In this rerun from 2018, Beth Ditto, former lead singer of the band Gossip, talks about how Nina Simone’s “Mississippi Goddam” helped her grapple with complex feelings about her home state, Arkansas. She also talks about returning home after heartbreak and explores making her first record “Fake Sugar.” Every Thursday at 7pm CT, KUTX hosts a weekly …

In this rerun from 2018, Liz Phair describes how the 1980s rock song “I Wanna Destroy You” by The Soft Boys put her in touch with her youthful desire to destroy something. We also hear Phair share what it was like to revisit her early 90’s songs on the recent Girly-Sound to Guyville tour. Plus, she shares a bit of parenting wisdom with host Elizabe…

Beloved American singer-songwriter John Prine is on many people’s minds right now. He is currently in stable condition on a ventilator due to symptoms from COVID-19. Our hearts go out to him and his family. This episode, recorded live in 2018 at Waterloo records, is a testament to Prine’s creativity, kindness and generosity of spirit. In it, he exp…

On March 10th, Thao and the Get Down Stay Down released a new single called, “Temple” along with an accompanying video. 6 days later residents in the San Francisco Bay Area, where lead singer, songwriter and guitar player Thao Nguyen lives, were ordered to shelter in place. In this episode, Thao talks to host Elizabeth McQueen about the inspiration…

Kathy Valentine, bass player in the seminal 80s all-girl rock group the Go-Go’s, recently wrote a memoir titled All I Ever Wanted. In the book, Valentine explores her unconventional childhood, her time with the Go-Go’s, and her journey to sobriety. In this episode of, Kathy explains what “Sunshine of Your Love” by Cream taught her about herself whe…

In this episode, St. Vincent explores how music from early Disney films helped her lay the foundation for beauty and wonder in her own life and work. “All that stuff, it’s your first introduction to magic…You know I think like, every kid wishes they could be in a cartoon. Like you wish so deeply that your reality could transmutate into that world, …

Emily Haines and Jimmy Shaw from Metric talk about hearing “Teardrop” by Massive Attack early in their musical partnership and how it inspired them, terrified them and helped them find a collaborative way of making music that still works for them today. “I remember listening to that song…and just feeling like..it was sort of a mix between feeling l…

In this rerun of an episode originally recorded last February, Jackie Venson explains how seeing “Don’t Cry For Me Argentina,” from the movie “Evita,” changed the way she listened to music and the way she saw herself. Then she describes her journey from classical pianist to blues guitarist. It’s a tale of soul expanding love, self crushing doubt, a…

This week we have a special treat for you! A full episode of the new Song Confessional Podcast! The Song Confessional project began when Austin artists Walker Lukens and Zac Cantanzaro outfitted a trailer like a Catholic confessional and asked people to come in, and tell anonymous “confessions.” Then they took their favorite stories and gave them t…

Devendra Bahnart talks about how hearing “Just Another Diamond Day” by Vashti Bunyan while busking on the streets of Paris comforted him with a feeling of motherly love that he still turns to today. He also explains how themes of motherhood, love, fear and compassion show up on his latest record “Ma.” “It’s like once you’re heartbroken, it’s not li…

In this episode, Mikaela Mullaney Straus aka King Princess describes how listening to “Cosmic Dancer” by T. Rex as a kid made her feel seen. And she explores how anthemic rock bands, along with artists like Prince and Tina Turner helped her understand her gender and showed her how music could transport the listener to another place and time. “It’s …

Indie electronic duo Matt and Kim talk about how “The Mullet Burden” by The Dillinger Escape Plan showed them how intense music could be. Matt: “I did not even realize that music could be as extreme as that was. Like if I thought that music could be turned up to 10 , it was like, oh wait, you could actually turn up to 12 — there’s like 2 more notch…

La Marisoul, lead singer and songwriter for the band La Santa Cecilia explains how Mercedes Sosa’s version of “Yo vengo a ofrecer mi corazón” by Fito Páez helped her understand what a powerful tool music could be for connection and healing. “I can feel myself connected to the earth when I hear her. I feel relieved. I feel like I’m being held by a m…

