Soulection celebrates 15 years with upcoming L.A. show

In 2011, Joe Kay debuted Soulection as a college radio show at Cal State Long Beach, spinning rare B-sides, progressive beats, inventive flips of classic records and soulful underground tracks. Fifteen years later, the niche local broadcast on K-Beach Radio has ballooned into a cultural movement that extends far behind his alma mater's campus. Beyond its flagship on Apple Music with nearly 750 episodes (Grammy-winning producer Swizz Beatz was a recent guest DJ), Soulection is also an independent record label, live event and clothing brand. Operating under the banner "the Sound of Tomorrow," the collective championed artists like Kaytranada, Brent Faiyaz, Bryson Tiller and Snoh Aalegra before they were household names. Still, Kay remains hungry for more. "There's so much more to do," says Kay, who released his first project "If Not Now, Then When?" last year. "We're at this breaking point of not just being underground," he adds.