My Understanding of This Place: Nigel & Earlonne

Summary

Ear Hustle Episode Summary: "My Understanding of This Place: Nigel & Earlonne"

Podcast Information:

• Title: Ear Hustle
• Hosts: Nigel Poor and Earlonne Woods
• Episode: My Understanding of This Place: Nigel & Earlonne
• Release Date: November 6, 2024
• Description: Ear Hustle offers an intimate glimpse into life inside prison through the voices of its co-hosts, Nigel Poor and Earlonne Woods. The podcast delves into personal stories, showcasing the raw and often humorous realities of incarceration and the challenges of re-entering society.

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1. Introduction to the New Season and Listener Engagement

The episode opens with Nigel Poor and Earlonne Woods announcing an exciting twist for the upcoming season of Ear Hustle. Building upon their tradition of producing mystery episodes—where each host conceives a story idea independently and reveals it during recording—they are now inviting listeners to actively participate in shaping future content.

• Earlonne Woods (00:00): "We are cooking up something really fun for next season, and we need your help."
• Nigel Poor (00:32): "Is there a story you've always wanted to hear on Ear Hustle? A topic you wished one of us would explore? Well, here's your chance to shape an upcoming episode."

Listeners are encouraged to submit their story ideas via email, with the incentive that selected contributors will join the hosts as a third voice during narration sessions. This interactive approach aims to deepen the connection between the podcast and its audience, fostering a collaborative storytelling environment.

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2. Transitioning to Personal Memories in San Quentin

As the episode progresses, Nigel shares his journey in creating content for Ear Hustle, describing how his initial short story concept has evolved into an extensive narrative spanning multiple episodes.

• Nigel Poor (01:39): "I'm gonna admit this has been a little bit of a journey. My episode started as, like, a short story. It's become, like, an epic novel."

Earmarking the episode's focal point, Nigel expresses a desire to delve deeper into personal memories tied to specific locations within San Quentin State Prison, emphasizing the emotional significance these places hold for both hosts.

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3. Exploring Significant Locations: The Kickback Spot

Nigel invites Earlonne to revisit a poignant spot within San Quentin—the kickback spot near the baseball field. This location served as a sanctuary where prisoners could meditate and find moments of peace amidst the prison's chaos.

• Earlonne Woods (04:50): "A place that has memories. It's a place that has memories."

Earlonne reminisces about the tranquility the spot offered, describing it as a realm separate from the yard's hustle. The presence of natural elements, such as hawks and falcons in designated predator areas, added to the serene environment.

• Earlonne Woods (06:14): "It's a whole different world. You and a whole nother realm."

The hosts discuss the symbolism of the location, highlighting how it provided a mental escape and a place to reflect, fostering a sense of community and mutual understanding among those who frequented it.

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4. The Birth of Ear Hustle and Shared Memories

Nigel shares a deeply personal memory associated with a chain link fence near his spot, symbolizing the countless stories yet to be told through Ear Hustle. This moment of inspiration underscores the collaborative spirit between Nigel and Earlonne.

• Nigel Poor (12:25): "I've never told anyone about it. And it's such a bland place. It's just a stupid chain link fence... But to me, it's about possibility and it's about being able to see things where other people don't see them."

This shared symbolism highlights the fundamental connection between the hosts, each interpreting the chain link fence differently—Nigel viewing it as a canvas for storytelling, while Earlonne sees it as a measure of security and creative inspiration.

• Earlonne Woods (15:00): "Two different reasons, though. One is for security, and one is for creative thinking, creative stories."

Their intertwined memories illustrate how personal experiences within the prison environment have shaped the narrative and mission of Ear Hustle, emphasizing the podcast's role in giving voice to incarcerated individuals.

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5. Personal Growth and Changing Perspectives

Earlonne reflects on his personal evolution since Ear Hustle began, noting a shift away from the underworld activities he once engaged in. This transformation is attributed to his commitment to the podcast and a desire to avoid jeopardizing the meaningful connections it fosters.

• Earlonne Woods (10:04): "A lot of things changed it. You know, it was just me changing my ways. Me changing, you know, stop indulging in certain things. And Ear Hustle was a big part of it too."

Despite distancing himself from previous environments, Earlonne emphasizes that he does not miss those past activities, showcasing his determination to maintain a positive trajectory post-incarceration.

• Earlonne Woods (10:32): "Not really. Because when I make my mind up on something, I'm done with it."