Shura is a British singer, songwriter and producer who’s latest record Forevher documents her experience of falling in love with the woman who is now her girlfriend. On this episode, she sat down with host Elizabeth McQueen on the Bonus Tracks stage at the Austin City Limits Festival to explain why “Only Shallow” by My Bloody Valentine terrified he…

This Song host Elizabeth McQueen has been helping produce a new podcast called The Breaks. Every Saturday from 10pm-1am, Confucius and Fresh host a hip-hop show on KUTX called The Breaks. And now every Monday at 2pm the world can hear highlights from their wide ranging conversations about all things hip-hop, Austin’s hip-hop and R&B scenes and thei…

Singer, songwriter and producer Finneas O’Connell not only writes and produces music with his sister Billie Eilish, but also makes his own music under the name FINNEAS. He just released a solo EP called Blood Harmony. Listen as he explains why he loved “Holy S**t” by Father John Misty from the moment he heard it and how the song helped understand t…

Sleater-Kinney’s 9th album “The Center Won’t Hold” came out in August. The album, which was produced by St. Vincent, finds the band exploring lots of new sonic territory. Listen as Carrie Brownstein explains how “Stay” by Rihanna inspired her to write the last track on the new record,”Broken.” Plus, you can hear why she doesn’t think of this album …

Ezra Koenig, lead singer and songwriter for the band Vampire Weekend, explains why he recently became obsessed with “I Don’t Think Much About Her No More” by country singer and songwriter Mickey Newbury. He loved it so much that he even included a cover of the song as a bonus track for the Japanese release of the band’s latest record Father of the …

On the last episode of This Song until the fall, Krissy Teegerstrom, a self-made artist, creative consultant, podcaster, and designer at Featherweight Studio talks about how listening to “Mojo Pin” by Jeff Buckley transported her to a place beyond the real and showed her how to follow her creative intuition. Jeff Buckley’s performance style confirm…

Black Pumas, the new musical project by California native Eric Burton and Grammy Award winning producer and guitarist Adrian Quesada has been taking the Austin music scene by storm- even winning Best New Austin Band and Best New Song for “Black Moon Rising” at the 2019 Austin Music Awards, all before they’ve even released their debut album. On this…

Austin based sisters Tori, Tiffany and Sofia Baltierra have been playing as the Tiarra Girls since they were in elementary and middle school. Listen as they describe how seeing the video for No Doubt’s “Just a Girl” influenced them all stylistically and helped them find their voices as young women in music. They also tell the story of the genesis o…

Musician, writer, and frontman for Old 97’s Rhett Miller launched his own podcast “Wheel’s Off With Rhett Miller” earlier this year. In it, he talks to artists about what it’s really like to live a creative life. In this 2017 episode, he describes how hearing the Jewish Lesbian Folk singer Phranc perform ‘The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll” chang…

“This is the sound that quasars make when they’re being born or the resonant frequency of the big bang.” Timothy Showalter, who leads the folk-rock band Strand of Oaks, chronicles his journey through depression on the band’s new record, Eraserland. Listen as he describes how hearing David Bowie’s “Lazarus” at the end of the recording process helped…

Our May Artist of the Month- The Bishops explain that hearing “Soundtrack to My Life” by Kid Cudi for the first time as middle schoolers changed what they thought hip-hop music could be. Kid Cudi spends the song highlighting his negative mental health, an idea that Cara and Troy Bishop hadn’t heard before in the artists they were listening to at th…

Writer and entrepreneur Thea Wood describes how hearing Joan Jett’s “Bad Reputation” while watching the documentary of the same name reignited her passion for music and inspired her to make a huge change in her life. Listen as she explains how that experience led her to create the “Backstage Chats With Women in Music” podcast as well as the the Bac…

