Jeremy Lister: Synch Songs, Sobriety and Ultra Marathons | MCP #133

Morse Code Podcast with Korby Lenker

On the new episode of The Morse Code Podcast I speak with singer-songwriter and ultramarathon runner Jeremy Lister about his unusual - and unusually successful - path in music, starting with his emergence in Nashville as a breakaway artist in the late 2000’s through his recent gigs singing with Eric Church at Coachella to his latest synch on Grey’s Anatomy a few weeks ago.

You never know how these conversations will go - the second half is spent unpacking Jeremy’s addiction, before and after he got sober (he just celebrated his ninth year alcohol-free) and how his decision to leave it behind led to an passion for running, marathon running, and finally, running ultras.

We also play an unreleased song of Jeremy’s, performed live in the studio - “Dirt”.

This episode got into some sensitive territory, including what was going on behind the scenes during the last Street Corner Symphony tour - an a capella group Jeremy co-founded that won Season One of the Sing-Off on NBC, hosted by Ben Folds. I’ve known Jeremy for almost twenty years, including the stretch he describes here. I had no idea what was going on with him personally at the time. It’s a testament to that quote by Socrates, invoking us to Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.

Below is a direct link to “Dirt”. At the end of the video there’s an invitation to listen to (or watch) a playlist featuring all of the songs recorded live on the Morse Code Podcast. We’re up to about twenty.

Hope you find these conversations as inspiring to your own creative journey as I’ve found them to mine. ~Korby

The Morse Code is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Morse Code at korby.substack.com/subscribe