johnny ghost
- Website: http://wknc.org
- Since: 2020
- DJ Calendar
Passed my board test on Friday the 13th in 2020; how's that for good luck?
Host of The Racket on WKNC HD2, which I have stubbornly refused to leave for over a year. I have the music taste of an eighty year old man. Surf rock ain't dead!

johnny ghost's previous playlists
May 26, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Gumshoes & Gangsters
Perhaps one of the best episodes I've ever done, and certainly the most on-theme. Think Peter Gunn meets Hawaii Five-0. Think twangy guitar and deliciously dirty saxophone. Think Duane Eddy.
May 19, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Surprise Oldies: Soda Pop Rock
I usually do oldies every 10th episode, but for episode 55 I've decided to do a surprise compilation of the lost hits of late '50s and early-mid '60s rock, pop, and doo-wop.
May 12, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Walkman Texas Ranger 2
Another acid western/electric cowboy type set, recycling the title of episode 18 because the joke was too good to just use once.
May 5, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Sunrise Drive
Picture this: it's 5am, you're on the highway, and the sky is slowly turning red.
Apr 28, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
The Ethereal Chords
A set that's been long in the works and even longer as just an idea: a collection of airy, ethereal, almost disco-sounding songs.
Apr 21, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Hippies at the Beach
A collection of sixties-styled surf and garage rock to chill out toward the end of the semester.
Apr 14, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Throwback Tens: Fifties Favorites
For the 50th ever episode of the Racket with Johnny Ghost, we're playing some of my favorite 1950s rock 'n' roll, blues, and a sprinkling of doo wop.
Apr 7, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Brass Tacks & Ivory
Another old school, new songs set with a special focus on horns and piano.
Mar 31, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Throwing Barstools
Hard-hitting tunes that kind of make you want to get in a bar fight (The Racket does not condone bar fights). It's not entirely a punk set, but the influence is there–friend and fellow DJ President Shrimpo sent me the opening song saying it reminded her of something I'd play, and the rest is history.
Mar 24, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
A Dedicated Surf Show
As I like to say, "The Racket isn't a dedicated surf show, but it wants to be." Well, today it is! I've been a little pickier this time in what I'm classifying as true to the genre, but hopefully this will convince you surf is far from dead.
Mar 10, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
The New Midcentury
It's March 10th, 2022. I started this show on March 11th, 2021. Time flies, eh?
Celebrating the one year anniversary of the show with some proper retro-sounding rock 'n' roll from old and new favorites.
Mar 3, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Bright 'n' Sunny
A sort of anniversary set to episode 15's "Summer Cruising" theme, we're celebrating the warm weather with a twisting tour through soul, country, twang, garage, cumbia, and more. We're gonna get real weird with it, but I'm asking you to trust me here–it's gonna be good.
Feb 24, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Springtime Songs for Old Souls
To celebrate the slow approach of spring, a (notably piano-heavy) collection of songs with the perfect vibes for warm evenings.
Feb 17, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Gravel Rock
One of those episodes I do every so often: loud, hard, high-energy. And this one actually sounds close to what I normally play!
Feb 10, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Shore Leave Pt. 2
Picture this: you're in a dim, smoke-filled lounge in some little seaside town...aka, I found more music than I could fit into last week's set. A lot of surf and garage, but also a sprinkling of punk blues and jazz-inspired pieces.
Feb 3, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Shore Leave Pt. 1
Picture this: you’ve been out on the water for weeks and you’ve just stopped off in a lovely little seaside town, you’re wiling away your evening in a diner or a pub or what-have-you, and the jukebox is on full blast. AKA, I promised you surf rock last week and surf rock I will deliver, but mixed in are a couple jazzier tracks that I hope set the tone.
Jan 27, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Throwback Tens: Old School Blues
I've been on a blues kick lately, so here's a mix of oldies from the mid 20th century–predominantly electric blues, especially from the late 1960s to early '70s, but a couple before that as well.
Jan 20, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
Blues Revue
About time I got around to doing a modern blues set. A good mix of artists I've been fans of for some time and some I found while making this set.
Jan 13, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Nighttime Rock
With johnny ghost
The Wild Wild West, Part 2
The follow up to last week's cowpoke themed playlist, since I found more songs than I could fit into an hour. This one has more of a bluegrass, Americana bent.
Jan 6, 2022 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
The Racket
Afterhours
With johnny ghost
The Wild Wild West, Part 1
Happy New Year! My first episode of 2022, season 2 if you will; a similar theme to my very first episode of the Racket, here's a collection of songs that give me cowpoke vibes.