Austin rapper The Teeta breaks down all the reasons he loves “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen and how it influenced the direction he took on “Rain” from his latest record Teeta World. The Teeta will join Confucius and Fresh, hosts of our hip-hop show The Breaks for “The Breaks Live: Graduation Edition” this Friday, May 10th at Empire Control Room along…

Austin’s Pocket Sounds is the solo project of singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and arranger Mike St Clair. Listen as he describes how hearing Dionne Warwick’s version of the Burt Bacharach/Hal David classic “Do You Know the Way to San Jose” at a kiddie pool party inspired him to meld the classical, jazz, pop and rock parts of himself, and …

Clarence Greenwood is Citizen Cope, an American singer-songwriter who has been making entrancing blends of rock and soul music since the early 2000’s. In this episode Citizen Cope details how his emotional connections to legends such as Randy Newman and Trouble Funk aided his understanding of the powerful energy that music can have. Cope then goes …

Grant Richard Kwiecinski, who goes by GRiZ, is a producer and multi-instrumentalist who combines electronic music with funk and soul to create a sound that is as uplifting as it is danceable. Listen as GRiZ describes how seeing Disney’s “Fanstasia”as a child helped him understand that music could take the listener on an emotional journey and how th…

Ian Graham, guitarist, songwriter and singer for the Austin psych metal band The Well, describes how hearing “Ocean Size” by Jane’s Addiction when he was a kid showed him how powerfully music could convey a feeling by transporting him “to somebody else’s movie.” He describes how poetry, songwriting and playing music as a teenager helped him feel le…

When Cautious Clay saw the video for Outkast’s “B.O.B” for the first time, the combination of the duo’s rapid fire rap style, techno influenced production and hyper-saturated psychedelic visuals blew his 7-year-old mind. On this episode, he tells us how that experience continues to have a profound impact on his own work, especially on his new proje…

Patty Griffin’s latest record “Patty Griffin” is a gorgeous acoustic exercise in vulnerability. The album was borne out of a period in her life where she stepped back from music to undergo treatment for breast cancer. Listen as she explores all the ways that Peter Gabriel’s “Secret World,” from his epic breakup record up US, impacted her life and h…

“Music is energy and music can be healing…music has so many different purposes, but at this stage in my life I’m looking for something that’s a little bit nourishing or just like a slight clue to the universe.” — Jenny Lewis Jenny Lewis’ 4th record On the Line is a collection of songs that tackle love, lust, relationships and death. Lewis recorded …

In the early 70’s Uncle Walt’s Band, the acoustic trio made up of Champ Hood, Walter Hyatt and David Ball came to Austin, TX from Spartanburg, SC. The band brought with them a unique acoustic sound that melded folk, jazz, blues and pop. Though the music of Uncle Walt’s Band never caught on nationally, it continues to inspire countless Texas musicia…

Amanda Palmer’s latest release, “There Will Be No Intermission” is a collection of devastating songs that explore her experiences with death, parenthood, miscarriage, abortion and living in this current, chaotic moment. On this special live episode, recorded at SXSW, she explores how seeing Nick Cave’s performance of “Magneto” in the documentary “O…

Moving Panoramas have a new record out called “In Two.” Listen as vocalist and instrumentalist Cara Tillman describes the joy that Elton John’s “Burn Down the Mission” brings her, followed by guitarist Rosie Castoe who explores her life long love of Peter Gabriel’s “Steam.” And lead singer and songwriter Leslie Sisson explains why “Some Song” by El…

Allison Moorer just released a new book and record, both titled “Blood.” Both works explore the legacy of her childhood in an abusive, addicted household and examine the impact that her parent’s murder suicide had on her life. In this episode, Moorer describes how “Every Breath You Take” by the Police gave her a window into an entire other world of…

Meredith Goldstein is host of the Love Letters podcast, the love advice columnist and entertainment writer for the Boston Globe and one of host Elizabeth McQueen’s oldest and dearest friends. In this episode she explores all the reasons she loves the sexy, pleading desperation of “Father Figure” by George Michael. Listen to this episode of This Son…

