Banner & Company

The Banner’s Steven Hale and Araceli Crescencio talk about Nashville's historic winter storm, power outages and their personal slip-and-fall counts. Araceli shares what she's heard from Spanish-speaking Nashvillians trying to access Metro resources and Steven encourages her to watch Sister Act and Sister Act 2. Produced by Andrea Tudhope Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Working as a fact-checker is great training for any writer. But especially so when one's subject is a notorious teller of tall tales. This was the case for Jonathan Bernstein, who was tasked with writing a biography of the late Justin Townes Earle. Known for his soul-searching songs and keen delivery of them, Earle also lived his short life negotiating the shadow of his father Steve's legend, as well as that of his middle namesake Townes Van Zandt. In the new book What Do You Do When You're Lonesome, written with the blessing of widow Jenn Marie Earle, Jonathan tracks the life of this talented musician — from rough and tumble beginnings in the notorious "Chicken Shack" in a Green Hills backyard, to acclaim in New York City and beyond, to unraveling sobriety and a tragic end. Along the way, he also paints a picture of Nashville and other up-and-coming contemporaries of Earle's who helped shape the city, and Americana music, indelibly. Guest: Jonathan Bernstein, author, What Do You Do When You're Lonesome: The Authorized Biography of Justin Townes Earle Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Banner’s Steven Hale and Stephen Elliott talk about the first Metro Council meeting of the year. It was a late and action-packed night for our Metro reporter. The council discussed how to use a $15 million state grant for downtown safety, and deferred legislation to add a commercial compatibility overlay along Buchanan Street in North Nashville — a proposal that triggered ferocious debate at a planning commission meeting last week. All that, and the Steph/vens reveal how much they love talking about Nashville's mayoral races as far out from an election as possible. And with Joy Styles entering the race, now they get to! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before Nashville Hidden Gems was a hit Instagram page, it began as a food tour, taking a small group of guests through a series of creator Anas Saba's favorite local spots. The audience is much larger now — more than 130,000 followers as of this writing — and many of those beloved eateries less "hidden" than they once were. One thing that's remained constant through it all is his dedication to local businesses, especially those run and frequented by immigrants. But regardless of who's working the kitchen or front of house, what matters to Anas is an experience with passion and intention behind it. That same idea is pushing him to think beyond being "the food guy" in town and using his storytelling skills in new ways. Guest: Anas Saba, creator, Nashville Hidden Gems Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Banner’s Steven Hale and Sarah Grace Taylor talk about the return of the Tennessee legislature, what they've done so far and what to expect in the coming months. Sarah Grace discusses bills related to immigration policy, some newly proposed and others carried over from last year. She also highlights a likely debate over expanding vouchers and proposals targeting LGBTQ+ rights. Steven wonders what this year’s “chemtrails bill" will be. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Craig Havighurst's new book Musicality for Modern Humans: How to Listen Like an Artist aims to talk about music theory in a non-theoretical way — to get at how and why music affects us, and to help foster a deeper appreciation for its many forms. That includes experimental, instrumental and orchestral works, which move beyond the familiar verses and choruses that make up the vast majority of streamed music. As a journalist, Craig has written extensively about music, and as editorial director for WMOT Roots Radio 89.5 FM, he hosts the a weekly show on culture and American music. He was also senior producer and co-host of Music City Roots from 2009-2018. Guest: Craig Havighurst Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Although Nashville is known as Music City, some of the most important history — songwriting sessions, recordings, rehearsals — took place in either nondescript houses you'd never think were remarkable in any way, or in buildings that were demolished long ago. That can make piecing together the many stories a bit of a detective game. Enter Brian Mansfield and his page, Nashville Musical History Tour, connecting the dots between ordinary-looking places and extraordinary moments in Nashville's musical history. A longtime journalist and collector, Brian takes his audience along for the ride as he bridges lore and location, turning up legends at every turn. Guest: Brian Mansfield, journalist and Nashville music history aficionado Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At the end of every Banner & Company episode — the very end, after the credits have rolled and the theme music fades out — there's a little hidden feature that regular listeners are likely familiar with. We call it "the final question," and it's when we ask our guest to pull a slip of paper from a fish bowl (fish not included) and read what it says. On that paper is a question, left by a previous guest on the show. It's a little bit random, but also an intentional way to connect all of our guests to each other. So just for fun, for the last episode of the year we present a few of these "final questions" in sequence, from asker to answerer, in a way you can't usually hear them. Guests (in order of appearance): Ellen Angelico, musician Steven Womack, writer and former Watkins professor Major Jackson, poet and teacher Phil Bredesen, former Tennessee governor and Nashville mayor Michael Shane Neal, portrait artist Giancarlo Guerrero, former music director, Nashville Symphony Willie Steele, writer and aspiring knuckleballer Rebecca Haw Allensworth, author of The Licensing Racket Rev. Matt Steinhauer, pastor and advocate Plus, Kelley Sirko of the Nashville Public Library tells us about what it's like fielding semi-random questions as part of your job. Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Growing up, Stephen Bargatze got into plenty of trouble. He wasn't a very good student. His home life was rocky at best, and he had a terrible relationship with his mother. But with some help from family, he got a chance to turn his life around. And when he found he had some skill at magic tricks, his world brightened a bit. Then he discovered that with clown make-up on, "talking funny" was actually an asset. These days, Stephen is still dazzling audiences with his sleight-of-hand and enjoying the outsize fame of his son, comedian Nate Bargatze. (His parents still think of him as Nathaniel.) He'll soon be recording his first special with his family's production company — one of the many doors that Nate's success has opened for the family. This episode was originally broadcast in October. Guest: Stephen Bargatze, magician and comedian Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This bonus content was created in partnership with the podcast Niche to meet you. Shedrich Webster is Middle Tennessee’s premiere Black Santa. For three years in a row, he has done the annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony at the National Museum of African American Music. But he also travels all around the country. And along the way he’s learned that there’s great need for Santas like him, for kids and adults alike. It’s for that reason he helped found the Santas of Color Coalition, a first-of-its-kind organization centered around training and supporting Black Mr. and Mrs. Clauses. Produced by Leslie Thompson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What started as an ordinary ride home from a track meet changed Cathy Carillo's life. When Metro Police stopped her father for a broken taillight in 2009, they arrested him, and he was later deported. Cathy, who was 14 years old at the time, was left stranded on the side of the road and wondering: “Is this really home?” That night set Cathy on a 15-year path that recently led to helping found The ReMIX Tennessee, a grassroots Latino community organization. As more families are torn apart by separation due to ICE arrests like those that took place during May's joint-federal state immigration sweep through Nashville’s Latino neighborhoods, Cathy spoke to Banner & Company about starting the anonymous hotline Music City Migra Watch for people to report ICE sightings and The ReMIX Tennessee’s urgent and evolving work. This episode was originally broadcast in August. Guest: Cathy Carillo, co-founder, The ReMIX TN Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producers: Lilly Sabella and Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before The Store opened, Jasmine Ledsinger would drive by and wonder what this new business was going to be. When she learned it would be a place for those in need to shop for free food, she quickly became interested — and before she knew it she was the first employee hired by founders Brad Paisley and Kimberly Williams-Paisley. Today, Jasmine is The Store's program director. It's not exactly where the Nashville native saw herself after studying social work at MTSU, but it's a job she knew right away was meant for her. In just a few years, The Store's mission has grown as need has grown. Even so, they have an extensive waiting list despite serving hundreds of families across the city. Early next year they'll expand their operation with a second, much larger facility. Guest: Jasmine Ledsinger, program director, The Store Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch -more episodes at nashvillebanner.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A familiar face to many, Joe West is the "house band" at Nashville International Airport. In this role, he performs regularly for ever-changing crowds as they arrive in the city for the first time, or return home from far-flung travels. His regular gigs at the airport have also earned him high-profile spots on other stages in Nashville and beyond. Joe comes from a musical lineage. His parents, Sarge and Shirley West of Fayetteville, Ark., formed the first African American country music duo, and toured together and broke barriers with every performance. Today, Joe's daughter Rebecca often joins him onstage. And after a recent health scare involving a ruptured aorta — he's fully recovered now — Joe is more grateful than ever for the chance to make music. This episode was originally broadcast in January. Guest: Joe West, musician Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producers: Andrea Tudhope and Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From 2003-2023, Jim Cooper represented Tennessee in Congress — most recently from the reliably Democratic District 5, which included Nashville. But when the Tennessee legislature redrew the congressional maps, splitting Nashville across three new heavily Republican districts, it didn't take him long to do the math, and he did not seek re-election. Born into a political family in Nashville and raised in nearby Shelbyville, Jim has always kept busy. And he still keeps his ear to the ground politically. The race to fill one of the seats carved out of his old district is a surprisingly close one, and it will come as no surprise whose campaign he donated to — but some of his other ideas might raise an eyebrow. Hint: They include changing Nashville's borders again. Guest: Jim Cooper, former Tennessee congressman Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For Nashville attorney John Day, there is no overstating how important the rule of law is to our everyday lives — not just when it comes to our personal