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This Business Of Music & Poetry Podcast

This Business Of Music & Poetry Podcast

By Michael Amidei & Cliff Brooks

"This Business Of Music & Poetry Podcast" is all about how to make a real-world living from your creativity & passion. Hosted by Michael Amidei (author, poet, musician, & host of "World Poetry Open Mic", "The Michael Amidei Show") and Clifford Brooks (author, poet, founder of The Southern Collective Experience, and the host of "Dante's Old South" on NPR.)
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Awakening Of The Shovel Guitar (Interview with Justin Johnson)

This Business Of Music & Poetry PodcastDec 04, 2020

00:00
41:22
The Song Catchers Guide To Finding Your Audience (Interview with Rising Appalachia)

The Song Catchers Guide To Finding Your Audience (Interview with Rising Appalachia)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview Leah Song and Chole Smith of Rising Appalachia. 

Rising Appalachia (www.RisingAppalachia.com

Founded by sisters Leah Song and Chloe Smith, Rising Appalachia has established an international fan base due to relentless touring, tireless activism, and no small degree of stubborn independence. The band has built its legion of listeners independently -- a self-made success story that has led to major festival appearances and sold-out shows at venues across the country.

Leah and Chloe grew up in urban Atlanta as the city’s hip hop scene began to flourish. They absorbed those rhythms through the music they heard at school, then traveled with their family to fiddle camps all across the Southeast on the weekends.

Now years later, Rising Appalachia has toured British Columbia by sailboat, traversed the U.S. and Europe by train, and engaged in immersive cultural exchange programs in Bulgaria, Ireland, Southern Italy, Central and South America – and has traveled countless miles in a van.

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and I dive into their origins, their creative process, and how they merge authentic creativity and a strong sense of business.

Without any further ado, here is our interview with Rising Appalachia.

Sep 09, 202246:34
Funk, Creativity & Playing The Long Game (Interview with Adam Deitch)

Funk, Creativity & Playing The Long Game (Interview with Adam Deitch)

In this episode, Michael & Clifford are joined by Andy Whitehorne (Music Editor for The Blue Mountain Review) as they interview Grammy-nominated producer and drummer Adam Deitch

Adam Deitch (www.DeitchBeatsDontQuit.com)

While other kids were more interested in "Being Like Mike," Adam Deitch was more interested in "Being Like Quincy."

Adam began composing around the age of 11 in his Dad's basement studio. Pretty soon artists in the neighborhood came knocking.

Now, years later Adam Deitch’s career has crossed genres and he plays the role of both producer and drummer. Adam was inspired by hip-hop at an early age, inspired by Public Enemy and Eric B and Rakim. Adam has produced records for such luminaries as 50-Cent, Redman, Talib Kweli, Pharoahe Monch, Chali 2na and MF Doom. He has also done major session work on drums for artists including Justin Timberlake, Daniel Bedingfield, Anthony Hamilton, DJ Quik and Wyclef Jean and the Fugees. Adam has toured the world and recorded as a member of the Grammy Nominated John Scofield Band, Pretty Lights, the Average White Band, The Fugees, Wyclef Jean, Meshell Ndegeocello and his own Break Science and Lettuce.


Jun 08, 202232:22
Creation, Relationships & Chaos (Interview w/ Guitarist Adam "Shmeeans" Smirnoff)

Creation, Relationships & Chaos (Interview w/ Guitarist Adam "Shmeeans" Smirnoff)

In this episode, Michael Amidei and Clifford Brooks are joined by Andy Whitehorne (Music Editor for the Blue Mountain Review) in interviewing guitarist Adam "Shmeeans" Smirnoff.

Adam “Shmeeans” Smirnoff (www.LettuceFunk.com) is the guitarist/co-founder of the Grammy-nominated funk powerhouse called Lettuce, which began in 1992 when all of its members attended a music program at Berklee College Of Music as teenagers. Now, 30 years later, the band has played countless shows to a large international audience and has produced 8 studio albums, including their newest “Unify”, which drops on June 6th, 2022. 

Smirnoff has also shared the stage with a myriad of other artists, including Lady Gaga, and Robert Randolph & the Family Band. Redman, Chaka Khan, John Scofield, the Clark Sisters, Maceo Parker, Dr. John, members of The Meters and Wu-Tang Clan, and many more.

In this episode, Adam shares stories from his career and teaches us something valuable about relationships in the creative pursuit.



Apr 21, 202251:57
Selling Stories, Self Belief, & Optioning Your Book To Netflix (Interview w/ Louis Bayard)

Selling Stories, Self Belief, & Optioning Your Book To Netflix (Interview w/ Louis Bayard)

In this episode, Michael Amidei and Clifford Brooks interview author Louis Bayard. 


Louis Bayard (www.LouisBayard.com)

In the words of the New York Times, Louis Bayard “reinvigorates historical fiction,” rendering the past “as if he’d witnessed it firsthand.”

His acclaimed novels include The Pale Blue Eye, soon to be a Netflix motion picture starring Christian Bale, the national bestseller Courting Mr. Lincoln, Roosevelt's Beast, The School of Night, The Black Tower, and Mr. Timothy, as well as the highly praised young-adult novel, Lucky Strikes.

A New York Times Notable author, he has been nominated for both the Edgar and Dagger awards, and his story, “Banana Triangle Six,” was chosen for The Best American Mystery Stories.

His reviews and articles have appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and Salon.

An instructor at George Washington University, he is the chair of the PEN/Faulkner Awards and was the author of the popular Downton Abbey recaps for the New York Times.

Apr 07, 202237:20
Freeing Yourself & Discovering The Authentic Poetry In You (Interview with Todd Boss)

Freeing Yourself & Discovering The Authentic Poetry In You (Interview with Todd Boss)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview Todd Boss. 

Todd Boss (www.ToddBossOriginals.com) is an award-winning American producer, writer, and innovator whose vision is to make the world more poetic.

Todd has four poetry collections, all published by W. W. Norton & Co. He has an MFA in Poetry from the University of Alaska-Anchorage. Todd's poems have appeared in The New Yorker, Poetry, National Public Radio, The London Times, American Poetry Review, and many more.

His lyrics for choir and solo voice have been performed at Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, and in other venues around the world.

​Along with his company Motionpoems, Todd’s films have been presented in Cannes, London, Dublin, New York, LA, and elsewhere. He has worked with 150 filmmakers, and Pulitzer-winning and early-career poets alike, on poetry films that have been recognized by the National Book Foundation's "Innovations in Reading" Award.

​His first children's book, The Boy Who Said Wow, is forthcoming from Simon & Schuster's Beach Lane imprint.

​Todd grew up on an 80-acre cattle farm in Wisconsin and attended St. Olaf College and the University of Alaska–Anchorage. In 2018, he sold all his possessions and quit his lease. A nomad, he has since circled the globe on a series of 30 consecutive house-sits and dozens of short-term rentals.

