There's still plenty of hours before #nokings to reach out to those people you know who already want a better world but have never envisioned themselves asking for it. Tell them there's a spot open right next to you. Let them know they can fill it any way they want.

Wrote about the same thing I wrote about one year ago: Cringe, sincerity and getting out for a spot of light protesting. Reach out to the ‘normal normies‘ in your life — center, lib & left — let them know there’s a spot on the street beside you at #nokings tomorrow. Give them permission to care!

This week on The Hometown Holler, Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Tift Merritt joins us to discuss her career as a working musician, the process of writing songs, and how streaming and AI are reshaping the future of music. She even plays a few new songs in studio for everyone! #livemusic #AI

LET THE WILD RUMPUS BEGIN!

New York Times bestselling novelist @wileycash.bsky.social stops by the Holler studio to talk about storytelling, Southern identity, and what it means to be a North Carolina writer. If you’re subscribed to our YouTube, nows a good time!

Bob Crawford of The Avett Brothers joins the Holler to talk about his new book "America’s Founding Son" and how a touring musician ended up writing a sweeping history of John Quincy Adams. @bobcrawfordbass.bsky.social

We are going to win. Today ~9am I headed into “town” to do a spot of light protesting. A mile from my very rural home I encountered this homemade sign at a quiet country crossroads. #ncpol In Oct-Nov ‘24, my community ripped every Dem political sign out of my yard. Six times. In March 2026:

the sun drop thunderstorm in the youtube thumbnail really makes it pop

Did yall see that Roy Cooper came by the studio!? We had a time chatting all things NC!

This video from @thehometownholler.bsky.social is a fantastic explainer about the path that the NC GOP have set our state on. When you hear a politician in NC say "We don't have the revenue" you need to realize they don't have the revenue because THEY ARE NOT COLLECTING IT. #southey4senate

Thank you to @thehometownholler.bsky.social for this interview! #PierceForNC #ncpol #HD27 youtu.be/fRt63YHf4dA?...

After you vote… then what? Karen Brinson Bell ran North Carolina’s elections for six years. We asked her to walk us through what *really* happens behind the scenes. She brought the receipts. Catch the full conversation on our YouTube channel & don't forget to subscribe.

Richard Ojeda swings by the Holler to talk about service, sacrifice, and what real representation looks like in North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District. It’s a conversation about who government is actually supposed to work for.

Barack Obama won North Carolina in 2008. Since then, Democrats have been trying to build a path back. But the real battleground isn’t just urban versus rural. #ncpol

The Hometown Holler made it onto FOX NEWS with our interview with Kate Barr.

The Hometown Holler @thehometownholler.bsky.social docs.google.com/spreadsheets...

NEW EPISODE! @katebarrcanwin.bsky.social returns to The Holler to explain why she’s running as a Republican this time around. We break it all down and whether it’s possible to win inside maps designed to keep power in the same hands. #ncpol

This is what they don’t explain about the NC Education Lottery. #ncpol

Yall, @hcrichardson.bsky.social is so awesome and she gave us one of the biggest compliments I think we could ever ask for!

@democratswin.bsky.social Take an hour off from the news chaos and listen! Informative and eye opening.

Heather Cox Richardson returns to The Holler to chat about American democracy. We talk Reconstruction, the Wilmington Coup, North Carolina’s unique political history, and what it means when people say, “it can’t happen here.” Make sure to subscribe to our YouTube to catch all the conversations!

"In the face of senselessness and disorientation, what to do? When the path ahead is so darkened and obscured that it feels as if the ground has disappeared beneath your feet?" What to do? What to do? Subscribe to our substack and read what our guy @milobaynes.bsky.social has to say.

The Avett Brothers bassist Bob Crawford recalls a lesson from Bob Weir: touring isn't about passing through America. It's about taking its temperature. 🎶 Full convo dropping soon on The Hometown Holler YouTube. Subscribe so you don't miss it! #gratefuldead #bobweir #wisdom

There's a word for it.

Thought I’d try that thing where I point out that “I’ve been saying this for awhile”. I’m so rarely correct — the opportunities have been slim.

post your NYE libation (current or future) 2020 Domaine Belle Crozes-Hermitage, “Cuvée Louis Belle”

Thanks for rocking with Hometown Holler. 🧡💙 Let’s keep going in the New Year! Cheers! Quinn & Daniel

Whadda year yall! Cheers!🍻

Merry Christmas from our Holler to yours!

