Roger Payne & Jonathan Gottschall - What Is Most Needed Now - Finale
Today's guests are biologist and environmentalist, Dr. Roger Payne, and literary scholar and author, Jonathan Gottschall! This is our exciti...
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Lightning Bugs: Conversations with Ben Folds
Join us in celebrating and commiserating with some of the world's foremost creatives about their endlessly various artistic processes. Not just in the arts, but in science, medicine, politic...
Episodes
20 of 52 episodes
Roger Payne - Creativity Is The Only Way To Save Humanity
Today's guest is biologist and environmentalist, Dr. Roger Payne. In 1970 Dr Payne recorded "Songs of the Humpback Whale" which stands as th...
Elena Kats-Chernin - Do The Instruments We Use Influence The Songs We Create?
Today's guest is pianist and composer Elena Kats-Chernin! Best known for her opera, Wild Swans, Elena also creates orchestral works, solo pi...
Michael López-Alegría - How Seeing Earth From Space Changes Your Perspective
Today's guest is astronaut and test pilot, Michael López-Alegría. Michael has completed three Space Shuttle missions and an In...
Keb’ Mo’ - How Technology Influences Music and How Perfectionism Isn’t Perfect
Today's guest is musician, songwriter, and five-time Grammy winner, Keb' Mo'. He's a blues musician, having released songs such as Am I Wron...
Governor Roy Cooper - Prioritizing Art and Art Communities
Today's guest is Roy Cooper, the Governor of Ben's home state of North Carolina. In office, Governor Cooper has placed focus on the arts and...
Nicholas Barasch - Embracing the Dynamics of Performance
Today's guest is actor and singer, Nicholas Barasch. He's starred in the Broadway productions of She Loves Me and West Side Story. Nicholas...
Nolen Bivens - How Local Artists Impact Governments
Today's guest is former U.S. Army General, and CEO and President of Americans for the Arts, Nolen Bivens. His work pushes for arts and arts...
Cassadee Pope - Healthy Competition and Collaboration
Today's guest is singer, songwriter, and musician, Cassadee Pope. Cassadee was the lead singer of Hey Monday, and has had a successful solo...
Gregory Scott - Standing on the Shoulders of Giants
Today's guest is the founder of Kush Audio and Sly-Fi Digital, Gregory Scott. He's worked to create countless plug-ins and interfaces to hel...
Margaret Cho - Every Comedian Has One Truth
Today's guest is stand-up comedian, actress, musician, activist, and author, Margaret Cho. You'll recognize her from the sitcom she created...
Andrea Wheatley - The Magic of a Live Performance
Today's guest is Osteopath, 10-times World Champion in full-contact Filipino Stick-fighting, 8th Dan Black Belt in Filipino Martial Arts, An...
Jacob Collier - The Methods of Making Music
Today's guest is Multi-Instrumentalist and Vocalist, Jacob Collier! You'll recognize him from tracks such as "All I Need," "The Sun In Your...
Rainn Wilson - Transforming Words into a Breathing Character
Today's guest is actor, producer, writer, and podcaster, Rainn Wilson. You'll recognize him as Dwight Schrute from NBC's The Office, the dig...
Peter Frampton - Approaching Each Song with Curiosity
Today's guest is musician, actor, and producer, Peter Frampton. You'll recognize his work from music groups like: Humble Pie, The Herd, and...
Jonathan Gottschall - How Storytellers Transport Listeners
Today's guest is literary scholar, Research Fellow, Author, and Editor, Jonathan Gottschall! His latest book, The Story Paradox, highlights...
Lindsey Kraft - Changing Mediums as an Artist
Today's guest is actress, model, writer, and musician, Lindsey Kraft. You know her from The Shrink Next Door, Grace and Frankie, Getting On,...
Chris Thile - How To Create Art That Is Authentically Yourself
Today's guest is mandolinist, singer, and songwriter, Chris Thile. You'll know him from his work with the acoustic trio Nickel Creek, the bl...
Penn Jillette - Tricking Your Audience without Speaking Down to Them
Today's guest is magician Penn Jillette! Half of the comedy magic duo, Penn & Teller, Penn is also a musician, actor, inventor, author, and...
Dodie - Being a Viral Artist and Transforming Your Career
My guest this week is singer-songwriter Dodie. She started out by uploading original songs and covers to YouTube back in 2007, and now she's...