Overheard with Evan Smith

Mary Chapin Carpenter is a five-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter. Her latest album, Sometimes Just The Sky, celebrates her acclaimed 30-year recording career, and features reimagined versions of one song from each of Carpenter's twelve albums, plus one newly penned track. Over the course of her career, she has sold 14 million records, won two Country Music Association Awards, two Academy of Country Music Awards and is one of only 15 female members of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Anne Lamott writes and speaks about subjects that begin with capital letters: Alcoholism, Motherhood, Jesus. But armed with self-effacing humor – she is laugh-out-loud funny – and ruthlessly honest. Her new book is Almost Everything: Notes on Hope. Lamott is the author of the New York Times bestsellers Hallelujah Anyway; Small Victories; Stitches; Help, Thanks, Wow; Some Assembly Required; Grace (Eventually); Plan B; Bird by Bird; and Traveling Mercies, as well as several novels, including Imperfect Birds and Rosie. A past recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and an inductee to the California Hall of Fame, Lamott lives in Northern California.

Lawrence O'Donnell hosts "The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell" on MSNBC. His background in politics, entertainment and news, leads to lively discussions as he addresses the biggest issues and most compelling stories of the day. Among other political positions, O'Donnell served as Senior Advisor to Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan from 1989 through 1992. He is an Emmy Award-winning executive producer and writer for the NBC series "The West Wing," and creator and executive producer of the NBC series, "Mister Sterling." Born in Boston, O'Donnell is a graduate of Harvard College.

Andrew Bujalski's first feature film, Funny Ha Ha, was called one of the most influential films of the '00s by New York Times critic A.O. Scott. He has also written and directed the films Mutual Appreciation, Beeswax, Computer Chess, and Results, which have played festivals worldwide including Sundance, Berlin, and the 2014 Whitney Biennial. The Boston Globe describes him as "unerringly polite and somewhat disheveled." His latest film, Support the Girls, premiered at the 2018 SXSW Film Festival.

John Kerry has served most of his adult life in public service - as Navy lieutenant in combat in Vietnam, a prosecutor, lieutenant governor, Democratic nominee for president of the United States, five-term senator, and U.S. Secretary of State. He has been witness to and participant in some of the most important events of our recent history. His latest book, "Every Day Is Extra," is a revealing memoir where he acknowledges faults, mistakes, and lessons learned the hard way.

Michael Avenatti is an attorney and entrepreneur who routinely appears on broadcast and print media as a commentator on a range of legal issues. He has represented parties in a number of lawsuits that have gained international media attention, including cases brought against Donald Trump, the National Football League, various celebrity defendants, high-ranking business executives and Fortune 100 companies. He is also a professional race car driver, having participated in races across the United States and Europe.

Sean Spicer is the former White House Press Secretary in the Trump administration. He is the founder and President of RigWil LLC, a strategic consulting firm that provides insights to C-suite corporate and association executives. His book The Briefing: Politics, the Press, and the President was released in July of 2018. A husband and father of two, Spicer resides in Virginia.