Nashville-based platinum-selling indie artist Judah Akers of Judah & the Lion goes deep on the five stages of grief and finding beauty in the midst of pain.

PART ONE
Paul and Scott dive deep on how Nashville has transformed into a very different kind of "Music City USA."

PART TWO
Our in-depth conversation with Judah Akers

ABOUT JUDAH AKERS
Judah Akers is best known as the lead singer, guitarist, and primary songwriter of Judah & The Lion. Their debut EP, Sweet Tennessee, was released in 2013, climbing to #2 on Billboard’s Bluegrass Albums chart and the Top 15 on the Folk Albums chart. And the first full-length album, Kids These Days, debuted in the Top 5 on Billboard’s Folk Albums chart. Expanding their sound, the band released Folk Hop n’ Roll in 2015, landing in the Top 10 on Billboard’s Heatseekers Albums chart and the Americana/Folk Albums chart. Later that year, the song “Take it All Back” hit the top of the Alternative Songs chart for three weeks and was later certified Platinum. The follow-up single, “Suit and Jacket,” was certified Gold. Judah & the Lion’s third album, Pep Talks, hit the Top 20 on Billboard's Top 200, and the Top 5 on the Alternative Albums chart, while the singles “Over My Head” and “Why Did You Run” performed well on the Alternative Songs chart, earning them iHeart’s Best New Alternative Artist award for 2018. Their most recent album is The Process, released in May of 2024. Built around the concept of the five stages of grief, the songs are Akers’ exploration of his own mental health and life circumstances that find beauty, purpose, and even joy in the midst of the pain.

With an ACM Top New Female Vocalist win and nearly 20 Canadian Country Music Awards, the chart-topping Carolyn Dawn Johnson chats about everything from her songwriting successes to her artist career to her co-writing with Chris Stapleton.

PART ONE
Paul and Scott dive deep on their opinions about the recently-announced Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction class of 2024.

PART TWO
Our in-depth conversation with Carolyn Dawn Johnson.

ABOUT CAROLYN DAWN JOHNSON
Canadian-born singer, songwriter, producer, and musician Carolyn Dawn Johnson moved to Nashville in the mid-1990s and started getting her songs recorded by artists such as Patty Loveless, Suzy Bogguss, Kathy Mattea, and Jo Dee Messina. Her breakthrough came in 1999 with Chely Wright’s recording of "Single White Female," which hit #1 on the country charts. Wright’s follow-up recording of Johnson’s "Downtime" also became a Top 5 hit. Carolyn was named Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year by Music Row magazine in 2000 and landed a record deal of her own with the Arista Nashville label. Her self-produced debut, Room with a View, hit the Top 10 in the US and earned Gold status in Canada. The singles "Complicated“ and "I Don’t Want You to Go“ were both Top 10 hits in the US. She won the Academy of Country Music’s Top New Female Vocalist award and swept the Canadian Country Music Awards. The follow-up album, Dress Rehearsal, also debuted in the Top 10. To date, Carolyn has earned nearly 20 Canadian Country Music Awards for songwriting, performing, and producing. As an artist she has toured with Reba McEntire, Alan Jackson, Kenny Chesney, Keith Urban, and Merle Haggard. As a backup vocalist and musician she’s toured with Ashley McBryde, Miranda Lambert, and Martina McBride. After a hiatus as an artist she has recently begun recording new music while continuing to enjoy success as a writer, including Chris Stapleton’s "The Day I Die,“ a song Carolyn and Chris wrote together that appeared on his 2023 album Higher.

Folkie Americana indie hero Drew Holcomb joins us to chat about the songwriting process and which of his songs he's not a fan of!

PART ONE
Scott and Paul debrief the experience of recently seeing the 74-year-old Bruce Springsteen perform with the energy of a teenager

PART TWO
Our in-depth conversation with Drew Holcomb

ABOUT DREW HOLCOMB
Memphis native Drew Holcomb first broke through on the national scene with the 2011 album Chasing Someday, credited to his band Drew Holcomb & the Neighbors. Subsequent studio albums, such as Good Light, Medicine, Souvenir, and Dragons hit the Top 10 on Billboard's folk and indie charts and earned Holcomb and his bandmates a loyal following. The fiercely independent group is widely regarded as a live performance powerhouse, while Holcomb's original songs have found particular resonance with music supervisors who have made them staples of film and TV show synch placements. Whether working with the band, solo, or as a duo with his wife and fellow singer/songwriter, Ellie Holcomb, Drew's literate folk-based Americana represents a craftman's approach to the songwriting process. The most recent album from Drew Holcomb & the Neighbors is called Strangers No More.