Banner & Company

When Richard Courtney was growing up in Columbia, Tenn., he went to visit a friend whose sister put "I Want to Hold Your Hand" by The Beatles on the record player — a moment that changed his life. So much so, that all these years later he has a Beatles museum in the basement of his house in Nashville that houses more than 3,800 items, including obscure vinyl, autographs, rare artwork and even locks of the Fab Four members' hair. He's gotten to meet his favorite Beatle, and also struck up an unlikely friendship with a man many Beatles fans will never forgive.

A graduate of Columbia Military Academy and Sewanee, Richard is a real estate agent (with a column called "Realty Check," naturally) and also a two-time cancer survivor. His second bout with the disease resulted in having his nose amputated. The story of how he got a new nose is one you'll have to hear to believe.

Guest: Richard Courtney, real estate agent, two-time cancer survivor, Beatles superfan

Host: Demetria Kalodimos

Producers: Steve Haruch and Andrea Tudhope

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Long before Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter album re-ignited the conversation, Frankie Staton was booking showcases aimed at highlighting Nashville's Black country music talent, which remained hidden in the mix. "I knew that I was not the only Black person that was being treated the way I was being treated," she says.

A North Carolina native inspired to move to Music City by the likes of Loretta Lynn and Dolly Parton, Frankie has toiled in the shadows for decades, but not long ago she finally made it onto the stage at the Grand Ole Opry. And a new generation, inspired by her example, has both shined a light on her work and carried it on.

Guest: Frankie Staton, pianist, songwriter, performer; co-founder, Black Country Music Association

Host: Demetria Kalodimos

Producers: Steve Haruch and Andrea Tudhope

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Jon Roebuck comes from a family of preachers, and for 17 years he was the pastor at Woodmont Christian Church. That experience laid the groundwork for what has become a staple on Nashville television: "A Moment That Matters." The one-minute bursts of inspiration air every Sunday and, while they're much shorter than the sermons he used to prepare every week, they've found a devoted audience.

In this episode, Jon talks about his background, his faith, and the challenges of keeping that faith — and staying in conversation with our neighbors — in polarized times.

Host: Demetria Kalodimos

Producers: Andrea Tudhope and Steve Haruch

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Eden Wilkinson was less than two years old, she had a different name, and lived in an orphanage in Romania. At the time, the country, like many former Soviet satellite states, was struggling economically and, thanks to government policies mandating that women have at least 5 children, was filled with children whose families could not afford to raise them properly. It was estimated that 100,000 children were in need of homes.

In 1994, Demetria Kalodimos accompanied Tennessee Congressman Bart Gordon on a fact-finding mission to Romania. She visited several orphanages, including the one where baby Eden was living. When her segment aired, a family in Nashville was watching. Thirty years later, that child, now grown, reunited with the reporter she first met half a world away.

Guest: Eden Wilkinson

Host: Demetria Kalodimos

Producers: Andrea Tudhope and Steve Haruch

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Content warning: This episode contains discussion of intimate partner violence and child abuse.

Like other survivors of domestic violence, Mark Wynn has never forgotten what happened to his mother, his siblings and himself. In particular, he never forgot how the police who showed up at his house acted — or more importantly, how they didn't act.

After a long career in law enforcement, which included helping start the Domestic Violence Division at the Metro Nashville Police Department, Mark has dedicated his life to training others — especially other men — to recognize and prevent domestic violence.

Guest: Mark Wynn, domestic violence survivor and retired police lieutenant

Host: Demetria Kalodimos

Producers: Steve Haruch and Andrea Tudhope

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Elisheba Mrozik is probably best known as a tattooer: She made an appearance on the TV show Inkmaster and owns her own shop in North Nashville. But she’s also a painter, muralist and textile artist who uses whatever medium she’s working in to explore community and cultural interconnectedness. And yes, some of that work involves fermenting mud.

An artist from an early age — including an elementary school-era side gig selling her drawings — Elisheba credits a trip to Japan for unlocking her potential and beginning her journey exploring her identity as a Black Southern woman.

Guest: Elisheba Mrozik, artist; owner, One Drop Ink Tattoo; president, North Nashville Arts Coalition

Host: Demetria Kalodimos

Producers: Steve Haruch and Andrea Tudhope

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As of April 2024, the account A Girl Has No President has more than 760,000 followers on Instagram. That following includes scores of celebrities. But the creator of the account chooses to stay anonymous, in part because of threats against her and her family, and in part because she is not interested in notoriety. She also rarely grants interviews, but made an exception for this episode of Banner & Company.

She talks about why she created the account in 2016 out of "unadulterated anger," how growing up poor in Nashville has influenced the way she thinks, and how she and Demetria once crossed paths many years ago — well before there was any such thing as social media.

Host: Demetria Kalodimos

Producers: Steve Haruch and Andrea Tudhope

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In his new book Death Row Welcomes You: Visiting Hours in the Shadow of the Execution Chamber, Steven Hale details the time he's spent getting to know some of the men on Tennessee's death row. In this special episode, we're bringing you a live recording of the book release event at Parnassus Books last month, where Steven talked with host Demetria Kalodimos — herself a frequent death row visitor — about the experiences and friendships that led to his writing this book. (Read an excerpt here.)

You'll also hear from death row inmate Terry King — of whom Steven says, "This is a person I would let sleep in my house" — who joins the event by phone from Riverbend Maximum Security Institution.

Guest: Steven Hale, Nashville Banner criminal justice reporter

Host: Demetria Kalodimos

Producers: Steve Haruch and Andrea Tudhope

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sharon Ferrara has lived a full and wildly interesting life. From Long Island to Nashville — with many stops in Texas along the way — she's rubbed shoulders with the likes of Johnny Cash, backed David Allan Coe on tour, written an international hit and run sound for presidential inaugural balls. And that's not even the half of it. She's also still singing with a big band at age 79.

In this episode, Sharon takes us through some highlights of her winding career, including becoming the first woman in Nashville to own and operate her own sound production company, touring with young kids in tow and meeting the love of her life. 

Host: Demetria Kalodimos

Producers: Steve Haruch and Andrea Tudhope

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For our premiere episode, we break from our one-on-one format to bring you an abbreviated — but nonetheless colorful and complicated — history of the Nashville Banner: a look back at the days of a two-newspaper city from people who lived it, day in and day out, in the storied newsroom at 1100 Broadway.

Guests:

Host: Demetria Kalodimos

Producers: Steve Haruch and Andrea Tudhope

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices