BONUS EPISODE 4: The Sound of a Story

Summary

Everything They Missed — BONUS EPISODE 4: The Sound of a Story

Host: Stephanie Tinsley
Guest: Brazen Cyrus
Date: July 27, 2026

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Main Theme

This bonus episode explores the pivotal role of sound and music in telling the story of Danny Harris’s 2007 unsolved murder in Memphis. Host Stephanie Tinsley reflects on how the podcast’s sound design, shaped with musician/producer Brazen Cyrus, not only creates atmosphere but also shapes the emotional truth of a story rooted in place, heartbreak, and resilience.

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Episode Breakdown

1. Setting the Stage — The Heart and Soul of Tennessee

[00:24] - [04:20]

• Stephanie opens by comparing Nashville and Memphis
  “If Nashville is the heart of Tennessee, then Memphis is its soul... Memphis sings the blues. It's gospel. It's soul. It's Elvis, it's stacks, it's Beale street, it's grit, it's resilience.” (Host, 03:19)
• Establishes that for her, sound is essential to bringing a story to life:
  “Sound design isn't something you simply add at the end. It's the backbone of a story.” (Host, 00:47)
• Personal ties to Memphis:
  Stephanie details her family connection to the city, making the case personal.
• Purpose:
  To make listeners feel — the hope, frustration, and heartbreak of a case that’s been mostly silent for nearly two decades.

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2. Meet the Sound Designer: Brazen Cyrus

[04:20] - [05:16]

• Introduction to Brazen Cyrus:
  A Nashville songwriter/producer with a pedigree in scoring for games, miniseries, and personal music releases.
  • “I'm Brazen Cyrus, and I'm a Nashville songwriter, producer, artist, all that jazz.” (Brazen Cyrus, 04:24)
• Career highlights:
  “I started songwriting 2018... was lucky enough to be on Tonight Show, Colbert back in the day, and then Covid happened and transitioned into producing and writing for other artists.” (Brazen Cyrus, 04:38)

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3. The Fusion of Storytelling and Sound

[05:16] - [06:14]

• Stephanie on what made Brazen special:
  “He wasn't thinking about background music. He was thinking about emotion.” (Host, 05:16)
• On Nashville vs. Memphis creativity:
  • “Nashville's not as gritty as Memphis, for sure.” (Host, 05:30)
  • Brazen adds: “Nashville's always been an entertainment city with lots of different kinds of people.” (Brazen Cyrus, 05:51)
• Link between music, storytelling, and true crime:
  “Storytelling and music are just hand in hand in this story.” (Host, 05:55)

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4. Sounding Out the Darkness

[06:14] - [08:02]

• The challenge:
  “This wasn't a love story. It wasn't an adventure. It was the story of two men who lost their lives... What should a story like that sound like?” (Host, 06:14)
• Brazen’s creative process:
  • Gets more material to work with than usual:
    “Rather than me starting not knowing what the whole thing is, like, I got to be like, okay, I'm getting to like listen to things first and then add to it.” (Brazen Cyrus, 06:57)
• The city as a character:
  Stephanie: “This story is Memphis.” (Host, 08:02)
  • Creating the “Memphis” sound is crucial, not just background, but personality.

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5. Building the Memphis Sound

[08:02] - [09:12]

• Music as city identifier:
  “The only way between interviews and accents to really identify the city is through music.” (Host, 08:04)
• Brazen’s musical approach:
  • Starts with noir, moves to somber and uplifting, then gets more bluesy at the host’s request.
  • “I know I was doing slide guitar with a lighter, but then I played electric guitar live over it.” (Brazen Cyrus, 08:22)

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6. The Invisible Power of Sound Design

[09:12] - [09:47]

• Beyond music — the texture of sound:
  • “Most people notice music. They rarely notice sound... Take all of it away, and suddenly the story feels empty.” (Host, 09:12)
  • “You don't notice sound until it disappears.” (Host, 09:12)
• Essence:
  “None of it is really about the sound. It's about what the sound allows you to feel.” (Host, 09:44)

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7. Why Stories Matter

[09:47] - [10:34]

• Brazen on storytelling's ambiguity:
  • “Whenever people are telling you stories, you're not necessarily telling me the truth. You're not necessarily telling me a lie. You're telling me a story and it's up to me or a listener to interpret it.” (Brazen Cyrus, 09:47)
  • “That's why I think stories are a valuable thing for a person to give to you.” (Brazen Cyrus, 10:14)

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8. Reflections and What’s Next

