Earlonne's here with his "mystery" episode, and it's a doozy. He tells Nigel a redemption story wrapped in a drug-trafficking... more

Over the past two episodes we’ve been hearing about “memory places” at San Quentin: ordinary-seeming spots that become extraordinary through... more

In the second part of this two-part series, Nigel reveals to Earlonne the final stops in her memory-tour of San... more

Nigel — with help from our team inside San Quentin — has been cooking up an episode that her co-host... more

Incarcerated people in California can’t vote, but that doesn't mean they aren’t tracking electoral politics as closely as many of... more

Wali was on his way to make a life-altering decision when a book made him reconsider. Shaka’s 40 years on... more

It can be hard to admit, but some people are more comfortable inside prison than out. We meet people who... more

The countdown is on! Earlonne and Nigel give listeners a taste of what’s in store this season: some controversy, some... more

Our team inside San Quentin explores the complicated acts of crying and Hula dancing in prison, reports on the joys... more

Celebrating our 100th episode last year got the Ear Hustle team thinking about all the stories we’ve told since 2017.... more

In this collaboration with the venerable live-storytelling project The Moth, we share one man’s story about using a medical condition... more

We’re introducing you to one of our favorite recent podcast discoveries. In 1997, a racially motivated attack and its aftermath... more

What’s it like to serve out a prison sentence alongside your mom? At the Central California Women’s Facility, a handful... more

When he was growing up, gang life gave Larry confidence, purpose, and an identity. But after years behind bars, the... more

For our latest Catch a Kite episode, we’re taking advantage of a new tool: the electronic tablets that recently became... more

In honor of Mother’s Day, some decidedly un-Hallmark-y stories about incarceration and motherhood.  Thanks to Mary Behun, Reggie, and Kat for... more

Inside prison, as well as out, some of us cling to stuff and some of us let go. In this... more

Twelve years ago, Nigel asked San Quentin resident Greg Eskridge to write a list of everything he owned in prison.... more

A bucolic garden, six kinds of breakfast cereal, and around-the-clock bedside vigil: How one California prison is trying to mitigate... more

We’ve never based a whole episode on a poem before, but this one, by Sky, took us by surprise. It’s... more

Season 13 is coming soon; in the meantime, here’s a glimpse of what’s going on in Ear Hustle Plus, our... more

In honor of our 100th episode (!), Ear Hustle revisits our very first one – “Cellies” – this time with... more

When she was in her 20s, Shanna was the victim of a violent attack. Ten years later, she’s ready to... more

Nigel and Earlonne visit the largest women's prison in the world, the Central California Women's Facility, and speak to five... more

Can a prison be haunted? And why are good ghost stories — inside or outside of prison — so hard... more

If San Quentin were a magazine, what would it sound like? Ear Hustle’s new team inside – Sadiq, Steve, Tam,... more

Producer Rahsaan “New York” Thomas takes us inside the parole-ordered transitional housing he’s been living in since getting out of... more

Prisons weren’t designed for older folks, and the California Institution for Women is no exception. Nigel and Earlonne pay a... more

Inspired by the classic This American Life episode “24 Hours at the Golden Apple,” the Ear Hustle team documents one... more

It’s summertime! Which means the Ear Hustle team is off cooking up a new batch of stories for our next... more

In honor of Pride month, we’re serving up some of our best stories about the LGBTQ community inside prison, including:... more

Is there such a thing as a prison uniform? Turns out, it takes two podcasts to answer that question. Nigel... more

Over at San Quentin, a new preacher has started drawing crowds on the yard. He’s charismatic, soft-spoken, and devout. He... more

Imagine you’re an archaeologist tasked with going through someone’s garbage. What will you learn about their habits and desires, their... more

Can incarcerated women dye their hair? Do they have enough tampons and pads? What makes them happy, and how realistic... more

For years, we’ve asked incarcerated people to speculate on the difference between life inside a men’s prison and inside a... more

What’s the difference between an over-under and a lower-lower? How many pairs of underwear do you get in prison? And... more

San Quentin’s population is changing, and a lot of the old ways are dying out. But some prison OGs don’t... more

