Randall Wallace: Award-Winning Writer, Editor, and Pop Critic on the Power of Music

In this episode, Steve sits down with former LA Times Music Veteran Randall Roberts to chat about the power of music in our lives, why we should be carving out time to listen to music, and they even swap some behind the music scene stories as Randall shares what it's like to sit down with the likes of Mick Jagger, PJ Harvey, Danny Elfman and others.

Randall Roberts is an award-winning writer, editor, music freak and disc jockey who recently left his post covering music and culture for the Los Angeles Times. During his 12 years there -- at various points as music editor, pop critic and staff writer -- he explored the layered history of L.A. music, from Rosecrans to Sunset to Ventura Boulevard and beyond. His 2020 project on the early Southern California phonograph industry helped identify the first-ever commercial recording made in Los Angeles. For his acclaimed 2010 story for the LA Weekly, “On the Road to Burma,” Randall traveled to Myanmar with L.A. band Ozomatli and wrote about its role as State Department-sponsored cultural ambassadors. The story was included in the book Best Music Writing 2010.

A two-time Getty/USC-Annenberg Arts Journalism fellow, Randall has witnessed and adapted to the profound changes in journalism and storytelling since his start in the 1990s. He has edited and reported on quick-turnaround deadlines and in extreme conditions such as the backstage artists' camp at Coachella, behind the scenes at the Grammy Awards and in a terry-cloth-robed Axl Rose’s dressing room after a Guns ‘n Rose concert. Now editing and consulting for the University of Missouri communications department, Randall lives in Columbia with his wife Jenny and their daughter Liza.

For more information on Randall, please visit:
Ballparkvillage.com
Instagram: @Liledit

To stay connected with Better Place Project and for updates and behind the scenes info, please follow us on social media:

Website:
https://www.betterplaceproject.org/

Instagram: @BetterPlaceProj
 
 To follow Steve & Erin on Instagram:
@SteveNorrisOfficial
 @Erinorris

Facebook: Facebook.com/BetterPlaceProjectPodcast
Twitter: @BetterPlaceProj
Email: BetterPlaceProjectPodcast@gmail.com