Three Song Stories

Latest Episodes:

Episode 444 - Desmond Meade Sep 28, 2026

Show notes

Desmond Meade is a MacArthur Genius Grant Fellow; a Nobel Peace Prize nominee, and having been named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time Magazine. He's also’s author of the 2020 book “Let My People Vote: My Battle to Restore the Civil Rights of Returning Citizens.”

Desmond is President of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition -- the organization that led the successful effort to restore voting rights to some 1.4 million former felons in FL. The amendment passed with nearly 65% support.

Desmond was born in St. Croix but grew up in Miami, and after a time in the Army, he found himself addicted and homeless in Miami. He served time in jail for felony drug possession, and after a fight with his brother was convicted of aggravated battery, also a felony. Then, in 2001, he was convicted of possession of a firearm as a felon and sentenced to 15 years in prison. An appeals court reversed that conviction and he was released, but still a convicted felon with no right to vote in the Sunshine State.

Desmond graduated from Miami-Dade College in 2010 while living in a homeless shelter, enrolled in the FIU College of Law, graduating in 2013, joining the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition while in law school.ppearances on CNN, MSNBC, 60 Minutes, and Fox TV demonstrates his ability to appeal to and inspire people from all walks of life.

SONG 1: "Lose Yourself" by Eminem from the soundtrack to the 2002 movie 8 Mile. https://youtu.be/xFYQQPAOz7Y?si=RFYS3pPTCqZAnVOT

SONG 2: "We Are the World" - the charity single originally recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson and produced by Quincy Jones. https://youtu.be/9AjkUyX0rVw?si=jPzSQ23ydm5wl6yN

SONG 3: "Freedom" by King Blackman ft Ronnie VOP, Desmond Meade.
https://youtu.be/95Nc4JF_NpE?si=JcXPdk3muIVwnt2T

Episode 443 - Dan Mangan Sep 21, 2026

Show notes

Dan Mangan is a Vancouver, BC-based musician. Dan has played Jimmy Kimmel Live, Glastonbury, and sold out Massey Hall, as well as scored soundtracks for television and feature film. He is also a co-founder of Side Door, a marketplace platform connecting artists with alternative venue spaces for in-person & online shows.

Dan has won 2 JUNO Awards and is thrice Polaris Music Prize-nominated for his work, and has released at least 7 albums and EPs. His latest album, Natural Light, which just hit the world, emerged after he and his longtime bandmates Jason Haberman, Mike O’Brien and Don Kerr secluded themselves deep in the woods of southern Ontario for a week intending to workshop some songs and possibly do some writing.

SONG 1: “Nothing Compares 2 U” by Sinead O’Connor from her 1990 album I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got

https://youtu.be/Ouf9-bOqJVk?si=Z3YOnoosZ9VPJIcn

SONG 2: “No Surprises” by Radiohead from their album OK Computer released in 1997

https://youtu.be/u5CVsCnxyXg?si=oh1zP41Yk5nZAU_w

SONG 3: “Float On” by Modest Mouse from their 2004 album Good News for People Who Love Bad News

https://youtu.be/88XhEqgmRhM?si=hKa_85bbJGsNpNvK

Episode 442 - Jack Bishop Sep 14, 2026

Show notes

Jack Bishop is senior content advisor and tasting lab expert at America's Test Kitchen. He was part of the original team that launched the show in 1993. He grew up in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey and studied Literature at Yale University and worked in publishing in New York City out of college before joining the staff of Cook's Magazine in 1988. It morphed into Cook's Illustrated in 1993, and America’s Test Kitchen grew out of it.

He’s also Executive Producer of and on-camera Judge in Amazon's America's Test Kitchen: The Next Generation which launched in 2022 and has had two seasons so far.
Jack has published at least seven cookbooks of his own - the first was called Lasagna: Classic and Contemporary Favorites. He’s also edited or contributed to well-over 100 cookbooks through the magazine and America’s Test Kitchen.
Song 1: "The River" by Bruce Springsteen from his 1980 double album of the same name. https://youtu.be/y7BUXRsTbvI?si=kDovogcEoXu9tRYA
Song 2: "Suavemente" by Elvis Crespo released in 1998 album of the same name. https://youtu.be/_T_SIDKGRjs?si=j99aMxPjaefxa5T_
Song 3: "The Weight" by Rostam from the (May) 2026 album American Stories. https://youtu.be/UvNI0hMn4n8?si=YJDpWzybxqmwSj30

