GumboLife

This interview with Jodi Massengale is full of storytelling, intention and family history.  Jodi is a native of Los Angeles with ties to Louisiana and has a large, close knit, extended family. She talks about her experiences, her famous tea parties, meeting Oprah and how Creole in Vegas brought us together. Her message to connect with family and friends especially right now really resonated with me. Preserve your story and tell you...

Coonie, Cajun, Creole: Ethnicity, Context, and Identity on the American Landscape.

Dustin Fuqua, native Louisianian and anthropologist, discusses growing up "cookie" and the dynamics of inclusive Creole identity.

Dusty Fuqua hails from Avoyelles Parish and resides in Cenla. Fuqua works as Chief of Resource Management at Cane River Creole National Historical Park in Natchitoches Parish. Dusty has apprenti...

This week my guest is the incomparable Pamela Wood. We discuss her journey to Cane River and her adventurous introduction to New Orleans. Pamela is a philanthropy and fundraising professional and has been successful as a business consultant and stylist. She currently serves as the Major Gifts Officer for the Center for Third World Organizing, a Black Lives Matter ecosystem satellite. 

You can find Pamela on Facebook at Pam...

A conversation with my friend, one of my wedding officiants and academic Dr. Rain Prudhomme-Cranford. Rain is the Executive Editor and Publisher of That Painted Horse Press, a borderless Indigenous/BIPOC non-profit publishing house. We talk about her upcoming projects, the intersection of Creole and Native culture and her two definitions of Creole. And there's lots of laughter! If you're a writer then this is an episode y...

A conversation with Allison LaCour, Makeup Artist, about ancestry, the movie Cane River and on being within culture. Allison is a New Orleans, Louisiana based, and nationally recognized makeup artist. She has expressed her talent in a variety of industries such as fashion editorials, local and national publications, a makeup artist for TV and film, politics, and celebrity glamour. Constantly evolving, Allison strives to stay on the...

Kelly Clayton talks about her new book Mother of Chaos: Queen of the Nines, family and Louisiana. Kelly Clayton is a writer, poet, playwright, and workshop facilitator. She is a Louisiana Creole with roots 15 generations deep. She returned home after twenty years in New York City spent teaching herself to write. Though she dropped out of high school for creative reasons (four sons), she kept both pantry and bookshelves full by work...

This week I have as my guest Dr. Andrew Jolivette, creator of beautiful things, my best friend and wedding officiant.  Andrew, former professor and department chair of American Indian Studies at San Francisco State University (2003-2019) is an accomplished internationally recognized researcher, educator, writer/poet, speaker, socio-cultural critic, and an aspiring chef. He has authored eight books and is currently the Professor, Ch...