This coming Thursday I, and the rest of my family, will make some hours of merry with Our MAGA uncle. In preparation, having checked my math with some back-of-the-napkin scribblings after Thanksgiving, I decided to try something almost certainly stupid. Because I want to. Read the rest on substack

We made a Holiday Playlist for ya so you dont have to hear the same ol' same ol'

In this second decade of Trumpism, you might be tired of The Season of Good Advice — be silent, be holy, don’t blow it all up by engaging with politics with a mouthful of yams. Well, if the math works, light that candle, y’all. Burn it down.

Christmas at the Holler hits a lil' different. Chatham Rabbits join us for some tunes, childhood stories, bad gifts, bourbon, and a VERY serious Little Debbie taste test. And if you’re really feelin’ the holiday spirit, join our Patreon community and help us holler louder than ever in 2026!

Looking at 2026 Calendars? Well, it turns out that “vintage calendars” from… 1979 1981 1987 1998 2009 2015 …will all work just fine (the days/dates will align). So hit up wherever it is you usually shop for “vintage calendars” and go nuts.

Amy Galey: "My only interest is keeping Democrats from having a say." Remember, these people do not believe in democracy. #ncpol Thank you, @thehometownholler.bsky.social

Quinn and Daniel sat down with Kamal Bell, founder of Sankofa Farms, for a conversation that hits hard. He breaks down why we need to stop pretending food deserts don’t exist, how unequal access to healthy food is by design & what it takes to build solutions instead of waiting on policymakers #ncpol

The porch is alive, the conversations are real,and your seat is waiting. Step in and join the Holler fam! www.patreon.com/c/TheHometownHoller

This might be our most important episode yet. We sat down with David A. Graham @dgraham.bsky.social (The Atlantic) & what he says about 2026 is WILD. Why dictators love elections. How ICE raids, gerrymandering, media pressure & “competitive authoritarianism” set the stage before anyone votes.

Hey Hometown Hollerinos! Here’s the “Thanksgiving Wishes Montage” that debuted Thurs on Instagram. We get that some folks don’t “insta” much (I’m one… IG confounds my GenX brain). So here it is, just for you! **NB: it’s in 2 parts b/c big (and you don’t wanna miss the big finish)** PART 1 of 2:

KAVANAUGH STOP — READ THIS Manny is an 18-year-old U.S. citizen. Born here. Raised here. And on Nov 19, masked ICE agents pulled up on him while he slept in his work truck. No crime. No reason. Just pure intimidation. Hear Manny’s story. It’ll piss you off.

An 18yo US citizen, surrounded by eight masked, armed agents of the state, taken into custody, not read his rights, not offered a chance to contact a lawyer, proof of citizenship ignored, handcuffed so tightly he later required medical attention. Profoundly, profoundly anti-American shit.

Meet Manny. Like me, he was born in this country. We share a zip code and both have NC DLs. Unlike me, he caught the attention of ICE because of his appearance. Manny was detained for over an hour, handcuffed. Manny now has no job because ICE has his whole construction crew. youtu.be/Q0mQxt9jlCM

Batch doesn’t hold back. From the 129 days & counting w/o a state budget to the looming fiscal cliff, she breaks down exactly why North Carolina is stuck & how the GOP legislative dysfunction brought us here. She explains what’s truly at stake for working families, public schools & state employees.

One of the perks of being involved w/ @thehometownholler.bsky.social is chatting w/ smart, talented people I’d never usually get to meet. Feel lucky to have spent the afternoon w/ The Atlantic’s @dgraham.bsky.social chatting about politics, music, & NC livin’. He’s a hoot & as sharp as they come.

On the other hand, the blatant abuse of power can energize voters as well

ICE raids are not about safety — their own data proves it. This is a political fear campaign ahead of 2026, designed to intimidate Black and Brown voters into staying home. This is the most violent voter suppression campaign we’ve seen so far this century. The good news? People are fighting back.

Scenes from this afternoon’s “emergency protest” in the North Carolina capital against BP/ICE/La Migra —after Bovino & Co arrived in the Tar Heel State yesterday. #ncpol #raleigh #charlotte

This week's column is a must read. Also, if you don't already know/follow @tressiemcphd.bsky.social this is your sign.

We keep hearing that a 2% tax hike on it's top earners will drive NYC's tax base out of the city. Hogwash. New York City is The Hometown to 20 million people who live there BECAUSE it is New York City. And the last time NY millionaires saw their taxes go up, in 2021, they moved LESS, not more.

"They referred to Black people as monkeys and 'the watermelon people' and mused about putting their political opponents in gas chambers. They talked about raping their enemies and driving them to suicide and lauded Republicans who they believed support slavery." www.politico.com/news/2025/10...