Apr 17, 2018
Not making it big on Broadway might have been frustrating for Baylen Leonard at the time but it was the UK’s gain as, despite having grown up in relative poverty in the Tennessee foothills, he’s now a well known radio presenter, DJ and broadcaster based in London, well known for having been an integral part of the popular Danny Baker’s team on BBC Radio London, and spreading the country music love around the world. He’s also on first name terms with Dolly Parton, now that to anyone is better than any Broadway part.
On this episode we cover:
His hybrid accent
East Tennessee
The great Smokey Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains and the Blue Ridge Mountains
Bristol Tennessee
The town that lies between two states
State Street
Extreme wealth and poverty
The coal industry
Growing up in a trailer park
Whether it is okay to use the term ‘hill billy’
Wearing the hill billy badge with pride
Farming communities
‘the worst kind of American poverty’
Having a great childhood
The trailer park community
Moving away age 18
Standing out at school
School bullies
Not learning to swim
Life lessons from poverty
High school
Virginia High
Being at the ‘really poor rural high school’
How his life was changed by local community theatre
Being accepted to theatre school in New York
Working in a factory to save money
Making drill bits on a production line
The sisters who would drive from Tennessee to Vegas
How they inspired him to leave
Arriving in New York at the age of 18
The craziness of New York in the 90s
Mayor Giuliani
Stealing books from the library
Bad guide book advice
The unexpected noise of the city
Not liking silence
Loving sky scrapers
Leaving New York for London
Wondering why the hell he had moved
Not becoming a Broadway star
A fascination with the UK
A lucky encounter with a radio producer at a party
Voice overs at BBC Radio 1
Blagging his way into BBC Radio London
Working with Danny Baker
Becoming a big part of the Danny Baker show
Amy Lamee
Americans on the radio
Giving back by helping other people out
Class divide
Badly paid work
Danny Baker’s last show flouncing
What it’s like living as an American in London
George W Bush
A surprise anti-American vibe
Differences between Britain and America
You say tomato, Baylen still stays tomato
London v New York
The Tube v the Subway
London as a ‘big churning animal’
Cracking the London code
Loving to travel
Returning to Nashville
Not having been to Australia or the Far East
Amsterdam, Prague, love of Spain
Plans to visit Mexico
Meeting Dolly Parton
Family vacations at Dollywood
Not liking country music growing up
Now focusing his career on country music
The festival, Nashville Meets London
The Long Road festival
Being thankful for where he is from