Lick the Plate Radio Celebrates 15 years and 2,000 Shows with the Scottville Clown Band

Host David Boylan marks a broadcasting milestone with the original culinary, culture and music program that has connected listeners with an eclectic mix of chefs, restaurateurs, musicians, farmers and other interesting personalities since 2011. The Scottville Clown Band, one of Michigan's most colorful and iconic musical institutions was the perfect fit to celebrate this milestone.

FERNDALE, Mich., Sept. 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Lick the Plate, the original culinary, culture and music radio show hosted by David Boylan, is celebrating its 2,000th radio show this week with the legendary Scottville Clown Band, one of Michigan's oldest and most colorful musical traditions. The show was recorded on their tour bus with bandleader George Wilson providing the bands backstory plus interviews with all the band members on hand for their performance at the Cedar Polka Fest.

The milestone episode brings together two distinctly original Michigan-rooted institutions. The Scottville Clown Band has entertained audiences across Michigan since 1903, while Lick the Plate has spent more than 15 years sharing the stories of chefs, restaurateurs, musicians, artists, farmers, surfers, fishermen and unique personalities in San Diego, Detroit, Windsor and Northern Michigan.

The Scottville Clown Band's combination of music, humor, outrageous costumes and community spirit made it an ideal guest for the landmark show. The band's members come from a variety of professions, united by a love of music and entertaining. Their nonprofit organization also supports youth music education through scholarships and grants.

"I couldn't think of a more appropriate guest for our 2,000th show than the Scottville Clown Band," said Lick the Plate host David Boylan. "They are fun, unpredictable, deeply connected to Michigan and completely original. That also describes the lowbrow to highbrow spirit and range of guests we have tried to bring to Lick the Plate from the beginning. Reaching this milestone is both humbling and incredibly gratifying. I'm thankful to every guest who trusted us with their story and to our listeners, sponsors and radio partners who have kept this adventure going for so many years."

Lick the Plate began its radio journey in San Diego on independent adult-alternative station 102.1 KPRI in 2011. The radio program grew out of Boylan's popular Lick the Plate column, which launched in The Coast News in Encinitas in 2007 and is still running today.

From the beginning, Boylan designed Lick the Plate to be different from a traditional restaurant-review program. In addition to the food, the show explores the people behind the restaurants through their tastes in food and music. Guests discuss their cultural influences, favorite meals, musical tastes and interests outside their professions. The integration of music into culinary storytelling was another defining innovation with guests sharing the music that influenced their lives and careers.

The combination of food, culture, music and personal storytelling became the signature Lick the Plate format.

Following its start on the iconic KPRI in San Diego, Lick the Plate joined the Entercom San Diego group of stations, airing on KBZT-FM 94/9, KSON-FM and KXSN-FM Sunny 98.1. The program later aired on San Diego rock station 101.5 KGB, Sunny 98, and expanded its audience on The Mightier 1090 ESPN Radio.

In 2015, Lick the Plate expanded into the Detroit-Windsor market on CIDR-FM 93.9 The River, bringing Boylan back to the region where he grew up.

Lick the Plate also developed a Northern Michigan presence in 2017 through MyNorth.com, then KLT The Rock Station and Fox FM before expanding to Q100/WQON. These outlets enabled the program to showcase the chefs, musicians, growers and distinctive personalities of Traverse City and communities throughout Northwest Michigan.

The show later landed on 100.7 Ferndale Radio, where it can still be heard throughout metro Detroit and streamed worldwide and on the free Audacy and Live365 mobile apps.

Episodes have been recorded in restaurant kitchens, farms, breweries, wineries, fishing boats, circus trains and music venues. The annual "Fish Stories" series expanded the format further by combining Boylan's love of fishing and storytelling. The series has featured charter captains and anglers with shows recorded on the Pacific Ocean, Lake Michigan, Lake St. Clair and the Detroit River. Boylan is also an avid surfer and applied the fish stories concept to feature members of the Great Lakes surfing tribe that has produced many memorable shows as well.

Ferndale Radio Program Director Dave Kim had this to say about the Lick the Plate milestone landing on his station: "I've followed Lick the Plate since they landed on 93.9 The River and always loved the style and originality it brought to commercial radio. It's also a perfect fit for the eclectic mix of programing on Ferndale Radio and I'm stoked for David and this impressive milestone."

Learn more at Lick-the-Plate.com.

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SOURCE Lick the Plate