Mississippi Arts Hour

Sarah Story talks with photographer Ashleigh Coleman, a MAC fellowship recipient and 2020 South Arts State Fellow for Mississippi. They discuss Ashleigh’s experience living in rural Mississippi and documenting her children’s lives, finding joy and magical moments in their messes. Ashleigh’s work has been exhibited throughout the U.S and has been published in Oxford Magazine, Garden & Gun, and...

Leslie Barker talks to ASU Jazz Festival longtime organizer and ASU music professor, David Miller. This year, the ASU Jazz Festival is being honored with the Governor’s Arts Award for Arts in Community. For more than four decades, the festival has brought some of the most significant jazz performers in the history of the genre to the state, often representing the only occasion many of th...

Sarah Story talks with Maurice Carlos Ruffin, an author and the 2020-2021 John and Renee Grisham Writer-in-Residence at The University of Mississippi. He is the author of "We Cast a Shadow," which was a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award, the PEN/Open Book Award, and the Dayton Literary Peace Prize and long-listed for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize and International Dublin Literary Awar...

Malcolm White interviews filmmaker Anthony Thaxton and restauranteur Robert St. John about the newly released “Walter Anderson: The Extraordinary Life and Art of The Islander,” a documentary and accompanying book based on the fascinating life and work of Mississippi Gulf Coast watercolorist. The documentary premiered on MPB Television on Nov. 4 and features family interviews, never-before-seen art...

Leslie Barker interviews artist, illustrator, teaching artist and Greenwood, Mississippi native, Chuck Galey. Chuck will talk about Adventures in the Imagination, an exhibition featuring his original illustrations from published books. The exhibition will be at the MAX in Meridian through March 12. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah Story talks with Claire Whitehurst, an Oxford-based painter, printmaker and ceramicist. The two talk about Claire’s techniques and inspirations as well as the new book Mirror Drawings. Published by Drum Machine Editions, Claire created this bound suite of screen prints as a 2021 publishing resident at Drum Machine. They also discuss Claire’s online exhibition, Mississippi Shade with Steve Tu...

Larry Morrisey visits with Daniel De Vise, author of the new biography on BB King (“King of the Blues: The Rise and Reign of BB King”). De Vise talks about how King’s childhood shaped his drive to succeed, how he invented his own unique guitar style and the ups and downs of his 60+ year career. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Melody Moody Thortis talks with Harry Bolick and Tony Russell, authors of the new book "Fiddle Tunes from Mississippi: Commercial and Informal Recordings, 1920–2018, a new publication from the University Press of Mississippi. Harry and Tony share their work collecting the music of Mississippi fiddlers, including many previously unheard recordings from across the state.  Hosted on Acast. See a...

Leslie Barker talks with one of this year’s Performing Arts Fellowship recipients, Nancy Maria Balach. Nancy Maria discusses her life in music, the crucial role of arts in education, and the University of Mississippi’s upcoming production of THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Malcolm White welcomes guests Ellen Rodgers Daniels and Ralph Eubanks. Ellen Rodgers Daniels is the executive director of the Mississippi Book Festival and Ralph Eubanks is an author who presented at this year’s virtual festival. The group talks about the 2021 festival offerings, its pivot from in-person to virtual this past August as well as Ralph Eubanks’ new book “A Place Like Mississippi.” All...

Larry Morrisey visits with Tom Kersen, a professor at Jackson State University about his new book “Where Misfits Fit: Counterculture and Influence in the Ozarks.” The book looks at the distinctive culture of the Ozarks region and how it has drawn a wide range of musicians, counter-culture types and back to the land enthusiasts since it was initially settled. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy...

Melody Moody Thortis speaks with 2021 MAC Fellowship recipient, Sophie Glenn. Sophie is a furniture maker and steel fabricator who works to explore the relationship between the two. Sophie's work invites the viewer in to discover that things may not always been as they seem. They talk about the craft of metalworking, its connection to history and how it’s being transformed through Sophie's wo...

