About South

We get a little bit meta in this week’s episode as we sit down for a conversation with Michelle Khouri, host of The Cultured Podcast and owner of FRQNCY Media Company. FRQNCY is a first-of-its-kind podcast production and marketing company in Atlanta, Georgia. Michelle talks about how her background as a writer compelled her to find a medium to tell stories more deeply, eventually leading her to podcasting. Through FRQNCY Media, Michelle hopes to create a podcasting hub in Atlanta that will connect the city’s sonic legacy to its contemporary technological and creative innovations. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

This week we talk with Malinda Maynor Lowery and William Sturkey, both professors of History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, about the recent removal of the Confederate monument known as Silent Sam. The monument was erected in 1913 on the upper quad known as McCorkle Place ostensibly to remember "the sons of the University who died for their beloved Southland 1861-1865.” Malinda and William note the important distinction between a memorial and a monument: a memorial honors a loss whereas a monument celebrates some new entity or concept. This distinction is vital when considering the timeline of Silent Sam’s installation on campus. Nearly 50 years after the end of the Civil War, did the administration truly intend to memorialize the dead or did it wish to declare the campus a space for celebrating Confederate values and Jim Crow practices? About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find hi

This week, we talk pumpkins-- giant pumpkins. Randi R. Byrd serves as the Community Engagement Coordinator for the American Indian Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and facilitates the Healthy Native North Carolinians Network. She is also an award-winning grower of giant pumpkins. Although Randi always had a green thumb, she only connected her interest in agricultural practice to her fascination with pumpkins in 2009. Growing a 700-pound pumpkin is a difficult feat that often requires the support of family and friends. Randi talks about the community she found not only in fellow growers of giant pumpkins but also in the local Indigenous community as well as her online friends that encouraged her pursuit, performed ceremony on the land with her, and physically tilled the soil from which actual magic could grow. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorto

While working as a street hustler and fortune teller in 1930s New York, Eddie Owens Martin fell ill and had his first vision of Pasaquan. When his mother died in 1957, Eddie moved back to Buena Vista, Georgia, changed his name to St. EOM, and began building Pasaquan, a seven-acre site with over 900 feet of painted masonry walls. The site is currently being renovated, and this week, we talked with site director Michael McFalls about St. EOM and his Pasaquoyan legacy. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

This week, we’re back in Boone — well, Banner Elk — North Carolina. We sat down with Zackary Vernon, an assistant professor in the Department of English at Appalachian State University. Zack has lived in Boone for three years and chronicled his early days in the high country in the essay, “Adventures of a Bad Environmentalist.” The piece was published in the North Carolina Literary Review and won the first Alex Albright Creative Nonfiction Prize. We talked with Zack about what it means to be an environmentalist and the problematic nature of environmentalism. Sound Note: There is a small sound glitch around minute 20:45 of this episode. We apologize for this hiccup in the original recording. Sometimes computers fail us. Zack says, “We see no tracks in the garden, but there is a pile sh*t out in the garden.” About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.ab

In this episode, Gina visits Dr. Ben Frey, a citizen of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and a professor in the American Studies department at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Ben talks about the current state of the Cherokee language and revitalization efforts in North Carolina. As Cherokee is the only surviving language in the Southern Iroquoian language family, it is remarkably unique. Ben discusses the importance of the language not only linguistically, but also as a tool to view his peoples’ knowledge about how to live with consideration, care, and respect for one another and the world. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

This week Gina, Kelly, and Adjoa took a trip to Boone, North Carolina, a city in the southern Appalachian Mountains with its fair share of mythology and nostalgia from its namesake, Daniel Boone, to its contemporary tourist economy. Although Boone and Watauga County were largely spared from the ravages of mining and mountaintop removal, it is nevertheless a complicated space mired in controversies about gentrification that eerily echo Watauga County’s colonial history. As they travel through the county, they visit the famous Mast General Store and end up in Meat Camp. All the while they try to pin down what’s real about southern Appalachia and the tourist economy and speculate about the future of a place with an apocryphal past. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

This week we talk to geologist Josh Poole about Providence Canyon, also known as the “Little Grand Canyon,” in southwest Georgia. The canyon, however, is not an ancient geological formation. Providence Canyon emerged as a gully resulting from the destructive agricultural practices between Creek Removal in the early 1800s and the U.S. Civil War. We talk to Josh about the history of the canyon, the emergence of the anthropocene, and how geologists think about regional distinctions. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

Before Maurice Hobson became a Professor of African American Studies at Georgia State University, he was a Division I football player at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He has since worked with student athletes at institutions across the South. We talked with Maurice about how he became interested in football, his experiences as a player and the race and class politics of southeastern football. As a former player and a fan, Maurice offers a unique perspective on the current problems facing college programs, especially programs in the South, and how we might work to make the sport safer and more ethically responsible. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

On June 24, 1973, an arsonist set fire to the Upstairs Lounge, a gay bar in New Orleans’ French Quarter. Dozens of people lost their lives that night, but the event isn’t widely known about. This week, we sit down with Ryan Prechter, a visiting lecturer in Georgia State University’s History Department. Ryan studies queer history in the south, particularly in New Orleans. We revisit the tragedy with Ryan to better understand why it happened and how it relates to where we are now. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