Episode 441 - Karyn Parsons Sep 07, 2026

Show notes

Karyn Parsons is probably best known for playing Hilary on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Her character was, and is, truly beloved by fans around the U.S. and beyond. What her fans didn't know until 2005 was that Parsons was also a writer who spent quite a bit of time writing short fiction, and learning about history - particularly inspiring and empowering stories of African American achievement.
Once she set acting aside in the early 2000s, and had her first child, Parsons decided it was time to take her passion for writing and history seriously and so founded a nonprofit called Sweet Blackberry. They would turn her stories about little-known African American figures, ones that she thought would pique the imaginations of young people, into short films and picture-books. The animated films feature narration from voices like Alfre Woodard, Queen Latifah, Chris Rock, and Laurence Fishburne.
Parsons published her first young adult novel called "How High the Moon" in 2019 and has another one coming out this Summer. “How High the Moon” was inspired by her mother's childhood stories of being a young person growing up in South Carolina during the time of Jim Crow.

Episode 440 - Emma Briggs Coleman Aug 31, 2026

Show notes

Emma Briggs Coleman (who performs and releases music under Emma Briggs) is a singer-songwriter, guitarist, drummer, and multi-instrumentalist from Fort Myers whose music is rooted in the timeless spirit of rock, folk, and blues. She performs more than 300 live shows a year throughout Southwest Florida, including being selected to perform at the 2025 Island Hopper Songwriter Fest and she’ll be back again for it in 2026.

Emma says her goal with her music-making is to create meaningful connections with audiences, preserving memories, inspiring others, and reminding people that the most powerful songs are often the ones that make us feel a little less alone.

Song 1: "Seven Nation Army" by The White Stripes from their 2003 album Elephant.

Song 2: This is Jeff Buckley's version of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" - which Buckley released in 1994 on the album Grace.

Song 3: "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac from the album Life Becoming A Landslide released in 1975.

Episode 439 - Tonya Todd Aug 24, 2026

Show notes

Tonya Todd is an author, actress, screenwriter, and director. She is also co-editor and contributor for Comics Lit Volume 1, an essay collection about the value of comic books, and author of 52 Love: Weekly Love Lessons in Bite-Sized Bits. Her latest book, 52 Love: A Year of Romance – Volume One, is a collection of short stories inspired by the first thirteen tips in the original.

She also serves as co-host of Femme On Podcast and host for Dime Grinds, an author meet-and-greet. Her anti-censorship series Banned Books Conversations champions the freedom to read. She is currently working on a Dracula retelling.

Song 1: "Shining Star" by Earth, Wind & Fire from the album That's the Way of the World released in 1974.

https://youtu.be/Zu9a29UR2dU?si=HtCUxNotVS0OGmRZ

https://open.spotify.com/track/0RgcOUQg4qYAEt9RIdf3oB?si=db62117d9890446e

Song 2: "Hurt" by Nine Inch Nails from their 1994 album The Downward Spiral.

https://open.spotify.com/track/27tX58NOpv1YKQ0abW7EPy?si=706a880562be4cc5

Song 3: "Shake Your Rump" by the Beastie Boys...this came out in 1989 on their album Paul's Boutique.

https://youtu.be/3ofIc3A-weo?si=qOa6V4kleJPk7VoL

https://open.spotify.com/track/2qq0RYYIuQxXcOxQKN0drC?si=c85d0bf5dec74deb

Episode 438 - Ryan Lampa Aug 17, 2026

Show notes

Ryan Lampa is co-founder and CEO of the nonprofit People Loving Nashville - it’s one of the city’s most recognizable grassroots nonprofits. What began as a simple desire to cook a few Thanksgiving meals for some of his unhoused neighbors in 2008 has grown into an organization that has not missed a single Monday night of outreach in the years since.

Over the years, PLN has expanded far beyond emergency food and supplies to offer housing support and other programs. These days they’re providing upwards of 800 meals every single week. And they run Paradeisos Coffee Company in downtown Nashville and through it provide job opportunities and career training for formerly unhoused individuals.

