Fresh Air

Fresh Air from WHYY, the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues, is one of public radio's most popular programs. Hosted by Terry Gross and Tonya Mosley, the show features intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries. Subscribe to Fresh Air Plus! You'll enjoy bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening - all while you support NPR's mission. Learn more at plus.npr.org/freshair And subscribe to our weekly newsletter, Fresh Air Weekly, to get interview highlights, staff recommendations, gems from the archive, and the week's interviews and reviews all in one place. Sign up at www.whyy.org/freshair

Episodes

Roots of R&B: Charles Brown & Ray Charles

August 30, 2025 • 49 mins

All week we're revisiting archival interviews with key figures in early rock and roll, rockabilly and R&B. We listen back to a 1989 interview with singer and pianist Charles Brown. Brown is credited with creating an expressive style of music that blended rough Texas blues with the soft glamour of Hollywood. And we revisit a 1998 interview with soul singer Ray Charles, who helped shape American music, beginning with his 1955 hit, “I...

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Roots of R&B: 'Stand By Me'

August 29, 2025 • 46 mins

All week we're revisiting archival interviews with key figures in early rock and roll, rockabilly and R&B. Soul singer Ben E. King began his career in the ‘50s with The Drifters but it was the '61 hit "Stand by Me" that sealed his musical legacy. He spoke to Fresh Air in 1988. We also listen back to a 1991 interview with lyricist Jerry Leiber and composer Mike Stoller, who wrote and produced music for King. Plus, we'll revisit Terr...

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Roots of R&B: Johnny Otis & Etta James

August 27, 2025 • 46 mins

All week we're revisiting archival interviews with key figures in early rock and roll, rockabilly and R&B. Singer, songwriter, producer and talent scout Johnny Otis got his start leading a big band that had the 1945 hit “Harlem Nocturne.” Later, as a talent scout, he discovered such performers as Big Mama Thornton, Esther Phillips and Etta James. James' career took off in the '60s with hits including “At Last," “A Sunday Kind of Lo...

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Roots of Rock: Sun Records & Johnny Cash

August 26, 2025 • 46 mins

All week we're revisiting archival interviews with key figures in early rock and roll, rockabilly and R&B. Sam Phillips discovered Elvis Presley and produced his first records, which many consider Elvis’ best. He also founded Sun Records and launched the careers of Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, Charlie Rich and Johnny Cash. Cash is one of the most influential figures in country music. His collaboration with producer Ri...

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Roots Of Rock: "Blue Suede Shoes"

August 25, 2025 • 45 mins

All week we're revisiting archival interviews with key figures in early rock and roll, rockabilly and R&B. We're kicking it off with Terry Gross's interviews with Elvis Presley's guitarist Scotty Moore, who tells stories about playing with the King and recording "Blue Suede Shoes." That song was written by rockabilly musician Carl Perkins, who also spoke with...

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Remembering Actor Terence Stamp

August 22, 2025 • 45 mins

We remember British actor Terence Stamp, who died last week at age 87. He starred in the film The Limey, as an ex-con out for revenge, and in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert as a transgender performer on the road with a lip-synch club act. Stamp got his start in the ’60s, starring in the films Billy Budd, Far From the Madding Crowd and The Collector. Stamp grew up in a working class cockney neighborhoo...

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Robert Reich: The Baby Boomers Fell Short

August 21, 2025 • 43 mins

Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich served under President Clinton from 1993 to 1997. He opens his new memoir, Coming Up Short, with an apology on behalf of the Baby Boom generation for failing to build a more just society.

Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews the books Pariah and The Dancing Face.

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The Dramatic Overhaul Of The Justice Dept.

August 20, 2025 • 45 mins

The New Yorker’s Ruth Marcus says Bondi has presided over the DOJ's most convulsive transition of power since Watergate, aggressively reversing policies, investigating Trump’s foes and fi...

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Spike Lee On Dynamic Duos & Reimagining Kurosawa

August 19, 2025 • 44 mins

Spike Lee's new film, Highest 2 Lowest, centers on a music mogul (Denzel Washington) who faces a moral dilemma when kidnappers mistakenly hold his friend's son ransom instead of his own: Will he risk it all to save a child who isn't his? The Oscar-winning filmmaker spoke with Tonya Mosley about his decades-long partnership with Denzel, an upcoming docuseries about Hurricane Katrina, and Do The Right Thing, 35+ years later.

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Bowen Yang's 'Wicked' White Lie

August 18, 2025 • 45 mins

The Emmy-nominated Saturday Night Live cast member talks with Terry Gross about his favorite pop culture in the aughts, his SNL audition, and his recent trip to China.

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Thomas Mallon

August 15, 2025 • 44 mins

Writer Thomas Mallon looks back on the early years of the AIDS epidemic, when he was in his 30s, living in Manhattan. His friends were sick or dead, and he was terrified that he’d die, too. Excerpts of his journals from those years are collected in The Very Heart of It. He'll also talk about his latest novel, Up with the Sun, based on the life and murder of a little-known gay actor from the 1950s and '60s.

Also, we remembe...