[10:34] - End

• The best sound is the kind you miss when it’s gone:
  • “The best sound design isn't the part you notice. It's the part you miss when it's gone.” (Host, 10:34)
• If listeners felt present in key scenes, “then we got it right.” (Host, 10:41)
• Updates:
  • Next hearing for Andrew Hayes is August 24th.
  • Stephanie promises more behind-the-scenes bonus episodes, keeping the focus on the Harris and Hayes families.
  • “Thank you for caring about this case, and thank you for keeping Andrew Hayes and the Harris family in your thoughts and prayers.” (Host, end)

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Notable Quotes

• “Sound design isn't something you simply add at the end. It's the backbone of a story.”
  – Stephanie Tinsley, [00:47]

• “Memphis sings the blues. It's gospel. It's soul. It's Elvis, it's Stax, it's Beale street, it's grit, it's resilience.”
  – Stephanie Tinsley, [03:19]

• “He wasn't thinking about background music. He was thinking about emotion.”
  – Stephanie Tinsley, [05:16]

• “You're telling me a story and it's up to me or a listener to interpret it, take it as the truth or not believe it.”
  – Brazen Cyrus, [09:47]

• “The best sound design isn't the part you notice. It's the part you miss when it's gone.”
  – Stephanie Tinsley, [10:34]

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Key Segments & Timestamps

• [00:24–04:20] — Setting the mood: Memphis vs. Nashville, importance of sound
• [04:20–05:16] — Meet Brazen Cyrus
• [05:16–06:14] — The intersection of storytelling and music
• [06:14–08:02] — The challenge of soundscaping tragedy
• [08:02–09:12] — Creating the “Memphis” sound, technical and creative methods
• [09:12–09:47] — Why subtle sound matters
• [09:47–10:34] — The truth, lies, and value of stories
• [10:34–end] — Reflections, listener appreciation, updates on the case

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Tone and Language

• Conversational, but reflective and deeply personal.
• Embodies the emotional weight of true crime and the artistic passion behind audio storytelling.
• Especially attentive to the intangible power of music and place.

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This episode is an intimate look behind the textures of Everything They Missed, revealing how careful sound design is used not just for mood, but to let listeners feel the soul of Memphis and the weight of a cold case finally being re-examined.

Transcript

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[Host / Storyteller]

I've lived in Nashville for most of my life, but it took the story of Danny Harris and Andrew Hay to show me that if Nashville is the heart of Tennessee, then Memphis is its soul. But how do you capture that? From the very beginning, I knew everything they missed would take place in Memphis. And I knew one other thing, too. The stories that have stayed with me the longest, the ones I've listened to over and over, weren't memorable just because of the writing. They stayed with me because of the way they sounded. Sound design isn't something you simply add at the end. It's the backbone of a story without it. A story has blood, but it has no veins to carry. Has a heart, but no heartbeat. It has lungs, but no breath. Sound is what gives a story life. Maybe that's because I've spent more than 25 years living in Nashville. People know Nashville as Music City, but I've always thought of it a little differently. I think Nashville is a city of storytellers. Yes, they're writing songs, but underneath every great song is a story, a feeling, a moment that somebody is trying to give to another human being. Every songwriter I know starts with the same question I did when I began making everything they missed. How do you make another person feel something? That question became my obsession because I wasn't just trying to tell Danny Harris and Andrew Hayes's story. I was trying to make you feel what it was like to be there, to feel Memphis, to feel the weight of 20 years, to feel the hope, the frustration, the heartbreak. So after I found this story, I had to find its sound. And that became a journey all on its own. One of the most creative, the most personal, and ultimately one of the most important parts of making everything they missed. If Nashville taught me anything about storytelling, it was that Memphis deserved its own voice. Memphis has a heartbeat that's completely different than any other city. Memphis is weathered. Memphis sings the blues. It's gospel. It's soul. It's Elvis, it's stacks, it's Beale street, it's grit, it's resilience. It's a city that's been through heartbreak and somehow keeps making beautiful things. My dad went to law school in Memphis. My mom taught at Memphis Central High School. My sister was born there. So Memphis was never just another city to me. It was already part of my story. And Before I ever walked into a prison, before I ever sat down across from Andrew Hayes, I knew one thing. This story couldn't sound like it happened anywhere else. It had to sound like Memphis and the people who lived there. That's when I met Brazen Cyrus. Brazen grew up in one of America's most musical families, but what interested me wasn't his last name. It was the way he thought about stories. Because while I was trying to figure out how the story should be told, Brazen was trying to figure out how it should feel. And that's where our conversation begins. This is bonus episode four, the Sound of a Story.

[Interviewer]

First of all, before I forget, say

[Host / Storyteller]

your name and kind of what you

[Brazen Cyrus]

do, and I'm Brazen Cyrus, and I'm a Nashville songwriter, producer, artist, all that jazz.

[Interviewer]

Just kind of walk me through your love of music and how all that came to be.

