Today on Louisiane, Will McGrew talks to Donna Dupre about life down the bayou in Pointe-au-Chien. They talk about what it was like growing up in a French-speaking Indian community down the bayou, the connection between Pointe-au-Chien and Ile Jean-Charles, and the new French immersion school in Montague, Ecole Pointe-au-Chien.

Special thanks to Randall Kennedy for sponsoring this episode of Louisiane.

Today on Louisiane, Will McGrew sits down with Misty McElroy to talk about the Louisiana music scene, the difference between Houma and Thibodaux, and whether Cajun TikTok influencers are putting on their accent. They discuss building cultural bridges between the different parts of the state. Misty is a professional photographer and founding member of the Cajun Music Preservation Society.

Special thanks to Kenneth Bacon for sponsoring this episode of Louisiane.

Today on Louisiane, Will McGrew sits down with Lana Phillips to talk about her home, Vacherie, Louisiana. Located along the Missippi between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Vacherie is shaped by the river, fishing, agriculture, and the chemical industry. Lana talks about the history and culture of her hometown, and the diverse community that calls it home.

Special thanks to Melanie Boulet for sponsoring this episode of Louisiane.

Dr. Gary LaFleur is a biologist and the Director of the Center for Bayou Studies at Nicholls State University. He joins Will McGrew for a conversation about his roots in Eunice and his career that took him out of state and back. Topics include Louisiana French, the Cajun Triangle and Cajun dance and music culture in Acadiana as well as a discussion on land loss and the importance of the Gulf coast to Louisiana’s future.

Special thanks to Kenneth Bacon for sponsoring this episode of Louisiane.

In this episode of Louisiane, we sit down with Pierre Solet of the United Houma Nation for a wide-ranging conversation about language, place, and memory in coastal Louisiana. Pierre reflects on growing up speaking French at home and learning English only once he entered school, an experience shaped by his childhood in Grand Caillou and years spent in an Indian-only elementary school from first through ninth grade.

He traces a working life rooted in Terrebonne Parish—from working at a local shipyard to running a grocery store—and speaks candidly about life in Dulac, a community transformed repeatedly by hurricanes and coastal change. Throughout the conversation, Pierre returns to what has endured: family, language, and the importance of preserving Indian heritage in Louisiana.

Grant Ordoyne joins Will McGrew to talk about growing up in the tight-knit community of Chackbay, his college years at Nicholls State, and launching the Grant O Show Podcast. They discuss learning Cajun fiddle, the endless debate over whose gumbo is best (spoiler: everyone's is different), and Grant's conversations with Louisiana legends like Kyle Crosby and Chubby Carrier.

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In this episode of Louisiane, we spoke with Clairrita J. Raphael about Creole cooking, the Louisiana Creole language, hurricanes, family, community, and her Catholic faith in her hometown of Vacherie, nestled on the river between New Orleans and Baton Rouge.

In this episode of the Louisiane podcast, we talked with one of the leading contemporary Cajun musicians: Steve Riley.

In this exclusive long-form interview in both English and French, Steve spoke about growing up in Mamou, learning how to play music from legends like Dewey Balfa, Marc Savoy, and Dennis McGee, and passing on Louisiana music to the next generation.

Steve also shared with us some of his process in writing songs in French, stories from his world travels, and the history of his band the Mamou Playboys.

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On this episode of the Louisiane podcast, we speak with Kenneth Pitre, a lawyer and advocate for Cajun French language and culture based in Eunice, LA. Born in Swords in the countryside near Eunice, Kenneth talks to us about life growing up and going to school in the agricultural prairie region surrounding Eunice at the crossroads of St. Landry, Acadia, and Evangeline Parishes.

Kenneth also talks about the evolving role of French in the legal profession, commerce, and public life, his visits to Acadia, Canada, his marriage to an English-speaking "American" who learned French, and his work with his children to keep their local culture and community alive and vibrant at Lakeview Park & Beach.Support our fight to keep Louisiana language and culture alive and access exclusive content at louisiane.org.

Special thanks to Le Grand Hoorah and Lakeview Park & Beach in Eunice.

Janie Luster is a Native American culture bearer and palmetto basket weaver from the United Houma Nation. Born in Dularge, LA, she helped revitalize the tradition of basket weaving in her Tribe, and she is a fluent speaker of Louisiana French.

In her first long-form interview in her native French, we spoke about growing up down the bayou with family who made a living trapping and shrimping, coastal erosion, the rise of the oil industry, and displacement and population loss caused by environmental and economic challenges.

We also discussed her experience during school integration as a Native American, her relationship with her brother former Houma Tribal Chief Kirby Verret, and her work breathing new life into the palmetto basket weaving tradition of her Tribe.

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