Poetry written and performed by Todd Boss in this episode:

"A Silence Haunts Me" (opening lines)

"In Elaborate Museums" 

"Someday The Plan Of A Town"



Mar 18, 202238:26
Poetry As An Act Of Service (Interview with Nicole Tallman)

Poetry As An Act Of Service (Interview with Nicole Tallman)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview poet Nicole Tallman. 

Nicole Tallman (www.NicoleTallman.com) is a professional writer and poet. Born and raised in Michigan, she lives in Miami, serves as the Poetry Ambassador for Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, an Associate Editor for South Florida Poetry Journal, and Interviews Editor for The Blue Mountain Review. She is the author of Something Kindred (The Southern Collective Experience Press), co-editor with Maureen Seaton of We Who Rise from Saltwater, Let's Sing!, and her next book is forthcoming from Really Serious Literature.

Mar 11, 202243:06
Using Passion To Overcome Huge Obstacles (Interview with Hans Rueffert)
Jan 20, 202237:48
Facing Your Fear Through Art (Interview with poet Skye Jackson)

Facing Your Fear Through Art (Interview with poet Skye Jackson)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview poet Skye Jackson. 

Skye Jackson (www.SkyeJackson.com) was born and raised in New Orleans. She holds an English degree from LSU and a degree in law from Mississippi College School of Law. She is currently an MFA candidate in poetry at the University of New Orleans Creative Writing Workshop where she works with Bayou Magazine. Her work has appeared in the Delta Literary Journal and Thought Catalog. Her chapbook A Faster Grave was published in May 2019 from Antenna Press.

Jan 06, 202236:22
The Lives & Voices of Stuart Dischell

The Lives & Voices of Stuart Dischell

In this episode, Cliff Brooks & Michael Amidei interview poet Stuart Dischell. 

Stuart Dischell (http://www.stuartdischellpoetry.com/) was born in Atlantic City, NJ. He is the author of Good Hope Road, a National Poetry Series Selection, Evenings & Avenues, Dig Safe, Backwards Days and the forthcoming Children With Enemies and the pamphlets Animate Earth and Touch Monkey and the chapbook Standing on Z. His poems have appeared in The Atlantic, Agni, The New Republic, Slate, Kenyon Review, Ploughshares, and anthologies including Essential Poems, Hammer and Blaze, Pushcart Prize, and Garrison Keillor’s Good Poems. A recipient of awards from the NEA, the North Carolina Arts Council, and the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, he teaches in the MFA Program in Creative Writing at the University of North Carolina Greensboro.

Dec 01, 202143:26
The Road To Finding Your Voice (Interview with Victoria Chang)

The Road To Finding Your Voice (Interview with Victoria Chang)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview poet and professor Victoria Chang. 

Victoria Chang (www.VictoriaChangPoet.com) is an American poet and children's writer. Her fifth book of poems, OBIT, was published by Copper Canyon Press in 2020. It won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, the PEN Voelcker Award, and the Anisfield-Wolf Book Prize and was a finalist for National Book Critics Circle Award, the Griffin Poetry Prize, and long listed for the National Book Award. It was also named a New York Times Notable Book, a New York Times Best 100 Books of the Year, a TIME Magazine, NPR, Boston Globe, and Publisher's Weekly Best Book of the Year.

In 2021, she published Dear Memory: Letters on Writing, Silence, and Grief, Milkweed Editions. The book was a TIME, Lithub, and NPR most anticipated book of 2021.

Her prior book of poems, Barbie Chang,[1] was published by Copper Canyon Press in 2017. Her third book of poetry, The Boss was published by McSweeney's in 2013—it won a PEN Center USA literary award and a California Book Award. Her second poetry collection is Salvinia Molesta (University of Georgia Press, 2008). Her first book, Circle (Southern Illinois University Press, 2005), won the Crab Orchard Series in Poetry.

She also writes picture books for children and middle grade novels, and her picture book, Is Mommy? published by Beach Lane Books (Simon & Schuster) in the fall of 2015, illustrated by Marla Frazee, was named a New York Times Notable Book. Her middle grade verse novel, LOVE, LOVE was published by Sterling Publishing in 2020. She was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2017, a Lannan Residency Fellowship in 2020, a Sustainable Arts Foundation Fellowship in 2017, a Poetry Society of America Alice Fay di Castagnola Award in 2018, a Pushcart Prize, and a MacDowell Fellowship.

Nov 13, 202134:24
Crafting the "I, Vampire" Series (Interview with author Michael Romkey)

Crafting the "I, Vampire" Series (Interview with author Michael Romkey)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks interviews author Michael Romkey. 

Bram Stoker Award-nominated author Michael Romkey writes smart, character-driven horror. His first and much-imitated vampire-themed novel, "I, Vampire," is a cult classic. His series continued with “The Vampire Papers”, “The Vampire Princess”, “The Vampire Virus”, “Vampire Hunter”, “The London Vampire Panic” and “Telluride Blood”.

Other works include “Fears Point”, “The Vampire’s Violin”, and “American Gothic”.

The bio on his website reads:

I live on the banks of the mighty Mississippi in the U.S.A. Heartland — Iowa, to be specific. My musical interests are what might be called, for lack of a better label, Americana — a variety of fiddle tunes, bluegrass, folk, blues, country blues, Irish, Scottish, Celtic (the bigger category), punk classical, country … basically, music as people play it sitting in their kitchens or on the front porch with a cup of coffee or glass of rye nearby.

Nov 11, 202151:49
A Grammy Winning Producer/Engineer Speaks (Interview with Clark Hagan)

A Grammy Winning Producer/Engineer Speaks (Interview with Clark Hagan)

In this episode, Michael Amidei and Clifford Brooks interview Clark Hagan. 

Clark Hagan (www.clarkhaganproductions.com)    is a Grammy award-winning Producer/Engineer with a world-class resume and a legendary mastery of the recording arts.

After graduating from the University of Colorado at Denver, Clark began to master his craft as a recording engineer while working with the legendary Bill Porter whose credits include artists such as Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, and the Everly Brothers while at RCA from 1959 to 1964. After a short stint at Allen-Martin Productions in Louisville, Kentucky, Clark moved to Nashville where his trusted relationship with Porter provided the opportunity to work with the legendary Chet Atkins.

In his time with Atkins, Clark engineered the Grammy Award Winning record in 1996 for best country instrumental and was nominated again in 1997 for a record with Atkins and Tommy Emmanuel in the same category on which he also played guitar. Clark’s success with Atkins paid off and subsequently led to work with some of Nashville’s top artists including Ray Stevens, Alison Krauss, Bryan White, and Jeffery Steele amongst others. In the highly competitive world of Nashville Clark continued to build relationships with such producers as Scott Litt, Tony Brown, Kyle Lehning, Billy Joe Walker Jr., Bill Schnee, and James William Guercio while also getting to work out of some elite studios such as Woodland Sound Studios, Quad, Omni, and Masterfonics.

