Sam Paddor is an incoming student at Tulane University and amateur Music Historian. Through Sam's music history interests, he has worked as a DJ, interviewer, podcaster, and music manager at his high school's radio station, KMIH 889 The Bridge, interned as a publicist for David Grisman's record label Acoustic Disc, and studied as a fellow at the Woody Guthrie Center. Sam's 60+ interviews with musicians serve as pieces of history in themselves, preserving these musicians' stories for anyone to hear.
New York Times Podcasts
Sam's entry as a Sophomore in high school was selected as a Winner in the New York Times 6th Annual Podcast Contest
Sam's entry as a Junior in high school was selected as a Winner in the New York Times 7th Annual Podcast Contest
Sam's entry as a Senior in high school was selected as a Runner Up in the New York Times 8th Annual Podcast Contest
Phil Ochs Fellowship
Sam was recently selected for the Phil Ochs Fellowship, a selective program offered by the Woody Guthrie Center Archives and A Still Small Voice Inc at the Woody Guthrie Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. For the fellowship, Sam is in the process of creating a 6 part biographical podcast on Phil Ochs' life and musical legacy. The podcast series will be approximately 90 minutes in length altogether and will feature interviews of Sonny Ochs, Arlo Guthrie, Elijah Wald and over 5 other musicians, friends of Ochs, and music historians. The series is expected to release in Fall 2025.
Long-Form Interviews
My Back Pages is Sam's podcast series for KMIH 889 The Bridge that he ran throughout his 4 years of High School. The show has grossed over 7,000 downloads and has been listened to on a worldwide scale in over 80 different countries across the globe. My Back Pages is a podcast where Sam interviews musicians that play types of music that range from rock and roll to folk. Sam has interviewed over 60 musicians including various Rock and Roll Hall of Famers.
Awards
Sam's podcast "Singing Songs and Carrying Signs: How Protest Songs Changed America" won in the Best Podcast category at the 2025 Intercollegiate Broadcasting System High School Awards
Sam became the first two-time winner of the New York Times Annual Student Podcast Contest for his podcast "Singing Songs and Carrying Signs: How Protest Songs Changed America"
Sam's podcast "On Stage at Woodstock: Memories of the Festival's Performers" won the New York Times 6th Annual Student Podcast Contest
Sam's Interview with Arlo Guthrie got 2nd place in the Specialty Music Show category at the 2023 John Drury High School Radio Awards
Press
Article spotlighting Sam published in the Mercer Island Reporter
Work experience
September 2021 - June 2022: Introductory Radio Student
September 2022 - June 2023: Advanced Radio Student
September 2023 - June 2024: Music Manager
September 2024 - June 2025: Music Team Member
October 2023 - January 2024: Intern for David Grisman
Sam with Bill Payne, founding keyboardist of Little Feat
Sam with Jorma Kaukonen, founding guitarist of Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna
My Back Pages OFFICIAL PLAYLIST: