On this episode, we explore the world of pollinators in Tennessee. Bees, butterflies, even birds and other insects provide the essential service of carrying pollen from flower to flower, helping to grow the food we eat. But the number of pollinators are dwindling due to loss of habitat and overuse of pesticides. So what do Tennesseans need to know about these fascinating creatures? How can we help the pollinators to thrive? What can we do, or not do, to encourage their populations to grow? But f...
Mar 28, 2023•50 min
In the age of the smartphone, everyone has a camera with them, pretty much all the time. With social media, anyone can “publish” a photo immediately — with no editor and, if you want, #nofilter. So what does it mean to be a photographer now? In this episode, we talk with a group of Nashville photographers about their work, their love of the image and their paths to photography. We also explore the profession. What kinds of opportunities are there in our city for working photographers? What are s...
Mar 28, 2023•51 min
This episode first aired on March 31, 2022. New York Times columnist Margaret Renkl joins the show to share her joy of spring and talk over the polarization that she sees hindering our progress. Renkl is also the author of Late Migrations and Graceland, At Last. She tells host Khalil Ekulona “when the macrocosm is hard to bear, focusing in on the microcosm usually helps.” “I do still take an immense amount of pleasure and hope in the bluebirds building a nest in the nest box in my yard, or for t...
Mar 27, 2023•39 min
Nashville ranks among the allergy capitals of the nation. In fact, it doesn’t feel like we have an allergy season so much as a rotating set of different allergy seasons. But why? In today’s episode, we’re talking about the environmental, geographical and sociopolitical factors that shape our local allergy problem, and how it affects our community. But first, it’s time for @Us! with our digital lead, Anna Gallegos-Cannon. Guests: Richard Hitt, President of Wild Ones Middle Tennessee Dr. Eva Parke...
Mar 23, 2023•39 min
In the Jim Crow South, education opportunities for Black children were few and far between. The inequity was blatant all over the South, but the disparities in education were especially stark. Those in power did not see Black Americans as fit for any profession aside from manual labor and thought education was a waste of time. In 1911, when education leader Booker T. Washington met Julius Rosenwald, co-owner of Sears, Roebuck and Co. and a Jewish philanthropist, they changed the education landsc...
Mar 22, 2023•39 min
What is Nashville’s “alternate ending?” How would the city look and feel — and who would feel welcomed — if different community values had been prioritized long ago? With that question, today’s show … will be a bit different. In this special hourlong documentary, reporter Ambriehl Crutchfield goes back in time to learn Nashville through her family’s eyes, and making stops at the places that shaped life for the generations who came before her. This is a story about how the city shaped that family...
Mar 21, 2023•51 min
This weekend, the Vanderbilt Women’s Bowling team — ranked second nationally — hosted the annual Music City Classic, which is one of the most important bowling competitions of the season. Today, we’re talking all about bowling in Middle Tennessee, from Vanderbilt’s impressive women’s program to high school sports to Mookie Betts’ bowling prowess. But first, we’re joined by WPLN political reporter Blaise Gainey for an update on the Tennessee legislature. Guests: Amanda Naujokas, member of the Van...
Mar 20, 2023•51 min
Drivers throughout Nashville and Middle Tennessee share the road with truckers carrying loads of goods every day on our highways. But what do we know about truckers beyond the stereotypes? Today, we're talking to truckers about what life is really like on the road, their role in the supply chain and what they think about local drivers. But first, WPLN education reporter Alexis Marshall has an update on revisions to the third-grade retention law . Guests: Mandie Moore, truck driver with TJ Russ T...
Mar 17, 2023•50 min
What is freedom? And what happens when one person’s approach to freedom infringes on another person’s civil liberties? These are the central questions in Jefferson Cowie’s Freedom’s Dominion: A Saga of White Resistance to Federal Power . In this work, Cowie zeroes in on Barbour County, Alabama, and its relationship with federal power and freedom, from the expulsion of local indigenous people to the civil rights movement. In this episode, Jefferson Cowie joins us to dig into how different notions...
Mar 16, 2023•51 min
Tennessee is one of many states across the nation that has a backlog of untested sexual assault kits. The average wait time to process a sexual assault kit in the state is ten months. The national spotlight fell on the Tennessee’s backlog after a Memphis jogger was murdered by a man who sexually assaulted someone else a year before — but her rape kit went untested, until it was too late. Now the backlog is on the mind of legislators at the capitol, and the Tennessee Bureau of investigation is ma...
