Life Stories Interviews

Critically acclaimed poet, Joy Harjo, reminisces on her life and upbringing which culminated in her appointment as US Poet Laureate from 2019-2022. Known for her reflective poetry focusing on language, mythology and remembrance, Harjo discusses her relationship to storytelling and creativity and how it has impacted her life.

James Cromwell, renowned for his roles in Succession and Babe, shares candid stories of his personal journey and the impact of his political beliefs on his career. From growing up in Hollywood to his experiences participating in the civil rights and anti-war movements, discover more about Cromwell’s successful career.

As society grapples with an alarming surge in loneliness, disconnection, and isolation, best-selling author and renowned columnist David Brooks has dedicated the last four years to studying how to build better connections. In this thought-provoking interview, Brooks draws from his personal experiences and his latest book, ‘How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen...

In this episode of The Thread, you’ll meet Father Greg Boyle who, inspired by a lifelong commitment to non-violence, has helped hundreds of thousands of young people transform their lives through compassion and unconditional love. In the days of rioting that followed the 1992 acquittal of the Los Angeles police officers who brutally beat Rodney King, Father Boyle founded Homeboy Bakery, a not-for-...

Acclaimed author Betty Rollin looks back on her extraordinary life in this poignant episode of The Thread. In the last interview she gave before making the decision to die by assisted suicide at the age of 87, Rollin vividly recalls stories from her award-winning career in acting, journalism, broadcasting, and then as the author of First, You Cry, her groundbreaking book on her personal battles wi...

Jason Alexander is best known for his portrayal of the culturally iconic character of George Costanza on television’s Seinfeld. In this episode of The Thread you’ll meet the real Jason Alexander, a thoughtful, articulate man who couldn't be more different than the insecure, muddle-headed Costanza. The one trait they share is the ability to make us laugh about life’s all-too frequent absurditie...

Katie Couric’s unique combination of warmth, intelligence and empathy earned her the title of “America’s Sweetheart.” In this episode of “The Thread,” the trailblazing journalist -- the first woman to ever anchor a nightly network newscast – reflects on the life lessons that have anchored her during her five-decade career in broadcasting. She poignantly describes how the heartbreaking loss of her...

Darren Walker’s journey from his birth in a Louisiana charity hospital to becoming president of the nation’s fourth largest private philanthropy, the Ford Foundation, is a profoundly inspirational story that could not have been written even a generation ago. In this episode of The Thread, he takes us along on his life’s extraordinary path which he modestly describes as “lucky.” Walker describes ho...

Tony “The Birdman” Hawk defies both gravity and time. In this episode of The Thread, skateboarding’s living legend describes his early years as a teen who was called “too small” to ever compete successfully. Through sheer determination and fearlessness, not only did he dramatically prove his critics wrong, he went on to become an international representative of skateboarding as a sport. Hawk playe...

Reginald Dwayne Betts’ story is a testament to the power of the human spirit to survive – and even thrive – through extraordinary adversity. In this deeply compelling episode of The Thread, Betts displays the quiet eloquence that makes him one of the nation’s most acclaimed poets. Arrested at 16 in inner city Baltimore for the first crime he ever committed, a carjacking where no one was physically...

Cecile Richards, daughter of the legendary former governor of Texas Ann Richards, had some big shoes to fill from an early age. In this episode of The Thread, she opens-up about forging her own path and how, with her mother’s crucial encouragement, she made the life-changing decision to become president of Planned Parenthood at a critical time in the organization’s history. Cecile Richards’s life...

In this episode of “The Thread,” Life Stories sits down with Senator Mitt Romney who thoughtfully reflects on family and faith, the twin pillars that have guided him throughout his storied career. He also looks back at both his presidential run in 2012 and his vote for impeachment, while sharing what he sees as the biggest challenges for the U.S. in the coming years.   Subscribe for access to inte...

In this episode of The Thread we sit down with Reverend Dr. Jacqui Lewis, the first black and female senior minister at the multicultural Collegiate Church in Manhattan. Her entry into the world of activism has since informed her life’s work and led to her calling as a minister, a best-selling author and one of the nation’s most prominent progressive pastors. Subscribe for access to interviews, se...

Kurt "Big Boy" Alexander, a national radio star for more than thirty years, reveals some hard-learned lessons in this episode of The Thread. He shares the poignant revelation that at only ten years old, his mother and seven siblings were a family of homeless nomads moving from motel to motel. Alexander’s compelling story is one of overcoming struggles with massive weight (“I was a size 8...

Roz Chast, the award-winning cartoonist for The New Yorker magazine, has created a world of laughter despite painful circumstances. In this episode of The Thread, Chast describes her far-from-comic childhood without mincing words: “I couldn’t stand my parents. A terrible thing to say, but true.” She highlights the impact of iconic cartoonist Charles Addams on her work and explains how storytelling...

Martin Sheen is a national treasure, as both an acclaimed actor and as a lifelong activist for social justice. In this episode of The Thread, the Emmy-Award winning “acting president” from television’s The West Wing, shares stories from his six-decade career in film and television and describes the struggles of starting out in a profession where his birth name of Ramon Estevez was deemed “too Puer...

Tova Friedman is one the few remaining living witnesses to the horrors of the Holocaust. In this episode of The Thread, she recounts a childhood of unimaginable brutality and terror, marked by starvation labor camps and the crematoriums of Auschwitz. She shares the challenges her family faced as survivors in postwar America emphasizing the importance of storytelling to ensure her children and gran...

Jason Reynolds, the New York Times #1 bestselling author and poet, is a wizard with words. In this episode of The Thread , he opens up about being the child of divorce and how, when he was adrift in life, a high school teacher shocked him into an awareness of the importance of self-sacrifice and moral courage. Now, Jason Reynolds uses storytelling to inspire young readers to discover those essenti...

Gloria Estefan, known to most as an internationally acclaimed recording artist and performer, opens her heart to share deeply personal stories in this episode of The Thread. We learn about her life as the young daughter of Cuban parents who were in grave danger when Fidel Castro came to power in Cuba. She takes us on a harrowing journey of fleeing to America, her father’s return to Cuba as an Amer...

The Thread is a new documentary interview series on Spotify in which exceptional individuals share the different paths they have taken to lead meaningful lives. Each 30-minute episode of The Thread will take the viewer on a personal journey into the life of an extraordinary individual who explores their life’s passion and purpose. The Thread will tug at the heart and reveal insights into some of t...