Clark has worked with other such national artists as Kenny Passarelli, Marty Haggard, and Eugene Moles along with Colorado artists such as Dave Preston, Oscar Ross, Wild Angels, Nick O’Connor, and Casey James Prestwood and the Burning Angels to name a few. Clark has also been working with the Caribou Ranch estate on the “Caribou Collection” project with artists Elton John, Billy Joel, and Chicago, and is also refurbished one of the original Caribou Ranch consoles “Olive”.

Whether it be mixing, tracking, or producing, from rock to country, Clark brings his rich heritage and diverse experience to every project and is always looking for artists who share the same passion. to make great sounding records. Along with doing projects out of Macy Sound Studios, Clark is also an experienced technician and is also knowledgeable and competent tech and audio consultant.

Sep 16, 202133:17
Your Voice Needs To Be Heard (Interview with Alabama Poet Laureate Ashley M. Jones)

Your Voice Needs To Be Heard (Interview with Alabama Poet Laureate Ashley M. Jones)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview poet Ashley M. Jones. 

Ashley M. Jones (https://ashleymjonespoetry.com/) is Poet Laureate of the state of Alabama (2022-2026). She received an MFA in Poetry from Florida International University (FIU), where she was a John S. and James L. Knight Foundation Fellow. 

She served as Official Poet for the City of Sunrise, Florida’s Little Free Libraries Initiative from 2013-2015, and her work was recognized in the 2014 Poets and Writers Maureen Egen Writer’s Exchange Contest and the 2015 Academy of American Poets Contest at FIU. She was also a finalist in the 2015 Hub City Press New Southern Voices Contest, the Crab Orchard Series in Poetry First Book Award Contest, and the National Poetry Series. 

Her poems and essays appear or are forthcoming in many journals and anthologies, including CNN, the Academy of American Poets, POETRY, Tupelo Quarterly, Prelude, Steel Toe Review, Fjords Review, Quiet Lunch, Poets Respond to Race Anthology, Night Owl, The Harvard Journal of African American Public Policy, pluck!, Valley Voices: New York School Edition, Fjords Review: Black American Edition, PMSPoemMemoirStory (where her work was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2016), Kinfolks Quarterly, Tough Times in America Anthology, and Lucid Moose Press’ Like a Girl: Perspectives on Femininity Anthology. She received a 2015 Rona Jaffe Foundation Writer’s Award and a 2015 B-Metro Magazine Fusion Award. She was an editor of PANK Magazine. 

Her debut poetry collection, Magic City Gospel, was published by Hub City Press in January 2017, and it won the silver medal in poetry in the 2017 Independent Publishers Book Awards. Her second book, dark // thing, won the 2018 Lena-Miles Wever Todd Prize for Poetry from Pleiades Press. Her third collection, REPARATIONS NOW! is forthcoming in Fall 2021 from Hub City Press. 

She won the 2018 Lucille Clifton Poetry Prize from Backbone Press, and she is the 2019 winner of the Lucille Clifton Legacy Award from St. Mary’s College of Maryland. Jones is a recipient of a Poetry Fellowship from the Alabama State Council on the Arts and a 2020 Alabama Author award from the Alabama Library Association. She was a finalist for the Ruth Lily Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Fellowship in 2020.

She currently lives in Birmingham, Alabama, where she is founding director of the Magic City Poetry Festival, board member of the Alabama Writers Cooperative and the Alabama Writers Forum, co-director of PEN Birmingham, and a faculty member in the Creative Writing Department of the Alabama School of Fine Arts. 

Jones is also a member of the Core Faculty at the Converse College Low Residency MFA Program. She recently served as a guest editor for Poetry Magazine.

Sep 02, 202145:48
Discovering A Higher Purpose (Interview with Vincent Zangaro)

Discovering A Higher Purpose (Interview with Vincent Zangaro)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview musician & founder of Alzheimer's Music Fest Vincent Zangaro. 


Vincent Zangaro (https://alzheimersmusicfest.org

Vincent's Alzheimer’s journey began over a decade ago at the age of 29 after his father’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis. At 68 years old, the elder Zangaro’s health rapidly declined, leaving him unable to care for himself – and that’s where his son, Vincent stepped up. Driven by the challenges he faced navigating the ups and downs of his father’s disorder and health, a fire was lit in Zangaro to offer help to those living and affected by Alzheimer’s and dementia-related illness.

Combining his expertise within the music industry, a decade-long career as a regional staffing director at mega-brand Hot Topic and years of Alzheimer’s caregiving experience for his father, Zangaro flexed his creativity, leadership, love, and passion for music by founding the Alzheimer’s Music Fest in 2013, with the goal to raise awareness and funds to help families care for loved ones. Through festival fundraising efforts, Zangaro met Dementia Spotlight Foundation CEO and Co-Founder Whitney DeMarlo Oeltmann and came on board with the organization in 2017.

Zangaro supports DSF by overseeing outreach initiatives and actions, serving as the Director of Development and Special Events. He works tirelessly to orchestrate several weekly online support groups, prioritizing the importance of providing free respite care support, and he is an integral facilitator of locating and providing critical medical equipment for families in need. As a full-time advocate for Alzheimer’s and dementia families, Zangaro plans events and secures much-needed grants and sponsorships. He also oversees the Atlanta and Tampa Alzheimer’s Music Fests.

The Alzheimer’s Music Fest has since become an annual rock ‘n’ roll event, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars and helping hundreds of families care for loved ones. In 2020, Zangaro expanded the Alzheimer’s Music Fest with a Live Nation Tabernacle partnership and by leveraging relationships with many well-known performers who have also been impacted by dementia-related issues.

Zangaro currently resides in Canton, Georgia with his wife Amy and can be found playing an occasional nightly gig, writing songs about his experiences, walking his dog Jupiter or in his home kitchen playing gin rummy, a favorite pastime.

Note: Due to Covid the Alzheimer’s Music Festival is postponed until early 2022.

Aug 26, 202139:22
How Music Leaves The Body (Interview with Lee Herrick)

How Music Leaves The Body (Interview with Lee Herrick)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview poet and professor Lee Herrick. 

Lee Herrick (https://www.leeherrick.com) is the author of three books of poems, Scar and FlowerGardening Secrets of the Dead, and This Many Miles from Desire. He is co-editor, with Leah Silvieus, of The World I Leave You: Asian American Poets on Faith and Spirit (forthcoming Spring 2020, Orison Books). He served as Fresno Poet Laureate from 2015-2017. His poems appear widely in literary magazines, anthologies, and textbooks including The Bloomsbury Review, Columbia Poetry Review, Berkeley Poetry Review, The Normal School, The Poetry Foundation, ZZYZYVA, Seeds from a Silent Tree: Writing by Korean AdopteesHighway 99: A Literary Journey Through California's Great Central Valley, 2nd edition, The Place That Inhabits Us: Poems from the San Francisco Bay Watershed, One for the Money: The Sentence as Poetic Form, Indivisible: Poems of Social Justice, and HERE: Poems for the Planet, with a foreword by the Dalai Lama (Copper Canyon, March 2019), among others.​ Herrick is on the advisory board of The Adoption Museum Project and has traveled throughout Latin America and Asia and has given readings throughout the United States. He was born in Daejeon, South Korea, adopted at ten months old, and raised in California. He lives with his daughter and wife in Fresno, California. He teaches at Fresno City College and in the MFA Program at Sierra Nevada College.

