I know it sounds pretty cliche (and it was not the intention), but that’s the best title I could think of for a program that did something we hadn’t tried before: 2 interviews with 2 different people in the same show. Since both of our guests are female, then the title just works.

But seriously, this weekend our presentation is a really unique experience for not just radio listeners, but for me as well. I love getting to talk with people about music. I especially love getting to talk with musicians about music, their music, and the music that inspires them and shapes the art they create. I had a great conversation along those lines recently with an emerging indie artist named Mindy Smith. Mindy got her start as a songwriter from New York who traveled to Nashville, discovered a style of music she didn’t know and covered a classic Dolly Parton tune that put her on the map. Since then she’s recorded 3 studio albums and is currently working on a new one. She was traveling through Texas when she stopped off at our little home at Flyboy and recorded not only a fun conversation, but also some great unplugged songs. You can hear some of those tracks, as well as a tune we weren’t able to include in the show at our podcast site here.

The other conversation was with another emerging voice in music, though she communicates in a different way, and that’s through media and books. Courtney E Smith is the author of Record Collecting For Girls, a great new book that any music fan or music nerd will certainly want to get their hands on. The book highlights not just her own selections and picks in music, but also encourages readers to pick and choose their own favorites from certain set criteria. Before she became an author, Courtney was one of the people behind the scenes at MTV that helped launched the careers on some now prominent indie acts like Death Cab, Vampire Weekend, the Shins and more. Our conversation deals with not just her role at MTV and her book, but observations about people and music, and our preferences for and against things we might not be aware of. You can hear an extended cut of the interview, including portions we left out of the radio show at our podcast page.

You can listen to The Appetizer, and an episode titled Girl Power this weekend on stations across Texas including KACU, KTRL, and KVLU. Check station’s program schedule for date and time.