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Best Of: AI's Writing Critique / The Rise And Fall Of Condé Nast

August 15, 2025 • 48 mins

After writing chapters of her new book about how tech companies help and exploit us, tech journalist and novelist Vauhini Vara fed those chapters to ChatGPT. She told the AI chatbot she needed help with her writing. But her real goal was to analyze and critique the chatbot’s advice. Her book is Searches.

Also, before social media, before influencers, the magazines Vanity Fair, Vogue, GQ, and Architectural Digest were among...

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Pedro Pascal Got Fired A Lot

August 14, 2025 • 43 mins

Chilean-born actor Pedro Pascal has faced countless on-screen challenges, including cosmic battles and cartel kingpins. He's nominated for an Emmy for his role on the HBO series, The Last of Us. He spoke with Tonya Mosley about getting fired from restaurant jobs, his dance training, and his parents' exile from Chile.

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Musician Charley Crockett's Road From Busking To The Grammys

August 13, 2025 • 45 mins

Crockett grew up poor and got his start in music busking for tips on the street and in the subway. He's since played the Hollywood Bowl and been nominated for a Grammy. The country/roots musician talks with Terry Gross and plays songs from his new album, Dollar a Day.

John Powers reviews The Diary of Lies, a new mystery novel about a reporter. TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new series Alien: Earth, a TV prequel to ...

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Jeff Hiller's Big Break Came In His 40s

August 12, 2025 • 43 mins

Hiller spent years scraping by in Hollywood by taking on various small roles and commercials. Then he landed the role of Joel on HBO's Somebody Somewhere and everything changed. His new memoir is Actress of a Certain Age.

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Daniel Dae Kim Fakes His Own Death In 'Butterfly'

August 11, 2025 • 46 mins

Daniel Dae Kim became the first actor of Asian descent to be nominated for a Tony, for his performance in Yellow Face, in the role of a playwright trying to deal with Asian American representation. His new Amazon Prime Video spy series Butterfly premieres today. Kim spoke with Ann Marie Baldonado about his career, his big break with Lost, and filming his new series in his hometown in Korea. Book critic Maureen Corrigan reflects on...

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Best Of: Making 'Born To Run' / Why We Can't Sleep

August 9, 2025 • 48 mins

This month marks the 50th anniversary of Bruce Springsteen's album Born to Run. We'll talk with Peter Ames Carlin, author of a Tonight in Jungleland, about the making of this now classic album.

Also, we'll talk with Jennifer Senior about her Atlantic article "Why Can't Americans Sleep?" And, David Bianculli reviews season two of Wednesday, starring Jenna Ortega.

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Remembering Eddie Palmieri / Funk Innovator George Clinton

August 8, 2025 • 46 mins

We remember Eddie Palmieri, the pianist, bandleader and composer whose contributions to Afro-Caribbean music shaped the genre for decades. He died Wednesday at the age of 88.

Also, Parliament's now classic funk album Mothership Connection turned 50 this year. We listen back to Terry Gross's 1989 interview with funkmaster George Clinton.

David Bianculli reviews the new season of Wednesday and film critic Justin C...

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The Making Of Springsteen's 'Born To Run'

August 7, 2025 • 46 mins

Bruce Springsteen's groundbreaking album, Born to Run, came out 50 years ago this month, marking a turning point for rock and roll — and for "The Boss." Before he recorded that record, Springsteen's label, Columbia, was on the verge of dropping him because his first two albums, though critically acclaimed, had sold poorly. Biographer Peter Ames Carlin describes the creation of Born to Run as an "existential moment" for Springsteen....

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The Nihilistic War In Sudan

August 6, 2025 • 45 mins

Fourteen million people in Sudan have been displaced by war and famine. The Atlantic's Anne Applebaum says the scale of destruction is vast and, as the conflict rages, people are overwhelmed by chaos.

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Fresh Air

Episodes

.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}Roots of R&B: Charles Brown & Ray Charles

.css-r6mb8g{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:1;overflow:hidden;}Roots of R&B: 'Stand By Me'

Roots of R&B: Johnny Otis & Etta James

Roots of Rock: Sun Records & Johnny Cash

Roots Of Rock: "Blue Suede Shoes"

Remembering Actor Terence Stamp

Robert Reich: The Baby Boomers Fell Short

The Dramatic Overhaul Of The Justice Dept.

Spike Lee On Dynamic Duos & Reimagining Kurosawa

Bowen Yang's 'Wicked' White Lie

Thomas Mallon

Best Of: AI's Writing Critique / The Rise And Fall Of Condé Nast

Pedro Pascal Got Fired A Lot

Musician Charley Crockett's Road From Busking To The Grammys

Jeff Hiller's Big Break Came In His 40s

Daniel Dae Kim Fakes His Own Death In 'Butterfly'

Best Of: Making 'Born To Run' / Why We Can't Sleep

Remembering Eddie Palmieri / Funk Innovator George Clinton

The Making Of Springsteen's 'Born To Run'

The Nihilistic War In Sudan

Popular Podcasts

Roots of R&B: Charles Brown & Ray Charles

Roots of R&B: 'Stand By Me'