Ear Hustle – Details, episodes & analysis

The countdown is on! Earlonne and Nigel give listeners a taste of what’s in store this season: some controversy, some mystery, and (maybe) some laughter. The new season starts September 4.


Ear Hustle is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX. 

Our team inside San Quentin explores the complicated acts of crying and Hula dancing in prison, reports on the joys and sorrows of a new prison clothing policy, pilots a new podcast, and sits down in a gazebo with a surprise guest. It’s a new issue of San Quentin: The Magazine.

You can find the first issue of San Quentin: The Magazine here. 

This episode was scored with music by Derrell Sadiq Davis, Antwan “Banks” Williams, David Jassy, Steve Yen, and Fernando Arruda. 

Big thanks to Acting Warden Andes and Lt. Berry at San Quentin Rehabilitation Center, and Acting Warden Parker, Associate Warden Lewis, and Lt. Newborg at the California Institution for Women for their support of the show.

Support our team and get even more Ear Hustle by subscribing to Ear Hustle Plus today. Sign up at earhustlesq.com/plus or directly in Apple Podcasts. 

Ear Hustle is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX. 

Twelve years ago, Nigel asked San Quentin resident Greg Eskridge to write a list of everything he owned in prison. That much, Earlonne remembers. The rest of this episode is a surprise gift, from one Ear Hustle host to another. 

Thanks to Greg Eskridge for speaking and sharing his lists with us. You can hear more of Greg on the podcast Uncuffed, a podcast training program based in San Quentin and Solano prisons. 


This episode was scored with music by Rhashiyd Zinnamon, Derrell Sadiq Davis, Antwan Williams, David Jassy, and Earlonne Woods.

Big thanks to Acting Warden Andes and Lt. Berry at San Quentin State Prison, and Acting Warden Williams and Lt. Newborg at the California Institution for Women for their support of the show.

Support our team and get even more Ear Hustle by subscribing to Ear Hustle Plus today. Sign up at earhustlesq.com/plus or directly in Apple Podcasts. 

Ear Hustle is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX. 

How does dating work in your 30s when you’ve been locked up since you were 15? How soon do you share your incarceration history with new love interests? And how the hell does online dating work? Recently released men and women muse about all of it, and one former San Quentin inmate tries to make a beeline from the gates to the altar.

Thanks to Article and the American Red Cross for sponsoring this episode.

For a full list of credits and to find out more about the show, head to earhustlesq.com, where you can sign up for our newsletter and order a T-shirt, sticker pack or mug. Ear Hustle is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX.

Serving a prison sentence is hard, but getting out isn’t exactly a cakewalk, either. A lot depends on who’s waiting for you, what you have lined up on the outside and how you handle the regular pressures of life after incarceration.

Thanks to Article and the American Red Cross for sponsoring this episode.

For a full list of credits and to find out more about the show, head to earhustlesq.com, where you can sign up for our newsletter and order a T-shirt, sticker pack or mug. Ear Hustle is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX.

Hardly anyone writes letters anymore. On the streets it’s all texting, posting, sharing and liking. But in prison, pens, paper, envelopes and stamps are highly prized, and still considered an essential lifeline to the outside world.

Thanks to Article for sponsoring this episode.

For a full list of credits and to find out more about the show, head to earhustlesq.com, where you can sign up for our newsletter and order a T-shirt, sticker pack or mug. Ear Hustle is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX.

Ear Hustle is back with season four! Let’s get oriented: to a new format and a new inside host, and through the stories of guys learning the prison ropes in Reception, while they wait to find out where they’ll serve their time.

A heads-up: This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence. Listener discretion is advised.

Thanks to HelloFresh for sponsoring this episode.

For a full list of credits and to find out more about the show, head to earhustlesq.com, where you can sign up for our newsletter and order a T-shirt, sticker pack or mug. Ear Hustle is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX.

Ear Hustle is back with season four, starting June 5. Mark your calendars and tell your friends!

Ear Hustle will return with season four later this year, but in the meantime, here’s a timely bonus episode. Nigel and Earlonne hit the road and drive south to interview the man who commuted Earlonne’s sentence in November: Governor Jerry Brown.

Thanks to Governor Jerry Brown and Evan Westrup, Governor Brown’s press secretary, for sitting down with us.

Ear Hustle is produced by Nigel Poor and Earlonne Woods with help from outside producer Pat Mesiti-Miller, who also comes in to lead the sound design team. This episode included music by David Jassy and Antwan Williams. And, a big thanks to Lt. Sam Robinson and Warden Ron Davis for their continued support of the show.

Find out more about the show at earhustlesq.com, including where to get one of our awesome mugs. Ear Hustle is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX.

As the annual Radiotopia fundraiser wraps up, we bring you one final missive of the year, including an appeal for support, a chance encounter and a musical offering from the inside.

What a season! Deep thanks to our listeners, to Dwight Krizman, Richie Morris and the other guys from Quentin Blue, and as always, to Lt. Sam Robinson and Warden Ron Davis for their epic support of Ear Hustle. And to Radiotopia, the network that brought Ear Hustle to life! Donate here to support Radiotopia, and all of the shows it helps make possible.

Happy holidays to all, and we’ll catch up with you in 2019. In the meantime, sign up for the Lowdown to stay informed about all things Ear Hustle.

Love,
Team Ear Hustle (Nigel, Earlonne, Pat, Curtis, Julie and Erin)