Unabridged Interview: Allison Russell

**Lee C. Camp** (0:02)
Hello, friends, Lee C. Camp here. You're listening to No Small Endeavor. This is our Unabridged Interview with Allison Russell. Allison is a Grammy winner, eight-time Grammy nominee.
She's an artist, actress, activist, and an all-around lovely human being. We got to be with Allison to work with her on the big end-of-year show we did last year at the Skirmerhorn Symphony Hall here in Nashville end of last year.
As you'll hear me say in the interview, there was one point in particular where Allison had asked several of us to sing with her and I was so moved by what was happening.
I could hardly find my place because I was so moved, emotionally moved and was tearing up listening to her performance. But this is a lovely interview. She welcomed us to their home. She and her partner, JT, to their home there in East Nashville and we had a lovely conversation.
One of the things that I especially have taken away from that interview is that she and I stood in the hallway after the tape had been stopped. And I think she says this in the actual interview itself, but I know she said it standing there in the hallway, that things can be different.
And I think that's one of the beauties of what art and artists do for us, is that they remind us that things can be different and that we can choose to use our autonomy and our work in the world, our creativity in the world to make a contribution towards constructive change of the things that we think should be different and we want to be different. So lots of jewels in this interview. Hope you enjoy. Here's Allison Russell. Hello friends, Lee C. Camp here. There is, as you may have noticed, no shortage of content in the world. Opinions, endless, outrage, plentiful. Deep wisdom and thoughtful perspective, slightly harder to come by. That's part of why we created the NSC Notebook. It's our weekly email from the world of No Small Endeavor with reflections on a good life, behind the scenes insight into our interviews, and quotes that stuck with me long after those conversations ended. You'll also get a curated list of what I'm reading, watching, and listening to. Books, movies, music, and other things I think are actually worth your time. It comes to your inbox every Tuesday completely free. So if you'd like one less thing to doom scroll and one more thing to actually enjoy, sign up for the NSC Notebook at nosmallendeavor.com. Starting something new is hard and honestly can be terrifying. When we started No Small Endeavor, there were plenty of what ifs. What if no one listens? What if it doesn't work? But sometimes the thing worth doing is precisely the thing that requires you to take a leap. And if you're starting a business, Shopify helps make that leap a little less daunting. Shopify, the commerce platform behind millions of businesses around the world, and 10% of all e-commerce in the US, hundreds of ready to use templates, Shopify helps you build a beautiful online store that matches your brand style. And you can also get the word out like you have a marketing team behind you with email and social media campaigns. If you get stuck, Shopify is always around to share advice with their award-winning 24-7 customer support. It's time to turn those what ifs into with Shopify today. Sign up for your $1 per month trial today at shopify.com/nse. Go to shopify.com/nse, that's shopify.com/nse.

**Annie F. Downs** (3:21)
Hi friends, it's Annie F. Downs here and I am so beyond excited to share with you that I have a brand new TV show called I Gotta Ask that begins airing Thursday, May 28th on The Wonder Project, which you can find through your Amazon Prime Video app. You may have heard of The Wonder Project because they're the ones who brought you The House David and I am so honored and honestly have zero chill that I get to partner with them to make this dream come true. I love how Wonder Project is not only creating great original TV and movies that audiences can experience together, but also curating content via their subscription on Prime Video filled with meaningful stories.
The first two episodes of my talk show, I Gotta Ask premier on May 28th, followed by two episodes each on June 4th and June 11th.
In every episode, I sit down with a group of friends, some experts in their fields and some thought leaders, some just my real life people. We talk about things like, why is dating so hard in 2026? Or how do I build a business? What do I do with fear and anxiety? And so many more questions that I just had to ask. I cannot wait to hear what you think. You can subscribe today at igottaask.com.