy awards shows in the late ‘90s; was on the first iteration of DEMO, formed by First Avenue around the turn of the century; and helped create and vice chair the Minnesota Music Coalition. He was involved in Making Music’s planning stages while working at Radio K but had to depart the project when he moved to MPR. This relaunch is a perfect project for him to make a return to the music scene he loves.

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JG Everest has been enmeshed in Minnesota's music ecosystem for over 3 decades as a musician, composer, director, promoter, DJ, record label founder, artist organizer, music teacher, music director, and record store clerk. He has been a member of many bands and ensembles, including Roma di Luna, Lateduster, The Sensational Joint Chiefs, Vicious Vicious, BLACKFISH, Sans Le Systeme, Dylan Hicks, and Gold Minefield.

For over a decade, Everest was music director and lead collaborator for the acclaimed Catalyst dance company with choreographer Emily Johnson. In recent years, as a composer, he has developed a new model for outdoor, site-specific sound-and-performance installations that he calls "Sound Gardens." These spatial "symphonies" are composed in 3-D and designed for more than 50 small speakers spread across acres of outdoor natural space, as a way for attendees to connect more meaningfully with their own creativity and the natural world. He was a 2019 McKnight Composers Fellow.

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The Minnesota Music Archive (MMA) is a digital archive of recordings by Minnesota musicians, creating a shared space for connection across styles, generations, and cultures. By breaking down silos, the MMA celebrates the artists who make our scene thrive and keep their music accessible for everyone. The Making Music Series brings this mission to life with live conversations about the creative process, sparking discovery and keeping Minnesota’s music culture vibrant.