12-Bar Talk: A Blues Podcast

What makes beginner classes, or teaching the first class a person will ever take, different than other types of teaching? There are many different philosophies on it, and Dr. Adams sits down with long-time local instructor Robert Jones to discuss a philosophy of teaching based in giving beginners a joyful first experience. Guest: Robert Jones Robert Jones began dancing at age 16, when Penn State dancers gave a demo at an end-of-semester event at his high school. Clearly Robert was already hooked from that, since he and a handful of friends would go to any Penn State dance event they could for the next two years. Robert learned his fundamentals through the Penn State Swing Dancing club, and his love of dancing was given a space to blossom. It only took a few late night sets and house parties to open him up to blues, and he was forever taken with that dance. Robert taught and DJed blues and swing at PSU until moving to San Antonio in 2010. There, he helped manage both a swing and a blues organization, while continuing to teach and DJ. Robert then moved to New York in 2018 to take a chance at film, and continued to teach and DJ for blues events. Then the pandemic happened. It took Robert a good half-decade to be ready to go dancing again. Fortunately, he met a fabulous organizer at Pride ‘26 whose enthusiasm reawakened him, and Powerhouse Blues (in Philly) is his new dance home. Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ .

In this episode, Dr. Adams sits down with national blues dance instructor Jennifer Delk to discuss ways to view teaching, what might make a good teacher versus what makes a good social dancer, competitor, or performer, how to get people creating, overcoming the fear of “looking dumb,” and more. If you’re a student, an organizer, or maybe most importantly, someone who’s thought about teaching a dance class, this is a great episode for you. Guest: Jennifer Delk Link to Website: spinsta.net Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ .

The Utah Blues Festival is Utah's premier event for the latest and greatest blues musicians to perform in Salt Lake City, and it's celebrating it's 10th anniversary in 2026. Dr. Adams and Tripp Hopkins, the founder and organizer of the Utah Blues Festival and co-founder of the Utah Blues Society, sit down to talk about what it takes to run a blues festival successfully and how to help it continue happening in this and other communities. Guest: Tripp Hopkins Link to Website: https://www.utahbluesfest.org/ Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ .

Dr. Adams sits down with the 2026 Winner of the International Blues Challenge & 2026 Best Guitarist of International Blues Challenge, Derrick Dove. They discuss his time at the IBC; his love of music and how he creates his style; and his band, Derrick Dove and the Peacekeepers. Make sure to stay tuned to the end for a special "post-interview" conversation, inclusive of our regular podcast episode quality-checker, Boomer the Cat. Guest: Derrick Dove Link to Website: https://derrickdove.com/ Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ .

Dr. Adams sits down with Devin C. Williams, runner up for the 2026 Solo/Duo Division at the International Blues Challenge (IBC). They talk about the Delta Blues, his favorite Delta Blues musicians, the mixing of blues and Christianity, his experience at the IBC, and more. Guest: Devin C. Williams Link to Website: https://www.dcwblues.com/ Link to Purchase Music: https://devincwilliams.bandcamp.com/ Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ .

The blues has inspired many things, whether new genres of music, dance, or works of art. But as today's guest regularly reminds us, perhaps the most important part of all of it is that the blues inspires people. It helps people learn, grow, and find themselves in their community. In this episode, Dr. Chelsea Adams sits down with award-winning children's book author Alice Faye Duncan to discuss her newest children's book on blues, Blues Boy: The B.B. King Story, as well as her previous book on blues, Yellow Dog Blues. Guest: Alice Faye Duncan Link to her Website: https://alicefayeduncan.com/ Links to Purchase Books: Blues Boy: The B.B. King Story Yellow Dog Blues Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ .

To start off 2026, Dr. Chelsea Adams features a blues festival supporting mental health resources in her hometown of Ogden, Utah. In this episode, she features artists Sun Tiger, Carrie Scott, and Tony Holiday along with community members and attendees. Guests: Sandra Hohmann, Sun Tiger, Carrie Scott, Tony Holiday, and Various Ogden Community Members Link to the Mitten Durch Festival: https://www.facebook.com/MittenDurchfest/ Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ .

Dr. Justin McLendon, a professor of theology at Grand Canyon University and department chair for the Master of Arts programs for Grand Canyon Theological Seminary, joins Dr. Adams to discuss his chapter in his edited collection Theology and the Blues, part of a series from Lexington Books on Theology, Religion, and Pop Culture. They cover everything from philosophy and Civil Rights to lamentation and Christianity in the blues. Guest: Dr. Justin McLendon Link to the Edited Collection: https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/theology-and-the-blues-9781978714588/ Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ .

Join Dr. Adams as she gets to know the lead band members of the multi-award winning blues band Piper and the Hard Times. They talk building relationships as musicians, genre and how they view the blues, and the songwriting process for the band and their new album. And for dancers, they've got a unique opportunity! Guests: Al "Piper" Green, Steve Eagon, and Dave Colella Website: https://www.piperandthehardtimes.com/ Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ .

Al Chesis and his Delta Sonics played the Sunday set at Mile High Blues 2025. While they didn't have a chance to sit down and talk live, Al and Dr. Adams sat down before the event to talk about his career, life, and blues music. Guest: Al Chesis Website: www.deltasonics.net/home Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ .

Join Rex Peoples and Dr. Adams as they discuss blues music and dance, culture, and take audience questions in this live recording from Mile High Blues. Guest: Rex Peoples Website: www.rexpeoples.com Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ .

The podcast travels to Denver, CO for the first Mile High Blues since the pandemic to interview the Colorado blues greats at the event. Dr. Adams started the weekend off with a live-audience interview with Maynard Mills and John Long. Guests: Maynard Mills and John Long Websites: https://maynardmills.com/ ; https://www.johnlongblues.com/ Article on Maynard Mills Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ . Podcast intro music is Chicago Shuffle Blues, courtesy of JuliusH. Song can be found at https://pixabay.com/users/juliush-3921568/ .

Dr. Adams sits down with Lady A to discuss her music, but overall, this is an episode about getting to know your neighbors, about lifting each other up, and about speaking up for those who may not have opportunities to succeed if you don’t. Guest: Lady A Website: https://www.ladyababyblues.com/ Info for One Seattle Soul: https://therhapsodyproject.org/one-seattle-soul/ Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ . Podcast intro music is Chicago Shuffle Blues, courtesy of JuliusH. Song can be found at https://pixabay.com/users/juliush-3921568/ .

Dr. Adams sits down with dance historian and blues dance practitioner Damon Stone to discuss what we call the blues dance community, cultural ambassadorship, the good and the bad of culture, the need to spend time in black spaces, and more. Guest: Damon Stone Website: https://damonstone.dance/ Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is brought to you from Ogden, Utah's "Junction City" full of blues and jazz history on Historic 25th Street. You can learn more about Ogden's rich black history at https://www.visitogden.com/blog/celebrating-black-history-month-in-ogden-utah/ . Podcast intro music is Chicago Shuffle Blues, courtesy of JuliusH. Song can be found at https://pixabay.com/users/juliush-3921568/ .

Stef Rosen and Dr. Adams sit down and talk about his love for blues music and what it is like to learn the culture as you learn to play the blues, how he encountered the blues dance community and his experiences playing music for them, and the differences in various styles of blues, and more. Guest: Stef Rosen Website: https://slidinwolf.com/ Bandcamp: https://stefrosen.bandcamp.com/album/soulify Socials: IG, @stefrosenblues, Facebook https://www.facebook.com/stefanoronchi.blues/ , TikTok @stef.rosen Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is supported by Salt City Blues, LLC, a blues dance event and education organization committed to bringing education about black dances and blues to the Greater Salt Lake City area. Podcast intro music is Chicago Shuffle Blues, courtesy of JuliusH. Song can be found at https://pixabay.com/users/juliush-3921568/ .

Young Rell and Dr. Chelsea Adams sit down to talk music, the power of community and a crowd, and thoughts on college education. You can also take time to support Young Rell by following him on his social media pages, listed below, and by putting money to his GoFundMe campaign to help him get the money he needs to launch his first album. Guest: Harrell "Young Rell" Davenport Website: https://youngrell.com/ Fundraiser: https://www.gofundme.com/f/youngrellblues Socials: IG, @young_rell_official; TikTok, @youngrellblues; Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/YOUNGRELLBLUES/ Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is supported by Salt City Blues, LLC, a blues dance event and education organization committed to bringing education about black dances and blues to the Greater Salt Lake City area. Podcast intro music is Chicago Shuffle Blues, courtesy of JuliusH. Song can be found at https://pixabay.com/users/juliush-3921568/ .

