Backstory Sessions

Hello Backstory fans! This is the first in a series of episodes where we talk with some of our former guests to see what they have been up to. We have had some requests to talk to various people on the podcast to see what they have been up to since we last spoke. This is an interesting episode with lots of twists and turns. We were surprised at some of the things we found out, and it shows that life isn't always so predictable. While there are certainly constants in each of the guests lives, many things have changed, which goes to show that we all evolve over time in lots of different ways, both big and small. 

This weeks guests are Corri Taylor, Jeremy Bryant, Johnathan Stephens, and Dean Whitaker. We thank all of these great guests for their time, and sharing their stories with us. (Note: Some of the recordings were edited for time, and some were cut short by technical issues during recording. We apologize in advance.)

Hello again Backstory fans! This week marks 2 years since we started Backstory Sessions, and we are foever grateful to our awesome listeners, as well as our amazing guests. We thank you all for making this podcast a passion project for us.

Our guests on this episode are our friend Dr. Cheryl, who joined us on a previous episode ("A Good Approach") to chat about the topic of obesity, and also Tesa Edge, who is a life coach at Dr. Cheryl's practice. We talk with these knowledgeable ladies about some of the myths surrounding weight loss, which, as you probably know is a maze of misinformation, partial truths, and money making scams. It is a very interesting episode, where they dispel some of the misinformation out there about a range of different topic related to weight loss. If you want to know how much water you should be drinking daily, or if Crunchberries can be considered a fruit, this episode will tell you. Dr. Cheryl and Tesa share some of the science and numbers involved in weight loss, as well as things that they do to help the clients they work with daily. We are so happy to have Dr. Cheryl back, and to have Tesa join us for this fun and informative episode.

Welcome to another great episode! Cat and our guest co-host, Christie Connolly, who is the Associate Professor of Theater at Union College in Barbourville, KY.  Christie is a previous guest on the podcast, and has worked with us on a few different projects. Its always a pleasure to work with her. They chat with Wes Miller, who wrote and directed "A Day To Die", starring Bruce Willis, Kevin Dillon, and Frank Grillo. Wes talks about his upbringing in one of the rougher parts of Memphis, TN, and how a few people in his life changed the path he was on, which led him to law school, and later into the film industry. It is a very interesting backstory that we know you will enjoy. We thank Wes for sharing his inspiring story, and Christie for sharing cohosting duties for this episode. 

Wes Miller Bio:

WES MILLER (Director / Writer / Producer) is an upcoming film-making powerhouse, with a dedication to exploring the ongoing social and cultural problems in America. He specializes in exploring pulpy slices of Americana violence through the eyes of flawed characters. Miller was raised in Memphis, TN, where he was a three sport athlete. He attended college at Lambuth University (now University of Memphis-Lambuth) and was an All Conference cornerback. His life’s journey next took him to law school. After raising his son as a single father and graduating towards the top of his law school class, Miller worked as a civil rights trial lawyer and completely left the practice of law in 2015 and began completely honing his skills as a visual storyteller. His 2016 release, Prayer Never Fails was nominated for awards at several festivals including the Long Beach International Film Festival. His 2018 release, River Runs Red starring Taye Diggs, George Lopez and John Cusack has won numerous awards including Best Dramatic Film at the Downtown Los Angeles Film Festival. His next film, the western, Hell on the Border starring David Gyasi, Ron Perlman and Frank Grillo screened at multiple film festivals and for multiple Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Miller was also awarded Best Director of an Independent Film in 2020 at the Hollywood & African Prestigious Awards (HAPA) for his 2019 film release Atone. Miller has developed an exciting body of work in a short time and continues to deliver films that are commercial, socially relevant and impactful, that challenge both the eye and the mind.

Welcome Backstory fans! We have another awesome episode for you this week. We chat with the Grammy award winning country artist, John Berry! John tells us about the stories behind some of his great songs, how he got started in music, and what song changed his life, among other topics. He details some of the struggles he has endured on his path, and the genesis of his newest album, “Find My Joy”. We are honored to have the opportunity to talk with John, and share his stories with you all,  and think you will find them interesting, as well as inspiring. 

John’s Bio:

John Edward Berry (born September 14, 1959) is an American country music artist. Active as a recording artist since 1979, he has recorded more than 20 studio albums, including one platinum album and two gold albums. In his career, Berry has also charted 19 songs on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, including the Number One single "Your Love Amazes Me" from 1994 and six additional Top 10 hits: "What's In It for Me," "You and Only You," "Standing on the Edge of Goodbye," "I Think About It All the Time," "Change My Mind," and "She's Taken a Shine."

Hello again Backstory fans! We have another really interesting episode for you tonight! This one starts off with the introduction of our special guest host, Corri Taylor. Having been a guest on the podcast twice before, she agreed to guest host this episode with us, which we appreciate very much. Corri gives us a quick update on what she has been up to recently, and we think you will find it very surprising. 

We then move into the main part of this episode, where we all sit down with David Leathers, owner of Foodsmith. David has spent many years as a chef, teacher, innovator, restaurateur, and entrepreneur, who, like many in the food service industry, was affected by the Covid pandemic. Never one lacking for new ideas, David came up with the concept of Foodsmith, which he advertises as a mobile dining experience. David essentially brings an entire high end restaurant to your house, and prepares and serves you a fantastic meal inside his custom built mobile kitchen and dining facility.  We chat about the concept, the building of the structure, logistics of laying out the space, and the million other details that go into this project. David shares his drive and  passion for preparing interesting dishes, and providing his guests with an unforgettable experience with Foodsmith. We think you will enjoy this interesting and fun episode, and go away wanting to have David bring Foodsmith to your house as much as we do. We thank David and Corri for their time with us.

Welcome Backstory fans!..In this episode we talk to our friend Mike Tillbrook. Mike is a member of our Backstory Sessions group on Facebook, and he joins us to talk about how he met his good friend Margie, while playing trivia in a small town in NY. Its is a chance meeting that has grown into a mutual respect and fondness for each other. Both have said the other came along in thier lives just when they needed them the most. Mike also talks about a variety of other interests, such as cooking, beer making, and punk rock, to name a few. We originally invited him to be on the podcast to share his story about meeting Margie, which he does relay here, but we veered off topic a bit and got more of Mike’s backstory, which we found to be pretty interesting as well. We hope you enjoy this fun episode!

In this episode we chat with author Jeff Rasley about his newest book, "A Pickleball Soap Opera: Love, Murder, and Pickleball", which is his 13th book. As you may recall, Jeff is a previous guest on the podcast from way back in season 1 or 2 where we talked with him about his many travel experiences. Jeff talks about a variety of topics including the origins of Pickleball, his inspiration for writing this book, his experiences as a pickleball player, and many other things related to his writing process, publishing company, future projects and the like. It is always a pleasure to talk to such a creative and knowledgeable person as Jeff, and we think you will find this an interesting episode, which we think you will enjoy.

Rather than putting Jeff's very lengthy Bio here, we invite you the head over to his website at ​www.jeffreyrasley.com to find out more about him.