Musings of the Artist features meaningful conversations with all kinds of artists. Musicians, poets, photographers, and other creatives share their honest stories, touching on the duality of being creative - the pure joy of making art - but also the particular struggles that come with it. In speaking about vulnerability, many of these artists remind us that even though people can look like they have it all together on the surface, we all struggle. In each episode, Montse's guests share the c ...
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Amina Cain is Los Angeles based writer. She is the author of the novel Indelicacy (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2020), and two collections of short stories, Creature (Dorothy, 2013) and I Go To Some Hollow (Les Figues Press, 2009). Her latest book is A Horse at Night: On Writing (Dorothy, 2022). In this conversation we discuss friendship, writing, clas…
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Sue William Silverman is an award-winning author of eight works of nonfiction and poetry and her most recent book is Acetylene Torch Songs: Writing True Stories to Ignite the Soul. This conversation, just like her book, is centered around writing personal narratives. We discuss putting our most vulnerable selves on the page, the fluidity of memory,…
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Ross Gay is the author of four books of poetry: Against Which; Bringing the Shovel Down; Be Holding, and Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude. In addition to his poetry, Ross has released three collections of essays—The Book of Delights (a New York Times bestseller), Inciting Joy, and his newest collection, The Book of (More) Delights. This conversation,…
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Gregory Orr is a poet who is known to be a master of the short, personal lyric. About Gregory, Mary Oliver wrote “He speaks now, in these many short poems, which in their entirety are really one long poem, of mysteries, of those things –emotions, situations, mind and heart states–which are beyond the definitive.” Gregory is the author of more than …
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Philip Metres is a poet, translator and director of the Peace, Justice and Human Rights program at John Carroll University. He is the author of ten books, including Shrapnel Maps, The Sound of Listening: Poetry as Refuge and Resistance, Pictures at an Exhibition, and Sand Opera. Tomás Q. Morin is a poet, translator, and editor. His books include th…
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Laura Warrell is a writer based in Los Angeles. "Sweet, Soft, Plenty Rhythm" is her first novel. The story follows a 40-year-old jazz musician and womanizer Circus Palmer–but this book centers the women in his life. It is a telling of their stories, not only his. Laura and I talk about her wonderful debut and her path to publication which is an ins…
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Ama Codjoe is a poet based in New York City. She is the author of Bluest Nude and Blood of the Air. Her poems and essays have been published in many outlets and her work has twice appeared in The Best American Poetry. Her poems often engage with visual art—especially art by Black women artists. This conversation is much about the body. On how we re…
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Diana Khoi Nguyen is a poet and multimedia artist. She is the author of the poetry collection, Ghost Of (Omnidawn Publishing, 2018) which was a finalist for the National Book Award and L.A. Times Book Prize. In this episode we talk about grief, complex emotions, silence, and breaking that silence through art. Note: There is a bit of static in the b…
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Ingrid Rojas Contreras is a writer who was born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia and now lives in San Francisco, California. Her first book was the novel Fruit of the Drunken Tree and her most recent book is a family memoir called The Man Who Could Move Clouds. In this episode we chat all about language. On writing between two languages and cultures,…
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Elinor Carucci is an Israeli-American Fine Art Photographer based in New York City. Her photographs are included in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art New York, the Brooklyn Museum of Art, Houston Museum of Fine Art, among others. Her work has been published in The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, W, Aperture, and many other public…
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Victoria Chang is a poet, writer and editor. Her new book of poetry is The Trees Witness Everything (2022). Her other books include Dear Memory: Letters on Writing, Silence and Grief (2021) and OBIT (2020). In this episode, we chat about collaboration in art, her wonderful and varied use of form in her writing, and her current role as poetry editor…
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Melissa Febos is the author of the critically acclaimed memoir, Whip Smart, and the essay collections, Abandon Me and Girlhood. Her craft book, Body Work: The Radical Power of Personal Narrative, will be published on March 15th. In this episode, Melissa and I chat about her wonderful book Body Work. We talk about writing as a spiritual practice (an…
