Our Song of the Week comes from rising Americana, fingerstyle and slide guitar star, Cristina Vane. She joined us for her first Mountain Stage appearance and wowed the audience with a collection of songs, including tracks from her third studio album, Hear My Call, which was released in February of this year.
“Play God and Destroy the World” is the opening track from Amythyst Kiah’s new album, Still + Bright. The album follows 2021’s Wary + Strange, and features guest spots by S.G. Goodman, Billy Strings and others.
Amythyst Kiah spoke with Inside Appalachia from her home in Johnson City, Tennessee.
Nappy By Nature Hair Salon
A normal day at Nappy By Nature Salon with sisters styling hair with their daughters. From left to right: Tunisia Beatty, Rakyra Bonner, Tina Beatty and Robin Bonner.
Photo Credit: Traci Phillips/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
We spend a lot of our lives at home or at work, but there are other spots that are just as important to who we are. They’re Third Places.
A third place can be a coffee shop or a basketball court, or any place where people get together and connect. In Black communities, hair salons can be spaces where women feel united and accepted.
Folkways Reporter Traci Phillips takes us to a hair salon in Charleston, West Virginia’s west side.
Filipino Hospitality With A North Carolina Flair
Hidden away from the main streets of Asheville, Neng Jr.’s is getting noticed nationally.
Photo Credit: Margaret McLeod Leef/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Asheville, North Carolina, is known as one of Appalachia’s cultural hubs — and that extends to the city’s dining scene. But Asheville was hit hard by Hurricane Helene. Dozens of its restaurants and bars were drowned in water, mud and debris.
Some may never reopen, while others are beginning to find their way back — including Neng, Jr’s, which serves up Filipino cuisine. After several months of hard work, Neng Jr.’s reopened in January.
Last Spring, Folkways Reporter Margaret McLeod Leef found her way to the restaurant, which is tucked away in an alley. She brought us this story.
Torli Bush’s Book, Requiem For A Redbird
Requiem for a Redbird by Torli Bush.
Courtesy Photo
There is a rich tradition of Black Appalachian poets and writers. One of the newest is Torli Bush, who grew up in Webster Springs, West Virginia.
Bush has won poetry slams in the region, and now has a new book, Requiem for a Redbird. Producer Bill Lynch spoke with Bush about the book.
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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Amythyst Kiah, John Blissard, Jett Holden, The Local Honeys, Jeff Ellis and Dinosaur Burps.
Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Eric Douglas is our executive producer. Kelley Libby is our editor. Our Audio Mixer is Patrick Stephens. We had help this week from Folkways Editor Jennifer Goren.
You can send us an email: InsideAppalachia@wvpublic.org.
On this West Virginia Morning, we learn about efforts to farm both healthy food and healthy land in Kentucky, and dive deeper into the debate around diversity, equity and inclusion programs that has become a nationwide focal point.
DEI programs aimed to expand opportunity—now they’re facing pushback. On the latest Us & Them, host Trey Kay examines the political and cultural forces challenging diversity, equity and inclusion efforts—and why more than 30 states have considered rolling them back.
On this West Virginia Morning, we look at the impact trade tariffs could have on farmers, and hear about a recent poetry book released by a Webster County native.
When you think of “Appalachian cooking,” what comes to mind? For a lot of folks, it’s savory comfort foods like biscuits with sausage gravy, crispy fried chicken and mashed potatoes loaded with butter. But, what about folks who want that comfort food, without involving animals? Jan Brandenburg is a pharmacist and poet in Eastern Kentucky. Over the last 30 years, she’s collected and perfected recipes that take a plant-based approach to the Appalachian table. Producer Bill Lynch spoke with Brandenburg about her new book The Modern Mountain Cookbook.