Explore every episode of the podcast Wisconsin Life

There’s a certain point every spring in Wisconsin, when it seems like winter is finally gone for good. We put our heavy coats away for the season. Trees and flowers begin to bloom. And, as WPR’s Bridgit Bowden tells us, we begin to hear songbirds welcoming warmer weather.

The movie “Stop Making Sense” has been hailed as one of the greatest concert films of all time. Directed by Jonathan Demme, the film unfolds as members of the Talking Heads take the stage one by one, culminating in an explosive dance party. One of the band’s core members, keyboardist and guitarist Jerry Harrison, is a Shorewood, Wisconsin native. WPR BETA host Doug Gordon talked with Harrison about the legacy of the Talking Heads and their iconic movie. Harrison will be back in his home state this weekend, hosting screenings of “Stop Making Sense” in Madison and Milwaukee.

Many of us have places that make us feel comfortable, at peace. Perhaps it’s a bookstore or a bar. For author and UW-Eau Claire English professor David Shih, it’s a place much bigger. He shared the story “The Warehouse Club” at a live storytelling event hosted by Wisconsin Public Radio’s “Wisconsin Life” and the Chippewa Valley Writers Guild. It was held on Nov. 14, 2024 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin at The Lakely. 

There’s a dance studio owner in Madison who has been recruiting instructors to come work with her. Many of them are from her home country: Ukraine. As war has wages on in the eastern European country, these instructors have moved 5,000 miles across the world to start new lives in Wisconsin. Dance is one way they stay connected to their Ukrainian culture. WPR’s Jonah Beleckis visited the Fred Astaire Dance Studios to learn what dance means to these Ukrainians.

March Madness is alive and well for sports fans across the country. Here in Wisconsin, fans and alumni will be cheering on their favorite teams and players. One particular Marquette basketball fan will even have the cheers directed at him. WPR’s Corrinne Hess brings us the story of “The Jump Around Guy,” a super fan who’s been going to Marquette games for more than 50 years.

A white pine in northern Wisconsin stood for more than 150 years before it met ultimate fate. Writer Ron Weber of Weyerhaeuser reflects on the tree’s resiliency and how its legacy is being preserved for years to come.

Profound loss has a way of never going away. Writer Amy Fleury moves through her grief on her family’s land, where she often thinks about her late son and her own mortality. She shared a story “Evergreen” at a live storytelling event hosted by Wisconsin Public Radio’s “Wisconsin Life” and the Chippewa Valley Writers Guild. It was held on Nov. 14, 2024 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin at The Lakely.

Writer McKenna Scherer is a proud Wisconsinite. Sure, that love is tied to cheese and Spotted Cow. But at the root of that love is her family. Scherer shared a story, “The Largest Gathering of Norwegians in Northwestern Wisconsin, Probably: Gierefest,” at a live storytelling event hosted by Wisconsin Public Radio’s “Wisconsin Life” and the Chippewa Valley Writers Guild. It was held on Nov. 14, 2024 in Eau Claire at The Lakely.

As winter fades and Wisconsin begins to thaw, the changing season brings renewal not only to the land but also to the human spirit. Writer Ron Weber explores how the arrival of spring awakens long-forgotten memories, and invites us to rediscover the sense of wonder that often lies dormant within us.

We all grieve differently, often facilitating between these worlds of wanting to talk about our loved ones to wanting to be left alone in silence. Writer Yia Lor of Eau Claire gets this. She tells us about finding her place while grieving the loss of her sister, Jer Lor.

Wisconsin’s Justin Vernon is one of the biggest musical artists to come out of the state in the past 20 years. For most of his career, most notably with Bon Iver, he has shied away from the media and chosen to quietly work out of his April Base home studio in Fall Creek. But on his new record, “SABLE, fABLE,” it’s clear a lot has changed. In a rare interview, Vernon talked with Wisconsin music reporter Justin Barney about the new record, which was released April 11.

We all have these images, these moments from our childhoods that stick with us forever. Perhaps it’s the day you learned to ride on a two-wheel bike or a seemingly simple time when you were playing a board game with your sibling. For writer Andrew Patrie, he’s been exploring some of these memories that he says have been “cauterized” in his mind. He shared a story, “Built to Last,” at a live storytelling event hosted by Wisconsin Public Radio’s “Wisconsin Life” and the Chippewa Valley Writers Guild. It was held on Nov. 14, 2024 in Eau Claire at The Lakely.

Imagine that you are a 12-year-old Milwaukee Sentinel paperboy wandering through an unknown Milwaukee neighborhood on a cold Wisconsin winter evening in 1987. Dan Kois has been there. It made such an impression on him that he’s written a frightening and funny novel all about it. The book is called, “Hampton Heights: One Harrowing Night in the Most Haunted Neighborhood in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.”

“American Movie” is a movie about … making a movie. When the beloved documentary was released in 1999, it quickly became a cult classic. “American Movie” was filmed in the Milwaukee area and its subject, Mark Borchardt, has gone on to inspire many artists and filmmakers. WPR’s Evan Casey takes a look at the film’s lasting legacy.

There’s a shop in Middleton that has rows of bottles, mixes and cans — but none of them contain alcohol. It’s called Sober Social, Wisconsin’s first and only non-alcoholic bottle shop. Producer Morgan D. Stewart caught up with its owner, Kristi Tanner, about why she opened the store and their respective recovery journeys.