Leslie Barker talks with The End of All Music record store owner, David Swider. David tells us about the origins of the original Oxford location and the new Jackson store that just opened up in Fondren. He also gives lots of great Mississippi music recommendations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah Story talks with Adrienne Brown David, a painter based in Oxford, Miss. In her work, Adrienne captures black childhood in a way that is pure and uninterrupted, drawing inspiration from her four daughters and the Southern landscape. She has exhibited in New York and Oxford alike, was named one of Buzzfeed’s “26 Black Artists That’ll Help You Start Your Own Art Collection,” and her artwor...

Larry Morrisey visits with ceramic artist and potter Stephen Phillips from Crawford, Miss. As a child, Phillips created animal figures out of mud and “fired” them in an improvised kiln. He got his official start working in clay as a student at East MS Community College and later earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts at MUW in Columbus. Phillips has a studio in Crawford but exhibits his work throughout th...

Melody Moody Thortis speaks with Eric Stracener. Eric --twice named best singer-songwriter by the Jackson Free Press -- talks about his new album, Ocean Springs and his creative journey throughout his musical career. You'll hear about how his inspirations and how his music and subsequent albums have continued to evolve over the years.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informati...

Leslie Barker talks with one of this year’s Performing Arts Fellowship recipients, Treya Dionne Brown. Treya is a writer and professionally trained film, stage, and voice over actor. Join us as she talks about how her Hattiesburg roots have grown into a life in the arts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah Story talks with Ming Ying Hong, an interdisciplinary artist based in Starkville. She has exhibited throughout the U.S. and was recently named the South Arts Mississippi State Fellow. A professor of drawing at Mississippi State University, her work explores bodies at the margins, questioning the way we define, categorize, and assign power to them.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/p...

Larry Morrisey talks with Bruce Watson from Oxford-based Fat Possum Records about “Memphis ’69,” their newly released documentary film. The film documents the final Memphis Country Blues Festival, held in the summer of 1969 that featured performances by several Mississippi blues greats, including Son Thomas, Bukka White and Mississippi Fred McDowell. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more...

Melody Moody Thortis speaks with Danielle Burns Wilson, guest curator of the 2021 Mississippi Invitational, the Mississippi Museum of Art’s biennial showcase of 42 visual artists from across the state. She also talks to Coulter Fussell, a Water Valley-based quilter and textile artist who is this year’s winner of the Jane Crater Hiatt Artist Fellowship.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/pri...

Leslie Barker speaks with Julian Rankin, director of the Walter Anderson Museum of Art. The two discuss Art Museum Month, happening through the month of August, which grants visitors free admission to seven participating art institutions in the state. Julian also talks about Walter Anderson, his work at the Museum and in the Ocean Springs community as well as his passion for multimedia storytellin...

Sarah Story talks with award-winning author Kiese Laymon. The two talk about their home state, Laymon’s newly revised and repackaged book “Long Division" and the author’s upcoming appearance at the Mississippi Book Festival, which will take place on Saturday, August 21 in downtown Jackson. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Larry Morrisey talks with Carolyn Brown and Ellen Ruffin, co-editors of "A De Grummond Primer," a new book that examines the extensive children’s literature collection at The University of Southern Mississippi. The collection includes original items from a number of legendary children’s book authors, including Margret and H.A. Rey, the creators of “Curious George. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/pr...

Leslie Barker talks with musician, Adam Collier. Also known as AJC of AJC and The Envelope Pushers and AJC the DJ, he is a man who wears many musical hats. It’s a conversation about Adam’s influences, process, and upcoming projects.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Melody Moody Thortis talks to Erin Rockwell, a dancer and choreographer currently serving as a Professor of Dance at Belhaven University as well as the Director of its MFA Program. Erin is also a former Mississippi Arts Commission Fellowship recipient. They discuss Erin’s journey as a dancer, her frequent collaborations with local musicians and her passion for integrating dance and film.  Hos...