Prior to devoting himself full-time to People Loving Nashville, Ryan spent years on the road managing tour operations for major music acts, including Toby Mac - and Ryan’s sister, Dove Award-winning Christian pop singer and songwriter, Rachael Lampa.

Song 1: "Not the Only One" by Bonnie Raitt from her 1991 album Luck of the Draw. https://youtu.be/A2USNAxj1l4?si=ubZs_Wwx4_hYM8_X

Song 2: "Don't Look So Surprised" by Vicious Vicious released in 2006 n the album of the same name. https://open.spotify.com/album/767eZ6IVXe9cPArvB0zB2

Song 3: "My Song" by Labi Siffre from the album Crying Laughing Loving Lying released in 1972. https://youtu.be/U9ulY90Wy8Y?si=RpLrdx6at9J8VEZh

Episode 437 - Sonya McCarter Aug 10, 2026

Show notes

Sonya McCarter is a teacher, actress, director, singer and lover of all things theatre. For seven years Sonya guided aspiring actors through the CHANGE Acting Program - through it she helped adult actors of color bring their talent to the stage. She also served as Education Director and Community Engagement Coordinator at the Alliance.

About three years ago she founded Bridging the Gap Center for the Arts - a nonprofit dedicated to expanding access to arts education by bringing acting and visual arts programming directly into communities through partnerships with local nonprofits, senior centers, schools, and neighborhood hubs.

Song 1: “Double Dutch Bus” by Frankie Smith from his 1981 album Children of Tomorrow.https://youtu.be/mbOmRlCU3rE?si=va_3GGZuL8XCKkqR

Song 2: “Candy Girl” by New Edition from their 1983 album of the same name.https://youtu.be/yeVUstjxPyU?si=h2cEEplp_eG75beV

Song 3: “Rhythm of the Night” by DeBarge...it also is the title-track off their 1985 album, Rhythm of the Night. https://youtu.be/eFs8FeXXW-k?si=NBlbPspE8uoImrGp

Episode 436 - Richard Bravo Aug 03, 2026

Show notes

Richard Bravo was born in Colombia but grew up in Jamaica, Queens during the height of 1980s graffiti culture so his earliest artistic instincts were shaped on the streets - and was fueled by the precision he observed in his printer father and patternmaker mother’s work.

Over the next quarter-century, Richard designed fashion campaigns, directed scenic visuals, and crafted iconic imagery for hip-hop legends, including DMX and Busta Rhymes. He did set design for the Wu-Tang Clan’s Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) album cover.

Song 1: “Missing” by Everything But the Girl from their 1994 album Amplified Heart. https://youtu.be/3P3SH2Q7Ri8?si=RodVrvJ68PxJxFVl

Song 2: "People of the Sun" by Rage Against the Machine...it was released in 1996 on their album Evil Empire. https://youtu.be/NRZg4bwtM4Q?si=aI-KQtPMP0vhNRSY

Song 3: "World, Hold On (Children of the Sky)" by Bob Sinclar from his album Western Dream released in 1996. https://youtu.be/T_Jqp0mAMzY?si=vukybqBgbzLAXIMU

Episode 435 - Erika Burke Rossa Jul 27, 2026

Show notes

Erika Burke Rossa is a writer, director, producer, and actor who, after reading the award-winning young adult novel Rain Reign by Anne M. Martin of Babysitter Club fame to her kid and was so deeply moved she reached out to Ms. Martin via Facebook to see if she could secure the rights to make it into a film…and that worked.

After getting ahold of the rights, one thing started leading to another until last month, when it premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival with Paul Rudd, Felice Kakaletris, and Jeremy Sisto in the starring roles. Erika wrote the screenplay and directed it as her first feature film.

Song 1: "Summer Breeze" by The Main Ingredient off their 1974 album Euphrates River...it's their version of Seals & Crofts' song that came out a couple years before in 1972. https://youtu.be/VS0hp0Ph49k?si=KltaLObaYct1dNwM

Song 2: "Rio" by Duran Duran...it's the title track of, and first track on, their 1982 album Rio...it was their second studio album. https://youtu.be/celWC4SvxZU?si=9FTZ-QeaIIXRIYw1

Song 3: “Groove Is In The Heart” by Deee-Lite from their album World Clique released in 1990. https://youtu.be/Y4TC2D7uGqs?si=B-M_bVdTOztZsZ6E

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