Holly Kernan on being lost, falling in love with Nashville, and what public radio is for now

Holly Kernan still needs Google Maps to get around Nashville and she’s fine with that.

Nashville Public Radio’s new CEO came from Oakland, where she spent most of her career in public radio and where, as a fourth-generation Californian, she’s a genuine rarity. Those deep roots didn’t stop her from spending her entire young adulthood in Spain, though, lost and entirely at home making historical documentaries in her second language. It’s a posture she’s carried into every chapter of her life.

Just over half a year in, we talk about what brought her to Nashville, what she sees in this city and what she believes public radio is now that federal funding is gone.

The moment is hard. She’d also argue it’s hopeful. By the end of this interview, you just might believe her.

This episode was produced by Liv Lombardi.