Jun 24, 202147:42
Do The Work To Find Your Community (Interview with Gary Chapman)

Do The Work To Find Your Community (Interview with Gary Chapman)

In this episode, Michael Amidei and Clifford Brooks interview Gary Chapman. 

Gary Chapman (www.GaryChapmanArt.com) is Professor of Painting and Drawing at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He holds an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art, as well as a BA and BS from Berea College.

Chapman has had over 70 solo exhibitions with institutions such as The Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, The Arts Center of St. Petersburg, FL; University of Cincinnati, University of Georgia, and the Indianapolis Art Center. He has also participated in numerous group and invitational exhibitions with regional, national and international venues.

Chapman was awarded and named a Joan Mitchell CALL Legacy Artist in 2013 and has received numerous grants and fellowships, including a 1996 National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in Painting from the Southern Arts Federation and a 2002 and 1994 Individual Artist Fellowships from the Alabama State Council on the Arts. His work has been reviewed extensively and is published in over 20 catalogs and books including the 4 Editions of New American Paintings.

13 Paintings by Chapman have been purchased for the collections of ten museums in the southeast region as well as by many corporate and private collections throughout the country.

Jun 18, 202151:32
The Art Of Growing Memoir (Interview with Megan Baxter)

The Art Of Growing Memoir (Interview with Megan Baxter)

In this episode, Michael Amidei and Clifford Brooks interview Megan Baxter. 

Megan Baxter (www.MeganBaxterWriting.com) holds an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from Vermont College of the Fine Arts and a BFA in Poetry from Goddard College. In 2004, when she graduated from Interlochen Arts Academy as a Creative Writing Major, Megan was honored as a Presidential Scholar in the Arts. While working for the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities Megan taught “pop-up” writing workshops at public schools in South Carolina, including poetry writing sessions in under-served and at-risk educational communities. In 2019 and 2020 she returned to Interlochen Arts Camp as an instructor of high-school level fiction and nonfiction.

Megan’s first book ‘The Coolest Monsters, A Collection of Essays’ was published in 2018 by Texas Review Press. Her memoir ‘Farm Girl’ is forthcoming from Green Writers Press in 2021. Megan is pleased to announce that her essay collection 'The Body(Electric) will be published by Mad Creek Books from Ohio State Press as part of their 21st Century Essay Series. Megan is currently seeking representation for her debut novel.

Megan has won numerous national awards including a Pushcart Prize. Her work has been listed in The Best American Essays of 2019. Recent publications included pieces in The Threepenny Review, Hotel Amerika, The Florida Review, and Creative Nonfiction Magazine. Megan serves as a mentor to young writers and loves developing cross-genre and innovative creative writing pedagogy for her workshops and classes. Megan lives in New Hampshire where she loves walking her dogs, running, and cooking with local foods. She teaches writing at Colby-Sawyer College.

Jun 12, 202145:26
What It Takes To Be In The Music Industry (Interview with Maal The Pimp)

What It Takes To Be In The Music Industry (Interview with Maal The Pimp)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview Maal The Pimp. 

Maal The Pimp (www.maalthepimp.com) released his first solo album Business As Usual in the Spring of 2003, after appearing on numerous independent projects since 1998. In 2004, Maal graduated from Middle Tennessee State University with a degree in Recording Industry: Music Business. He then relocated to New Orleans, La to work with former Cash Money Records platinum artist B.G. under his newly established label Chopper City Records, which was distributed thru Koch/E-1, Assylum, & then Atlantic Records. During his time at Chopper City Records, Maal was head of Marketing & Promotion, In-House Studio Engineer, Booking Agent, & Road Manager for all artists signed to the label.

In 2005 while still at Chopper City, Maal launched his company Pimpoholic Entertainment & Booking, releasing several mixtapes, albums, & documentaries under his own imprint. Due to his expertise & experience in the music industry, along with his college degree, Pimpoholic Entertainment & Booking renders several services such as management, legal consulting, reading/writing contracts, marketing & promotion, event booking/planning, video treatments, mixing/mastering, & label building. Maal The Pimp is more than just an artist, HE’S A BRAND!!!!

Jun 04, 202144:36
10,000 Hours (Interview with Jimmy James)

10,000 Hours (Interview with Jimmy James)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview guitarist Jimmy James. 

Jimmy James (https://linktr.ee/jimmyscratchjames) a man of another era- an old soul w/ an encyclopedic knowledge of 60’s soul music & the creative drive to evolve that sound into the future. His guitar phrasing, tone, and temperament are something truly creative and inspiring. His unique tube amp guitar sound defines classic and is a vital part of the WeCoast sound. Born and raised in Seattle on a steady diet of soul music, gritty R&B, blues, and Jimi Hendrix. Through his influences and his own deep explorations into music, he has crafted something truly special & original.

He is the guitar man behind The True Loves, Tiffany Wilson, F2D aka Funky 2 Death, and so much more.

He is a part of the Delvon Lamar Organ Trio. He is also an original member of F2D aka Funky 2 Death, the legendary live Friday night show at Seattle’s Seamonster Lounge.

May 24, 202140:25
Every Day Is Your Shot (Interview with Dave Brandwein from Turkuaz)

Every Day Is Your Shot (Interview with Dave Brandwein from Turkuaz)

In this episode, Michael and Clifford interview Dave Brandwein. 

Dave Brandwein is the frontman, guitarist, and one of the creative forces behind the phenomenal band Turkuaz. www.Turkuazband.com

Balancing male-female harmonies, strutting guitars, wild horn arrangements, and interminable grooves, a spirit takes shape on stage nightly for Turkuaz via larger-than-life performances. Among numerous critical plaudits, The New Yorker claimed, “[Turkuaz] delivers horn-filled funk incorporating elements of R&B, psychedelic pop, gospel, Afro-pop, New Wave, classic rock, and just about any genre that gets people dancing.” 

The Brooklyn-based nonet—Dave Brandwein [guitar, vocals], Taylor Shell [bass], Craig Brodhead [guitar, keys], Michelangelo Carubba [drums], Chris Brouwers [trumpet, keys], Greg Sanderson [tenor sax], Josh Schwartz [baritone sax, vocals], Sammi Garett [vocals], and Shira Elias [vocals]—ignite an explosion of energy punctuated by neon hues, deft musicality, and show-stopping singalongs on their newest EP, Kuadrochrome.

Touring incessantly in support of four full-length studio albums, EPs and live releases, they’ve lit up stages everywhere from Bonnaroo, Hulaween, Okeechobee, Electric Forest, and Mountain Jam to Telluride Jazz, High Sierra, and Lock’n, in between gracing stages at legendary spots such as Red Rocks, Terminal 5, and The Fillmore, to name a few. Since emerging in 2011 with their self-titled debut, the group have quietly animated a movement. 

