Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Gregory Pardlo reads his poem, Double Dutch, in full. BEWARE: listen to the full Double Dutch episode (posted 2/13) before listening to this! There are spoilers!!!!!

LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW WITH GREGORY ON THE NICHE NOTES SUBSTACK (paid subscribers). We'll be releasing more from this story over there, along with monthly Nicheletters with intel on what's going on in the Nicheverse.

Have feedback or just want to say hi? Email us: hello@nichetomeetyou.show

ABOUT US:

Niche to Meet You is an anthropological exploration of the hidden corners of everyday life, seen through subcultures and hobbies. Each episode blends reporting and curiosity to ask how people find belonging, community, and a sense of self in the things they love. Our work has been called "masterfully written" by Malcolm Gladwell, and reporting from the project has been featured on NPR’s Morning Edition and Nashville Public Radio. Our stories introduce listeners to folks involved with things like Warhammer 40,000, Rubik’s cube enthusiasts and competitors, armored combat champions, professional Santas and Mrs. Clauses, and more. It's like if Mr. Rogers Neighborhood and Revisionist History teamed up for a Netflix special. LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SHOW HERE.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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On February 13th, Niche to Meet You explores Double Dutch jump roping.

Double Dutch is jumping rope with two ropes instead of one. To really know Double Dutch, though, is to know a lineage of history, culture, and joy, carried by Black girls and women across generations. From Nashville to New York City, Niche to Meet You gets in the ropes to understand how Double Dutch became a cultural practice rooted in joy, play, and community—and why the girls who built it were so often left out of the official story. The episode features voices like Dr. Kyra Gaunt, ethnomusicologist and author of The Games Black Girls Play, and the Fantastic Four—Dolores Brown, De'Shone Adams, Robin Oaks, and Adrian Adams—the groundbreaking Double Dutch team that won the 1980 national championship and toured Europe in the earliest days of hip-hop, only to be written out of its mythology. Leslie watches Double Dutch in action at Nashville’s 40+ Double Dutch club, and gets coached in NYC’s Washington Square Park by coach Shakira “Kira” Lee, whose pop-up sessions turn public parks into spaces of communal joy. Then, Pulitzer Prize–winning poet Gregory Pardlo reflects on watching girls jump Double Dutch as a child, and why writing about that joy still matters.

Make plans to listen on February 13!

If you sign up for the Niche Notes substack you'll get an exclusive sneak peek a few days before the episode releases, along with updates about the project and additional reporting that wont end up on this feed.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A brand new Christmas vignette about one of our favorite characters in the Nicheverse. Thanks to the Nashville Banner for making it happen!

Links I told you about:

• Join the Niche List
• NPR's Morning Edition story
• The Full Santa 3-Part Series

Have feedback or just want to say hi? Email me: hello@nichetomeetyou.show

ABOUT US:

Niche to Meet You is anthropological exploration into the hidden corners of life through the lens of its subcultures and hobbies. Our work has been featured on NPR's Morning Edition, Nashville Public Radio and has been seen in the likes of The Guardian and the 1440 newsletter. Our stories introduce listeners to folks involved with things like Warhammer 40,000, Rubik’s cube enthusiasts and competitors, armored combat champions, professional Santas and Mrs. Clauses, and more. It's like if Mr. Rogers Neighborhood and Revisionist History teamed up for a Netflix special.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SHOW HERE.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The top 5 nic(h)est moments of all time AND a big ol update.