Nigel acknowledges Earlonne's growth, highlighting the profound impact their joint efforts on Ear Hustle have had on their lives and the broader prison community.

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6. Concluding Reflections and Future Directions

As the episode draws to a close, Nigel and Earlonne discuss the emotional resonance of their shared memories and the enduring significance of the places they've revisited. Nigel expresses gratitude for their partnership and the journey they've embarked upon together through Ear Hustle.

• Nigel Poor (16:16): "I'm glad to be on this journey with you."
• Earlonne Woods (16:57): "Glad to be on it with you as well, my friend."

The episode solidifies the foundational themes of Ear Hustle: storytelling as a means of empowerment, the importance of personal and shared histories, and the continuous effort to shed light on the multifaceted experiences of those within the prison system.

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Key Takeaways:

• Listener Participation: Ear Hustle is inviting its audience to contribute story ideas, fostering a collaborative storytelling environment.

• Personal Memories: The hosts delve into their individual memories tied to specific locations within San Quentin, highlighting the emotional and symbolic weight these places hold.

• Shared Symbolism: The chain link fence serves as a profound symbol for both hosts, representing stories yet to be told and the balance between security and creative expression.

• Personal Growth: Earlonne's transformation underscores the podcast's role in encouraging positive change and distancing from past negative behaviors.

• Enduring Partnership: The deep bond between Nigel and Earlonne drives the podcast's mission, emphasizing the power of shared experiences in creating impactful narratives.

This episode offers listeners an intimate look into the personal histories of Ear Hustle's hosts, illustrating how their shared and individual experiences within the prison environment inform and enrich the podcast's storytelling approach.

Transcript

[Earlonne Woods]

Hey, listeners. We are cooking up something really fun for next season, and we need your help.

[Nigel Poor]

You might remember that for the last couple seasons, Earlonne and I have been producing mystery episodes.

[Earlonne Woods]

That's when me and Nige each come up with a story idea, and we work on it in secret until we reveal it to each other in the studio when we're recording narration.

[Nigel Poor]

And I love doing these. It's so much fun to surprise each other, and it gives us the opportunity to each explore a subject that intrigues us.

[Earlonne Woods]

This season, we're adding a twist, and that's where you come in.

[Nigel Poor]

Is there a story you've always wanted to hear on Ear Hustle? A topic you wished one of us would explore? Well, here's your chance to shape an upcoming episode.

[Earlonne Woods]

All you gotta do is email us an idea. It could be something really specific, like you wanna hear a story about someone who had to lose a lot of weight in prison?

[Nigel Poor]

Or it can be more abstract, like, what do people think about when they first wake up in prison? Maybe even on their first day in prison. And remember, it's a story idea for Earlonne and a story idea for me. So different ideas.

[Earlonne Woods]

If your idea is selected, you will be invited to join us via Zoom and be the third host when we record narration in the studio.

[Nigel Poor]

This is going to be great, and it's also going to give us a chance to do something really meaningful with our listeners.

[Earlonne Woods]

So send your idea to infoearhustlesq.com and the deadline is January 15th.

[Nigel Poor]

That's infoearhustlesq dot com by January 15th. And I cannot wait to find out what my story idea is gonna be.

[Earlonne Woods]

I know what I'm gonna give.

[Nigel Poor]

No, you don't.

[Earlonne Woods]

It's gonna be gang related. Why?

[Nigel Poor]

Shh. No hands. So, Earlonne, I'm gonna admit this has been a little bit of a journey. My episode started as, like, a short story. It's become, like, an epic novel.

[Earlonne Woods]

I know. I was like, Damn, Nigel 2. So you know what? I'm like, Damn, Nigel 3. This is like a quarter of the season, ain't it?

[Nigel Poor]

Okay, but you know what? When I listened to the last episode, I realized that there is still one piece missing. So it's actually not done yet.

[Earlonne Woods]

Oh, a piece is missing.

[Nigel Poor]

Okay, I'm gonna ask you a favor. I know that you're not big on going into San Quentin these days, but I'm gonna ask you if you would take me to a spot in San Quentin that holds a memory for you, and we can just like, sit there and talk about it.

[Earlonne Woods]

Um, going to prison for probably me and any formerly incarcerated person is just a reality check.

[Nigel Poor]

Well, I mean, I've. What I've noticed about you is the longer you're out, at least this is what is expressed externally. The longer you're out, the less you want to go in, is what I've noticed, because I feel like when you first got out, it wasn't. At least you didn't act like it was hard for you to go in, so it seemed like you were fine with it. But what I have noticed over the last maybe six months to a year. You don't want to go in there.

