Peter La Chapelle (1970-) was born in rural Arizona and grew up exposed to an eclectic, localized radio universe that included live mariachi performances, the chants of San Carlos Apache medicine men, and the recordings of Hank Williams Sr., Patsy Cline, and Waylon Jennings. After attending the University of Arizona, La Chapelle worked as a journalist in Bakersfield for four years covering everything from favorite sons Buck Owens and Merle Haggard to migrant farm worker camps to the environmental hazards created by the runoff of a carrot packing shed. La Chapelle completed his education in Southern California, spent some time in Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania, and now teaches at a college serving first-generation students in the greater Las Vegas area.