This week on Only Good Vibes News Network, Whistle welcomes Nigel Hall (of  @LettuceFunk  and  @ShadowPeoplePodcast ). The guys go unfiltered and talk about everything under the sun.

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This week on Only Good Vibes News Network, Whistle welcomes Nigel Hall (of  @LettuceFunk  and  @ShadowPeoplePodcast ). The guys go unfiltered and talk about everything under the sun.

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This week on Only Good Vibes News Network, we're welcoming Kelly Carpenter, Chief Promise Maker for the Cherry Bombs, New Orleans' beloved Mardi Gras dance krewe known for turning fun into philanthropy. Kelly joins us in the Fan Cave to talk about how she got started with the Cherry Bombs back in 2017, what it really takes to bring a parade-ready dance troupe to life, and why giving back to the city is baked into everything the krewe does.

The big topic: Cherry-oke, the Cherry Bombs' annual charity karaoke competition, happening Saturday, August 29th at the Howlin' Wolf. Doors open at 8, show starts at 9. DJ Alley Cat is running the mic, there's a $10 entry to compete for a cash prize (first and second place), a 50/50 raffle, exclusive Cherry Bombs merch, and specialty cherry cocktails. Tickets are $10 presale / $15 at the door — and this year's proceeds benefit Daughters Beyond Incarceration, an organization supporting girls and women impacted by parental incarceration through mentorship, advocacy, and healing programs.

Along the way, we burn some palo santo and sage, pull a couple of Zen cards, talk about finding the good news in a world full of noise, and close out with the Big Six — the six things you can do every day to live a great life. As always, Only Good Vibes News Network is your source for positive information in Louisiana and beyond.

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New episodes drop every Wednesday on YouTube and every Thursday everywhere you get your podcasts.

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Leroy "Whistle Monsta" Mitchell welcomes The Rumble.

The Rumble was formed in 2021, and has since been nominated two times for a Grammy. They are a dynamic band dedicated to preserving and evolving New Orleans' rich musical heritage. Fronted by Big Chief Joseph Boudreaux Jr. of the Young Eagles Black Masking Indian tribe, the band seamlessly blends past, present, and future elements of New Orleans culture into their sound. Their songs draw from Mardi Gras Indian funk, brass band traditions, jazz, and hip-hop, creating a vibrant and modern take on iconic styles pioneered by groups like The Meters, Wild Magnolias, and Neville Brothers.

The Rumble carries forward the vibrant legacy of Mardi Gras Indian funk, a genre pioneered by Big Chief Monk Boudreaux (Joseph's father) and the Wild Magnolias. Led by Grammy-nominated singer and respected Black Masking Indian leader Big Chief Joseph Boudreaux Jr., the band blends the traditional rhythms of black masking culture with modern New Orleans sounds. Trumpeter Aurélien Barnes, a member of the Northside Skull and Bone Gang, represents this iconic carnival tradition, while trombonist José Maize of the TBC Brass Band electrifies audiences at second line parades, embodying New Orleans' brass band heritage. Together, they honor the city's rich musical traditions while pushing its boundaries into the future.

The ensemble has received two GRAMMY nominations for Best Regional Roots Album for their albums Live at the Maple Leaf and Stories From The Battlefield.

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Whistle Monster and Jamie Bernstein sit down with a New Orleans icon, Hank Staples, owner of Maple Leaf Bar. Hank shares a few stories about his journey from New York to New Orleans, how he first became connected to the Maple Leaf, and how he eventually became the owner.

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Part two of the Viva la France conversation with Emelie Vidrine picks up where the story gets personal. Leroy "Whistle Monsta" Mitchell and Emelie trace back how a mutual friend connected them months into his search for someone who understood the cultural bridge between Louisiana and France — and how that first meeting immediately felt like destiny.

Emelie shares a deeply moving story behind her first album: waking up one morning with an entire song already written in her head, only to learn that the woman who raised her like family, "Miss Lloyd," had passed away that same night. It becomes the jumping-off point for a conversation about ancestors, faith, and knowing when to let go — including how Emelie met her husband on the Paris metro the same night she'd finally accepted a painful ending elsewhere in her life.

