The Big Listen

Musicians Tegan and Sara are podcast obsessives. This episode, we take a peek at their extensive playlist and hear about their own idea for a podcast. Also, the hosts of the LGBTQ show Nancy share their funny and tragic coming out stories. And the Pakistani-American host ofBeginner walks us through all the things she never learned as a immigrant, like biking and swimming. Plus: saving podcasts for posterity at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The Mountain Goats' John Darnielle and Joseph Fink of Welcome To Night Vale talk about what it means to be a fan onI Only Listen To The Mountain Goats. Plus: Nicole Drespel mines your email InBox for comedy gold, a hotel with a radio studio in the lobby, and a podcast takes us turkey hunting.

We're celebrating Mother's Day with stories from all kinds of women — a single lesbian mother by choice (Not By Accident), a young woman who chose sterilization (Tie My Tubes) and a Korean mom raising a multi-racial daughter (Other: Mixed Race In America), among others. Plus, mom tributes from your favorite audio producers.

Comedian Nicole Byer shares some of the tips she's learned from friends on her podcast Why Won't You Date Me. Reporter Dan Lamothe tells us about reading hundreds of letters from World War II, Heather Mizeur describes how she rebuilt her politics after losing an election, and Cristen Conger and Caroline Ervin define what being Unladylike means to them.

Norman Lear's work in television and movies could fit every category, which might be why he calls his podcast All Of The Above. We also hear about the culinary delights of hotdish from Senator Heidi Heitkamp, explore the many facets of veterans with Battle Scars, and phone our rage into the For A Bad Time Call hotline.

Larry Wilmore's got a new podcast, Black On The Air! Plus: the lowdown on a possible Powerline in New Hampshire, a Slow Burn with Leon Neyfakh about Watergate, and a new book from Bill McKibben.

Chris Gethard describes how Beautiful/Anonymous satisfies his craving for human connection. Plus: therapy with Esther Perel, poetry with Versify, and a podcaster who invites strangers to his home.

Writer Jon Ronson traces The Butterfly Effect from the moment pirated porn became free on the web. Plus: The hosts of Terrestrial and Closer Than They Appear, and Jillian Bauer-Reese documents people in recovery with The Rooms Project.

The Mountain Goats' John Darnielle and Joseph Fink of Welcome To Night Vale talk about what it means to be a fan onI Only Listen To The Mountain Goats. Plus: Nicole Drespel mines your email InBox for comedy gold, a hotel with a radio studio in the lobby, and a podcast takes us turkey hunting.

Singer/songwriter Laura Veirs talks to other musicians about how they balance work with parenthood, Annie Gilbertson investigates an officer involved in multiple shootings in Repeat, and Kameel Stanley and Tim Lloyd remind St Louis, "We Live Here!"