The Setlist of Life

Join the current lineup of Dolly for Sue on The Setlist of Life podcast for an unscripted evening of music trivia, family banter, and midlife nostalgia. Guitarist Aaron, drummer Christine, bassist Jack, and vocalist Leslie swap stories about dream concerts, Dragonforce's new front woman, Taylor Momsen's rock career, and why so many actors secretly sing. The group tackles Thomas Edison'...

Five bandmates from Dolly for Sue sit down for another episode of The Set List of Life, and this one starts with a mystery box. Fun Delivered sells sealed packages from undelivered and abandoned mail, and the crew opens them one by one, guessing contents before reveals: a red blanket, a travel pillow, a pink skeleton jumpsuit, and a "100,000 Whys" book that sparks a debate about whether pl...

What happens when a mom-band sits down and asks the really weird questions? This episode of The Setlist of Life spirals beautifully from cows predicting rain, to Lizzie Borden nostalgia, to the single question that might change how you think about meaning and risk. Featuring Aaron (guitars), Christine (drums), Kirsten (keyboards), and Leslie (vocals), the crew tackles eight life-altering envelopes...

In this episode of Setlist of Life , band members Aaron (guitar), Kirsten (keys), and Christine (drums) are joined by college roommate Neepa, who traveled from North Carolina just to hang out. That kind of friendship is what this conversation is really about. We dive deep into what made college friendships actually stick in the pre-internet era: random roommate assignments, phone booth closets, do...

The Setlist of Life celebrates 150 episodes with a deep dive into taste perception, cultural food experiments, and the psychology of risk—all while the band members taste their way through an international snack buffet. What Happens: Flavor Pairing Game: The band discovers that lemon + cinnamon = Coca-Cola, and how human brains predict taste before taste buds activate International Spreads Tour: F...

On this episode of The Setlist of Life, the band sits down to explore how small daily practices reshape your entire outlook—and why your garden might be staging a tiny bug war right now. Main Topics: Christine's sharing her gratitude journaling journey and the science behind morning pages (Julia Cameron's technique). Leslie reveals how one mom-to-kid conversation flipped the script on anxi...

In this episode, the bandmates of Dolly for Sue honor Dolly Parton's legacy, acknowledge a past research mishap with humor and grace, and dive into the "Music Reposition Game" — a creative exercise that asks: If you remixed this song into a different genre or context, what would it become? The crew rates classic artists from Pink Floyd to The Police, Adam Ant to Pink, exploring why lik...

In this episode of Set List of Life , the band tackles one of rock's greatest travel anthems—Led Zeppelin's "Ramble On"—while unpacking real conversations about family, books, personality types, and why some people can't stop talking to themselves. It starts with a personality quiz that reveals which band member you actually are. The conversation spirals into The Hobbit debate—...

This week on The Setlist of Life , hosts Aaron, Kirsten, and Leslie dive deep into psychological quizzes, nostalgia-driven recipes, and the unexpected power of small details. It starts innocent—planning a trip to the Iowa State Fair and daydreaming about meat sundaes—but quickly spirals into a celebration of midlife creativity, family dynamics, and identity play. The heart of the episode centers o...

The Setlist of Life: Summer Adventures, Band Life & Raising Kids Without Urgency In this deeply conversational episode, the Dolly for Sue bandmates—Leslie (vocals), Aaron (guitar), Christine (drums), and Kirsten (keyboard)—reflect on summer adventures, parenting paradoxes, and the gap between Gen X intentionality and Gen Z digital passivity. The conversation weaves together personal travel sto...

The Setlist of Life returns after its longest hiatus to celebrate reconnection, resilience, and the messy reality of midlife summers. In this candid band reunion, Leslie, Aaron, and Kirsten catch up on everything summer threw at them: mysterious injuries that appear overnight, pets discovering their warrior instincts, close calls with tornadoes, and the quiet comedy of being invisible to airline s...

Thunder Rolls & Tiny Scammers: When Storms, Strangers & Summer Plans Collide This episode of The Set List of Life kicks off with a real thunderstorm that nearly flooded a family dinner—then escalates into a night of unexpected conversations about safety, accountability, and what it means to parent in 2026. After playing a creative song-synonym guessing game (featuring Garth Brooks, Michael...

It's Leslie's birthday, and the band is celebrating with Brenda's legendary church cookbook pretzel salad — and every question that comes with it. Who was Brenda? How old is that cookbook? Does God have an opinion on Jell-O? Dolly for Sue is in full form. This week's episode covers the parenting guilt spiral of marching band volunteerism, the surprisingly solid gift idea of a sceni...

