Sean Dietrich is a columnist, novelist, and podcast host, known for his
commentary on life in the American South. His work has appeared in Newsweek, Southern Living, Garden and Gun, The Tallahassee Democrat, Good Grit, South Magazine, Alabama Living, the Birmingham News, Thom Magazine, and The Mobile Press Register.
He has kept up a daily blog for 10 years proving that the South and it’s people provide for great content! He has authored thirteen books including his latest release,You are My Sunshine.
Sean recalls, “Some of my earliest memories are of my mother singing “You Are My Sunshine.” She sang this to me especially when I was feeling hurt, lonely or sad. I distinctly remember Mama singing this song to me when I fell off my tricycle as a two-year-old. Amazingly, nearly forty years later, my wife sang this song to me when I fell off my adult tricycle. What I love about this particular American standard is that it’s not just special to me, it’s everyone’s tune. Everyone’s mother sang it when they skinned their knees. Everyone’s mama sang it before bedtime. The earliest recording of this melody comes from 1939, when the Pine Ridge Boys recorded it with lots of redneck yodeling. Throughout the years, the tune has been recorded by over 350 artists, translated into thirty languages, and butchered beyond recognition by pop stars who couldn’t sing their way out of a karaoke bar. I sing this song onstage for my wife sometimes. I sing it to my nieces. My wife and I sang it to my mother-in-law as she lay on her deathbed. It’s a song that is, essentially, code for “I love you” and you will likely hear it when we visit The Franklin Theatre.”
Sean will be interviewed on stage by the sisters of Steel Magnolias Podcast. Laura Beth Peters and Lainie Stubblefield co-host the weekly show where they provide space for each listener to have a place at the table while they have uplifting conversations about life in the American South.
This will be a night of stories, songs, and nostalgia!
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