Lauren Rhoades talks with author Kelly Foster Lundquist about her striking debut memoir titled Beard: A Memoir of a Marriage. In the book, Kelly revisits her relationship with her first husband twenty years after their divorce as she investigates the "beard" trope in literature, culture, and her own romantic life. Kelly now lives in Minnesota, but is from Yazoo City, Mississippi, and much of the book takes place in Jackson. Kelly talks about how the book took shape over twenty years of writing it, her love of old movies and pop culture, and how English literature classes changed her life. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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In this next installment of the Favorite Poem Podcast Project hosted by Mississippi Poet Laureate, poet and memoirist Mike Smith brings us Marianne Moore’s intriguing poem “The Fish.” Please listen—and enjoy!

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Kristen Brandt talks to Keri Davis. Keri is an artist, teacher, musician, and owner of Pacesetter Gallery, which opened in Flowood in 2021. The gallery features over 60 artists from across Mississippi. Keri has hosted hundreds of events, from art classes, workshops, plein air painting competitions, and creative events for the central MS area. The gallery has been voted Best Art Gallery by Mississippi Magazine readers for the last 3 years and was honored as the Mississippi Tourism Attraction of the Year in 2024 at the Governor's Conference on Tourism.

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Larry Morrisey travels to Oxford to catch up with painter Charlie Buckley. Buckley remembers his years studying with artist and 2026 Governor’s Arts Awards recipient, Dottie Armstrong. He also explains how his “stacked houses” paintings have transformed into a long-term project for him. He’s now documenting historic buildings in communities across the state. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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Lauren Rhoades talks with New York Times bestselling author Ace Atkins about his new novel EVERYBODY WANTS TO RULE THE WORLD, a rollicking comedic thriller set in 1985, in which a suburban teen suspects his mom's new boyfriend is a KGB agent. Atkins is an award-winning author of more than thirty novels and numerous short stories. A former college football player and newspaper reporter, he's a recent recipient of the Richard Wright Literary Excellence Award and a member of the Alabama Writers Hall of Fame. He lives with his wife, Angela, and two children in Oxford, Mississippi. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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Leslie Barker talks with performer, choreographer, and director Emma Pittman. Currently, you can see Emma as Cherry Valance on Broadway in the Tony Award-winning production, The Outsiders. After winning “The Search for Roxie,” she made her Broadway debut as Roxie Hart in Chicago. Join us for a conversation about Emma’s journey from Mississippi to New York City stages. Emma also speaks about the expansive community it takes to create theatre and the influential years she spent at Oxford High School. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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Larry Morrisey travels to Oxford to talk with the writer William Boyle. Boyle published his eighth novel, ‘Saint of the Narrows Street,’ earlier this year. He tells about the influence of legendary Mississippi writer Larry Brown’s work, his use of music as a way to describe his characters, and the “small-town” culture of the Brooklyn neighborhood where his novel is set. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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Kristen Brandt talks to Wade Acuff. Wade is an animator and illustrator living in Brandon, Mississippi. He has worked with major studios such as Netflix, Paramount, and Nickelodeon, and been involved in the production of films including Ma, Big Bad, and the upcoming Five Nights at Freddy’s 2. His skill set is broad, ranging from illustration and concept work to 3D modeling and visual effects. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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Welcome to the fourth installment of the Favorite Poem Podcast series, hosted by Mississippi Poet Laureate Ann Fisher-Wirth. In this podcast, Melissa reveals the intricate complexity of H. D.’s beautiful, short Imagist poem “Oread.”  

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Kristen Brandt sits down with zine maker and National Folk Festival Folklife Area artist, Justin Ransburg. Justin is a visual artist who creates illustrations, comic books, murals, and mixed media artworks. He has created numerous murals in Jackson and statewide. They talk about his work and what attendees of the National Folk Festival can expect to see in his booth in the Folklife area. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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Larry Morrisey visits with bluesman John Primer, one of the featured musicians at the National Folk Festival in Jackson, November 7-9. A native of Camden, Mississippi, Primer has been an important part of the Chicago blues scene since the early 1970s. He has worked with a “who’s who” list of blues legends, including Muddy Waters, Junior Wells, and Magic Slim. Primer has led his own band since the 1990s. His latest CD, ‘Grown in Mississippi,’ features guest appearances by a number of contemporary Mississippi blues artists, including Charlie Musselwhite, Bobby Rush, and Eden Brent. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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Leslie Barker talks with Lucie Wren Cooper and Tyler Tadlock. Individually, they are multidisciplinary artists. Together, they are the Jackson-based music duo, Sad Bath. Lucie and Tyler discuss the inspiration they find in Mississippi, the importance of community and collaboration, and their process of creating across disciplines. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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In this third episode of the Favorite Poem Podcast Project, hosted by Mississippi Poet Laureate Ann Fisher-Wirth, Beth Ann Fennelly reads and discusses Shakespeare’s beautiful sonnet 29, “When, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes.” 

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MAC Executive Director, David Lewis, chats with author John T. Edge to discuss his new book, House of Smoke. They also discuss Southern culture, John T's show "True South," and their shared work with South Arts, as well as the literary magnet that is Oxford, MS. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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Leslie Barker talks with writer and teacher, Catherine Simone Gray. An Emerging Writer in Roxane Gay’s The Audacity, her work has been published in The Bitter Southerner and The Michigan Quarterly Review: Mixtape. Catherine is the creator of the blog Unsilenced Woman and recently released her first book, PROUD FLESH: A MEMOIR OF MOTHERHOOD, INTIMATE VIOLENCE, AND RECLAIMING PLEASURE. In the interview, Catherine will discuss how she came to write this book, her creative process, and what it means to be a Mississippi writer.

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David Lewis sits down with Landon Bryant to discuss his new book "Bless Your Heart". They talk about his journey as a social media personality and guru of Southern culture. Bryant shares his past work as an educator with the Mississippi Whole Schools program and talks about his current and future work moving into stand-up comedy. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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Lauren Rhoades talks with author Addie E. Citchens about her widely acclaimed debut novel DOMINION, a searing family drama set in the Mississippi Delta. Citchens is a Clarksdale native who now lives in New Orleans. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Paris Review, and Oxford American's "Best of the South." Citchens writings on blues history have been featured in Mississippi Folklife. On the Arts Hour, Citchens discusses how her Mississippi upbringing shaped her writing, the experience of publishing her first novel, and the writers and artists who have influenced her work. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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This is the second installment of the Favorite Poem Podcast Series hosted by Mississippi Poet Laureate Ann Fisher-Wirth, featuring C. Liegh McInnis reading and discussing a poem by Margaret Walker.

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Larry Morrisey talks with Hattiesburg-based photographer Betty Press. A Nebraska native, Press has lived in Mississippi for over 20 years. She has photographed throughout the state. Over the summer she was a featured artist in the biennial exhibition of Mississippi artists at the Mississippi Museum of Art. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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The Mississippi Arts Hour goes international for this week's episode. Executive Director David Lewis is talking all about the Venice Architecture Biennale and speaking with Mississippi State University President Mark Keenum. At the American Pavilion of the Venice Biennale, MSU's two design research centers are on display, for the first time in the university's history. David interviews both centers' directors - Leah Kemp with the Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center and David Perkes with the Gulf Coast Community Design Center - about the process of being featuring in the "Olympics of Architecture" and what approach each center took to showcasing the American Front Porch. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

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