Live Wire with Luke Burbank!

Live Wire Radio is an independently produced radio show based in Portland, Or. Hosted by Luke Burbank and announced by Elena Passarello, the show artfully blends unpredictable conversation, live music, and original comedy featuring all kinds of cultural talent and creative minds, from emerging artists to established acts. Live Wire  champions discovery by producing engaging, spirited, and genuine live and listening experiences for a local and national audience.

GABY MORENO
Grammy and Latin Grammy-winning artist Gaby Moreno is a singer-songwriter and producer whose soulful sound seamlessly blends English and Spanish. Since moving to Los Angeles from her native Guatemala, she has released nine acclaimed albums, won a Grammy Award for X Mí (Vol. 1) (Best Latin Pop Album, 2024), earned two Latin Grammy Awards, and received Grammy nominations for Alegoría and Illusion. Moreno has collaborated and performed with artists including Tracy Chapman, Ani DiFranco, Mavis Staples, Buena Vista Social Club, and Chris Thile. Fresh off her Broadway debut as Persephone in Hadestown, Moreno is returning to the stage this fall with performances in Oregon and Southern California, with additional tour dates to be announced.

MARY AFSARI-HOWARD
Mary Afsari-Howard, DO, is a board-certified OB/GYN on a mission to change how health care is offered to her favorite people—patients like you. She leads the expert team of clinicians at FemForward Health in Portland, Oregon. Dr. Mary is deeply concerned about the state of women’s healthcare in the country and is transforming 20 years of knowledge and experience into a model of care that is accessible, inviting, and inclusive. Dr. Mary is a graduate of the University of Connecticut School of Medicine Ob/Gyn Residency with a Masters in Health Communication from Tufts/Emerson. Dr. Mary moved to Portland in 2010 and was a partner at Gresham Women’s Healthcare, PC. She is a highly trained robotic and laparoscopic surgeon and cared extensively for high-risk pregnant populations. She is also an author, with her memoir being published by Simon and Schuster. Dr. Mary is now embarking on a journey to bring healthcare and reproductive justice directly into the neighborhoods and communities that need it most.

SAM ROBERTS
Sam Roberts, a 50-year veteran of New York journalism, is an obituaries reporter and formerly the Urban Affairs correspondent at the New York Times. He hosts the New York Times’ “Close Up,” which he inaugurated in 1992, and the podcasts “Only in New York,” anthologized in a book of the same name, and “The Caucus.” He is the author of “A History of New York in 27 Buildings,” “A History of New York in 101 Objects,” and “Grand Central: How a Train Station Transformed America,” among others. He has written for The New York Times Magazine, The New Republic, New York, Vanity Fair, and Foreign Affairs.