This week, we went down the road to the Center for Puppetry Arts, the only center of its kind in the country. When we think of puppets, Jim Henson, Father of the Muppets and Mississippian, usually comes to mind. The Center is home to the largest collection of Jim Henson puppets and props, but it’s also much more than that. Gina spoke with Museum Director Jill Nash Malool and Producer Kristin Haverty about the importance of the center’s location in Georgia, what it means to support the arts in local communities and internationally, and what we still have to learn from puppets. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

In this episode, we talk about the myth of southern hospitality with Tony Szczesiul, Professor of English at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Tony traces the long history of the myth and explores how it is embedded with the region’s other non-hospitable traits including enslavement and segregation. Tony describes how enslaved people performed the labor that made southern hospitality possible and how the term emerged as a shorthand justification for southern plantation life in the 1820s. Tracing the history of southern hospitality throughout the twentieth century reveals its importance to contemporary debates about immigration, tourism, and the culture industry. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

Every off-week this season, we'll be rebroadcasting some of our favorite stories from previous seasons. This week we're bringing you "Freedom" -- an episode that remains incredibly special to all of us on the About South team. On Mother’s Day in 1961, the Klan attacked 13 Freedom Riders by firebombing their Greyhound bus outside of Anniston. We close our first season by talking with Anniston Mayor, Vaughn Stewart, and Vice Mayor, Seyram Selase, about the Anniston Freedom Rider’s Memorial currently up for National Monument status. Stewart and Selase retell the story of the Freedom Riders and the bus burning and describe why recognizing this important landmark is significant for their town, the state of Alabama, and the nation. Special musical guest: Jaye Price Learn more about this episode at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn

This week we're proud to feature Lindsey Alexander's podcast, Story of My Life where she asks people over 70 how they came to be who they are and where they are. In honor of tomato season, we're bringing you Story of My Life's interview with Bell Best. From Story of My Life: "Bill Best is known as the Tomato Man in parts of Eastern Kentucky. But he'll tell you he's more of an heirloom bean man. A prolific seed saver, Bill has more than 700 varieties of bean seeds; he's even brought a bean back from the brink of distinction. He's the author of Saving Seeds, Preserving Taste, and a founder of the Sustainable Mountain Agriculture Center. Story of My Life met Bill on his farm to hear about heirloom vegetables, growing up rural, and his life on the land. In this episode, you'll learn how to save tomato seeds from your garden." Learn more at: http://www.storyofmylifepod.com About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. Y

We're back this week with five more facts from your About South team. Gina, Kelly, Adjoa, and Lindsey cover everything from the great dogs of About South to the current activities of our resident crayfish, Dr. Grover. We also walk through some of our favorite moments and episodes from seasons one and two, and then we consider changing our name. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com. Support us at www.patreon.com/aboutsouthpodcast.

This week your About South team is answering your questions! Gina, Kelly, Adjoa, and Lindsey sit down and go through listener questions from the last year. And Kelly meets a Pelican. And we then ask for your money. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

Our episode this week takes us to the south on the small screen. Kelly sits down with our very own Gina Caison and About South friends Lisa Hinrichsen and Stephanie Rountree to discuss their new book, Small-Screen Souths: Region, Identity, and the Cultural Politics of Television. Attempting to define the “real” south only gets more complicated when the region is broadcasted, framed, and produced for an audience-- depending on how the audience accepts or rejects the images on screen. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

This week we talk to geologist Josh Poole about Providence Canyon, also known as the “Little Grand Canyon,” in southwest Georgia. The canyon, however, is not an ancient geological formation. Providence Canyon emerged as a gully resulting from the destructive agricultural practices between Creek Removal in the early 1800s and the U.S. Civil War. We talk to Josh about the history of the canyon, the emergence of the anthropocene, and how geologists think about regional distinctions. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

This week we had the pleasure of talking to Karen Cox, a professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and author of Goat Castle: A True Story of Murder, Race, and the Gothic South. Cox talks about her book and her process for writing about a woman whose story was nearly hidden. In the Jim Crow south of the early 1930’s Natchez, Mississippi, Emily Burns was wrongly imprisoned for a murder she didn’t commit while the likely murderers became celebrated southern eccentrics who opened their home to goats, chickens, and-- for a price-- tourists. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.

Located in Atlanta’s Historic West End, The Wren’s Nest is the historic home of Joel Chandler Harris, well-known for compiling and adapting the African American Brer Rabbit folktales. In the century since Harris’s death, the home has been converted into a museum and now serves as an anchor of the Atlanta arts community, especially in its neighborhood. This week, we met with Akbar Imhotep, the museum’s resident storyteller, and Kalin Thomas, its program director, to discuss the complicated history of the site and their vision for its future. We also discuss how storytelling can build relationships in communities, connect people with their heritage, and to help people heal. About South is produced by Gina Caison, Kelly Vines, and Adjoa Danso. Lindsey Baker is our Marketing Director. Music is by Brian Horton. You can find his music at www.brianhorton.com. Learn more at www.aboutsouthpodcast.com.