On this episode, Josh Lloyd-Watson and Tom McFarland, of British electronic pop outfit Jungle, tell us about the Jai Paul’s “Jasmine” and how it helped their band get comfortable with sonic experimentation. “A lot of our music is just accepting bits and pieces that happen around the creation, and ultimately letting the sounds find you.” Hear how th…

The Beach Boys song “God Only Knows” isn’t just one of Rolling Stone magazine’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, it’s one of the most heartfelt expressions of loss and grief ever recorded. For Bayonne, the song taught him the power of vulnerability and openness and how to embrace it in his own music. As Bayonne says, it allows the listener to get a …

Jackie Venson explains how seeing “Don’t Cry For Me Argentina,” from the movie Evita, changed the way she listened to music and the way she saw herself. Then she describes her journey from classical pianist to blues guitarist. It’s a tale of soul expanding love, self crushing doubt, and musical perseverance. Listen to this episode of This Song Subs…

In addition to being the host of Brainchild, the popular Netflix science show for kids, Sahana Srinivasan is an accomplished actor, comedian, filmmaker, and musician. In this episode, she explains how listening to “Where Will I Go” by Sweet Valley helped her find her voice a young artist. She also tells us about the artistic journey that led her to…

February is “Love Austin Music Month” and to celebrate This Song is re-running this episode with singer and songwriter Dana Falconberry. In it she talks to host Elizabeth McQueen about the profound impact that being in the band “Peter and the Wolf” had on her when she first moved to Austin. It’s two Austin musicians, talking how Austin Music change…

Shy Beast front woman Mariclaire Glaeser describes how the music of the Cardigans helped her navigate a difficult childhood, bond with her older brother and find her musical way. Shy Beast is KUTX’s Artist of the Month for January Listen to this episode of This Song Subscribe via the Podcasts App, iTunes or Stitcher to get the new episodes of This …

On Sharon Van Etten’s upcoming release Remind Me Tomorrow, due out January 18th, she explores themes of love, partnership, parenthood, and visions of the past through a collection of gorgeous synth-laden songs. When she sat down with This Song, she told us how listening to Neil Young’s “Harvest” as a kid helped her connect with her father. She also…

We got a chance to catch up with Scottish singer/songwriter KT Tunstall shortly after she released, Wax, the second album in a trilogy focused on the soul, body, and mind. On this episode, she tells us how seeing Beck’s Loser on MTV as a kid pushed her to pursue her own music and how his willingness to experiment with styles and genres continues to…

For the last episode of 2018, This Song decided to celebrate some exciting changes at one of our favorite music podcasts. Starting in 2019, Song Exploder host, creator, and producer Hrisikesh Hirway will hand over hosting duties to Thao Nguyen of Thao and the Getdown Staydown. Listen as Hrishikesh Hirway tells us how listening to Asha Bhosle’s “Yeh…

Nik Ewing, leader of the band Chewing and bass player for Local Natives, explains why he chose to cover Dennis Wilson’s solo album “Pacific Ocean Blue” in it’s entirety. This project is part of Turntable Kitchen’s Sounds Delicious series, a monthly subscription service where artists cover classic albums and subscribers get a limited edition vinyl c…

Austin based singer and songwriter Charlie Faye leads the sixties inspired girl group Charlie Faye and the Fayettes. Listen as she describes how her childhood love of “Be My Baby” by the Ronettes helped her find her musical way and how it inspired the band’s new single “I Don’t Need No Baby.” Listen to this episode of This Song Subscribe via the Po…

Andrew Savage from Parquet Courts loves karaoke. Hear from whence that love springs, how that love led him to Roxy Music and why he love that band’s song “Re-Make / Re-Model.” Then listen as he explores the ways the Parquet Courts deals with the current chaotic moment we all find ourselves in on their latest record “Wide Awake!” Listen to this epis…