Mar 15, 2023•51 min
When Mayor John Cooper announced that he will not seek re-election this fall, it triggered a bevy of hopeful candidates – some local household names, some relatively unknown – to launch their own mayoral campaigns. In this episode, we invite a panel of local journalists to break down what this race will look like, who’s running and what it could mean for Nashville. But first, WPLN midday news producer Cynthia Abrams joins us to discuss why the Tennessee legislature is considering a TikTok ban at...
Mar 14, 2023•51 min
Until recently, anyone found guilty of first-degree murder in Tennessee could be sentenced to a minimum 51-years in prison - even if they were under 18 at the time of the crime. Al Jazeera's "Fault Lines" series released a documentary about Almeer Nance — a Knoxville man who received what is essentially a life sentence for felony murder in 1997. He was 16 when the crime happened and didn't pull the trigger. Documentarian Jeremy Young joins us to talk about his work and Nance's case. Then we hear...
Mar 13, 2023•51 min
The Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health Center has been serving North Nashville’s uninsured and underinsured citizens since it opened in 1968. It’s an indispensable health resource for the community, from family medicine and dentistry, to behavioral health and educational programs. The center is named for Dr. Matthew Walker, an influential Black surgeon. Originally from Louisiana, he came to Nashville for medical school. Although he was an expert surgeon, he saw that basic preventative health me...
Mar 10, 2023•51 min
On Tuesday, the $2.1 billion plan to build a new stadium for the Tennessee Titans passed on first reading in the Metro Council . The plan includes: a one-time payment of $500 million from the state, which can only be used for a new enclosed stadium; $760 million in bonds from the city; and up to $840 from the Titans, NFL and seat license sales. The mayor has maintained that the city's obligation will be paid for by a 1% hotel tax and revenue collected on the stadium campus. Last month, we discus...
Mar 09, 2023•51 min
With tax season coming up, Tennessee residents are starting to think about detangling their personal finances a little more than usual. Tracking spending, expenses investments, planning for emergencies, college, retirement and more – it’s a lot! Making a personal budget also requires a lot of thinking about the future, which can be complicated and emotionally-taxing (pun intended). Today, we’re sitting down with experts to answer your questions and learn more about what resources are available i...
Mar 08, 2023•51 min
The word “woke” has appeared in headlines and politicians’ sound bites a lot in recent years. But where did this term come from and what does it even mean? In this episode, we talk to our guests about the history of the word “woke.” Spoiler alert — it’s not as new as you might think. We’ll also dive into how the meaning has changed over the years along with who has used it. But first, we check in with WPLN’s criminal justice reporter Paige Pfleger to discuss the recent change in how Metro Nashvi...
Mar 07, 2023•51 min
On March 3, 2020, tornadoes killed 25 people in Nashville and Middle Tennessee. They destroyed more than 1,600 buildings — including more than 400 homes — and damaged some 2,700 others stretching from Benton County, through downtown and East Nashville, and into Cookeville. In this episode, we get some historical context for the tornado outbreak and find out if we’re likely to have more tornadoes this year. We also talk to two residents who were displaced by the 2020 storms about how their lives ...
Mar 06, 2023•49 min
When Nashville's first food trucks hit the roads, there were few options and few regulations. More than a decade later, the city is home to hundreds of permitted trucks serving up cuisines from around the world. Today, we're joined by a panel of local business owners and a pair of leaders from the Nashville Food Truck Association to discuss the industry's past, present and future in Music City. But first, we're joined by Kelsey Beyeler from the Nashville Scene to discuss her reporting on how Nas...
Mar 03, 2023•49 min
Tennessee is peeling back the rights of transgender people for the third year in a row. This session, the state legislature passed a ban on drag shows and gender-affirming health care for minors. The bills are now headed to Gov. Bill Lee, who indicated he'll sign them. Many trans people and the families of trans kids have left Tennessee in recent years because of these anti-LGBT laws. But, many others want to stay and fight for the state they call home. In this episode, we'll talk to trans Tenne...
Mar 02, 2023•51 min
In 2013, The New York Times dubbed Nashville the "It City.” Over the past 10 years, that moniker has become synonymous with Nashville's explosive growth and the influx of new money and new people into the city. It's also become a fixture in conversations about who has benefitted from Nashville's expansion and who it has left behind. Today, on the one year anniversary of the very first episode of This Is Nashville , we're sitting down with Nashville natives, longtime residents, transplants and th...