[Earlonne Woods]

Yeah. I think sometime it just get to the realization that, you know, you don't want to see as. Well, I don't want to see as much prison as I've been seeing for the last 30 something years. So I just try to see it less and less at times.

[Nigel Poor]

I hear you and I really am sympathetic. Honestly, I am. But would you be willing to do it for this story? For the story?

[Earlonne Woods]

Definitely. I will. I'll definitely do it for this story. For sure, for sure, for sure.

[Nigel Poor]

Thank you, my friend. I'm Nigel Poor.

[Earlonne Woods]

I'm Earlonne woods, and this is ear hustle from PRX's Radiotopia.

[Nigel Poor]

So, Earlonne, what's the mission? What are we doing?

[Earlonne Woods]

So we are going to. You can't hear me. What about now? All right, we are going to an area on the yard that used to be my kickback spot.

[Nigel Poor]

So it's a place that has memories for you.

[Earlonne Woods]

It's a place that has memories.

[Nigel Poor]

Okay. So I think we have to stop at the Mac Shack and tell them we're going to cover our ass. Yes, let's cover our asses. Whenever we go out in the yard, Earlonne with our recorders, I always like to check in with the correctional officers out on the yard. I just think it's respectful to give them a heads up that that's what we're doing and, you know, makes a.

[Earlonne Woods]

Good relationship recording etiquette.

[Nigel Poor]

Yes, hello. I just wanted to let you know we're going out. We have permission to be on the yard with the mics, but I just always want to let that know that we're just going down there.

[Earlonne Woods]

Hey, what's up, Oliver?

[Nigel Poor]

All right, thank you.

[Earlonne Woods]

I'm chilling. Which way we going?

[Nigel Poor]

A long way.

[Earlonne Woods]

So we are heading to a location that I used to spend most of my time at. I ain't gonna say most of my time, but when I was on the yard, this is one of the spots we'd be if I wasn't jogging or working out or stuff like that. The place that we were about to go was the kickback spot.

[Nigel Poor]

Is this pre ear hustle or during ear hustle?

[Earlonne Woods]

Most of it is pre ear hustle, because when ear hustle started, I kind of, like, straightened it out a little bit, you know, I kind of changed my tune.

[Nigel Poor]

Okay, so, Earlonne, can you, like, situate us. Where is this spot?

[Earlonne Woods]

So this spot is in the middle of the main prison yard. Right. It's right next to the baseball field.

[Nigel Poor]

Okay.

[Earlonne Woods]

And it's a little dugout. You know, you can see out, but people tend to not notice you when you're in there. They overlook you.

[Nigel Poor]

Okay. So it's not like you're completely hidden.

[Earlonne Woods]

Nope.

[Nigel Poor]

But somehow you're able to just hide in plain sight.

[Earlonne Woods]

Exactly. Don't. This separates you from the yard.

[Nigel Poor]

It totally separates you from the yard.

[Earlonne Woods]

You and a whole nother. Whole nother realm.

[Nigel Poor]

Well, there's a chain link fence in front of you. There's a chain link fence behind you and above you, and you're, like, in this corridor. It is weird that it's so calm, considering how much is going on around us.

[Earlonne Woods]

Yeah, but it's a whole different world.

[Nigel Poor]

It's a cage. Yeah, but it doesn't make you feel caged in, right?

[Earlonne Woods]

No. And you got eyes on everything you need to. You know what I'm saying?

[Nigel Poor]

Do you think it's because of the view outside the prison that makes you feel like you're not hemmed in?

[Earlonne Woods]

Well, it would only be the mask mountains, because that's the only view you got, you know? And then also, you could you. You also get, like, National Geographic right here, because pigeons don't fly that way because that's the predator area over there. That's where all the hawks and. And what's the mother ones? Not the hawks, the falcons. Yeah, the hawks and the falcons live over there. So it's out of bounds for the birds. Like, they can't go in that area. I never noticed. They don't fly that way. They don't fly that way? Hell no, they don't fly that way. That is danger zone. So we used to sit here, and you can see the hawks picking up snakes, all kind of stuff if you just, like, pay attention. But we was meditating, so we was. We was focused. You know, you see deers up there, all kind of stuff. See people walking by, wonder who they are. Like, see that? See that road up there?