May 15, 202144:36
The Aesthetics Of Gratitude (Interview with Neal Francis)

The Aesthetics Of Gratitude (Interview with Neal Francis)

In this episode, Michael Amidei and Clifford Brooks interview the phenomenal musician, Neal Francis. 

Neal Francis (www.NealFrancis.com

“I just wanted to be honest about everything, from my musical influences to my story,” muses Neal Francis. After years of dishonest living—consumed by drugs, alcohol, and addiction—such sincerity is jarring from the 30-year-old Chicago-based musician.

Born Neal Francis O’Hara, the piano prodigy found himself touring Europe by the age of 18 with Muddy Waters’ son and backing up other prominent blues artists coast-to-coast. In 2012, Francis joined popular instrumental funk band The Heard. With Francis at the creative helm, The Heard transformed into a national act, touring with boogaloo progenitors The New Mastersounds and chart toppers The Revivalists and appearing at Jazz Fest and Bear Creek. As The Heard’s star rose, however, Francis sunk deeper into addiction. Once a promising sideman, by 2015 he had been fired from his band, evicted from his apartment, and was perilously close to self-destruction. “When you get close to death like that you can feel it,” Francis recalls. An alcohol-induced seizure that year led to a broken femur, dislocated arm, and, finally, the realization that he needed to get clean.

The journey from a hospital bed to launching his solo career was neither predictable nor straightforward. There were musical fits and starts, relapses, and broken relationships. Yet the overwhelming passion driving Francis in this second act has been an abundance of creative energy. “Drinking held my music in a half-cocked slingshot. I was always so consumed by drugs and alcohol that I didn’t have the time, money, or creative energy to do it. Sobriety let it loose.”

Determined to realize the songs swirling in his head, Francis assembled a crack team of musicians, calling on bassist Mike Starr (The Heard) and drummer PJ Howard (The Revivalists, The Heard). He linked up with producer and analog-obsessive Sergio Rios (Orgone, Cee Lo Green, Alicia Keys) and self-funded a trip to Killion Sound in Los Angeles to record the initial batch of material. “I learned to trust my instincts in that room,” says Francis. Buoyed by classic horn arrangements and Rios’ fierce guitar work, the resulting tracks illuminate a lifetime spent studying the masters of rock and soul music.

From the RMI electra-piano riff that kicks off “She’s A Winner” to the screaming organ swells of “This Time,” Francis and company let it all hang out. This is fun music, dance music. Yet verse after verse and chorus after chorus, Francis wrestles with his past in a straightforward manner: “It’s 5 o’clock in the morning, but I’m not home/ I’m surrounded by people, but I’m really alone.” Like Toussaint and Russell before him he’s married the upbeat rhythms of New Orleans R&B with the lyrical approach of a confessional singer/songwriter. The refrain on “This Time” serves as a foxhole prayer for a better future:  “Let me get it this time/I won’t let you down/Let me get it this time/I won’t fool around.”


Apr 09, 202149:06
The Audience Creates The Performer (Interview with Mario "The Maker Magician")

The Audience Creates The Performer (Interview with Mario "The Maker Magician")

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview Mario "The Make Magician"... Mario "the maker magician" Marchese (https://www.mariothemagician.com/) is a NY-based (normally touring) performer with an all-ages theater show full of homespun magic, diy robotics, and punk rock slapstick. it's magic through the lens of the maker movement! for the virtual stage, Mario has developed an innovative virtual experience, available as a limited-engagement ticketed experience. versions Also available as a private Zoom event, live streams for clients' social media pages, or as custom video content. Mario has appeared on Sesame Street, NBC's Universal kids, HGTV, and live on tour with David Blaine, who calls him "the best kids magician in the world!!" he is the author of The maker magician's handbook: a beginner's guide to magic & making. And his lecture for magicians won him the 2020 lecture of the year award from penguin magic!
Feb 05, 202136:13
The Choice To Live As A Poet (Interview with Faylita Hicks)

The Choice To Live As A Poet (Interview with Faylita Hicks)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks interviews Faylita Hicks. 

Faylita Hicks (www.FaylitaHicks.com @FaylitaHicks) is a queer Afro-Latinx activist, writer, and interdisciplinary artist born in Gardena, CA, but raised in Central Texas. They are the former Editor-in-Chief of Borderlands: Texas Poetry Review and the author of HoodWitch (Acre Books, 2019), which was a finalist for the 2020 Lambda Literary Award for Bisexual Poetry, the 2019 Balcones Poetry Prize, and the 2019 Julie Suk Award.

They have been awarded fellowships and residencies from Tin House, Lambda Literary, Jack Jones Literary Arts, Broadway Advocacy, and the Right of Return USA, the first fellowship designed exclusively for previously incarcerated artists.

Jan 14, 202153:57
A Musical Legend Speaks (Interview with Alain Johannes)

A Musical Legend Speaks (Interview with Alain Johannes)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview musical legend Alain Johannes. 

Alain Johannes (http://www.alainjohannes.com) a musician, vocalist, and producer.

He is a founding member of several bands, including the alternative rock group Eleven, and has been involved with acts such as hard rock band Queens of the Stone Age, Them Crooked Vultures, PJ Harvey, Chris Cornell, Arctic Monkeys, Mark Lanegan and The Desert Sessions, both as a musician and as a producer.

In this interview, we dive into parts of his fascinating life, his views on music, and Alain gives his advice to musicians about how to live a life filled with the artform. All of this from a man who has done it at the top levels.

Instagram @AlainJohannes

Dec 24, 202052:16
Finding Poetry In The Mists Of Experience (Interview with Angela Dribben)
Dec 11, 202039:57
Awakening Of The Shovel Guitar (Interview with Justin Johnson)

Awakening Of The Shovel Guitar (Interview with Justin Johnson)

In this interview, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview guitar phenom Justin Johnson. 

Justin Johnson (www.justinjohnsonlive.com)  has been hailed by Guitar World as a "must-see act", dubbed "The Wizard" for his mastery of stringed instruments, and recognized as Slidestock International Slide Guitar Champion. In 2014, Justin Johnson recorded his debut double album, "Smoke & Mirrors," a celebration of the art, history, and traditions behind handmade roots instruments. Along with 18 modern-built roots instruments representing builders from all over the world, the album resurrects the voices of 8 of the oldest cigar box guitars and banjos known to exist. Having never previously been recorded, these fragile relics emanate voices on the album that would otherwise have been lost to time. "Smoke & Mirrors" saw it's official release in March of 2014, as Johnson took the stage to present his signature approach to Roots music to thousands of fans at Port Fairy Folk Festival, Australia's largest and longest-running Folk Festival, thus ushering in the "2014/2015 Smoke & Mirrors World Tour," which spanned mainland Australia and Tasmania, North America, Europe, and the United Kingdom. In response to worldwide demand for his educational offerings, Justin Johnson founded "Roots Music School" in Nashville, TN. Under this umbrella, he has released an Instructional Series consisting of DVDs and books on Roots Music technique and theory. As Roots Music School founder, Justin Johnson has partnered with educators across the country to develop Roots Music curriculum for schools.

