Biscuits & Jam, Fall 2023 Episodes
Musicians, chefs, and actors on literal southern living for Southern Living magazine's podcast.
Biscuits & Jam is a podcast from Southern Living magazine. While the show is not produced by Stereoactive Media, I (founder of Stereoactive) work on it as a contractor. I started on the show last year as script editor and over the course of 2023's 35 episode season, I have become more involved in it, first providing research and writing, then in recent months, helping to produce the show in a more hands on way.
So, now that the season has wrapped, I thought I'd share just a handful of the episodes I helped produce...
In the South, food and music go hand in hand. They define much of what we think of as Southern culture, and they say a lot about our past, our present, and our future. Each week, Sid Evans, Editor in Chief of Southern Living, sits down with musicians, chefs, and other Southern icons to hear the stories of how they grew up, what inspires them, and why they feel connected to the region. Through honest conversations, Sid explores childhood memories, the family meals they still think about, and the intersection of food and music in their lives. Always surprising, always engaging, Biscuits & Jam is a celebration of the South—and the people who are moving it forward every day. Biscuits & Jam is available for free on all podcast platforms. If you like the show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts. Reviews and ratings are a great way to help others find new podcasts! Listen and Follow Now: Apple Podcasts / Amazon Music/ Google Podcasts / Overcast / Player.fm /Spotify / iHeartRadio
Dolly Parton Is A Rockstar
Dolly Parton was last on the show back in 2020 at the height of the pandemic, and we talked on the phone about her Christmas traditions, her childhood in East Tennessee, and her incredible work getting millions of kids to read through the Imagination Library. This time Sid got to sit down with her in person at her studio outside of Nashville, and she hasn’t slowed down one bit. She told us all about her lastest album, 'Rockstar,' which features 30 rock and roll classics, from covers like Prince’s “Purple Rain” and Bob Seger’s “Night Moves,” to some powerful new Dolly Parton originals. She’s also just released a new book called Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones, which documents more than six decades of outfits, costumes, and iconic looks from a career in the spotlight.
View on Southern Living's website
Actor And Texas Native Dennis Quaid On His Spiritual Journey And New Gospel Album
Before he starred in Breaking Away or The Big Easy, Dennis Quaid was a kid from Houston, Texas, who grew up loving Elvis Presley and wanting to play rock and roll. His early success as an actor led him to a legendary career in movies, but he never gave up his musical ambitions. As the longtime frontman of Dennis Quaid & the Sharks, he’s built a reputation as a legitimate, high-energy rock star. Recently, though, he’s settled down in Nashville and produced an album called “Fallen: A Gospel Record For Sinners,” that reconciles his rediscovered faith with years of hard living and addiction.
View on Southern Living's website
Lucinda Williams’ Rock And Roll Heart
Lucinda Williams was born in Lake Charles, Louisiana, a place she would memorialize in one her most famous songs. But she didn’t stay there for long, moving with her folks to a string of college towns where her father taught poetry and literature. Her peripatetic life and her mother’s mental illness led to a sometimes difficult childhood, but music gave her an outlet, and her raw, honest lyrics have made her one of the most celebrated singer-songwriters to ever come out of the South. Despite three Grammy’s and countless other awards, she’s never fit neatly into any particular genre, and she never wanted to. Now she has a new memoir called Don’t Tell Anybody the Secrets I Told You, and a new album called “Stories From a Rock and Roll Heart” – her first since having a stroke back in 2020.
View on Southern Living's website
Why Wynonna Judd Will Never Stop Singing
Wynonna Judd was one half of one of the most famous duos in country music history, and she’s also been plenty successful out on her own. She was last on the show nearly three years ago, back during the height of the pandemic, and a lot has happened since then. On April 30th, 2022, the day before the Judds were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, she lost her mother, Naomi, to suicide, an event that upended her life and shook the world of country to its core. But Wynonna is back on her feet, and she’s dealt with the emotional turmoil of that event by reconnecting with her fans and focusing on her music. She also talks about becoming a grandmother and shares a little bit of a brand new song.
This episode includes mentions of suicide. If you or someone you know may be having thoughts of suicide, please consider reaching out to a suicide or crisis lifeline. In the United States, you can dial 988 for help.
View on Southern Living's website
Emeril And E.J. Lagasse On Creating A Culinary Legacy And The Magic Of New Orleans
Back in 1982, Emeril Lagasse famously took over from Paul Prudhomme as executive chef at Commander’s Palace in New Orleans, and after an incredible run there he decided to open his own place, Emeril’s, in 1990. Now, more than three decades on, his son EJ, at age 21, is chef patron, revisiting dishes his father made famous and updating them with his own unique spin. We’ll talk about all that, as well as the magic of New Orleans, their over-the-top holiday food traditions, the ways their Portuguese heritage informs their work, and how Emeril is teaching a new generation about the power of food.
View on Southern Living's website
The Sister-Power Of Larkin Poe
Megan and Rebecca Lovell grew up in Calhoun Georgia with music all around them, though they were the first in their family to play professionally. They began their career performing a lot of acoustic bluegrass music as The Lovell Sisters, but since 2010 they’ve been the driving force behind the blues and rock-oriented Larkin Poe. Both have become known for their musicianship, their energetic shows, and a fierce independent streak that comes through in everything they do.
View on Southern Living's website
Bethany Joy Lenz Has Stories To Tell
Bethany Joy Lenz was born in Florida and grew up in Texas, which is where she first got involved in the performing arts, carrying on a tradition she inherited from her grandparents. Her family eventually headed to New Jersey, where her Southerness drew the wrong kind of attention from some of the girls in her class, but she made it through the experience and eventually landed on the hit TV show One Tree Hill. Now Joy is living in Nashville, writing and performing music, editing a publication called Modern Vintage, and hosting a podcast with her One Tree Hill co-stars called Drama Queens. If that’s not enough, she’s starring in the new Hallmark Original Movie, A Biltmore Christmas, which is based on a trip back in time to the famous North Carolina estate, and she’s working on a book about her years spent in a strange cult.