Name: Dr. Nashlie Sephus by Soul Sessions Jackson
Duration: 9 min 59 s
Description: Today on Soul Sessions, we visit with the founder of the Bean Path, applied science manager for Amazon artificial intelligence, and founder of the Jxn Tech District, tech evangelist, Dr. Nashlie Sephus.

Today on Soul Sessions, we visit with the founder of the Bean Path, applied science manager for Amazon artificial intelligence, and founder of the Jxn Tech District, tech evangelist, Dr. Nashlie Sephus.

Dr. Nashlie Sephus

On today's show, we down with Ally Durr, visual designer by day, soulful musician by calling. From singing gospel with her cousins to releasing her breakthrough single, “What You Livin' For,” to grooving for Aunjanue L. Ellis-Taylor at Tougaloo, Ally's journey through Jackson's music scene is a masterclass in creative courage and community connection.

TRANSCRIPT: https://www.visitjackson.com/blog/soul-sessions-ally-durr

Ally Durr | Singer-Songwriter

On today's show, we're talking with WJTV's Kayla Thompson, who turned a scary moment in Tupelo into a career-defining revelation. Now she's the face of Live at 9, where she spotlights Jackson's creative hustle every weekday morning. Her new book, Master of the Pivot, chronicles her journey from Jacksonville State in Alabama to becoming one of Jackson's most recognizable voices.

TRANSCRIPT: https://www.visitjackson.com/blog/soul-sessions-kayla-thompson

Kayla Thompson | Author, TV Personality

On today's show, we're talking about Mississippi's return to the Tournament of Roses Parade on New Year's Day.


Last year's debut was a landmark moment. 800,000 people on the streets of Pasadena, millions more watching worldwide. This year, Mississippi goes back with a new theme celebrating the arts and Jackson's own USA International Ballet Competition will be represented on the float.


TRANSCRIPT:  https://www.visitjackson.com/blog/soul-sessions-rose-parade

Rochelle Hicks, Katie Coats, and  Mona Nicholas | 2026 Rose Parade

On today's season six opener, we're celebrating what makes Jackson's food scene unlike anywhere else through the voices of the chefs, restaurateurs and the food makers who bring it to life. Hear from Chefs Nick Wallace, Hunter Evans, Enrika Williams, Damien Cavichhi and Chaz Lindsay; distiller Richard Patrick and coffee roaster and expert Trey Malone.

TRANSCRIPT: https://www.visitjackson.com/blog/soul-sessions-culinary-town

JXN, A Culinary Town featuring Nick Wallace, Hunter Evans, Enrika Williams and More

On today’s show, I stepped back and let two incredible chefs talk shop. Geno Lee, the fourth-generation owner of the Big Apple Inn on Farish Street, sits down with Simms Powell, a 15-year-old culinary and artistic prodigy who's been cooking since he was nine. Both are featured on the cover of our 2026 tour guide, and this conversation about Filipino food, fusion cuisine, and what it really takes to make people feel at home through food is exactly why Jackson's culinary scene is second to none.

TRANSCRIPT: https://www.visitjackson.com/blog/soul-sessions-geno-lee-simms-powell

Geno Lee with Simms Powell

Today, we're talking about the HBCU Power Series coming to Trustmark Park in Pearl this February.  Six tradition-rich programs, three days of games, and a weekend that celebrates everything great about HBCU athletics. And yes, your Jackson State Tigers will be playing right here at home.  JSU head baseball Coach Omar Johnson joins us.

TRANSCRIPT: https://www.visitjackson.com/blog/soul-sessions-hbcu-power-series

EXTRA: HBCU Power Series Baseball

On today's show, we're talking about two of those daily rituals with two people who've built their businesses around them: Matt Flinn at Native Coffee Company and Brandi Carter at Levure Wine Shop.

TRANSCRIPT: https://www.visitjackson.com/blog/soul-sessions-matt-flinn-brandi-carter

Matt Flinn - Native Coffee | Brandi Carter - Levure Bottle Shop

On today's show, we're talking about Southern food traditions with two women who are keepers of those traditions in very different ways. Chef Enrika Williams trained at a culinary school in Atlanta and came home to Jackson, the city that's always felt like endless possibilities for her imagination and creativity.  And Glenda Cage Barner opened Sugar's Place on West Griffith Street with her son, Chef Donovan Barner, in 2008. Named for her mother, Velma—everyone called her Sugar—the restaurant feeds everyone from law students to judges, bringing people together over soul food. 

TRANSCRIPT:  https://www.visitjackson.com/blog/soul-sessions-enrika-williams-glenda-barner

Chef Enrika Williams and Glenda Barner (Sugar's Place)

On today's show, we're talking American favorite classic foods with two people who've built their restaurants around it. Jeff Good is the owner of Sal and Mookie's New York Pizza and Ice Cream Joint at The District at Eastover in LeFleur East. Since 2007, he's been making New York-style pizza in Jackson. Fresh dough every day, the kind of slice that folds just perfectly. And Scott Jackson, he's a founding partner of The Pig and Pint in Fondren. A sommelier by trade who got into the restaurant business, Scott was part of the crew that opened The Pig and Pint in 2014, bringing chef-driven barbecue, craft beer, and a whole lot of nostalgia to a neighborhood spot that now draws people from all over the world. 

TRANSCRIPT: https://www.visitjackson.com/blog/soul-sessions-jeff-good-scott-jackson

Jeff Good - Sal & Mookie's | Scott Jackson - The Pig & Pint

Today's episode is a Soul Sessions Extra, a shorter conversation with Jessica Walzer, curator of collections and exhibits at the two Mississippi museums about a brand new exhibition called “Mississippi Made.” In celebration of America 250, it's 250 artifacts spanning from the early 19th century to the present day. Agriculture, manufacturing, music, fashion, science, literature, film, the breadth alone tells you something about what this state has produced. 

TRANSCRIPT: https://www.visitjackson.com/blog/soul-sessions-mississippi-made


Mississippi Made

Be it our people, music, food, history or culture, there’s always something good to talk about in the City With Soul, Jackson, Mississippi!

Visit Jackson is the destination organization charged with connecting, engaging and inspiring the city with a rewarding sense-of-place for visitors and an economically beneficial and an enhanced quality-of-life for residents.

Dr. Nashlie Sephus

Soul Sessions Jackson

Related tracks