Justin Johnson's original song "Midnight at the Crossroads," from his 'Smoke & Mirrors' double album, was licensed to Florentine Films for Ken Burns documentary film "Jackie Robinson" (2016). Justin Johnson's arrangement and recording of "In the Pines" from his double album 'Smoke & Mirrors' was licensed to ad agency Wieden + Kennedy for the "Dodge Brothers" national ad campaign for Dodge Motor Company (2016). Justin Johnson's arrangement and recording of "Grinnin in Your Face" from 'Smoke & Mirrors' is featured on NPR Back Porch Music's "Best of Back Porch Music Vol. 18: Old Enough to Know Better" 2015 Compilation Album (2015). Justin Johnson is featured in Strung Together (2015) the feature-length documentary film on American Roots instruments, produced by Jon Miller (2015).

Dec 04, 202041:22
How A Powerhouse Finds The Time (and Energy) To Create (Interview with Rebecca Evans)
Oct 22, 202032:34
Never Turn Back (Interview with Christopher Swann)

Never Turn Back (Interview with Christopher Swann)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview author Christopher Swann. 

Christopher Swann (https://christopherswann.com) is a novelist and high school English teacher in Atlanta, Georgia. A graduate of Woodberry Forest School in Virginia, he earned his Ph.D. in creative writing from Georgia State University. In 2018, Chris was a Townsend Prize finalist, a finalist for a Georgia Author of the Year award, and longlisted for the Southern Book Prize. He lives with his wife and two sons in Atlanta, where he is the English department chair at Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School.

Oct 05, 202049:28
The Pursuit Of Craft (Interview with Angel Snow)

The Pursuit Of Craft (Interview with Angel Snow)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview musician and songwriter Angel Snow. 

Angel Snow (www.angelsnow.net) is a talented and inspiring musician and songwriter living in Nashville, TN. Her albums include "Magnetic", "Arrows" and "Stripped". 

Sep 05, 202041:14
Songs Of Creative Dedication & How Fires End (Interview with Marco Rafalà)

Songs Of Creative Dedication & How Fires End (Interview with Marco Rafalà)

In this episode, Michael Amidei and Clifford Brooks interview author Marco Rafalà.

Marco Rafalà (https://www.marcorafala.com/) is a first-generation Sicilian American novelist, musician, and writer for award-winning tabletop role-playing games. He earned his MFA in Fiction from The New School and is a co-curator of the Guerrilla Lit Reading Series in New York City. Born in Middletown, Connecticut, he now lives in Brooklyn, New York. His fiction and non-fiction have appeared in the Bellevue Literary Review and LitHub. How Fires End is his debut novel.

Jul 31, 202051:24
The Passion & Wit Of R.J. Jeffreys

The Passion & Wit Of R.J. Jeffreys

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview R.J. Jeffreys. 

R.J. Jeffreys is a poet, writer, novelist, writing coach and mentor, celebrity ghostwriter, playwright, Executive Producer Digital Media for VIDA Voices & Views, and contributing editor and Senior Producer Radio Interviews Media for Tiferet Journal

He is the host of The Write Step with RJ Jeffreys radio interview show.  Jeffreys’ poetry, prose and dramatic works have appeared in numerous publications, media outlets and websites such as Mass Poetry.org, 100 Thousand Poets for Change, Tiferet Journal, Saint Julian Press, Bareback Alchemy and the anthologies, The Darwin Murders, Tasteful Murders and Stories from a Holiday Heart, among others.

R.J. is also a Best-of-the-Web Shorty Award nominee, a frequent guest speaker on national media outlets, and contributor for numerous publications, media outlets and websites.  Jeffreys' The Write Step blog is also featured by Networkedblogs.com as a top ten website for writing advice.

Jul 02, 202039:06
Surrender Your Gift (Interview with Casanova Green Pt. 2)

Surrender Your Gift (Interview with Casanova Green Pt. 2)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview pastor, professor, musician, and poet Casanova Green. 

Casanova Green (https://www.cgcreate.online/) is a writer, singer/songwriter, educator, and pastor. He is a 2010 graduate of Ohio Northern University with a BA in Language Arts Education with a minor in voice and received an MFA in Creative Writing at the Etowah Valley Low-Residency MFA Program at Reinhardt University in 2018. Casanova is a member of the Southern Collective Experience and has been published in several publications including The Blue Mountain Review where he serves as a Contributing Editor, Raw Art Review, and Fredericksburg Literary and Art Review.  In 2019, he published a mini-chapbook entitled Whispers & Echoes and his first collection of poetry entitled Things I Wish I Could Tell You will be published in 2020.

He has done extensive ministry work since the age of nine and has served as a worship leader and choir director for over twenty years. He released his first album, A Worshiper Mentality, in January 2016; his second, Songs from the Journey: Part I, in August 2019; and his third album, Songs from the Journey: Part II, in February 2020. He will release his fourth album, Songs from the Journey: Part 3, in 2020

Currently, he is the Owner of CGCreate, LLC and serves as the Lead Pastor of True Vision Christian Community headquartered in Lancaster, OH with a church plant in Barnwell, SC. He and his family reside in Lancaster.

Jun 18, 202052:45
Exploring Of The Creative Feminine

Exploring Of The Creative Feminine

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview author, artist, podcaster, and poet Eurydice Eve.

Eurydice (https://eurydice.net/) has been a sex writer & archivist, a multi-modal scholar & sexual freedom activist for 25 years. Eurydice’s work is steeped in philosophy & history & dedicated to the generations of silenced women for whom she hopes to speak. 

Jun 04, 202037:20
The New Psalmist (Interview with Clay Matthews)

The New Psalmist (Interview with Clay Matthews)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview poet Clay Matthews. 

Clay Matthews (@ClayBMatthews on Twitter) has published poetry in journals such as the Southern Review, diode, Kenyon Review, Gulf Coast, and elsewhere. His most recent book, Shore, was published by Cooper Dillon Books. His other books are Superfecta, and Pretty, Rooster. He currently lives in Elizabethtown, KY and teaches at Elizabethtown Community & Technical College.

A favorite quote from a review of Clay's work comes from MICHAEL MEYERHOFER of the Atticus Review, who said:

"Reading his poems fills me with much the same awe that I imagine I’d feel if I chanced upon an 800-pound gorilla deftly folding origami cranes to give to children after carving an ice sculpture and overhauling a tractor engine in record time.

So, yeah. I’m a fan."

May 21, 202037:54
Trauma Forged Into Art (Interview with Tianna G. Hansen)
Apr 30, 202053:12
The Embrace Of Despair (Interview with Dr. Samantha Rose Hill)

The Embrace Of Despair (Interview with Dr. Samantha Rose Hill)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview Dr. Samantha Rose Hill. 