Join the Niche List

Have feedback or just want to say hi? Email us: hello@nichetomeetyou.show

EPISODE NOTES:

Hear an update on the future of the show, and listen to Leslie talk about the top 5 nichest moments of all time on the show. Moments taken from:

• Stick Nation
• Wild Turkey Conservation Series
• Santa Series

ABOUT US:

Niche to Meet You is an investigative storytelling podcast about the little-known niche interests. Our work has been featured on Nashville Public Radio and has been seen in the likes of The Guardian and the 1440 newsletter. Our stories introduce listeners to folks involved with things like Warhammer 40,000, Rubik’s cube enthusiasts and competitors, armored combat champions, professional Santas and Mrs. Clauses, and more. It's like if Mr. Rogers Neighborhood and Revisionist History teamed up for a Netflix special.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SHOW HERE.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our summer radio special, in partnership with American Public Media

LINKS:

• Join the Niche List (our monthly newsletter…er, Nicheletter)
• Have feedback or just want to say hi? Email us: hello@nichetomeetyou.show

EPISODE NOTES:

We got invited to produce an hourlong radio special for American Public Media, and wanted to share it with you. It’s taken from some of our early episodes, so if you’ve joined Niche Nation in 2025, this is all new content for you!

So hop on the niche party bus, because we’re taking you on a summer road trip to explore niche interests both on-the-road and at home. From Rubik’s speed cubing to dog agility, and from regional cooking to competitive jigsaw puzzling.

ABOUT US:

Niche to Meet You is an investigative storytelling podcast about the little-known niche interests. Our work has been featured on Nashville Public Radio and has been seen in the likes of The Guardian and the 1440 newsletter. Our stories introduce listeners to folks involved with things like Warhammer 40,000, Rubik’s cube enthusiasts and competitors, armored combat champions, professional Santas and Mrs. Clauses, and more. It's like if Mr. Rogers Neighborhood and Revisionist History teamed up for a Netflix special.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SHOW HERE.

SHOW CREDITS:

Senior creator/host: Leslie Thompson

Associate Script Editor: Chris Thiessen

Show theme by Abigail Flowers with this arrangement of the theme Produced & Arranged by Abigail Flowers, Chris Leidhecker, Kevin Gift

Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions

Episode mastering by Kevin Morris

Show artwork created by Rachel Hardacre

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Niche to Meet You takes to the high seas in search of the unconquerable.

LINKS:

• Join the Niche List (our monthly newsletter…er, Nicheletter)
• Find photos of Leslie’s time at the Barkley on the show page
• Have feedback or just want to say hi? Email us: hello@nichetomeetyou.show

EPISODE NOTES:

Somewhere deep in the Tennessee woods, there’s a race with no finish line — at least not one most people will ever reach. There’s no official website, no posted start time, and the course changes every year. Runners carry pages torn from books as proof they’ve completed each loop. And it all begins with the lighting of a cigarette.

The Barkley Marathons isn’t just an ultramarathon. It’s a ritual. A myth. A puzzle designed to break you — mentally, physically, spiritually. In this episode, we crack open a great American novel written in the 1800s, Moby Dick, as a map to discover a bizarre niche that even has its own captain Ahab, a man named Lazarus Lake. But whereas Ahab is driven by hate for the white whale, Laz and the runners of the Barkley are driven by something completely different. What we find in our quest is the same Ishmael found in his search for the white whale: it’s a meditation on suffering, identity, and the purpose of attempting the impossible.

LINKS MENTIONED:

• Lazarus Lake biography

ABOUT NICHE TO MEET YOU:

Niche to Meet You is an investigative storytelling podcast about the little-known niche interests. Our work has been featured on Nashville Public Radio and has been seen in the likes of The Guardian and the 1440 newsletter. Our stories introduce listeners to folks involved with things like Warhammer 40,000, Rubik’s cube enthusiasts and competitors, armored combat champions, professional Santas and Mrs. Clauses, and more. It's like if Mr. Rogers Neighborhood and Revisionist History teamed up for a Netflix special.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SHOW HERE.

SHOW CREDITS:

Senior creator/host: Leslie Thompson

Associate Script Editor: Chris Thiessen

Show theme by Abigail Flowers with this arrangement of the theme Produced & Arranged by Abigail Flowers, Chris Leidhecker, Kevin Gift

Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions

Episode mastering by Kevin Morris

Show artwork created by Rachel Hardacre

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.