[Brazen Cyrus]

Yeah, so I, you know, I. I started songwriting 2018, put out a few things on my own, did the touring circuit, late night circuit, was lucky enough to be on tonight's show. Colbert back in the day, and then Covid happened and transitioned into producing and writing for other artists. I've done full albums for artists for myself, but also have done scoring for mobile games, video games, and then also little miniseries and stuff like that.

[Host / Storyteller]

One of the things I loved immediately about Brazen wasn't that he could write songs. It was that he understood storytelling. He wasn't thinking about background music. He was thinking about emotion.

[Interviewer]

Nashville, to me, when I think about it, like, I couldn't think of any other place where I would want to write or produce a true crime podcast, to be honest, because it's just so rich in storytellers and writers, creatives. But then it's got a grittiness to it. Nashville's not as gritty as Memphis, for sure.

[Brazen Cyrus]

Nashville's always been a entertainment city with lots of different kinds of people.

[Interviewer]

Music means so much to me in storytelling. I don't know if it's because I'm a Nashville person or what, but storytelling and music are just hand in hand in this story.

[Host / Storyteller]

Sound design would be crucial for everything they missed. But knowing that and actually creating it are two very different things, because this wasn't a love story. It wasn't an adventure. It was the story of two men who lost their lives, Danny Harris and Andrew Hayes. So it raised a question I never had to ask before. What should a story like that sound like?

[Interviewer]

I want to talk about specifically how you got in that mindset of creating music for this And I'm talking about your creative process. Is there a difference in when you sit down to write for podcasts, not

[Brazen Cyrus]

only knowing you, but having, like, more pieces to work off of than I usually do? It was a big reason why I wanted to work on it. Whether I'm producing something totally from scratch or making, you know, like a score soundtrack for something like this, it's putting pieces together. It's like no matter what you're producing or what you're writing, there's always pieces being put together. Usually whenever I score other things, I don't get to see really what it is. If it's miniseries or a game, I don't really get to experience it before making it. Like, I get described what it is, but I don't get any access to anything, I don't think. When I very first started, I had whole episodes, but I had, like, interviews, and I had things like that. So rather than, you know, me starting not knowing what the whole thing is, like, I got to be like, okay, I'm getting to, like, listen to things first and then add to it.

[Host / Storyteller]

This story is Memphis.

[Interviewer]

I think the only way between, you know, interviews and accents to really identify the city is through music. I mean, it's crucial.

[Host / Storyteller]

It's almost like another host, you know,

[Interviewer]

like, I usher the story along.

[Brazen Cyrus]

I started with a couple tracks that I feel like were mainly more true to form. Like, I would almost say modern noir, sort of creepy but dramatic, where it's that kind of uneasiness. I also did a couple that were more somber, and then a couple that were more uplifting. And then you came back to me and asked to, you know, deliver some more bluesy things. I know I was doing slide guitar with a lighter, but then I played, you know, electric guitar live over it. And I definitely feel like there could be moments where it's like something swells here and it clashes with the dialogue.

[Host / Storyteller]

Most people notice music. They rarely notice sound, but take all of it away. The room tone, a train, the wind, distant traffic, the doors slamming as you walk toward an interview. You take all of that away, and suddenly the story feels empty. You don't notice sound until it disappears. Because none of it is really about the sound. It's about what the sound allows you to feel. And ultimately, it's about the story.

[Brazen Cyrus]

Well, I think, like, the reason stories are interesting, even, like a story like this, where you're meeting the people and talking to them and listening to what they have to say face to face, they're giving you the story that doesn't mean the truth or a lie? It is both. And I think that that's like why I love listening to people talk. Whenever people are telling you stories, you're not necessarily telling me the truth. You're not necessarily telling me a lie. You're telling me a story and it's up to me or a listener to interpret it, take it as the truth or not believe it. That's why I think stories are a valuable thing for a person to give to you.

[Host / Storyteller]

Coming from Music City, maybe I always believed stories to deserved their own soundtrack. But making everything they missed taught me something else. The best sound design isn't the part you notice. It's the part you miss when it's gone. If you felt like you were there in Flora's living room, inside that prison, across the table from Steven in that cafe, or chasing leads through Oklahoma with Investigator Q, then we got it right. Andrew Hayes next hearing is set for August 24th. While we wait, I want to take you behind the scenes of everything they missed, introduce you to some of the people who helped bring this story to life, and share parts of the investigation you haven't heard before. August 24th is the next chapter in Andrew's story. It's the hearing we've all been patiently waiting for. Until then, I'll be back with a few more bonus episodes. Thank you for caring about this case, and thank you for keeping Andrew Hayes and the Harris family in your thoughts and prayers.