Dr. Hill (https://www.samantharosehill.com/)  received her doctorate in Political Science from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in 2014. From 2013-2015, she conducted post-doctoral research at Heidelberg Universität and the Institut für Philosophie at the Goethe-Universität in Frankfurt am Main. She taught at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Amherst College, and is currently the Assistant Director of the Hannah Arendt Center for Politics and Humanities, Visiting Assistant Professor of Politics at Bard College and is Associate Faculty at the Brooklyn Institute for Social Research in New York City. She writes about Hannah Arendt, Critical Theory, the Frankfurt School, poetics, aesthetic theory, and the history of political thought.

You can find her work in the Los Angeles Review of Books, Public Seminar, OpenDemocracy, Theory & Event, Contemporary Political Theory, The South Atlantic Quarterly, The Journal of the Hannah Arendt Center, and Amor Mundi, among other publications.

She the author of two forthcoming books: Hannah Arendt (2021, Reaktion Books) and Hannah Arendt’s Poems.

Apr 16, 202049:26
Rhythm Hymns (Interview with Tyree Daye)

Rhythm Hymns (Interview with Tyree Daye)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview poet Tyree Daye.

Tyree Daye (http://www.tyree.work/) a poet from Youngsville, North Carolina, and a Teaching Assistant Professor at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is the author of two poetry collections River Hymns 2017 APR/Honickman First Book Prize winner and Cardinal forthcoming from Copper Canyon Press 2020. Daye is a Cave Canem fellow. Daye’s work has been published in Prairie Schooner, New York Times, Nashville Review. Daye won the 2019 Palm Beach Poetry Festival Langston Hughes Fellowship, 2019 Diana and Simon Raab Writer-In-Residence at UC Santa Barbara, and is a 2019 Kate Tufts Finalist. Daye most recently was awarded a 2019 Whiting Writers Award.

Mar 26, 202042:36
The Tender Words Of Zoe Fishman

The Tender Words Of Zoe Fishman

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview author Zoe Fishman. 

Zoe Fishman (https://www.zoefishman.net/) the critically acclaimed author of Invisible As Air (Morrow, September '19), the bestselling Inheriting Edith, (Morrow, October ’16), Driving Lessons (Morrow, April ’14), Saving Ruth (Morrow, May ’12) and Balancing Acts (Harper, March ’10). Her books have been translated into Hebrew, German, Italian, Dutch and Polish and are also available in Audio and Large Print editions. She’s the recipient of a myriad of awards, including an AJC "10 Southern Books We Loved in 2019" selection, an IndieNext Pick, Target’s Breakout and Emerging Author Picks, a NY Post Pick, a Mom’s Choice Award and a Barnes & Noble Hot Read.

Interviews and profiles of her have been featured on NBC’s “Atlanta & Co.” and FGTV, as well as in Publisher’s Weekly, Mobile Bay Magazine, The Atlanta Jewish Times and The Huffington Post. Her essays have been published in The New York Times' Modern Love column, as part of The Atlanta Journal Constitution's Personal Journey series and Modern Loss among others.

Zoe worked in the New York publishing industry for thirteen years in the editorial department of Random House, the rights department of Simon & Schuster and later, as an agent for two boutique literary firms before moving to Atlanta in August of 2011 with her family.

She is the Executive Director of The Decatur Writers Studio as well as an instructor. She is also an instructor in the Emory Continuing Education program. In the Spring of 2017, she was the Visiting Writer at SCAD Atlanta. She is currently working on her next novel.

Feb 13, 202048:30
Bone Chalk & Prison (Interview with Jim Reese)

Bone Chalk & Prison (Interview with Jim Reese)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview Jim Reese.


Jim Reese ( www.jimreese.org )

Jim Reese is Associate Professor of English and Director of the Great Plains Writers’ Tour at Mount Marty College in Yankton, South Dakota. Reese’s poetry and prose have been widely published, and he has performed readings at venues throughout the country, including the Library of Congress and San Quentin Prison. Reese’s awards include First Place in the 2018 Allen Ginsberg Poetry Awards, a 2018 Distinguished Achievement Award from Mount Marty College, and a Distinguished Public Service Award in recognition of his exemplary dedication and contributions to the Education Department at Federal Prison Camp Yankton. His books include These Trespasses (The Backwaters Press, 2005), ghost on 3rd (New York Quarterly Books, 2010), and Really Happy! (New York Quarterly Books, 2014). A fourth collection, Dancing Room Only, is forthcoming by New York Quarterly Books in 2020. His first book of nonfiction, Bone Chalk, will be published by Stephen F. Austin State University Press in 2019.

Jan 30, 202052:48
New Year, Who Dis?

New Year, Who Dis?

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei discuss how they plan for each new year. 

Jan 23, 202001:03:32
The Poetry Of Accelerated Particles... (Interview with Jeffery Skinner)

The Poetry Of Accelerated Particles... (Interview with Jeffery Skinner)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview Jeffery Skinner. 

http://jeffreyskinner.net/

Poet, playwright, and essayist Jeffrey Skinner was awarded a 2014 Guggenheim Fellowship in Poetry. Skinner’s Guggenheim project involves a conflation of contemporary physics, poetry, and theology.  He served as the June, 2015 Artist in Residence at the CERN particle accelerator in Geneva, Switzerland.  In 2015 he was awarded one of eight American Academy of Arts & Letters Awards, for exceptional accomplishment in writing.

His most recent prose book, The 6.5 Practices of Moderately Successful Poets, was published to wide attention and acclaim, including a full page positive review in the Sunday New York Times Book Review.  His most recent collection of poems, Glaciology, was chosen in 2012 as winner in the Crab Orchard Open Poetry Competition, and published by Southern Illinois University press in Fall, 2013.

Skinner has published five previous collections: Late Stars (Wesleyan University Press), A Guide to Forgetting (a winner in the 1987 National Poetry series, chosen by Tess Gallagher, published by Graywolf Press), The Company of Heaven (Pitt Poetry Series), Gender Studies, (Miami University Press), and Salt Water Amnesia (Ausable Press).  He has edited two anthologies, Last Call: Poems of Alcoholism, Addiction, and Deliverance; and Passing the Word: Poets and Their Mentors.  His numerous chapbooks include Salt Mother, Animal Dad, which was chosen by C.K. Williams for the New York City Center for Book Arts Poetry Competition in 2005.  Over the years Skinner’s poems have appeared in most of the country’s premier literary magazines, including The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The Nation, The American Poetry Review, Poetry, FENCE, Bomb, DoubleTake, and The Georgia, Iowa, and Paris Reviews.

Also a playwright, Skinner’s play Down Range had a successful run at Theatre 3 in New York City in the Spring of 2009, and another in Chicago in 2014.  His play Dream On had its premier production in February of 2007, by the Cardboard Box Collaborative Theatre in Philadelphia.  Other of Skinner’s plays have been finalists in the Eugene O’Neill Theater Conference competition, and winners in various play contests.

