DALLAS FAMOUS

This week on Dallas Famous, we’re thrilled to welcome April Samuels, a powerhouse drummer, breast cancer survivor, and all-around inspiration. Known as Crash Gordon in the band Metal Shop, April has played with various bands over the years, with Frognot being one of the most recognized. Her life took a dramatic turn when she was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer, but she transformed tha...

This week we have Larry Gayao aka Larry g(EE). Larry has been part of Dallas scene for a while. Larry’s brushed with some heavy hitters, from auditioning for Lou Pearlman and O-Town, to busking to being managed by Mandy Teefee, Selena Gomez’s mom.  Larry’s band Otis was his real introduction to Dallas with an assist from the Lex and Terry show. After that band dissolved Larry got heavy into soul m...

This week on the Dallas Famous Podcast, it's Kali Flower. Kali is a talented pop singer originally from Hawaii, where she performed whenever she got the chance. Kali got her start doing public relations for musicians and artists. Now she's taken that knowledge and experience and applied it to her own career. She's self-taught on piano using her skills to write her songs and shape her sound. Kali h...

This week, it's Stone Mecca. Stone Mecca is a multi-talented musician, producer, and composer who has made a significant impact in the world of funk, soul, and hip-hop. His journey into music started at a young age, driven by a passion for guitar and a love for blending genres. His first big break came when he toured with the legendary Earth, Wind & Fire, launching a career that would late...

This week, it’s comedian Vinnie Corrales. Vinnie is a rising star in the Dallas-Fort Worth comedy scene,  His journey into comedy began unexpectedly, with an improv class he received as a birthday gift. What started as a fun experience quickly turned into a passion, leading him to try stand-up on a whim at an open mic. That one open mic launched his career as a stand-up comedian. Since then, Vinni...

This week, I'm excited to welcome singer-songwriter and visual artist, Sarah Johnson. Sarah has recently made the big move to Nashville, where she's continuing to build her music career with her powerful voice, heartfelt lyrics, and captivating art. Before her move, Sarah was a driving force in the Dallas-Fort Worth music scene, where she founded the Girls of DFW, a round table that spotli...

This week, we have my good friend Mason Adams of the Mason Adams Project. Mason has been making his own breaks in the music industry with his distinctive blend of what he refers to as hillbilly hippie funk. Not only is he a talented songwriter, guitarist and singer he fronts his own band, Mason is also dedicated to shaping young minds as a full-time teacher. We delve into his journey and talk abou...

This week, we have the incredibly talented Emmeline. Emmeline is a Dallas-based singer-songwriter, educator, and podcaster with a rich background in music and teaching. A classically trained pianist and vocalist from Southern Methodist University (SMU), Emmeline has been crafting music since childhood. Beyond her performances, Emmeline is a passionate educator, combining teaching music and therapy...

This week's guest is the remarkable Ron Dyer, the man behind the Dallas Drum Jam. Ron, a Dallas native born in Oak Cliff, has been a pivotal figure in the local music scene. His journey with music began as a young child in the 1960s, playing drums in his uncle's band. Despite the challenges of being self-taught, Ron's passion for rhythm has taken him around the world. In our conversati...

This weeks guest is the lovely Rachel Teague. Rachael got her start in the competitive world of corporate bands where she really honed her skills and met her core musician group including her husband. Since then she has ventured out with her own music and has a new album in the works. She also works as a publicist for Creative Currency helping other artists grow their careers. She also just starte...

This week we have Madison Raney. Madison is a dynamic concert and wedding photographer and we delve into how those two style of shooting complement each other. Madison is a true music fan which not only led to her dream career, it also has led to a new project called Backing the Barricade, which is a focus on the fans experience at shows and spawned a new podcast just launched called beyond the ba...

This week  we have the one and only Matt Hillyer.  Matt is best known as the frontman for the legendary 1100 Springs and is truly Dallas Famous. We stroll through his history starting with an alleged busking incident all the way to his current solo release “Bright Skyline.” Matt is totally candid and we really get a glimpse into his early playing days. We even get Matt to play a song in studio off...

This week we have Surzty. Surtzy is truly a fascinating woman who has many artistic skills and talents. She is model, photographer, fashion designer, artist, aerialist and is delving in podcasting and music. She holds a degree in Anthropology and a masters in Sociology. Her many interests come from a curiosity and drive to enjoy life through all possible artistic expressions as well as a strong th...