Sleep Apnea, Smeg Coffee Pots & Strawberry Pretzel Salad: A Midlife Wellness & Nostalgia Deep Dive" Four bandmates (Dolly for Sue) navigate rainy nights, lawn care timing, and the chaos of reinventing themselves as creatives in midlife. This episode weaves together unexpected wellness realities—sleep studies, nerve pinching from over-exercising, and the massage paradox—with 80s-style n...

Travel, Wine, and Joyful Purging: Finding Yourself in the Chaos Leslie returns from a week-long journey through London, Paris, and Belgium—and she didn't just bring back photos. She brought back perspective on infrastructure, childhood rituals, and aging gracefully. In this episode, the band explores how a European vacation becomes a masterclass in living differently. Leslie unpacks the shocki...

The Setlist of Life: "Simply the Best" – A Conversation About Mystery, Ghosts, Games & What Your Friends Actually Know About You This episode opens with a real mystery: Why are bodies appearing in rivers during heavy rain? The answer involves environmental science, dam dynamics, and a heartbreaking water-safety story. From there, the conversation pivots through haunted hotels (includin...

What happens when a classic rock cover band—Leslie (vocals), Aaron (guitar), Kirsten (keys)—gathers to process spring, scams, and the strange arc of parenting in your 40s? This episode opens with the promise of warm weather, fragile hope, and a confession: Leslie killed a Norfolk pine through over-care, a perfect metaphor for modern parental anxiety. But it spirals into something bigger—a real con...

Tonight's lineup includes three bodies found in a Midwest river in four weeks, a quadruple amputee accused of murder, and the artificial intelligence-driven question: Can you really fall in love with someone 30 years older? Leslie, our vocalist-turned-amateur-investigator, is following the river deaths like a true-crime podcast protagonist. Christine is baffled by Age of Attraction , Netflix&#...

🎵 The Setlist of Life: "Crazy" – When Lost Luggage, AI Music, and Parenting Plot Twists Collide "THE SETLIST" 0:00 – Track 1: Welcome to the Chaos – Why Your Podcast Guest Never Shows Up Consistently 2:03 – Track 2: The AirTag Chronicles – How One Lost Handbag in Spain Became an Obsession 6:00 – Track 3: Airport Security Fails & Taxi Driver Mysteries – Tracking Your Stuff 4,00...

What happens when your best friend loses her passport in Seville, Spain — and has to spend four extra days navigating police stations, the U.S. Embassy, and a purple temporary travel document just to get home? That's where this episode of The Set List of Life begins. Kirsten, Leslie, Aaron, and Christine — the bandmates of Dolly 4 Sue — are all back in the same room, and the stories are flying...

What happens when your brain decides it's Thursday — twice — and your family just watches you leave the house anyway? That's the kind of beautifully unhinged realness that makes The Setlist of Life feel like the podcast your actual friends would make if they had microphones and a serious love of classic rock. This week, Leslie is back (a day late, technically), Christine is hosting from he...

In this episode of The Setlist of Life, former bandmates Christine, Aaron, and Kirsten dive into Valentine's Day philosophy, the surprising history of playing cards and tarot, and why some people still believe in the full moon's power over human behavior. The conversation meanders from head spa goddess energy and lunar calendars to deep philosophical debates courtesy of a kids' "Wo...

00:00 – Track 1: Welcome to the Jungle (Intro & Birthday Shoutouts) 02:19 – Track 2: The Great Tarp Experiment (Snow Removal Hacks That Actually Work) 06:42 – Track 3: Shoveling Confessions (Bodies, Backyards, and the HOA Fine) 12:45 – Track 4: The Snowblower in the Garage You Can't Reach 14:43 – Track 5: Tids and Bits (Pennsylvania Roots & Podcast Memory Lane) 18:19 – Track 6: War Gam...

Join Christine, Kirsten, and Aaron—as they prepare for "snowmageddon" while exploring this week's musical theme: "Riding the Storm Out" by REO Speedwagon. This unscripted conversation blends music nostalgia with midlife authenticity as the trio shares storm preparation strategies (including the viral tarp trick), debates Breaking Bad's intensity, and discovers the therapeut...

In this episode of The Setlist of Life podcast, the Dolly 4 Sue bandmates reunite after the holidays for their signature blend of unscripted conversation, music nostalgia, and midlife humor. The episode kicks off with a discussion about "It Never Rains in Southern California" by Albert Hammond, inspired by Kirsten's rainy California trip, and explores the quirky world of rock flute in...