Nashville is lush and beautiful, but not for everyone. On this special holiday edition of the NashVillager podcast, we take a look back at Caroline Eggers’ fascinating story on Nashville’s tree canopy. 

Credits:   
This is a production of Nashville Public Radio  
Host/producer: Catherine Sweeney  
Editor: Miriam Kramer  
Additional support: Mack Linebaugh, Tony Gonzalez, Rachel Iacovone, LaTonya Turner and the staff of WPLN and WNXP  

Two novels released this year — Those Beyond the Wall by Vanderbilt scholar Micaiah Johnson, and Colton Gentry’s Third Act by Jeff Zentner — are works of fiction. But they both showcase ties to real Nashville events: the People’s Plaza and the Covenant School shooting. WPLN spoke with the authors to learn more about the thinking behind the works.  

Credits:  
This is a production of Nashville Public Radio  
Host/producer: Cynthia Abrams 
Editor: Miriam Kramer 
Additional support: Mack Linebaugh, Nina Cardona, Tony Gonzalez, Rachel Iacovone, LaTonya Turner and the staff of WPLN and WNXP  

You may have heard the names Harold Love Jr. and William Lamberth in the same breath as a new law or the latest happenings at the Tennessee State Capitol. But who are they when the statehouse isn’t in session? 

This episode, we’ll hear from these lawmakers on both sides of aisle about what brought them to politics, and who they are outside of it. Plus, a look ahead at some freshman lawmakers we’ll meet in the new year.  

Credits:  
This is a production of Nashville Public Radio 
Host/producer: Marianna Bacallao  
Editor: Miriam Kramer 
Additional support: Mack Linebaugh, Tony Gonzalez, Rachel Iacovone, LaTonya Turner and the staff of WPLN and WNXP 

This year was an emotional roller coaster in the news, with one surprise and unprecedented event after another. It was hard to keep track of life’s more predictable moments — annual traditions and the natural world. In this special holiday episode of the NashVillager, reporter Char Daston shares his favorite WPLN stories from this year about the changing of the seasons. 

Credits:  
This is a production of Nashville Public Radio  
Host/producer: Char Daston 
Editor: Miriam Kramer 
Additional support: Mack Linebaugh, Nina Cardona, Tony Gonzalez, Rachel Iacovone, LaTonya Turner and the staff of WPLN and WNXP  

A Murfreesboro 20-something became a monk – for a bit. A temporary ordination is a rite of passage in Thailand, but it hasn’t carried over to Thai communities in the U.S. That didn’t stop this first-generation Thai American from taking part. Plus, a look at WPLN’s religion stories throughout the years.  

Credits:  

This is a production of Nashville Public Radio  
Host/producer: Rachel Iacovone 
Editor: Miriam Kramer 
Additional support: Mack Linebaugh, Nina Cardona, Tony Gonzalez, LaTonya Turner and the staff of WPLN and WNXP  

On this special holiday edition of the NashVillager, reporter Paige Pfleger takes us back to one of the most joyful stories that came out of the WPLN newsroom this year.  

Credits:  
This is a production of Nashville Public Radio 
Host/producer: Paige Pfleger 
Editor: Miriam Kramer 
Additional support: Mack Linebaugh, Tony Gonzalez, Rachel Iacovone, LaTonya Turner and the staff of WPLN and WNXP 

We’re revisiting three stories — published over a span of just seven days — showing how the journalists of WPLN News explain local events by connecting the dots.  

Credits:  
This is a production of Nashville Public Radio  
Host/producer: Tony Gonzalez 
Editor: Miriam Kramer 
Additional support: Mack Linebaugh, Nina Cardona, Rachel Iacovone, LaTonya Turner and the staff of WPLN and WNXP

Tennessee has had its own share of political scandals that rise to the level of criminal convictions. We run down some of them and give you the latest in the case of former Senator Brian Kelsey. Plus, the local news for December 20, 2024 and a Cookeville Christmas parade that never happened.

Credits: 

This is a production of Nashville Public Radio

Host/producer: Nina Cardona

Editor: Miriam Kramer

Additional support: Mack Linebaugh, Tony Gonzalez, Rachel Iacovone, LaTonya Turner and the staff of WPLN and WNXP

U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn from Tennessee sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin expressing concern that drones seen over the country recently could be foreign surveillance devices. We break it down. Plus, the local news for December 19, 2024 and a look at new traditions ex-evangelicals in Nashville are celebrating this holiday season.

Credits: 

This is a production of Nashville Public Radio

Host/producer: Nina Cardona

Editor: Miriam Kramer

Additional support: Mack Linebaugh, Tony Gonzalez, Rachel Iacovone, LaTonya Turner and the staff of WPLN and WNXP

Nashville’s very first Christmas parade was held in the last week of November in 1928; but, since the COVID-19 pandemic began, the annual tradition faded. Before that there was a whole lot of drama. Plus, the local news for December 18, 2024 and this week’s edition of What, Where, Whens-day.

Credits: 

This is a production of Nashville Public Radio

Host/producer: Nina Cardona

Editor: Miriam Kramer

Additional support: Mack Linebaugh, Tony Gonzalez, Rachel Iacovone, LaTonya Turner and the staff of WPLN and WNXP