When you’re incarcerated, are your dreams set outside prison walls? Or out on the prison yard? Are they a comforting... more

After 22 years in prison, our inside colleague Rahsaan “New York” Thomas is now a free man. We meet him... more

Lieutenant Sam Robinson has been with Ear Hustle since day one. As he retires from his post as Public Information... more

While she was in jail awaiting her sentence, Karen was housed with a pregnant cellie on the verge of giving... more

If you have to serve prison time, Norway is the place to do it … at least that’s what we’d... more

The Ear Hustle music episode returns! We catch up with some guys at San Quentin who are longing for love,... more

From 180s and 270s to “just one long-ass hallway,” different kinds of prison architecture leave different marks on the people... more

Prisons are built with one thing in mind: surveillance. The architecture is designed to assert control and diminish privacy. But... more

Stories from our first-ever international reporting trip! From the nightclubs of Oslo, to Norway’s first in-prison Pride parade, to an... more

Sam Brown spent 24 years in prison not just denying his crime, but lying about it, over and over again.... more

Life in prison can mess with your senses. There are smells you can’t unsmell, and sounds you long to hear.... more

A special episode from Uncuffed: During the COVID lockdown at San Quentin, Steve and Darren both got unexpected letters that... more

The Ear Hustle team is hard at work on our next season, which launches September 7! In the meantime, we’d... more

The jig was up for Ryan, so he told police he’d turn himself in. His mom had one request: a... more

The day before committing the crime that sent him to prison, Michael stood in a parking lot in Bakersfield, California,... more

This season we're flipping the script on our traditional Catch a Kite episodes, exploring questions asked and answered between San... more

Life in prison, without regular sex and intimacy, can cause all sorts of emotional and physical issues. Yep, we're going... more

What happens to a prison town when its main prison closes? The residents of Susanville, in Northern California, are about... more

Six massive murals span hundreds of feet across the walls of a San Quentin chow hall, depicting the history of... more

We talk about love on Ear Hustle, plenty, but it’s hard to think of prison as a “romantic” place. What... more

In California and many other states, calls from prison are limited to 15 minutes and are monitored, recorded, and often... more

Sometimes, when you’re up against a big state institution, you have to make some trouble. For this mini-episode, part of... more

We’re between seasons but have an exciting update to share with listeners: Our friend and colleague Rahsaan “New York” Thomas’... more

While Ear Hustle works on its next season, which starts March 2, we wanted to introduce you to the podcast... more

This past fall, we followed a group of kids into Salinas Valley State Prison to spend two days with their... more

Earlier this year, some of the Ear Hustle team spent a month living under a specific set of constraints informed... more

Sports in prison are more than just games. They can be an outlet for stress, the realization of dreams deferred,... more

Going to prison in your home country can be disorienting enough. What about when you’re new to the culture, don’t... more

What does it take to be bonnaroo in prison? We explore the creative ways people inside transform and beautify their... more

At Ear Hustle, we hear more from listeners about music than almost any other topic. In response, we bring you... more

We bring you stories about the ups and downs of making bail and the bittersweet taste of freedom when you... more

August 21, 1971 was the deadliest day in San Quentin history, and it’s still a painful topic, both inside the... more

Ear Hustle’s eighth season launches on September 8th with a dramatic account of one of the most notorious days in... more

With just a few weeks to go before Ear Hustle returns with Season 8, we wanted to introduce listeners to... more

Leslie has served more time in prison than anyone we’ve ever interviewed on the show: over half a century, for... more

A year after George Floyd’s death at the hands of a police officer, the Ear Hustle team and friends talk... more

Toothpaste, ramen noodles, sneakers, coffee creamer. If you want to shop from prison, it’s either the commissary or a prison-approved... more

Can you have an Xbox in your prison cell? Is it OK to say “inmate”? How have stimulus checks affected... more

A small Israeli bakery in downtown San Francisco has offered first jobs to dozens of lifers just out of prison.... more

Marcel and Angie each spent years in prisons determined by the gender on their birth certificate, not the one they... more

Visiting a loved one in prison is both emotionally intense and constrained by countless rules – from how much PDA... more

A lot has happened since we got behind the mics to record Ear Hustle’s first season. As we begin our... more