The conversation turns toward the Saints' upcoming trip to Paris in October, with Emelie explaining why the team is aiming to become "the Parisian team," not just New Orleans visiting France, and drawing the parallel between New Orleans' French Quarter architecture and Paris itself — "it's just like a French Quarter that grew up and took steroids."

Before wrapping, Emelie hands out a local's guide to Paris: where to eat (a 120-year-old former textile factory turned restaurant in the 15th arrondissement), where to catch real live jazz, and her can't-miss tip for bringing home salted butter and baguettes that taste fresh weeks later.

As always, Leroy closes with the Big Six: empathy, humility, and compassion for yourself first, always help people, and leave the world better than you found it.

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Only Good Vibes News Network is live from Paris for the second installment of the Viva la France series, and Leroy "Whistle Monsta" Mitchell sits down with a very special guest and close friend: Emelie Vidrine, a Louisiana native turned cultural ambassador between Lafayette and France.

Emelie's story starts in the French-speaking heart of Louisiana. Raised in a francophone household in Lafayette, she comes from a family of self-described cultural torchbearers — her father from Evangeline Parish, her mother from St. Louis, Missouri, both deeply woven into Cajun and Creole music and preservation work. Emelie spent 11 years in Lafayette Parish's French immersion program, taught by instructors from France, Canada, and West Africa, before earning her degree in English and French and moving to Paris in 2010 to pursue graduate study in phonetics and linguistics.

What started as a personal journey turned into a calling. Today Emelie works in cultural diplomacy, building bridges between Louisiana and France — running a concierge service for visiting musicians and delegations, organizing festivals and cultural events, and even adapting her family gumbo recipes for French palates (turnips and parsnips instead of okra, more cream, less heat). She talks candidly about the identity of straddling two homes, the meaning behind her family name, and the humility it takes to promote other people's success instead of her own.

The conversation also traces her deep musical roots, learning the ti-fer (triangle) before guitar, and picking up the accordion during COVID so her newborn son could grow up surrounded by the sound she loved as a child on her parents' porch in Scott, Louisiana.

As always, the episode opens with the show's Zen card ritual, setting the tone for a conversation about identity, heritage, and staying rooted while building a life abroad.

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This week, Only Good Vibes News Network is live from Paris with a special reunion. Leroy "Whistle Monsta" Mitchell sits down with Jared Bajoie (aka Shecky), OGVNN's very first international listener and a longtime friend from Leroy's New Orleans days.

Shecky's life reads like the painting he says he's always working on. Born in Baton Rouge, he made his way to New Orleans, then in 1997, at just 25 years old, picked up and moved to Barcelona, Spain, staying seven years chasing what he calls "new colors on the palette." From there it was a year in Puerto Rico, 14 years back home in New Orleans, and now a new chapter in Lunéville, a small town in northeastern France.

As an artist, Shecky is known for his exquisite, razor-straight lines, and he's painted Leroy for years. This episode marks their first time reuniting in person since 2021, timed to a Fourth of July collaboration between France and Louisiana.

The conversation opens with the show's signature Zen card pull (inner peace and meditation this week) before diving into Shecky's travels, his childhood fascination with Europe, and why small-town French life feels like home. Things heat up when talk turns to sports,  Shecky delivers his Saints prediction (12-5, playoff bound), and talks World Cup.

As always, Leroy closes with the Big Six reminder: empathy, humility, and compassion for yourself first, and always leave the world better than you found it.

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Whistle Monsta sits down with Bruce Sunpie Barnes - Contemporary Creole music icon, Louisiana cultural ambassador, and Big Chief of the Northside Skull and Bones Gang.

Sunpie shares what Mardi Gras means to him, discusses the history of Mardi Gras culture, and talks about the history, purpose, and relevance of the Northside Skull and Bones Gang.

Sunpie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brucesunpiebarnes

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Whistle Monsta is back in the Fan Cave, fresh off a trip to Paris and just days from returning to France to continue repping New Orleans and the Saints as an ambassador, and this episode brings a serious guest.

Chansey Augustine, official photographer for New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno and co-founder of the Kicking Back NOLA Foundation, sits down for a conversation that goes from picking up a $250 camera during COVID lockdown to shooting WWE Raw and SummerSlam, the Final Four in the Superdome, her first Saints game, and now City Hall.

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