Skinner’s writing has gathered grants, fellowships, and awards from such sources as the National Endowment for the Arts (1986, & 2006), the Ingram Merrill Foundation, the Howard Foundation, and the state arts agencies of Connecticut, Delaware, and Kentucky.  He has been awarded residencies at Yaddo, McDowell, Vermont Studios, and the Fine Arts Center in Provincetown.  His work has been featured numerous times on National Public Radio.  In 2002 Skinner served as Poet-in-Residence at the James Merrill House in Stonington, Connecticut.

He is President of the Board of Directors, and Editorial Consultant, for Sarabande Books, a literary publishing house he cofounded with his wife, poet Sarah Gorham.  He teaches creative writing and English at The University of Louisville.

Dec 26, 201957:25
Get It On The Page! (A Louisiana Poet Laureate Speaks)

Get It On The Page! (A Louisiana Poet Laureate Speaks)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview poet Jack Bedell. 

Jack B. Bedell (http://www.jackbbedell.com/) is Professor of English and Coordinator of Creative Writing at Southeastern Louisiana University where he also edits ​​Louisiana Literature and directs the Louisiana Literature Press.

His latest collections are Elliptic (Yellow Flag Press, 2016), Revenant (Blue Horse Press, 2016), and No Brother, This Storm (Mercer University Press, 2018). His work has appeared in the Southern Review, Radar Poetry, The Fourth River, Terrain.org, Construction, Grist, Sugar House, Shenandoah, Pidgeonholes, Cotton Xenomorph and other journals. Bedell is the recipient of the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities Individual Achievement in the Humanities Award and the Governor’s Award for Artistic Achievement. He was appointed by Governor John Bel Edwards to serve as Louisiana Poet Laureate, 2017-2019.

Dec 12, 201955:29
A New York Literary Agent Speaks...

A New York Literary Agent Speaks...

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview literary agent and editor, Alicia Brooks. 

Alicia Brooks ( http://www.jvnla.com/) began her career over twenty years ago in book publishing as an editorial assistant at Penguin USA. She worked her way up to an assistant editor position at Nan A. Talese/Doubleday where she worked with noteworthy authors, including Margaret Atwood, Pat Conroy, and Ian McEwan. Alicia then became an editor at Picador/St. Martin's Press where she edited over 39 hardcover titles and several trade paper original titles, including Noelle Howey's Dress Codes: Of Three Girlhoods--My Mother's, My Father's, and Mine, Nega Mezlekia's award-winning Notes from the Hyena's Belly, and Ben Brantley's New York Times Book of Broadway. As an agent at the Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency, she is looking for Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Self-Help, Pop Culture, Literary Fiction, Commercial Fiction, YA Fiction, Mystery/Crime, and Historical Fiction. Alicia is a graduate of Wellesley College with a B.A. in English and Philosophy and has a Master's Degree in the Teaching of English from Columbia University.

Nov 27, 201901:01:17
The Dance Of Poetry (Interview with Melissa Studdard)

The Dance Of Poetry (Interview with Melissa Studdard)

In this episode, Clifford Brooks and Michael Amidei interview poet and author Melissa Studdard.

https://melissastuddard.com/

Melissa Studdard is the author of four books, including the poetry collection I Ate the Cosmos for Breakfast and the young adult novel Six Weeks to Yehidah. Her short writings have appeared in a wide variety of journals, magazines, blogs, and anthologies, such as The New York Times, Poetry, Psychology Today, The Guardian, New Ohio Review, Harvard Review, Bettering American Poetry, and Poets & Writers.

short film of the title poem from Studdard’s I Ate the Cosmos for Breakfast (by Dan Sickles of Moxie Pictures for Motionpoems) was an official selection for the Trinidad and Tobago Film Festival and the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival, as well as winner of the REEL Poetry Festival Audience Choice Award. Other poems of hers have been made into car magnets, telepoem booth recordings, and Houston City Banners.

Her awards include the Forward National Literature Award, the International Book Award, the Kathak Literary Award, the Poiesis Award of Honor International, the Readers’ Favorite Award, and two Pinnacle Book Achievement Awards. As well, her books have been listed in Cutthroat: A Journal of the Arts’ Best Books of the Year, January Magazine’s Best Children’s Books of the Year, Bustle’s “8 Feminist Poems To Inspire You When The World Is Just Too Much,” and Amazon’s Most Gifted Books.

As well, she has recently been in residency at the Centrum in Port Townsend, and The Hermitage Artist Retreat in Manasota Key, where she was poet in residence.

In addition to writing, Studdard serves as the executive producer and host of VIDA Voices & Views for VIDA: Women in Literary Arts and on the TUPP Advisory Council as a Walt Whitman Project Planning Associate. As well, she is a past president of the Associated Writing Program’s Women’s Caucus. She received her MFA from Sarah Lawrence college and is a professor for the Lone Star College System.

Nov 14, 201901:05:23
Wealth Building As Creatives (Interview w/ Chris Lazarus)
Oct 17, 201951:05
How To Gain Power & Resilience From Childhood Trauma (Interview with Robert Gwaltney)

How To Gain Power & Resilience From Childhood Trauma (Interview with Robert Gwaltney)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview author Robert Gwaltney

Robert Gwaltney, a graduate of Florida State University, resides in Atlanta Georgia where he is active in the local literary community and an associate member of the Southern Collective Experience.  His short story, “The Deep Down”, was recently published in The Signal Mountain Review.  A recipient of an Atlanta Writers Club award for flash fiction, he was also selected as a top ten finalist for publication by First Page, an international literary magazine.  Robert just completed writing his first novel THE CICADA TREE.  An excerpt from this novel will be published in the October 2019 issue of The Blue Mountain Review and the December 2019 issue of The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature.  Alongside his writing, Robert also serves as Vice President with Easterseals North Georgia, Children Services Inc., a non-profit supporting children and families during the most critical time in a child’s development.

Oct 03, 201951:44
West Coast Country (Interview with Debbie Hennessey)
Sep 19, 201901:15:53
The Keepers Of Calliope (Interview with Shawn Crawford)

The Keepers Of Calliope (Interview with Shawn Crawford)

In this episode, Cliff Brooks and Michael Amidei interview Shawn Crawford, the force behind the publishing company "The Calliope Group" and "Calliope Crashes". 

Shawn Crawford lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma, surrounded by the Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan archives, the Cain’s Ballroom, and the spirit of Leon Russell. He left academics to make some real coin in the nonprofit sector. He just launched a publishing joint, The Calliope Group, and edits the site Calliope Crashes. Born in Kansas, his mother is named Dorothy. No he’s not joking, yes he’s seen a tornado, and no people in Kansas do not grow up in a world devoid of color.

The Calliope Group: www.thecalliopegroup.com

Calliope Crashes: www.calliopecrashes.com

Sep 05, 201953:14
The Rough Magic Of Cornelius Eady
Aug 22, 201901:06:17
Autism Speaks (Interview w/ Kimberly Dick)
Aug 02, 201949:28