Southern Gothic<\/span><\/i> isn\u2019t your typical history podcast. In fact, I\u2019d argue there isn\u2019t anything typical about it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The idea behind it isn\u2019t to just entertain or educate, but to completely enthrall you through music, sound, and story depth. Its goal is to take you on a journey\u2014to physically take your hand and walk you into a world.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Brandon Schexnayder, co-founder and host believes, <\/span>\u201cPodcasting, as a medium, could be doing so much more to enthrall the listener. Podcasting is this \u2018canvas,\u2019 but we\u2019re still just drawing sketches on it.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Before embracing podcasting, Brandon grew up steeped in such a love of audio that he left New Orleans at 17 to pursue audio engineering in TN\u2014home to Elvis, Hank Williams, Jr, and the Oak Ridge Boys.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While audio engineering was on his mind, New Orleans was in his blood.\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Known for its offbeat, eccentric, and colorful culture, many believe that New Orleans is among the most haunted places in the United States. Brandon and his best friend, sister, and co-host of <\/span>Southern Gothic<\/span><\/i> Bryanne grew up there, and were highly influenced by its dark and energetic stories.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Unlike Brandon, Bryanne remains in Louisiana and is an archivist for the State of Louisiana Museum. She loves research and can get lost for hours in it finding the \u2018perfect\u2019 details. Her penchant for doing deep research is what drives <\/span>Southern Gothic<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While honing his craft in Nashville, Brandon realized that his favorite podcasts were just scraping the surface of what\u2019s possible with audio. He wanted to use his craft to break that barrier\u2026 to help a listener be truly immersed in a story.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

He and Bryanne were determined to bring alive the stories they had grown up with. Even more importantly, they wanted to tell these \u201cghost stories\u201d in a way no one ever had before. However, Bryanne\u2019s background in research and the museum kept her from appreciating haunted history stories the way they are told on tourist wagons. She didn\u2019t like the half-truths and embellishments so common to them. Instead, she wanted to deconstruct the legends, and really understand how they started and evolved. <\/span><\/p>\n

Brandon says, <\/span>\u201cLocal oral history is like a game of telephone.\u201d<\/span><\/i> Over the years, the original details get embellished and changed, and crucial pieces disappear. So, Brandon and Bryanne trace the stories to their roots, and research the context.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Brandon\u2019s work in Nashville ended up being a lot more than just audio engineering. He gleaned a great deal of storytelling methods from the songwriters he worked with on Music Row. Hearing them weave together narratives, taking them from an idea to a record, made a huge impact on how Brandon tells stories now.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Brandon has a second goal, as well. He wants the stories to be an experience with music complete with complex, layered soundscapes<\/span>. \u201cI\u2019m not just adding the sound of thunder in the background,\u201d<\/span><\/i> he said. Rather, he wants the audio of each episode to fill the space between the ear buds with a sensation that physically transplants you to the grounds of the story.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Listening to it, you can immediately feel it\u2019s NPR-quality audio, and Brandon\u2019s voice adds the perfect balance of energy and silence.<\/span><\/h3>\n

Southern Gothic<\/span><\/i>\u2019s fans rave about the first 55 episodes. The ratings, comments, and conversations about each episode fuels the next. In fact, the audience helps bring new stories to the forefront, giving Brandon and Bryanne an endless well to draw upon.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Based mostly in Southern states, you\u2019ll find episodes based on stories like <\/span>The Legend of the Bell Witch in Tennessee<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>Blackbeard\u2019s Demise<\/span><\/i> from North Carolina, <\/span>The Curse of Lake Lanier<\/span><\/i> from Georgia, <\/span>The Bride of Annandale<\/span><\/i> of Mississippi, and more.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you\u2019re a fan of lore, history, and true-crime podcasts, Southern Gothic\u2014aptly named after William Faulkner and the southern writers of the early 20<\/span>th<\/span> century who set out to figure out what the new \u201cSouthern Culture\u201d really was\u2014is the podcast that will bring your loves together. It\u2019s an academic, audio, haunted history tour covering some of America\u2019s most infamous hauntings, true crime, and folklore.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

November 2020 Issue<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Southern Gothic isn\u2019t your typical history podcast. In fact, I\u2019d argue there isn\u2019t anything typical about it.\u00a0 The idea behind it isn\u2019t to just entertain or educate, but to completely enthrall you through music, sound, and story depth. Its goal is to take you on a journey\u2014to physically take your hand and walk you into a world.\u00a0 Brandon Schexnayder, co-founder and host believes, \u201cPodcasting, as a medium, could be doing so much more to enthrall the listener. Podcasting is this \u2018canvas,\u2019 but we\u2019re still just drawing sketches on it.\u201d\u00a0 Before embracing podcasting, Brandon grew up steeped in such a love<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":13424,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[3952,3957,3958,434,3955,3956,3954,3953,3951],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n