WXPN Announces The Soundtrack To America’s 250th Anniversary

As the country prepares to celebrate our 250th anniversary, WXPN is marking the moment with music — honoring both the songs that shaped the city and new ones being written in its spirit. Through four bold initiatives, the station will serve as the soundtrack to America’s Semiquincentennial.

Throughout the rest of the year, WXPN will roll out The Philly 250, a curated collection of music from, by, and about Philadelphia, and Philly Anthems, a commissioning project bringing together established and emerging artists to create new work inspired by independence. Additional programming, including World Cafe: Sense of Place – Philadelphia and Sound of History, further highlights the city’s rich musical legacy while amplifying the voices shaping its future.

Philly Anthems

Philly Anthems, supported by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage, will present new works created specifically for the project by established artists—Christian McBride, Eric Bazilian, Devon Gilfillian, Eliza Hardy Jones, and Lady Alma—alongside seven rising Philadelphia artists.

To expand the project’s reach, WXPN today announced the 24 Hour Song Challenge – Philly Anthems Edition, with registration now open at songchallenge.xpn.org. The challenge invites creators everywhere to write and record an original song in just 24 hours, based on a surprise prompt released June 6. One grand prize winner will receive a $5,000 honorarium, a performance slot at this year’s XPoNential Music Festival and Philly Music Fest, a $500 Russo Music Gift Card, 10 hours of studio time at MilkBoy Recording Studio, songwriting workshops, a premium WXPN Membership, and, most importantly, their finished song on the upcoming Philly Anthems album.

The Philly 250

From July 3–5, WXPN will celebrate Philadelphia’s extraordinary musical legacy with The Philly 250, a special programming series counting down the top 250 songs from, by, and about the city. In the lead-up, beginning May 4, the station will roll out more than 40 essential moments in local music history through daily on-air features. Listeners can expect highlights ranging from David Bowie recording Young Americans at Sigma Sound Studios to the inaugural Roots Picnic in 2008 and Pearl Jam closing out the Spectrum in 2009.

Sound of History

On Juneteenth, The Museum of the American Revolution will debut Sound of History, in partnership with ArtPhilly and Black Music City, a collaboration between WXPN, WRTI, and RECPhilly. Artists Zeek Burse and Laurin Talese have spent the past six months working closely with the Museum—exploring its collections and exhibitions, attending programs, and engaging with its historians—to create original musical works bridging 1776 and 2026. These new compositions will premiere on June 19 during Philadelphia’s inaugural What Now: 2026 citywide arts festival. Free tickets are now available.

World Cafe Sense of Place – Philadelphia

Finally, WXPN will turn its acclaimed World Cafe Sense of Place series toward its hometown with a deep dive into the musical DNA of Philadelphia. Airing June 22 through July 3 for an extended two-week run, the series will explore Philadelphia’s storied DIY scene, American Bandstand, the Mummers String Band tradition, music of the American Revolution, new interviews with artists like Todd Rundgren as well as selections from the extensive World Cafe archives including (among others) Christian McBride, Dr. Dog, Mannequin Pussy, Questlove, The War on Drugs and Japanese Breakfast.

Past installments in the World Cafe Sense of Place series have most recently profiled Baltimore, Boston, Denver, Fort Collins, and Provo in the US, and Rome, Montreal, and Tokyo internationally. All previous episodes can be found HERE.