Bears, Big Woods, and the Stories We Carry with Dee Nichols

Phil Madeira: Where He's Been, Where He's Headed, and the Conversation That Started It All

He's back — and he came bearing good news. Phil Madeira, 35-year Nashville veteran, multi-instrumentalist in Emmylou Harris's band, songwriter, painter, and author, returns to StorySessions™ for a bonus update episode that delivers on every front. Since his original episode — one of our top-rated conversations — Phil has been everywhere. He successfully Kickstarted three projects at once: two albums (The Millionth Mile and More Miles) and a memoir. He's returned from Emmylou Harris's farewell European tour, including a sold-out night at the Royal Albert Hall, dinner with friends near Jimmy Page's house, and a gin and tonic with Downton Abbey's Elizabeth McGovern. He ran his annual Mercyland songwriter workshop in Gorey, Ireland, and is gearing up for his American Mercyland in July. And his memoir? Summer of Gone — a title given to him, unexpectedly, by someone who didn't even mean it as a gift — arrives in October 2026. This episode is a reunion, a celebration, and a preview of more Phil to come. If you haven't heard his original episode, stay tuned — we replay it in full. If you have, welcome back to a conversation that always goes somewhere worth going. About This Episode This is a bonus update episode. Don Donahue opens with an intro, Phil delivers a personal update, and the original StorySessions™ interview with Phil replays in full — one of our most beloved conversations to date. In This Update, Phil Shares: * His successful Kickstarter for two vinyl albums and a memoir — goal: $45,000 * Life on the road with Emmylou Harris — her European farewell tour, Royal Albert Hall, Liverpool, Amsterdam * The 4th annual Mercyland songwriter workshop in Gorey, Ireland — and a flying shoe * What it takes to run a successful Kickstarter (hint: it's not passive) * His memoir Summer of Gone — the title's origin, the publisher, and the October 2026 release * His upcoming July Mercyland Nashville workshop (open to attendees) * Phil Madeira website: www.philmadeira.net [http://www.philmadeira.net] * Mercyland Nashville workshop (July 12, 2026) — contact Phil directly via his website * Summer of Gone — W Brand Publishing, October 2026 * StorySessions™ all episodes + links: www.storysessionsthepodcast.riverside.com [http://www.storysessionsthepodcast.riverside.com] * Primary site: storysessions.live [http://storysessions.live]

Hope Starts Now: Melissa Lewis on Reinvention, Grief, and the Gift of a Second Act

Melissa Lewis spent 25 years teaching middle school, raising her family, and pouring herself into other people's kids. Then, at 51, she did something most people in her season of life wouldn't dare — she went back to school, earned her master's in marriage and family therapy, and opened her own counseling practice in Franklin, Tennessee. But the story underneath that story is the one worth hearing. In this conversation, Melissa and Laura Lyn — friends of 25+ years who raised their kids side by side — talk about what it actually costs to reinvent yourself, the voices that tell you not to, and the grief that can arrive right alongside your greatest new beginning. Melissa shares what she's learning in the counseling room, why she hands every new client a snail, and what she wants anyone in the middle of a hard season to know: change is always possible, and hope starts right now. Topics covered: second acts and reinvention | self-care across generations | going back to school at 51 | loss, grief, and "brutally beautiful" moments | Brainspotting for trauma | loneliness as a universal theme | the courage to stop people-pleasing | finding hope in the last third Guest contact: melissalewiscounseling.com [http://melissalewiscounseling.com] | melissa@melissalewiscounseling.com [melissa@melissalewiscounseling.com] | Franklin, TN | 615.210.7724 ----------------------------------------

Brent Bourgeois: From Bill Graham to Billy Graham — A Life in Music, Faith, and The Real Things

