Come Back To Earth | Music & Mental Health
by J.D. Murgolo | Story House Studio · 88 episodes
MusicInterviewsHealth
What does it cost to make music, and what does it give back? Come Back to Earth is a weekly music interview podcast where host J.D. Murgolo sits down with musicians and songwriters to explore mental health, creative survival, and the stories hidden behind the songs. We go beyond the stage to uncover the wounds, turning points, and hard-won hopes that shape an artist's life. Through honest conversations about the creative process, music and mental health, and what it means to keep going, this is a show where the music is the doorway — and the soul is the destination. Be...
Latest episodes
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7 min
Season 3 Finale: What 13 Conversations Taught Me About Music and Grief
This season began in grief.My father died on New Year's Day. A few weeks later I sat down with the first guest of Season 3 and asked him what music had taught him about being human…
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37 min
Neither Could Dylan: Why Many Musicians Limit Themselves and How to Break Free
Neither Could Dylan blends rock, punk, and folk into something entirely his own. In this Season 3 finale, Jamie shares how a pandemic hobby became a full creative practice, and how…
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32 min
Grace Palmer: The Song You Wrote on the Floor
“Breathe” was written during one of the most difficult seasons of Grace Palmer's life, when her mother was in intensive care and the weight of uncertainty felt unbearable. After br…
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34 min
Robin Vincent: Modular Synths, Hardware Culture & Why Building Sound by Hand Keeps Us Sane
In this episode of Come Back to Earth, I reflect on the grounding power of having something small you can control — a dial, a cable, a circuit — when the rest of life feels unpredi…
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35 min
Elle Indigo: From Poetry to Music
Elle Indigo has been finding words for things most people leave unnamed. She started in poetry, the private kind, written for no one in particular. Then the words started needing m…
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36 min
Brittney Jenkins: Bending Instead of Breaking — Generational Trauma, Identity & Healing Through Music
Some stories don’t change. We do. In this episode, J.D. sits down with Brittney Jenkins to discuss her song 'Bend to Break' from her album 'Faultlines'. Brittney explores themes of…
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38 min
Joe McLeod: Songwriting Through Grief and the Weight of Becoming the Protector
Grief doesn’t always arrive as tears. Sometimes it arrives as instinct, the sudden, sharp reflex to call someone who isn’t there anymore.I’m sitting down with Canadian folk-pop son…
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26 min
Emilie Thorsby: Songwriting, AI in Music, and the Human Touch
Some songs are written during the day. Others are built in the quiet hours, when no one is watching, when exhaustion meets inspiration, and when something inside refuses to let you…
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36 min
Lavender Fire: Songwriting as a Path to Self-Acceptance and LGBTQ+ Identity
Some songs are written to be heard. Others are written to be seen.I’m joined by singer-songwriter Lavender Fire to discuss her debut album, From Shadows to Light. Her work is a fou…
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38 min
Alex Loeb: The Courage of Direct Expression
Growth isn’t always about finding a voice; often, it’s about the decision to stop softening the one you already have. Today, we sit with Germany-based artist Alex Loeb to explore t…
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32 min
Charlie Void: The Alchemy of Musical Reinvention and Autonomy (Encore)
What happens when the song you’re singing no longer fits the person you’ve become?Growth isn’t always a loud breakthrough; sometimes it is the quiet act of stepping out of the cent…
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35 min
Anthony Church: Instrumental Music as Creative Resilience
In this episode of Come Back to Earth, J.D. reflects on how a familiar melody can suddenly sound different when something within us shifts. He sits down with artist and producer An…
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35 min
Eric Harrison: The Joy of Making Music and Building Community
What if music wasn't an escape, but a way to stay present? We explore the joy of making music and how songs build a music community when we need it most.Not every song is written t…
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26 min
Michael Gilas: The Inheritance of Song and Story
In this season premiere of Come Back to Earth, host J.D. Murgolo reflects on the early Saturday mornings of his youth, music drifting down a hallway, a house quietly breathing, and…
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31 sec
Come Back to Earth — Season 3
A new season is arriving.Come Back to Earth returns this March with a new season of conversations at the intersection of music, memory, and mental health.Season 3 sits with artists…
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33 min
S2E68 - D.K. Lyons
In our Season 2 finale, we sit with D.K. Lyons, a singer-songwriter whose artistic journey has been shaped by personal tragedy, unwavering advocacy, and a fierce commitment to usin…
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38 min
S2E67 - Jody Cooper
In this episode, we sit with Jody Cooper, a D.I.Y. artist and full-time father whose music emerges from the intersection of creative necessity and lived experience. Jody's story is…
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38 min
S2E66 - James Snelling
In this episode, we sit with James Snelling, a neurodivergent singer-songwriter whose journey into music began not in youth but in midlife, after losing his job and facing the kind…
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40 min
S2E65 - Perfect Cadence
In this episode, we sit with Perfect Cadence, a band whose music serves as a lighthouse for anyone navigating the complex terrain of mental health, isolation, and the ongoing work…
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34 min
S2E64 - Mars Hendrik
In this episode, we sit with Mars Hendrik, a musician and coach whose journey from Costa Rica to international stages is really a story about learning to climb — not just toward su…