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David Hilliard is a fine art photographer based in Boston. He received his BFA from Massachusetts College of Art, and his MFA from Yale University. Through the use of diptychs and triptychs, his beautiful work documents his life and the lives of those around him. In this episode, David talks about his life in photography and how his love of theater…
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Fernando A. Flores is a writer based in Austin, TX. His books include the collection Death to the Bullshit Artists of South Texas, the novel Tears of the Trufflepig, and his upcoming book is Valleyesque. In this episode, Fernando and I talked all about the ups and downs of the creative life, on living between cultures, the difference between writin…
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Michael Kleber-Diggs is a poet, essayist, and literary critic. His debut poetry collection Worldly Things was published last year and he is also a contributor to the book There’s a Revolution Outside, My Love: Letters from a Crisis. Michael teaches creative writing through the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop and at colleges and high schools in Mi…
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Janelle Lynch is a New York-based artist whose images reveal an inquiry into themes of connection, presence, and transcendence. She uses an 8x10-inch view camera, and her recent work is deeply informed by her training in perceptual drawing and painting. Janelle’s photographs are in many private and public collections, including The Metropolitan Mus…
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Jill Andrews is a musician and songwriter living in Nashville. Her EP "Ellen" was released this fall. In this episode Jill and I chat about the perils and gifts of being highly sensitive, moving out of our 30s, art-making, and more. Plus, find out the book Jill would like to put in people’s stockings! This episode was audio produced by Aaron Moring…
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Daisy Hernández is a writer and cultural activist. She is the author of the award-winning memoir "A Cup of Water Under My Bed" and coeditor of "Colonize This! Young Women of Color on Today's Feminism". Her latest book is "The Kissing Bug: A True Story of an Insect, a Family and a Nation's Neglect of a Deadly Disease". In this episode, we have a wid…
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Aline Smithson is a visual artist, editor, and educator based in Los Angeles. She is also the Founder and Editor- in-Chief of Lenscratch, a daily journal on photography. In this conversation, Aline talks about her trajectory to fine art photography: from painter, to fashion editor to photographer. We discuss roadblocks and fear, long-term projects,…
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Emily Bernard is an author and professor. She holds a B.A. and Ph. D. in American Studies from Yale University. Her most recent book is the essay collection Black is the Body: Stories from My Grandmother’s Time, My Mother’s Time, and Mine. In this wide-ranging conversation, Emily speaks on motherhood, fear, forgiveness, rejecting shame and staying …
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Mary Gauthier is a Grammy-nominated songwriter, and author. She has a gift of making outsiders feel like insiders, which is a beautiful thread throughout her new memoir “Saved by a Song.” We talk about making a life out of being creative, the vulnerability of performing, the beauty and wonder of being a late bloomer, and why the maybe’s we get are …
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Lidia Yuknavitch is the nationally bestselling author of the novels The Book of Joan, The Small Backs of Children, and Dora: A Headcase, and the memoir The Chronology of Water. Her newest book Verge is a collection of short stories. She also has a TED Talk “The Beauty of Being a Misfit” that has been viewed by millions. She lives in Portland, Orego…
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Andrew Duhon is a singer-songwriter from New Orleans. In this episode, we chat about the search for belonging, self-acceptance, and finding the profound in the minutia. Andrew also talks about songwriting and art making in a way that is mesmerizing and inspiring. As he says, “No one else is you, no one else can tell your story. It is your human tal…
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Nadia Owusu is an author and urbanist who grew up between Africa and Europe and now lives in Brooklyn. In the episode Nadia talks about her memoir Aftershocks and the ways growing up between cultures shaped her life. We also chat about claiming, naming, and accepting mental illness as a part of one’s identity, code-switching, and the gifts of memoi…
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Pam Houston is the author of many books including the memoir, "Deep Creek: Finding Hope In The High Country", "Cowboys are my Weakness" and most recently "Air Mail: Letters of Politics, Pandemics, and Place" (with Amy Irvine). Pam is also a fantastic teacher and the co-founder and creative director of the literary nonprofit Writing By Writers. In t…
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Rachel Eliza Griffiths is a poet, visual artist, and novelist. We chat about her stunning collection of poetry and photography, "Seeing the Body". Some of the topics we speak on include monumental loss and the grief that follows, memory, languages of sadness, taking action against despair, and pushing away the useless pressure of likability. Rachel…
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Josh Telles is a Celebrity and Food Photographer based in LA. He has photographed artists like Nicole Kidman, David Lynch, Mary J. Blige, and so many others. In this episode, Josh tells us about his path to becoming the photographer he is today. We chat about vulnerability in photo making, chronic anxiety, telling other people’s stories through pho…
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Cig Harvey is a photographer and writer based in Maine. She is the author of three sold-out books, and Blue Violet, her new book of photographs, drawings, and writing will be out in May. In this episode, we talk all about books, intuition, her photography process (hooray for “date nights” with photos!), and the importance of noticing in art making.…
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Mickey Guyton is a powerhouse vocalist and songwriter. In this conversation, we talked about being an introvert in the public eye, preparing for motherhood, mentorship, and The Bachelorette. We also talk about the urgency of leaning into who you are. As a Black woman in Country music —a traditionally white-and male-dominated industry— Mickey tells …
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Valerie June is a singer, songwriter, poet, and multi-instrumentalist. She also (so wonderfully) describes herself as a “professional dreamer.” In this episode she speaks on finding home on the road and within oneself, her writing practice, manifestation, and how to be a “light worker.” We also chat about being hermit-like, moving through sadness, …
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Naomi Shihab Nye is a Palestinian-American poet, Young People's Poet Laureate through the Poetry Foundation, and editor of poems for the New York Times Sunday magazine. She has written or edited more than 30 books, most recently Cast Away, The Tiny Journalist, Voices in the Air, and Everything Comes Next. Naomi is full of poignant stories and refre…
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Dawn Landes is a singer-songwriter and delightful person. In this episode we chat all about art and life. We get into her album ROW about the incredible story of Tori Murden McClure (the first woman to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean!), her life as a new-ish mother, our love of memoirs, Patti Smith, and much more. Where to find Dawn: Website Ins…
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Lissie is an American singer-songwriter. In this episode we talk all about vulnerability. On feeling “oversized” emotions and the creative side of that, trauma (collective and personal), comparative suffering, and the special bonds we can form with animals. She also speaks on her quarantine experience, what it’s like living on a farm in Iowa, on th…
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Christine Shevchenko is a Principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre. I spoke with her last month about life as a principal ballerina - and what that looks like during quarantine! I love hearing stories about the moment people recognize the thing that brings them to life - and she shares her moment, when she knew she wanted to be a dancer. Chris…
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Tara Schuster is an author, playwright, and Comedy Central’s VP of Talent and Development. We chat all about her new book, "Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies: and Other Rituals to Fix Your Life from Someone Who has Been There". We talk rock bottoms, re-parenting, becoming your own champion and making new friends as an adult. Tara tells us why “should…
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Carolyn Forché is a poet, translator, and activist whose work has been translated into over twenty languages. Her books of poetry are Blue Hour, The Angel of History, The Country Between Us, Gathering the Tribes, and In the Lateness of the World. Her memoir, What You Have Heard Is True, describes her time in El Salvador shortly before and during th…
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Tina Lifford is an actress, playwright and author. She currently plays Aunt Vi on OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network’s show Queen Sugar, and you might also recognize her from her roles on Scandal and Parenthood. She is also known behind the camera as a playwright, and author of The Little Book of Big Lies. As you will find within moments of listening t…
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Gina Chavez is a bilingual singer-songwriter based in Austin, TX. Singing in both English and Spanish, her record Up.Rooted topped both the Amazon and Latin iTunes charts following a feature on NPR's All Things Considered. Her Tiny Desk concert made NPR’s top 15 of 2015. In this wide-ranging conversation we talk about her Latin roots, releasing mus…
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Lily King is the author of five award-winning novels including Euphoria which was named one of the 10 best books of 2014 by The New York Times. Her most recent novel Writers & Lovers was published in March this year, and I LOVED it. In addition to her novels, she has published many stories and essays including a piece for Modern Love (An Empty Hear…
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Under the name Quiet Creature, illustrator and fine artist Jane Beaird’s work has been featured by Glamour Magazine, Teen Vogue and highlighted by national political organizations, celebrated actors, and prominent advocacy groups including Planned Parenthood and The Women's March. She made the cover art for this podcast, too! She also works in the …
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Letitia VanSant is a folk singer-songwriter based in Baltimore, MD. She has received many awards and accolades for her songwriting including being named among Paste Magazine’s “10 Country Artists to Watch” in 2020. Her new album Circadian was released last month, and is an honest and powerful reflection on significant themes. In our conversation we…
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Jessica Ciencin Henriquez is a Colombian-American writer and editor. Her personal essays and narrative journalism have appeared in the New York Times among many other publications. Her essays have also been featured in multiple anthologies, including Oprah's Little Guide to The Big Questions, and she is the author of the forthcoming memoir: If You …
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Allison Russell (Birds of Chicago, Our Native Daughters)
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Allison (“Alli”) Russell is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist in Birds of Chicago and Our Native Daughters. She is also a mother and describes herself as a “connection seeker.” I recently sat down with Alli in New Orleans, and I was so grateful to spend this hour with her. Alli has an incredibly powerful story. To me, she is a shining e…
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Krista Tippett is the creator and host of On Being and a New York Times bestselling author. She radiates wisdom and generosity and is one of the wisest voices of our time. In 2014, President Obama awarded Krista the National Humanities Medal at the White House for “thoughtfully delving into the mysteries of human existence.” In this conversation, w…
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Zac Clark is a singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist based in Nashville. After seven years traveling the world as a member of Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, Zac is leaving the band and heading out on his own with new music on the way. While co-writing on each Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness record, Zac released two solo records, 2015's "I…
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Ben Moon is a filmmaker, photographer and author based on the Oregon coast. His beautifully vulnerable memoir "Denali: A Man, a Dog, and the Friendship of a Lifetime" will be released on Penguin Books in January 2020. Ben has inspired countless people with his photography for Patagonia, impactful portrait series, and the short film "Denali". His ne…
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Pádraig Ó Tuama is a poet and theologian based in Ireland. He is the author of a number of books including a gorgeous memoir called In the Shelter: Finding a Home in the World. Themes of loneliness, belonging, language, and the power of storytelling are laced throughout his work, and we unpack these topics, and much more in this conversation. If yo…
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E. J. Koh is a poet, author and translator based in Seattle, WA. Her book of poetry is called A Lesser Love, and her memoir The Magical Language of Others is forthcoming this January. I had the pleasure of sitting down with E.J. in her home recently, where we discussed everything from memoir writing, to inter-generational trauma, to her “Love Lette…
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Alex Hwang is a singer and songwriter for the Los Angeles based band Run River North. In this conversation, we touch on growing up bi-culturally and Alex speaks on learning how to find ways to talk about his Korean culture. He also talks about his faith, how finding a routine in yoga helps him battle anxiety, about his love of reading and getting l…
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Sam Lamott is the creator of the Hello Humans website and How To Human podcast. If you like this podcast you should definitely check his out as well! He’s had many wonderful guests including Brené Brown, Byron Katie and his mom Anne Lamott. In this conversation, we get deep real fast. I love that Sam speaks so openly and honestly about his story. H…
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