Musician, songwriter, producer, and now author — Brent Bourgeois has lived many lives inside one remarkable journey. In this conversation, Laura Lyn sits down with her longtime friend to talk about his memoir, The Real Things: An Intimate Journey of a Working Musician from Bill Graham to Billy Graham to Instagram. Brent traces a 50-year path through New Orleans, New Jersey, Dallas, California, Nashville, and back again — playing bars at 14, chasing record deals in the Bay Area, producing Point of Grace in Nashville, sharing a stage (and a piano) with Billy Graham, and eventually building the music library at Meta. Along the way: addiction, sobriety, faith, family, loss, reinvention, and the hard-won wisdom of a man who finally stopped hurrying to get somewhere. His memoir is available now on Amazon in print, e-book, and audiobook —which is something special. About Brent Bourgeois Brent Bourgeois is a musician, songwriter, producer, and author based in California. He was one half of the 1980s duo Bourgeois Tagg (Island Records), a Nashville-era producer whose credits include Point of Grace, and the architect of Meta's music library — a catalog of over 16,000 original tracks. His memoir, The Real Things: An Intimate Journey of a Working Musician from Bill Graham to Billy Graham to Instagram, is available now on Amazon. Find Brent and his book community on Facebook: search "Brent Bourgeois and The Real Things." Resources & Links •  The Real Things by Brent Bourgeois — available on Amazon [https://www.amazon.com/s?k=brent+bourgeois+book&crid=2H3L880MU4TH2&sprefix=brent+bour%2Caps%2C206&ref=nb_sb_ss_p13n-expert-pd-ops-ranker_1_10](print, e-book with color photos and music links, and audiobook) •  Brent's Facebook book community: search "Brent Bourgeois and The Real Things" •  StorySessions™ the Podcast: www.storysessionsthepodcast.riverside.com [http://www.storysessionsthepodcast.riverside.com] •  Subscribe, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, Amazon Music, and iHeart Radio Connect with StorySessions™ Instagram: @storysessions_thepodcast W Brand Publishing: @wbrandpub Producer: @donahuecreates Website: www.storysessionsthepodcast.riverside.com [http://www.storysessionsthepodcast.riverside.com]

Philip Kriz: Go Fiction — There Are No Rules

What happens when a 15-year music industry roadie trades the tour bus for a laptop and a blank page? Philip J. Kriz—sound tech for Paul Simon, Green Day, Queen + Adam Lambert, and Kiss—found himself at a career crossroads when the pandemic stopped the world, and chose to write the story he'd always been carrying. The Roadie Cartel is a fictional dive into the music industry's shadowy underbelly, built from years of backstage access and one unforgettable question: what if it was all run by a cartel? In this episode, Philip talks about the courage it takes to tell your story, why fiction might just be the safest and most powerful creative tool you have, and how writing gave him something touring never could: himself. Resources & Links: • For more info on Phillip, visit https://www.phillipjkriz.com [https://www.phillipjkriz.com/] * Follow Philip on Instagram: @philipjkriz • The Roadie Cartel [https://www.amazon.com/Roadie-Cartel-Phillip-J-Kriz/dp/1956906762/ref=monarch_sidesheet_image]— Paperback and Kindle • Learn more about StorySessions™: StorySessions.live [http://StorySessions.live]

The Story Behind the Story — One Year with My Memoir

Just over a year ago, Laura Lyn published her memoir Who Do You Think You Are? through W Brand Publishing — and in this solo episode, she tells the story behind the story. What made a writer in Tennessee, with no celebrity status, decide to write a memoir? What did she risk? What actually happened in the year that followed — the readers, the book festivals, the connections she never expected? Laura Lyn traces the origin of the book back to a single podcast episode she heard while driving to Nashville, shares what vulnerability truly cost her, and reads a passage from chapter 45 that started as a book launch reading and became the heart of everything she hoped the memoir would do. Whether you've read the book or you're hearing about it for the first time, this episode is an invitation to tell your story, because your story matters too. Resources & Links: • Who Do You Think You Are? — available on Amazon (paperback + Kindle): itslauralyn.com [http://itslauralyn.com] • Link to Purchase [https://books.by/w-brand-publishing#who-do-you-think-you-are] • Follow StorySessions: @storysessions_thepodcast • Follow "Who Do You Think You Are?": @itslauralynauthor • Follow Laura Lyn: itslauralyn.com [http://itslauralyn.com] Remember to Follow, Like, Share, and Leave a 5-Star Review