Mississippi Arts Hour

Mississippi Arts Commission Executive Director David Lewis sits down with some of the team from ‘Sipp Culture. Brandi and Carlton Turner founded and run the arts organization based in Utica. They talk about how 'Sipp Culture came to be and how community conversations drive their mission. Then they talk with Saint Allen Austin about the work he is doing for 'Sipp Culture and the Surdna Foundation for the new Rural Routes Design Lab + Studio program, which engages rural artists in transformational community-driven practice. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

Leslie Barker talks with photographer, Jenny Anderson. A Mississippi native and Ole Miss alum, she has spent the last eighteen years working as a photographer in New York City. Jenny’s expansive work photographing the Broadway community captures the magic both on and off-stage. The New York Times, Vanity Fair, Vogue, Town & Country, and so many more have featured her stunning photography. Her new book, The In-Between: Intimate and Candid Moments of Broadway Stars gives us a rare glimpse into backstage life of some of the most legendary stages and its brightest stars. Join us for our conversation as Jenny discusses her artistic journey that started right here in Mississippi. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

Lauren Rhoades talks with Germantown High School's longtime art teacher, Sheri Shramek. During her nearly 35 years in the classroom, Sheri has seen many of her students win state and national awards in various competitions, including the Scholastic Art Awards and Congressional Art Competitions. In the interview, Sheri discusses the highlights of teaching visual arts, including painting, drawing, and art appreciation, to high school students, and the ways she helps inspire her students to express themselves through art. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

Larry Morrisey visits with Shelley Ritter, the director of the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale. They talk about the museum's new exhibit that digs into the history of Margaret's Blue Diamond Lounge, a legendary Clarksdale blues club that operated during the 1980s and 90s. (photo credit: Panny Flautt Mayfield). If you enjoyed listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

Kristen Brandt talks with Greta Koshenina, a multidisciplinary artist, documentarian, cyanotypist, and curator based in Cleveland, Mississippi. They discuss her upcoming show, opening at the Mississippi Art Center in Jackson on July 3, and a documentary she created using archival family videos. If you enjoyed listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

Larry Morrisey travels to West Point to visit with Annie Caldwell, a gospel singer and leader of her family group, Annie and the Caldwells. The group, which includes her husband and adult children, released their third album this spring on Luaka Bop Records, David Byrne’s record label. They’ll be touring Europe and Australia this summer. If you enjoyed listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

Kristen Brandt sits down with Lauren Rhoades, a writer and editor living in Jackson, Mississippi. Originally from Denver, Colorado, Lauren has served with AmeriCorps, started Mississippi's first fermentation company, and helmed the Eudora Welty House & Garden. She is now the director of grants at the Mississippi Arts Commission. In 2022, Lauren founded Rooted Magazine, an online publication dedicated to telling unfiltered stories about what it means to call Mississippi home. She holds an MFA in creative writing from the Mississippi University for Women. Kristen sits down with Lauren to discuss her debut memoir, Split the Baby: A Memoir in Pieces, which will release on June 3, 2025.

Larry Morrisey visits with Hattiesburg-based painter Andrea Kostyal. She describes her process of creating the “imaginary cityscapes” featured in her paintings. Kostyal also talks about the workshops she and her partners offer at the Singing River Art Studio in downtown Hattiesburg.If you enjoyed listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.  

Lauren Rhoades talks with composer, conductor, and keyboardist Buck McDaniel. Originally from Columbia, MS, Buck is now based in New York City, where he has worked as Music Coordinator on the forthcoming film The History of Sound, starring Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor, and conducted a special choral collaboration with Sam Smith and Sharon Stone on NBC’s Saturday Night Live, among other projects. On the Arts Hour, Buck discusses his newest solo piano work, “Any Room is a Room to Read In,” inspired by Eudora Welty’s writings on creativity and place. If you enjoyed listening to this podcast, please consider contributing to MPB.  https://donate.mpbfoundation.org/mspb/podcast.