MarySue Twohy, SiriusXM

Tell us about your channel on SiriusXM, The Village

24/7 Folk. This channel plays at least one hundred years of Folk music. Very old, tried and true to the newest, folk-pushing boundaries. But what’s really cool about the channel are the exclusive interviews with emerging and iconic folk artists alike. Cat Stevens, Joan Baez, Old Crow Medicine Show, First-Aid Kit, The Avett Brothers and so much more.

How long have you been at SiriusXM? What is your history there?

I have been at SiriusXM since August 2005, so that is 13 years. I started as a show host back in 2005 and the ratings went up when my show aired so they hired me full time. I worked my way up to running The Village and now I run three 24/7 channels. It is really an honor and privilege to do this work and, I will say, this job is built for somebody who likes to work. I will also say that I started with XM, saw the company through a merger, have worked with literally some of the greatest talent in radio and I still feel like I’m learning new things in radio. Some of the great people that I have worked with at SiriusXM – including Robert Aubrey Davis, Marlin Taylor, Lou Brutus, Mike Marrone, Trinity, Lynette White – all of these people inspire me to be better than I am.

What are you most proud of accomplishing/changing at SiriusXM?

I think the thing I am most proud of is the development of The Village Folk Show. The Village Folk Show is a great little show and it has gone from some humble beginnings to becoming a home for the very best of Folk. The show has won a national radio award – A Gracie Award – for its iconic interviews. The production team, the talent department, and most importantly the artists make The Village Folk Show everything it is. Folk is the mother genre and Folk is everywhere.

What other genre of music apart from Folk would you say is your favorite?

What a tough question. I think the most important thing when you are working with music is to be open and listen with an open mind and an open heart. It’s really important to put aside pre-conceived notions of genres. I love music that is moving, that exhibits virtuous talent, and changes me as a person when I listen to it. That’s what I love listening to.

What artist/band are you most excited about who is supposed to release new music in 2018?

There’s a lot of great stuff coming out. For me, it’s Joan Baez. She’s coming out with a new record in March. But, it’s also the band I haven’t heard yet that turns me on a dime. I’m waiting for that. I don’t know the name yet. I don’t even know if it’s on my desk at this point. But, I know it when I listen that this is my new favorite band and I live for that moment of discovering new music.

Do you have a favorite artist or album you never get tired of listening to?

Right now it’s Offa Rex. Can’t get enough of that one, which is Olivia Chaney and the Decemberists working together and the name of the album is Queen of Hearts. The energy, the raw talent, capturing a beautiful moment in time. Offa Rex is all of that. I secretly hope they record again.

What is your favorite live show you have ever attended?

There are so many. Hard to pinpoint just one show. I think what I like best about the live show is you see an entirely different side to the artist – usually we’re working with just the recordings. At the live show, you see and feel the interaction with the audience. You hear stuff from the stage that you’re going to see written nowhere. But, most importantly, you connect into something much deeper – deeper than yourself. Yes, indeed, you actually connect into a group or a music consciousness. This makes us better people, better humans. I am very cognitive of moments on stage that either happen once, maybe twice and never again. When I saw Jesse Winchester perform live in SiriusXM studios, before a small 50 person audience, I knew it was a very special experience that could be labeled a gift. As you know, he is no longer with us, but I will tell you this – he had the audience in the palm of his hands within 15 seconds. That is magic, my friends. Pure magic.

What is your best childhood memory?

Eating ice cream. Isn’t it everybody’s? No brainer.

What event on your life would you say shaped you the most as a person?

It was raining hard. I was standing on a football field in 1987, holding a tenor saxophone with my marching band uniform on. The field was mud. Our marching band was a small but mighty unit. It was time for me to do my solo and, generally in this scenario, soloists run to the spot where they are supposed to perform the solo. You already see the problem at hand. I ran and the very last step I took, my right foot went straight up into the air and down I went. Saxophone in hand – into the mud. I had no choice but to get up and play my solo. This is pretty much the story of my life.

If you could choose, what time period in the past would you most want to travel back to and visit?

I would love to say it would be to see Kate Wolf life in concert. She has long since passed.

Do you have a favorite restaurant in town you always make sure to take guests/visitors to?

Union Market. Something there for everyone.

What’s the best advice anyone has ever given you?

“The answer is yes.” This advice has pushed me to try and be better in just about everything …except cooking.

Lightning Round:

Dog or Cat?
Dog. But I like cats, too. If cats wagged their tails like dogs when they saw you – I might have to revisit this question.

Coke or Pepsi?
Neither. Too much sugar. Blech.

Morning Person or Night Owl?
Night Owl. I am the person who never wants to go to sleep. I only do it because I have to.

City or Country?
Country. Wild, free, fresh, open country that makes you temporarily forget about a thing called “traffic”.

Watch TV or Read A Book?
Depends. I need quiet to come in fresh each morn. If I can I would rather craft. Make a toy for my nieces and nephews, paint, draw or generally work on my house (caulk, garden, paint etc)

Sunny or Rainy?
I love it all. I would say both. Every moment has its mood, its energy.

Dine or Delivery?
Delivery. Sooo much easier and hey you do not have to dress up!

Beard or Clean Shaven?
Beard. Husband has beard – nuf said.

Pants or Shorts?
Orange Juice.

Do you have any current favorite TV show obsessions?

The Kettering Incident. Seriously addictive and HUGE in Australia last year. Filmed in Tasmania. Do you need any other excuse than that to watch it?

And finally, and most importantly, when tags say ‘hand wash’ or ‘line dry’ do you actually do that or do you just use the washer & dryer?

I would say after wrecking a significant amount of beautiful clothes, I actually try to read the instructions now. But, it’s not because I haven’t lost a fair share.