Dr. Chelsea Adams sits down with Sarah Rucker to discuss the life and legacy of Clifford Antone--the legendary owner of Antone's in Austin, TX--in his later years. Rucker was Antone's personal assistant from 2004 until his death. They also discuss how Rucker is continuing his legacy of advocacy for musicians and folk music in Texas and throughout the USA. Guest: Sarah Rucker Sarah Rucker is an event producer and independent folklorist with specialties in traditional and popular American musical and dance genres. She holds a B.A. in Fine Arts with a focus in dance and a Certificate in Business Foundations from the University of Texas at Austin. Her expertise in American blues and early rock began as research and teaching assistant to Clifford Antone (founder of Antone’s Night Club, Records, and Record Shop) in 2004. Antone lectured on these topics at the University of Texas and Texas State University until his death in 2006. She then helped direct programming for Texas' folk arts agency, Texas Folklife, for 8 years where she directed Barbara Lynn & Friends at the Library of Congress and Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. and the annual Accordion Kings & Queens concert and the Big Squeeze accordion contest. She founded Full Gallop in 2015 to help bridge cultures and connect communities through creative events and public programs. Upcoming events include the 2nd Annual Louisiana in Texas on April 4 in Houston. More info at: http://fullgalloparts.com/events or http://facebook.com/fullgalloparts and instagram.com/fullgalloparts Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is supported by Salt City Blues, LLC, a blues dance event and education organization committed to bringing education about black dances and blues to the Greater Salt Lake City area. Podcast intro music is Chicago Shuffle Blues, courtesy of JuliusH. Song can be found at https://pixabay.com/users/juliush-3921568/ .

How do you map dances across space and time, especially when doing so requires dealing with forced migration and slavery? Dr. Chelsea Adams and Deirdre Molloy discuss dance, the African Diaspora, and Molloy's ambitious Doctoral project of mapping dance from Africa to the Caribbean and Americas in her interactive Unity Atlantic Map (link below). Guest: Deirdre Molloy Website to the Unity Atlantic Map: https://unityatlantic.org/ A Note on the Map from Deirdre Molloy: I designed the Map to be iterative – to grow deeper as a research notebook and public Afrofuturist digital heritage resource. The Map is a collective art-research work that touches many communities, and comments, feedback, and contributions are welcome! Molloy's Research: Molloy, D. C. (2024). Black Atlantic Space-Time Portfolio by Unity (V.1). Nakala (Huma-Num - CNRS). Available online https://doi.org/10.34847/NKL.FCF71S7D Molloy, D. C. (2024). Black Atlantic Space-Time Teaser by Unity (V. 1). Nakala (Huma-Num - CNRS). Available online https://doi.org/10.34847/NKL.5C091TX1 Molloy, D. C. (2021/2024). From Blues Dance to African Diaspora Identity : Diaries, Dialogues, Dreams of Unity (V.1) Nakala (Huma-Num - CNRS). Available online https://doi.org/10.34847/NKL.EFB8NLDA Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is supported by Salt City Blues, LLC, a blues dance event and education organization committed to bringing education about black dances and blues to the Greater Salt Lake City area. Podcast intro music is Chicago Shuffle Blues, courtesy of JuliusH. Song can be found at https://pixabay.com/users/juliush-3921568/ .

In today's world of social media, much of what was once accessible through online events is no longer easy to access. Josh Davis, board member on the Blues Association of Austin, discusses what we might do to help make events work for more people, and how we can get more of the community involved. Guest: Josh Davis Website: joshdavis.contact Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams Post-Production by Jeremy Carberry 12-Bar Talk is supported by Salt City Blues, LLC, a blues dance event and education organization committed to bringing education about black dances and blues to the Greater Salt Lake City area. Podcast intro music is Chicago Shuffle Blues, courtesy of JuliusH. Song can be found at https://pixabay.com/users/juliush-3921568/ .

Writer, Instructor, and Lecturer Grey Armstrong and Dr. Chelsea Adams get personal about community, why people are leaving social dance, and what we can do about it. Guest: Grey Armstrong Video Referenced: Why Is Everyone Leaving Social Dance? Websites: https://obsidiantea.com/, https://greyarmstrong.com/ Produced by Dr. Chelsea Adams 12-Bar Talk is supported by Salt City Blues, LLC, a blues dance event and education organization committed to bringing education about black dances and blues to the Greater Salt Lake City area. Podcast intro music is Chicago Shuffle Blues, courtesy of JuliusH. Song can be found at https://pixabay.com/users/juliush-3921568/ .