The 10 Best Ear Hustle Podcast Episodes
1) The SHU
The hole, the box, solitary confinement. It doesn’t matter what you call it; doing time in the SHU (Security Housing Unit) means you are alone and segregated from the general prison population. In thi...Show More
2) Cellies
At San Quentin Prison, the typical cell measures approximately 4’ x 9’ and contains a bunk bed, toilet, sink, two men, and their six cubic feet of belongings. In our first episode of Ear Hustle, hear ...Show More
3) Tell Christy I Love Her
Tom was a cop; Jason was a teenager in a gang. One night in 1997, they had a violent encounter that Tom describes as “inevitable.” In our season finale, Tom and Jason relate the story of that night, a...Show More
4) I Want the Fairy Tale
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? Recen...Show More
5) Looking Out
The need to nurture and show love for another living being (or, in San Quentin parlance, “looking out”) is an essential human impulse. Away from your family and friends in prison this can be difficult...Show More
6) Misguided Loyalty
Tommy Shakur Ross grew up in South Central Los Angles in the 1980’s. As a boy, he was seduced by what he saw as the “glamour” of gang life. Thirty years later, he is still paying the price for giving ...Show More
7) Lifer Bakery
A small Israeli bakery in downtown San Francisco has offered first jobs to dozens of lifers just out of prison. Four employees share their stories of adjusting to life on the outside while working at ...Show More
8) The Big No No
When you’re incarcerated, falling in love with prison staff or volunteers is prohibited. But… it happens. And it happened to Erin and Lisa, who then had to negotiate the joys and pitfalls of romance i...Show More
9) Home for Me Is Really a Memory
Leslie has served more time in prison than anyone we’ve ever interviewed on the show: over half a century, for a crime committed when she was 19. Four times, the parole board has deemed her fit for re...Show More
10) Catch a Kite 4
Sleep, soundtracks and signing in prison — the Ear Hustle crew tackles questions from listeners about these topics and more, in this season’s “Catch a Kite” episode. Plus, we’ll share some of our favo...Show More