Mar 01, 2023•51 min
When Nashville SC brought Major League Soccer to Nashville, it set out to build a team around a star player — Hany Mukhtar. The 27-year-old has had an impressive career already including two prestigious awards in the last year: the Golden Boot, for being the league’s top scorer, and Most Valuable Player in MLS. In this episode, we get to know Hany. We ask him about his discovering his love for the game as a child in Berlin to finding a second home as a soccer super star here in Nashville. But fi...
Feb 28, 2023•51 min
The Metro Council will soon vote on a $2.2 billion plan to build a new stadium for the Tennessee Titans . In December, the Council voted to approve the term sheet, which includes $500 million in state funds that can only be used toward a new enclosed stadium. Additional funding would come in the form of football-related revenue, a 1% hotel tax in Davidson County and money collected from the stadium campus. The vote passed by a wide margin, but there is a small, yet vocal, contingent opposed to u...
Feb 27, 2023•51 min
What do you think of when you hear the word “library”? Maybe it’s stack of books and a librarian peeking through the stacks, reminding you be quiet. But, what about poetry slams, free seeds and even yoga classes? Today’s episode is all about public libraries! We’ll hear from representatives from the Nashville Public Library about about some of the incredible and even unconventional resources it offers. Then, we’ll head to McMinnville to see how the local library serves rural communities. Guests:...
Feb 24, 2023•51 min
More than 60% of Tennessee third graders could be at risk of being held back this year. That’s because, under a state law that passed in 2021, students who score less than proficient on the English language arts portion of the state’s big standardized test may not advance to fourth grade. In previous years, only a little over one third of Tennessee’s third graders scored “proficient” or above on the TCAP. But the law does include exceptions for certain students, and interventions that can help k...
Feb 23, 2023•51 min
Original broadcast date: May 9, 2022. Whether it’s superheroes like The Avengers or slice-of-life cartoons in The New Yorker , comics capture our imaginations like no other art form. A few small panels can take us to another galaxy or show us life from someone else’s point of view. Comics and graphic novels are not just for kids! They are the perfect vehicle for anyone who wants to explore a new world. In this episode, we talk with local illustrators about how they got into comics and how they t...
Feb 22, 2023•51 min
It's becoming increasingly clear that electric vehicles are the future of transportation, and that future is closer than ever. Tennessee is becoming a hub for electric vehicle production . That includes the vehicles themselves, like the ones Nissan and General Motors have been building in their Middle Tennessee plants for years. Volkswagen is doing the same in Chattanooga, and Ford is in the process of constructing the massive Blue Oval city facility near Memphis. Drive Electric Tennessee has se...
Feb 21, 2023•51 min
The past few years have not been easy for Nashville’s WeGo bus network. But behind the scenes, the agency has been trying to make progress on improvements that riders have been requesting for many years. On today’s show, we start by looking back over the bus system’s recent history. In 2018, voters rejected a sprawling mass transit proposal . In 2019, budget cuts led WeGo to eliminate some routes . And then the coronavirus pandemic slashed ridership. We’ll also talk with WeGo leaders and frequen...
Feb 20, 2023•51 min
Nashville is home to a small, but mighty, roller derby community, which has both an adult women’s league and a junior league. Teams suit up with quad skates, pads, mouth guards and helmets and compete with each other in this full contact sport on wheels. What makes this sport unique is its culture. Whereas most sports require uniformity, individuality is encouraged in roller derby. Skaters choose a derby name, which might be a tough or clever pun on their own name. They dress up for their matche...
Feb 17, 2023•50 min
Bikers are a well-known American icon. But from the slang they use to the clubhouses they frequent, there’s still a definite air of mystery around them and motorcycle culture in general. Today, we’re diving into the history and culture of several Tennessee clubs with the people who know them best, from members and motorcycle gear experts. Guests: Dixie Belle, owner of motorcycle equipment and wellness business Dixie Bell’s Chuck D., president of the Nashville chapter of the Buffalo Soldiers Carl...
Feb 16, 2023•50 min
This year’s General Assembly is well underway. Sen. Charlane Oliver of Nashville and Rep. Justin J. Pearson of Memphis are two of Tennessee’s younger lawmakers, both with backgrounds in activism. Now, they are in office representing two of Tennessee’s largest cities and are tasked with creating change within the system. In today’s episode, we’ll talk to these lawmakers about their approach to policy, the relationship between the state and the cities they represent, and the future of Tennessee po...
Feb 15, 2023•51 min