[Nigel Poor]

Yep.

[Earlonne Woods]

So that's where a lot of the officers live. They live up in that area.

[Nigel Poor]

I actually got a full on view.

[Earlonne Woods]

Yeah.

[Nigel Poor]

Interesting. What's the memory that you associate with being here?

[Earlonne Woods]

Freedom. You know, this is the place we used to come and free our mind, you know? Exfoliate, exfoliate. When cats see us over here, cats that we with, they know to hurry up because we'll be over here whopping it, as they call it, you know, Wap, wap. They used to be me, my boy Chappelle, my boy Donut Banks used to come through here every now and again and other people just ain't gonna come in and, and crash the party, you know? Especially when they ain't got five on it. That went by, Nigel. Huh?

[Nigel Poor]

I don't know, what did he say?

[Earlonne Woods]

He goes, when you don't have five on it?

[Nigel Poor]

Yeah. What does that mean, when you don't have five on it?

[Earlonne Woods]

You know, it's. It was, it was a famous song from the Bay Area back in the day. Okay, I got five on it.

[Nigel Poor]

And what does it mean?

[Earlonne Woods]

It just means you pitching in that you got $5 on whatever going on over here.

[Nigel Poor]

So it's a communal experience. I don't know.

[Earlonne Woods]

I imagine a communal experience.

[Nigel Poor]

I'm imagining they brought their snacks. They brought their various snacks. Yes. They brought the lunch and their chips. And they brought their chips.

[Earlonne Woods]

And we used to be over here. And all I could say, all I could say, Nigel, this was the meditating spot, okay? You know what I'm saying? It was tranquil. This way you could just float. We were on cloud nine over here, chilling, looking at Mount Town.

[Nigel Poor]

You know, I'm getting the picture. If there were a bunch of people sitting here, I don't think I would feel welcome to just walk in. Do you know what I mean? Like, when there's people in here, it.

[Earlonne Woods]

Feels like it was the type of people that were in here, you know what I'm saying?

[Nigel Poor]

Describe them.

[Earlonne Woods]

I mean, everybody probably sitting here had been locked up over 15, 20 years, you know what I'm saying? Wasn't really into all the bullshit that's going on around us, you know, so you had a distinctive group of individuals, you know, that wasn't into all the bullshit. Nobody out here doing bullshit, you know. But Katz is known for regulating shit, you know, so it was the kickback.

[Nigel Poor]

Do you remember the last time you came here or do you remember when you realized you needed to stop coming here?

[Earlonne Woods]

I remember one time I had stopped coming here. I wasn't partaking in The Underworld. You know what changed that? A lot of things changed it. You know, it was just me changing my ways. Me changing, you know, stop indulging in certain things. And Ear Hustle was a big part of it too, you know? You know, seeing what it was and not wanting to jeopardize it in no way.

[Nigel Poor]

Yeah. Did you miss it?

[Earlonne Woods]

Did I miss it? Not really. Because when I make my mind up on something, I'm done with it, you know, so.

[Nigel Poor]

And you know how sometimes when you change where you hang out, the people you hung out with are not happy about it? Did anyone give you a hard time?

[Earlonne Woods]

No, no, no, no. I'm a real one. Not.

[Nigel Poor]

They understood.

[Earlonne Woods]

They understood.

[Nigel Poor]

Okay, I'm gonna take you to my spot now.

[Earlonne Woods]

Okay.

[Nigel Poor]

All right. It's back towards education, and it will be very brief.

[Earlonne Woods]

Bye, Underworld.

[Nigel Poor]

You gonna miss it?

[Earlonne Woods]

No. I'm not even in the underworld today.

[Nigel Poor]

Watch out. Excuse us. Okay, we're taking the shortcut. We're walking by the guys. That should be good. You know what I realized, Earlonne? Our spots are actually in this interesting proximity to each other. We actually could. I mean, they're not exactly close.

[Earlonne Woods]

You're in the peripheral, but.

[Nigel Poor]

But from my spot to your spot, we could have direct eye contact.

[Earlonne Woods]

Oh, no, definitely.

[Nigel Poor]

Yeah.

[Earlonne Woods]

I never noticed half the stuff.

[Nigel Poor]

Hey, we're walking by. Oh, my God. We're walking by a yard sale. Wow. Okay, guys are doing burpees.

[Earlonne Woods]

Hey, man, you probably running that spot. You probably trying to double hustle.

[Nigel Poor]

Hello. Hello.

