In episode three of Known Associates, a podcast brought to you by New Pony in affiliation with Southwest Review, the Paranoid Style singer-songwriter and cultural critic Elizabeth Nelson talks to music writer, director and producer, author and feminist badass Jessica Hopper. From the ’zines of her earliest years to her bestselling books The First Collection of Criticism By A Living Female Rock Critic and Night Moves to her groundbreaking work in film, TV, and podcasts, Jessica Hopper doesn’t just move the needle. She IS the needle. 

Over the course of their conversation, Elizabeth and Jessica discuss the mighty Lilith Fair (1:35 )—a late 90s festival founded by Sarah MacLachlan with an emphasis on elevating women musicians—and Hopper’s involvement as an executive producer on the 2025 documentary Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery—The Untold Story, currently streaming on Hulu. They also talk about the University of Texas Press’s seventy-fifth Anniversary, Hopper’s American Music Series on UT Press, and the books that she has helped get published (20:33 ). Of course, they get into what the future holds (43:40 ), but they also talk about Hopper’s past: her upbringing in Minneapolis and how she became the force of nature she is (46:44 ). Finally, they dive into her friendship with Known Associate Craig Finn from the Hold Steady, the flavor of the region she comes from, some of her favorite bands from her hometown, and the Twin Cities’ critics who inspired her (58:00 ).      

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Host: Elizabeth Nelson

Producers: Greg Brownderville, Robert Rea, Hannah Smith

Mixed by: Clay Jones