This week my guest is Steven Holt. Steven Holt is truly Dallas Famous. He has been fronting bands in Dallas for decades. His first band Tablet had great success locally and opened for some huge bands. Since then he has kept his song-writing going in different projects and now has put together “I Love You and is putting out songs and playing shows again.” I had never met Steven and I really liked t...

This week we have Faith Alesia Sword. Faith started a solo project during lockdown that became Penny Bored. She sang for the first time in front of other people at her first band rehearsal. Since then she has had some fantastic releases and has more live shows coming up. Faith is the content manager for Do214 where she helps curate coverage of cool things going on in Dallas. This one’s short but s...

This week we have Mavel Traylor aka Mavel the Creator. Mavel is the pre-to the post in all things production in DFW.. Hair, make-up, wardrobe, and any stage hand job that comes her way. Mavel is someone most people wouldn’t know but the shows they love would not happen without her. She works with the Dallas Opera, Broadway Dallas, basically anywhere a big show in Dallas happens. She's worked w...

This week we have musician, composer and producer Emsy Robinson Jr. Emsy is truly Dallas famous as he’s well known in the local musician circles as a go-to bassist and guitarist and seems to be a person writers go to for quotes on the state of the Dallas music scene as well, me included. He’s played in over 30 bands running the gamut of genres including Charlie Crockett, Cure for Paranoia and even...

This week we have drummer phenom Mike Mitchell aka Blaque Dynamite. We take a deep, non-sequential dive into his history.  Mitchell was a child prodigy that started performing at age 2 and recorded on his first album and wrote his first song at age 7. A Booker T and Herbie Hancock Institute grad, Mitchell has performed with legends Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea as well as playing regularly with S...

Welcome to Season 3 of the Dallas Famous Podcast! We are kicking things off with a bang! Today we are very excited as our guests are Dallas royalty Rhett Miller and Ken Bethea of the Old 97’s. We get right into the origins of the band 300 yards from the spot the Old 97’s first played together. We touch on their early goals and reflect on an amazing career together thats far from over.  We even got...

This week on the season 2 finale of the Dallas Famous podcast we have Sean Russell. Sean is the singer of the fantastic band Cut Throat Finches, He also proudly wears the un-official title of “Mr. Fort Worth.” Sean got his start as a singer songwriter in Deep Ellum but slowly felt the pull of Fort Worth and its more intimate music scene, and his wife. We follow his history and how he ended up form...

This week we have Chris Penn. Chris is co-owner of Good records as well as co manager of the Polyphonic Spree as well as Tripping Daisy. Growing up in San Antonio, Chris was getting dragged to concerts by his parents planting the seeds for his future endeavors.  Chris made his way to Dallas with the promise of working with Tripping Daisy. That couldn’t  have gone any better as Chris still works cl...

This week we have Roland Rangel. Roland is the director of marketing for the Deep Ellum Community Arts Fair April 5-7, but his Dallas history starts way before that. Roland was a member of the bands Chorus Affliction and The Salvation but switched his focus to video and social media. Rangel ran a successful political campaign for a Plano Councilman then ran for congress himself. Roland is back for...

This week we have Claire Daigle. Claire is the director of education at The Dallas Comedy Club. After her first love and ambition of being a dancer was derailed by injury, Claire discovered she had an affinity for behind the scenes. Covid motivated Claire to take a stab at stand-up and she took a class at the Dallas Comedy Club. That led to her taking a huge roll at the theater.  Her ultimate goal...

This week we have singer Dana Harper. After a fun little chat about chat gpt, we get into Dana’s history. From being discovered by the choir teacher just from hearing her hum, all the way to New York where things really took off.  Google was the secret to Harper finding some very cool stages and gigs. After her appearance on The Voice, Dana was able to make music her full-time living and hasn’t st...

This week we have Sunny Marcell. Sunny is the bassist and co-pilot of the band Sunny Disposition . We listen to their track " Miles To Regret . " Sunny also leads karaoke weekly and is about to start doing solo gigs just her and her bass. We get to know Sunny and follow along as she almost - by accident stepped forward to become a singer. Sunny is magnetic on stage and a delight in this...