What's The Reason For This Podcast

🔥 Water Tower 💦 finally made it into the dungeon and this one is equal parts bluegrass, punk rock, busking, internet chaos, and good old fashioned DIY hustle.
These guys call themselves punk rock bluegrass, which sounds confusing until you hear the story.
They started with traditional string music, punk rock roots, DIY flyers, busking on freeway off ramps, and a whole lot of figuring it out as they went. Then the pandemic hit, touring disappeared, and somehow that pushed them even harder into building a community online.
🎶 We get into:
🪕 How Water Tower went from square dances to punk rock bluegrass 🚦 Busking on LA freeway off ramps at 6 in the morning
🎻 How the current lineup found each other through busking and random musical collisions
🎸 Why Bela Fleck, Punch Brothers, punk rock, jazz, and old time music all somehow fit in the same universe
📱 How they built an online following without losing the human connection
❤️ Kenny’s approach to dealing with internet hate by giving people more kindness instead of more bullshit
📸 How Jessica became the secret weapon behind their content and helped turn the band into a digital machine
🤝 Collaborations with artists like Sierra Ferrell, Nick Hexum, John C. Reilly, and more
🎟️ The very real challenge of turning views into actual people buying tickets
The funniest part might be that half this band basically met because somebody was busking in somebody else’s spot. 😂
But underneath all the chaos, this episode is really about community, persistence, and refusing to wait for permission.
Water Tower built this thing from freeway ramps, sidewalks, livestreams, liquor stores, social media, and a lot of weird little moments that somehow kept stacking into something bigger. And through all of it, their whole philosophy is pretty simple:
Love the music. Love the people. Keep showing up. ❤️🎶
🎧 New episode with Water Tower is live now
Go watch it. Go listen to it. Buy the ticket before the day of the show.
And if you see somebody busking on an LA off ramp at 6 a.m. maybe don’t ignore them. They might end up at Telluride. 😂🔥

🎸🔥 Jon Stickley finally made it onto WTRFT and this one goes DEEP.
We talk Broke Mountain, learning bluegrass on the fly, the difference between East Coast and Colorado bluegrass, the influence of Jeff Austin, and what happens when a guitar player gets so good that he starts casually discovering new things he didn’t even know he could do. 😂
We also get into:
🪕 The absolutely ridiculous Broke Mountain lineup
🎶 Going from punk and indie rock to flatpicking bluegrass
🏔️ How Colorado changed the way he heard the music
🔥 Playing the Jeff Austin tribute and trading licks with Courtlyn
🥁 Why the Jon Stickley Trio basically said “nah” to the normal bluegrass rulebook
🎸 Building a sound around weird rhythms, different chords, and late-night festival chaos
🤝 Playing with Larry Keel and trying to make your heroes laugh onstage
And then the episode takes a much more personal turn.
Jon opens up about his son Callum, his STXBP1 diagnosis, and how his family turned one of the hardest moments of their lives into Strings for Callum, using the music community to raise awareness and money for research. ❤️
That part really says everything about this scene.
When somebody needs help, people show up.
We also talk about Jon’s new teaching platform, where he’s taking everything he learned the hard way and breaking it down for the rest of us regular wooks who need the video slowed down another 37 times. 😂🎸
🎧 New episode with Jon Stickley is live now
Go watch it. Go listen to it. Support Team Callum.
And if you’ve ever wondered how somebody becomes an absolute monster on guitar, apparently the answer is practice for 20 years and then still tell everyone you’re figuring it out. 😂🔥

