Greasing of the poles that are outside of the Royal Sonesta Hotel in New Orleans during Carnival may now be the start of many reveler’s Deep Gras – the final weekend before Mardi Gras Day – but this practice was originally born out of necessity.

Adrienne Breaux, the hotel’s director of sales and marketing, tells us all about the history of the practice that is now an annual event from its beginnings right as the hotel opened in the 60’s to today’s grand spectacle that has four celebrity “greasers,” well-known judges and a crowd in the thousands.

Each year the louisiana endowment for the humanities host the Bright Light Awards. In this year’s award winners is Louisiana Life and Acadiana Profile magazines writer and photographer Kevin Rabalais. Kevin is being honored as the Documentary Photographer of the Year – which is awarded to a photographer whose work captures Louisiana’s history, culture and people. Kevin has been documenting all aspects of life in Louisiana from hunting in Allen Parish to sugarcane harvests in New Roads for years, winning both local and international awards for his work. This week we chat with Kevin about his passion for storytelling, the places he’s gone over the years and where he’s headed next.

When it comes to being a mom, or even an adult, it can sometimes feel like there isn’t a space anymore for the activities that always brought you joy. This is how the concept of Bad Moms That Dance classes started with founders Alyse and Whitney This eventually lead them to create the Bad Moms That Dance Carnival performance krewe. But this krewe isn’t all sequins and pompoms. They pride themselves on dancing along with the crowd to 2000’s hip hop while sporting old school varsity jackets and Nike dunks. The krewe was recently asked to head across the pond for London’s New Year’s Day parade, where they brought a little bit of Louisiana spice to the people of England. This week the founders tell us how the krewe got started, why they love what they do and how – outside of dance – their main mission is to give back to the community that has given them so much.

Louisiana is the 3rd largest rice producing state in the US and rice is one of the state's top agricultural exports. The family behind 4Sisters Rice knows the industry inside and out, and is doing everything they can to bring attention back domestically and locally to Louisiana. Meryl Kennedy is the youngest of the 4 Kennedy sisters behind the brand and acts as the company's CEO. Meryl shares her passion for the industry that is so vital to the state's economy, while also advocating for the US rice industry and working to move towards more sustainable practices across the board.

It is said that if you do what you love you’ll never work a day in your life. I believe that is true for Lafayette native Daniel Barousse. Barousse is a skateboarder and artist, who combines both of his passions into creating unique furniture pieces out of skateboards meant for the trash. Recently, none other than Aquaman himself found Barousse’s work through his robust social media channels and commissioned him for a chair. In this episode Barousse talks about his journey to finding his passion, making custom pieces for Jason Mamoa and his hope to change at least one kid’s life through his work and the skateboarding lifestyle.

Follow Daniel and Barousse Works through their website and social media.

It’s common lore the ghost and spirit-infused stories of New Orleans. The vast history of the area along with the endless amounts of tragedy leave behind a lingering spirit you feel the moment you step into the city. But what lead to the Big Easy’s cemented status as one of the most haunted places?

Mother/daughter duo Rory O’Neill Schmitt and Rosary Hartel O’Neill took the time to dive into the story of the ghosts, vampires and spirits that haunt New Orleans. Their new book "The Haunted Guide to New Orleans" takes readers on a journey that goes beyond the scary stories and into the heart ofwhat makes the city so spooky.

This week, the two chat with us about what it’s like to write a book together, why they moved their focus to haunted history and the details that went into the research behind the words.

*See the duo for a book signed Dec. 20, 2025 at Garden District Book Shop.

On Nov. 15, Beignet Fest in New Orleans will host its 8th annual event. Not only is this festival highlighting a culinary fan favorite, the event as a whole was created to support the Beignet Fest Foundation and its mission to celebrate and support children with autism and their families. This week, we hear from festival founder Sherwood Collins, who tells us about the creation of Beignet Fest, the foundation’s many community endeavors and what everyone can expect at this year’s event. 

Since 1906, the State Fair of Louisiana has been bringing Louisianians and visitors a like together for fun, food and the promotion of agriculture across our state. From the largest livestock show and carnival in the state, to lumberjack competitions and even a petting zoo - the state fair has a little something for everyone. The fairs marketing director Russell Adams shares insight into the festival, what people can expect and what the organization is doing to make sure everyone has a safe, fun time at the three-week event starting Oct. 30 in Shreveport. 

In this week's episode, editor Reine Dugas takes over the podcast to talk to John Hoffman. The Shreveport-native is the new drummer for the band Primus. Hoffman won the spot in a long audition process that saw thousands of competitors.

Hoffman shares with Dugas his experiences with the band, the long audition process and his life in Louisiana.

You may know him as a member of Team Niall on the current season of "The Voice" on NBC, but Dustin Dale Gaspard is helping to put Cajun music and language on an international stage. The artist, from Cow Island Louisiana has officially made it to the third round of the singing competition after going head to head in the knockout round with another member of the team. Reba McEntire says he’s fascinating, his coach thinks he could win the show and we’re just all rooting for a member of the home team. In this episode, Dustin shares why he’s advocating so hard for the widespread appreciation Cajun music, how he got his start and what it’s like to be part of a huge TV show like "The Voice."