Kurt Vile: Philadelphia’s Been Good to Me | Studio 2 from WHYY | 5/29/26

There are a lot of rockers from Philly. Patti Smith, Todd Rundgren, Hall and Oates. But if you’re asking which rocker is the most Philly, Kurt Vile is a strong contender. Over the last two decades, Vile’s melodic, trance-inducing tracks have won him national attention. Here in Philly, though, the Lansdowne native is something of a cult hero – with a mural along the El tracks to prove it. Vile, the third of ten siblings, started out making lo-fi tracks in his bedroom — with sights set not on LA or Nashville, but on the Philly concert scene. He’s bringing it all back home with his latest album, mostly recorded in his Mt. Airy basement. To talk about the release of Philadelphia’s Been Good To Me, Kurt Vile sat down with Avi Wolfman-Arent for this Studio 2 Extra.