Mike Lee, David Axelrod, and Ben Shapiro walk into a podcast...
I had a fun time chatting with Brett Barbin for The Gate, the University of Chicago's student newspaper. You can read the interview here. Brett asked some great questions!
Cocaine & Rhinestones
If you are remotely interested in the history of country music, check out Cocaine & Rhinestones. My friend Bill Scher turned me on to this podcast (hosted by Tyler Mahan Coe, son of David Allan Coe), and it has not disappointed. If you want to dip your toes in the water, start with the one on Merle Haggard's "Okie from Muskogee" -- one of the many episodes that blends history, politics, and music.
Mike Lee, David Axelrod, and Ben Shapiro walk into a podcast...
This week, I talked with Sen. Mike Lee about his book Written Out of History: The Forgotten Founders Who Fought Big Government. Next week, I'm scheduled to interview former Obama strategist David Axelrod and conservative Ben Shapiro. Let me know if you have any questions you'd like me to ask.
My Wife!
A couple weeks ago, I interviewed my wife on Mother's Day and made it available to everyone who supports my podcast on Patreon. It was a quick conversation -- like maybe 5 minutes -- but I think it turned out really good. In fact, it turned out so well that I wanted to make it available to everyone for free (listen here).
Each week, I am doing something short and fun and special like this for Patreon supporters. For as little as $1 a month, you can listen to bonus interviews and Q&A's like this -- and help me keep Matt Lewis & The News going strong at the same time!
John Mellencamp: Plain Spoken
I've never seen anything like the Netflix documentary, John Mellencamp: Plain Spoken. The whole thing is a concert with the famous singer narrating random things while the music plays in the background. No interviews with friends. No old photos. No home movies. Just a concert and an old guy talking in the background. For the first 5 or 10 minutes, I assumed this was just the intro--that it would turn into a normal documentary. Nope! This is the format--for like an hour and a half. Sometimes, Mellencamp opines on seemingly random topics that do not necessarily come in chronological order (MTV videos, the internet, how crude people inspired his song, "Hurts So Good"). But he is often endearing and informative, such as when he recounts being born with spina bifida. Regardless of the unorthodox format, if you're a fan of Mellencamp like me, it's worth checking out. (And thanks to @ItalianCookie1 for the recommendation!)
George Washington's Rainbow
This week, I received a private museum tour led by Kim Sajet, the first woman to serve as director of the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery. We saw some amazing art (check out some of my pictures here), and it really helped to have someone point out the symbolism that might normally escape the untrained eye. For example, one thing that really impressed me was the background of Gilbert Stuart's famous Lansdowne portrait of George Washington. I had never noticed the Noah's ark (holding the quill pen), or the rainbow ("meant to represent a hopeful future for the young country") in the upper right. If you find yourself in the DC area, do yourself a favor and visit the National Portrait Gallery.