[Earlonne Woods]

How you doing? All right. How y'all doing?

[Nigel Poor]

Okay, so we're walking towards my spot spot now. And whenever I think of this spot, it's quiet. So I wish right now it was really quiet. So you're going to have to imagine that there's nobody really around.

[Earlonne Woods]

So this is Nigel's spot.

[Nigel Poor]

This is my spot. Okay, so we're coming towards education and we're going to stop right here. So we're standing in front of education by a chain link fence, and we're looking out to the yard. And this spot makes me really emotional.

[Earlonne Woods]

She's holding on to the gate. Got her fingers through it.

[Nigel Poor]

Yep. Because this is part of the memory. Okay, so this is a hard one. Hello. We won't film you. Don't worry. So when we started Ear Hustle, I used to be in here a lot. And I would come in sometimes, like at 8 in the morning, and I'd be here until the yard closed.

[Earlonne Woods]

Yeah.

[Nigel Poor]

And we just were like, so deep into creating something that we didn't Know what it was going to become. And this is a path I always walk by. And I remember really distinctly. I don't remember the day, but it was an evening in the fall and I was leaving and it was dusk, and I stopped here and I looked out and I knew that we were going to do something really important. And I put my hand up on this fence and I looked through all the little links, and I thought that every link was a story and that there was nothing in the links yet, but we were going to fill them all in. And there were enough links here that we would never run out of stories to do. And so every time I come by here, I think about it. I've never told anyone about it. And it's such a bland place. It's just a stupid chain link fence that looks out into a prison yard. But to me, it's about possibility and it's about being able to see things where other people don't see them. And in my memory, you were here with me, but I'm not sure you were. But in my memory, you were standing next to me, and we both just looked out through the chain link and we didn't say much. And I think I just said to you, this is really beautiful. And you said, it is. And the sun was going down. So that's my memory place.

[Earlonne Woods]

This is your memory place?

[Nigel Poor]

Yeah. Okay. These are like little lenses in a camera. Each one you look through is like looking through something different. Yeah. And it's going to show you something different.

[Earlonne Woods]

So that's your memory, huh?

[Nigel Poor]

It was just clear that, quietly, we were going to do something that mattered, so. And it worked out.

[Earlonne Woods]

Oh.

[Nigel Poor]

So you know what I just realized?

[Earlonne Woods]

What's that?

[Nigel Poor]

That both of our memories rely on chain link fence. Yeah.

[Earlonne Woods]

Two different reasons, though.

[Nigel Poor]

Yep.

[Earlonne Woods]

One is for security, and one is for creative thinking, creative stories.

[Nigel Poor]

Yeah.

[Earlonne Woods]

I know that guy. Uh.

[Nigel Poor]

Oh, he's one of the stories.

[Earlonne Woods]

What's up, Cowboy?

[Nigel Poor]

Hey, Cowboy. Yep, we're doing some interviews. Good to see you.

[Earlonne Woods]

See, seeing Cowboy takes it all the way back to the beginning when you said that I don't like to come into prison as much.

[Nigel Poor]

Into prison or to San Quentin?

[Earlonne Woods]

Well, I say to San Quentin, you know, because, you know, you see individuals that's still there, that's still, you know, doing pretty much the same stuff, you know, when you were in there. And in my mind, it go deeper than that. It go into you still going through the strip searches, you still going through the whatever, you know, the prison bullshit. I don't have that struggle no more. So seeing people that was in the same struggle that I was in, and I'm no longer in it, and I see them still in it, is kind of. It affects you. It hits you in different spots.

[Nigel Poor]

Well, and Cowboy's a good example of that, because he is someone who does the same thing every day.

[Earlonne Woods]

Every day.

[Nigel Poor]

Yeah. You can count on him. Well, I appreciate that, Earlonne. It's really interesting to hear that. And I know when I started this episode, it was really supposed to be about Death Row. And then it grew into something about memory in general and how places hold memory for people. And I felt like it wasn't going to be done until we both had the opportunity to talk about a place in San Quentin that was meaningful to us. Just don't admit you built this one. No, my. I really wanted to find a way for us to acknowledge just the importance of that place and the history we have there. I didn't want to leave us out of the story, you know?

[Earlonne Woods]

Okay.

[Nigel Poor]

I'm glad to be on this journey with you.

[Earlonne Woods]

Glad to be on it with you as well, my friend.

[Nigel Poor]

Yeah. Radiotopia from prx.