freedoms, but also in making the economy work in a predictable fashion. He compares it to oxygen: You don't notice it until it starts to go way. John was recently named president of the American College of Trial Lawyers, a nationwide group that has advocated to preserve the rule of law under increasing pressure. He had always planned to study and practice law with his father in Wisconsin, but a college professor suggested John see some of the world first: North Carolina first, for law school, then Nashville for an internship. The law community at the time was much smaller than comparable Southern cities, and he felt like could fit in. He's been practicing here ever since. Guest: John Day, attorney Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Throughout his career, Mark Deutschmann has tried to balance preservation — he worked to develop the historick Werthan Mills complex into lofts — with progress. He's a big advocate for the development of the city's greenway system, and hopes for more ways to build attainable (rather than "affordable") housing. Mark had a winding path to Music City — one that included working with orcas, nearly getting lost at sea, and winding up on an island with only two inhabitants. Once here, he managed to take up juggling (peaking at seven balls at a time) and start his own real estate company, Village, in 1996. He was recently inducted into the Nashville Entrepreneur Center's hall of fame. Guest: Mark Deutschmann, developer, founder, Village Real Estate Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch -More local news at nashvillebanner.com -Sign up for our free morning newsletter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Raised in a military family and a graduate of Vanderbilt University Law School, Sharon K. Roberson has drawn on years in the corporate world to lead the YWCA of Nashville & Middle Tennessee (not to be confused with a similarly named but unrelated organization that you might associate with workout equipment). Moving in to the nonprofit world was an adjustment, but in a way she's returned to her roots in service to others. The YWCA has an ambitious mission: "eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all." That might sound like a tall order, but for Sharon, it's a calling that brings all her years of professional experience to bear on making the world a better place. With domestic violence a persistent problem and hunger on the rise, it's more urgent work than ever. Guest: Sharon K. Roberson, president and CEO, YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch - More local news at nashvillebanner.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steve Norris had never set foot inside a prison when became commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Correction. And he had only been on the job three months when he was suddenly thrust into one of the biggest crises in the state's history: an inmate uprising, including a "full on riot," across multiple prisons. Five correction officers were taken hostage. Inmates were allowed to give a live press conference. "I thought about turning it down,'' Steve says, " but ultimately concluded that it was in everybody's interest that the media be allowed in and everybody could see what we were dealing with." Looking back at those 36 hours in the summer of 1985, Steve says it was a turning point. And around the same time, an upstart company called Corrections Corporation of American — now known as CoreCivic — was just beginning. Today, it operates several Tennessee prisons, including the troubled Trousdale Turner Correctional Facility. Steve says he has no special knowledge of what's going on there, but he does have some ideas about how to turn the situation around. Guest: Steve Norris, former commissioner, Tennessee Department of Correction Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For a long time, Barry Mazor (along with fellow music writers) puzzled over what struck them as a glaring omission: There was no dependable, carefully sourced book on one of music's most important groups, The Everly Brothers. Eventually, Barry's agent asked a question that seems somewhat obvious in hindsight: "Why don't you write it?" That is the origin story of Blood Harmony: The Everly Brothers Story. Barry's painstakingly researched new book captures not only the story of the duo's music and lasting influence, but also dives into Don and Phil Everly's close and sometimes fraught relationship. As for himself, Barry knows a bit about having performers in the family — some of his relatives were vaudevillians — and as both one of the country's top music writers and a lifelong Everlys fan, he knows his way around the legend and the lore. Guest: music writer, author of Blood Harmony: The Everly Brothers Story Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Bob Bernstein announced that beloved Hillsboro Village coffee shop Fido will be closing — three years from now, on June 1, 2028. In the announcement, which was posted below a digital countdown clock, he wrote: "As leases expired, many of those who put their savings and dreams into their small businesses and created the look, feel and taste of Nashville became victims of their own success." The news sparked conversations around the changing character of the city. Bob didn't intend to open one of Nashville's most beloved coffee shops. In fact, he first moved here to be a journalist. But hearing about plans for growing the city, he bought into the idea that something special was happening in Music City. He opened a coffee house — even though he didn't drink coffee at the time — because he loved the culture. Bongo Java, intended to be a gathering place for Nashvillians of all stripes, opened on Belmont Boulevard with a line out the door on its very first day. Guest: Bob Bernstein, owner, Bongo Java and Fido Host: Demetria Kalodimos Producer: Steve Haruch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices