Leon Bridges explains how hearing Gary Clark Jr's "Bright Lights" changed everything for him. Then Cory Reinisch and Dustin Meyer from Harvest Thieves talk about the power of Uncle Tupelo, Led Zeppelin and the Weary Boys.

Jonathan Meiburg explains how Vic Chesnutt's "Big Huge Valley" helped him realize there was a whole world of music bubbling beneath the mainstream. Plus, he makes the case that Nina Simone is the "best popular musician of the 20th century, and maybe the 21st century too." Then Emily Cross of Cross Record describes the effect Imogen Heap's "Hide and Seek" had on her while her partner Dan Duszynski explains how King Tubby expanded his ideas of what music could be.

What do John Aielli, David Bowie and Caracaras all have in common? Jonathan Meiburg from Shearwater has learned something from all of them. Hear about his many and varied interests in this first ever "This Song" extra!

Delbert McClinton tells the story of the first time he heard Big Joe Turner's "Honey Hush" wafting out of a window. From that moment on, he was driven to give everything he had to the blues. And Carrie Rodriguez tells the story of the first time she heard Bill Frisell and explains how it opened her up to the idea that traditional music need not be played in a traditional way.

Josh Ritter explains how delving into the catalogue of Roger Miller helped him let go of the rules and find his voice for his new record. Then John Carter Cash explains why the music of his grandmother, Mother Maybelle Carter, influenced his musical path even more than the work of his father, Johnny Cash.

Mark Mothersbaugh describes in vivid detail what is was like to see the Beatles for the first time on Ed Sullivan. Then Sabrina Ellis and Andrew Cashen from A Giant Dog and Sweet Spirit talk about the the riffs and raw power of Iggy Pop, the songwriting of Regina Spektor how they came to write songs together.

Eugene Mirman explains why he chose to incorporate music into his latest release and stage show and talks about the music that inspires him...or doesn't. Then Elliot Frazier and Daniel Corborn of Ringo Deathstarr talk about how hearing Nirvana and Rage Against the Machine when they were kids helped them see that they could make music that was discordant, distorted and totally satisfying.

M. Ward explores how John Fahey's record "The Yellow Princess" showed him that an artist could say everything he wanted using only one acoustic guitar. Then Dana Falconberry explains how the songs she learned while playing with Redding Hunter in the band "Peter and the Wolf" changed her approach to music.

Hear Alessia Cara explain how she's inspired by the music of Amy Winehouse and Drake and what her current creative life is like. Then lThandiwe and Niambi Sala of the New York based hip hop duo Oshun explain how songs by Outkast and Billie Holiday helped them realize what it was they wanted to do with their own music.

We’ve taken two previously-aired interviews from Leon Bridges and Gary Clark Jr. and put them together to draw a direct line of influence from one artist to another. Leon Bridges explains how hearing a Gary Clark Jr. song inspired him to pursue music, and then Gary Clark Jr. describes the impact of Tupac's "Krazy." Expect an “epic flow chart of inspiration” sometime in the future.

Kevin Morby expounds on how the raw beauty of the Mountain Goats made making folk music seem both accessible and punk. Then Margaret Glaspy explains how Vic Chestnut's unflinching take on life and and Elliot Smith's use of metaphor influence her as a writer.

Blitzen Trapper’s Eric Early describes how his musical trajectory was permanently altered by R.E.M. and their breakout album “Out Of Time.” Then bandmate/drummer/actor Brian Koch tells a tale of his family who did very little to encourage his music and how he was inspired by hidden radios, friends with guitars and a young singer-songwriter with whom he now shares a stage.

Tegan and Sara give you insight into Smashing Pumpkins Siamese Dream, Phil Collins melodies, teenage bedrooms, finding self-identity, how to be the change and (for all of you songwriters) the secret to writing a hit pop song.

Singer T0mar Williams from the Austin soul band Tomar and the FC's talk about how singing Michael Jackson's "Ben"as a kid started him on a lifelong musical path. The the FC's drummer Paul Kresowik explains how Al Jackson Jr's drumming on Sam and Dave's "Soul Man," helped him understand what soul drumming was all about.

Professional Partier Andrew W.K. explores one of the most deeply embedded songs in American culture -- The Star Spangled Banner. As he breaks down how this lyrically archaic a technically difficult song works as a stirring National Anthem, you may realize that you have your own connection to the song.

Austin’s Hardproof is extra special to us at Team This Song. Their song “Mahout” begins and ends every episode of our podcast so we consider them part of the family. They have just released their new record “Stinger” on Modern Outsider Records and when they came to KUTX to talk with Elizabeth about it, band members […]

Artists from past episodes of This Song come to the Live Music Capital of the World for one week of music-making magic during SXSW.

Sundara Karma's lead singer and songwriter Oscar Pollock describes how his new found love of Nick Drake's second record Bryter Later has been pushing his writing into more vulnerable and authentic territory. And drummer Haydn Evans delves into his enduring love for the Beach Boy's "Pet Sounds."

Austin’s Hardproof is extra special to us at Team This Song. Their song “Mahout” begins and ends every episode of our podcast so we consider them part of the family. They have just released their new record “Stinger” on Modern Outsider Records and when they came to KUTX to talk with Elizabeth about it, band members […]

This Song postcards are here! Now you can download a blank postcard and make it your own by coloring in the front however you please. Then, fill out the back with a song that changed your life and pass the music on by sending your postcard to family and friends. Don’t forget to also share […]

Sydney Wayser, aka Clara Nova, talks about the impact Rufus Wainwright's song "Oh What A World" had on her own music and how her feeling of connection with artists, both visual and musical,  continues to inspire her creative process.

Chase Weinach, of the band Austin band Marmalakes, describes how hearing Rilo Kiley's "A Better Son/Daughter" when he was going through a tough time in his mid-twenties helped him realize he was not alone.

Tegan and Sara give insight into twin sister dynamic, The Smashing Pumpkins‘ Siamese Dream, Phil Collins melodies, teenage bedrooms, finding self-identity, how to be the change and (for all of you songwriters) the secret to writing a hit pop song.

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."

Austin based singer and songwriter Charlie Faye 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."

Sharon Van Etten explores how how listening to Neil Young's "Harvest" as a kid helped her connect with her father. She also shares how her own experiences with parenthood pushed her to pursue her own music again after a long break working on other projects.

Warren Hood describes how hearing the song "High Hill" gave him a deep appreciation for the music of Uncle Walt's band while helping him process his grief around the loss of his father.

Timothy Showalter, who leads the folk-rock band Strand of Oaks describes how hearing David Bowie's "Lazarus" at the end of the recording process helped him see how powerful documenting dark times could be.

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.

Carrie Brownstein explains how "Stay" by Rhianna inspired her to write the last track on Sleater-Kinney's latest record,"Broken." 

La Marisoul, lead singer and songwriter for the band La Santa Cecilia explains how  Mercedes Sosa's version of "Yo vengo a ofrecer mi corazon" by Fito Páez helped her understand what a powerful tool music could be for connection and healing.

Devendra Bahnart talks about how hearing "Just Another Diamond Day" by Vashti Bunyan  when he was busking on the streets of Paris comforted him  with a feeling of motherly love that he still turns to today and how themes of motherhood, love, fear and compassion show up on his latest record "Ma."

This month on In Perspective, our roundtable participants discuss public memory in relation to grief, war, and memorials such as the National September 11 Memorial & Museum. Two of our guests represent that museum, which commemorates the September 11 attacks of 2001 and the World Trade Center bombing of 1993. Also joining us are two...

In this edition of In Perspective we teamed up with KUT’s Views and Brews for a discussion on various elements of and debates over Artificial Intelligence. What does it actually mean to think? How does understanding how computers work inform what we understand about the brain? And what is on the horizon for us in...

This episode explores historical and contemporary attitudes about the food industry and our food traditions. Our discussants share the major topics that affects the food industry today. The Discussion Tom Philpott is a Food and Agriculture Correspondent for Mother Jones.  While studying food and cooking traditions around the world, Tom noticed that American food traditions...

On this week’s In Black America program, producer and host John L. Hanson, Jr. presents a conversation with Valerie Jarrett, former Senior Advisor to President Barack Obama, moderated by Brittany Packett this past spring at the Summit on Race in America: Liberty and Justice for All.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. presents a 2018 interview with Dr. Patrice A. Harris, MD, a psychiatrist and president of the American Medical Association. She’ll serve for a year as president-elect and become the first African-American woman to lead the organization in 2019.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. presents highlights from the 20th Anniversary commemoration of the 1963 March On Washington, featuring Dr. Maya Angelou, Rev. Jesse Jackson, the Honorable Andrew Young, and the late Congressman Mickey Leland.

On this week’s edition of In Black America, John L. Hanson, Jr. speaks with Motown legends Abdul “Duke” Fakir, a founding member of The Four Tops, and Mary Wilson, a founding member of the Supremes. Both were participants in The Summit on Race in America this Spring, at the University of Texas at Austin.

This week on In Black America, producer and host John L. Hanson, Jr. presents a conversation with Jarrett Bell, an NFL columnist with USA Today Sports, and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Selection Committee who has covered the National Football League for more than three and a half decades.

This week on In Black America, producer and host John L. Hanson, Jr. concludes his conversation with Jarrett Bell, a veteran NFL columnist with USA Today Sports, and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Selection Committee who has covered the National Football League for more than three and a half decades.

This week on In Black America, producer and host John L. Hanson, Jr. speaks with Charles Whitaker , journalist and newly appointed Dean of the Medill School of Journalism, Media and Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University.

This week on In Black America, producer and host John L. Hanson, Jr. presents a tribute to the late Martin Luther King, Jr, on the 90th anniversary of his birth, featuring Dr. King, and the Honorable Andrew Young and former U.S. President Barack Obama.

This week on In Black America, producer and host John L. Hanson, Jr. discusses the career of legendary photographer Ernest C. Withers with Richard Cahan, author of Revolution in Black and White: Photographs of the Civil Rights Era by Ernest C. Withers.

This week on In Black America, producer and host John L. Hanson, Jr. presents highlights of the 15th Annual Johnnie L. Cochran, Jr. Salute to Excellence Awards held during Super Bowl LIV week, featuring speakers Roger Goodell, Troy Vincent, and Fritz Pollard Trophy winner Trey Smith.

Ms. Reade’s former husband said she spoke of a sexual harassment problem she had when working in Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s Senate office. Mr. Biden has denied her allegation of sexual assault.

In a Fox News interview, Mr. Trump also angrily revived grievances about the special counsel Robert S. Mueller III and promised a swift economic rebound.

The Justice Department’s move was the latest example of the attorney general’s effort to chisel away at the special counsel investigation and emphasize an alternate narrative.

Across the country, rank-and-file prosecutors cringed at another extraordinary intervention by Attorney General William P. Barr.

Surveys show the president’s standing with seniors, the group most vulnerable to the coronavirus, has fallen as he pushes to reopen the country.