🔥 Season 3 keeps getting weirder in the best way.
This week we’ve got Austin Kress, better known as Stony McBlaze, in the dungeon and this one is a full send. 😂🌿🎤
Austin breaks down how a homeschooled Christian kid chasing serious acting in LA somehow turned into one of the internet’s favorite stoners, built a massive following, ended up at the X Games, and then had to figure out how the hell to turn viral fame into an actual comedy career.
🎤 We get into:
🌿 How Stony McBlaze was born
📱 Going viral almost immediately on TikTok
🚀 Riding the algorithm straight to the X Games
💸 Why millions of views do NOT automatically mean millions of dollars
🎭 The difference between playing Stony and being Austin on stage
😂 Why writing stand-up as Stony completely failed
🎟️ The absolutely ridiculous story of almost getting an Austin show cancelled with eight tickets sold
📲 Why having a huge following does not mean people will actually leave their couch and buy a ticket
🧠 Building jokes from real life instead of chasing cheap shock value
🎤 Trying to evolve from “Stony McBlaze” into Austin McBlaze without confusing the hell out of everyone
🍦 And, obviously, a completely necessary breakdown of elite stoner snacks
The funniest part of this episode might be Austin explaining that one of his biggest problems is that people know Stony McBlaze but have no clue he actually does stand-up. Which is a pretty wild problem to have when hundreds of thousands of people follow you. 😂 And then there’s the Austin, Texas show…
Eight tickets sold. 😬
A pissed-off venue. 😡
Random people overseas buying tickets. 🌍
A last-minute social media rally. 📲
And somehow a packed room and a great show at the end of it. 😂🔥
Underneath all the stoner jokes and chaos, this is also a really good conversation about creative identity, social media, stand-up, failure, vulnerability, and figuring out how to turn internet attention into something real.
🎧 Season 3 Episode 3 is live now
🌿 Follow Stony McBlaze
🎤 Go see Austin do stand-up when he comes to your city
📲 And for the love of God, if you say you’re coming to the show... BUY THE TICKET. 😂🔥

🚨 Season 3 keeps rolling with Ben Wright of the Henhouse Prowlers and Bluegrass Ambassadors.
This one goes way beyond bluegrass.
🎻 We get into:
🌍 How the Henhouse Prowlers became musical ambassadors around the world 🪕 The wild story of Ben buying his first banjo for $199.99 🤝 Why music can connect people even when they don’t speak the same language 🇳🇪 Playing banjo alongside an ancestor of the instrument in Niger 🎶 Learning songs from the countries they visit and bringing them back home 🚢 Performing for refugees from dozens of countries in Rotterdam 🔥 Walking onstage with musicians they had never met and figuring it out in real time 🌱 Why community, curiosity, and making people feel seen sit at the heart of everything they do
Ben also opens up about how these experiences changed the mission of the Bluegrass Ambassadors, turning it into something much bigger than touring. It’s about using music to break down barriers, celebrate culture, and remind people that connection can start with something as simple as listening.
One of the wildest moments comes from West Africa, where Ben realized he was playing his banjo alongside an instrument widely considered one of its ancestors. Two musicians from completely different worlds, connected instantly through sound. 🪕🌍🤯
And in Rotterdam, that mission came full circle with performances for refugees and an unrehearsed collaboration that Ben described as scary, imperfect, authentic, and completely human. ❤️🎶
🎧 Watch or listen to the full conversation with Ben Wright.
🌎 Learn more about the Bluegrass Ambassadors and the work they’re doing around the world.
🔥 Follow What’s The Reason For This? for more conversations about the music, people, and community behind the scene.

🚨 SEASON 3 IS HERE — and we’re kicking it off with a bang.
For the first episode of Season 3 of What’s The Reason For This?, we’re joined by Cotter Ellis of Goose for a conversation from the Mishawaka in Colorado.
Since our last conversation, a lot has changed.
💿 Goose released Big Modern! 🏟️ Played Madison Square Garden ⛰️ Took over Red Rocks 🏠 Crashed a Colorado house party 🚀 And continued one of the wildest runs in live music
🥁 We get into:
💿 Creating Big Modern! and finding Cotter’s voice inside Goose
🏟️ What MSG and Red Rocks actually felt like from behind the kit
🪿 The Goose hate, internet critics, and musicians talking shit
🌱 Why growing the jam scene matters more than guarding it
🚌 The real grind of touring and life on the road
🥣 Going from vans and microwave oatmeal to sold-out venues
🥋 The story behind “Suck It, Storm” and “Kung Fu Fighting”
🧩 Goosemas clues, fan theories, and the world being built around the band
❤️ Why the people behind Goose might be the real secret to their success
Cotter also opens up about imposter syndrome, criticism, supporting other artists, success, and what it takes to keep chasing this life when there are no guarantees.
🔥 Season 3 starts right here.
🎧 Watch or listen to the full conversation with Cotter Ellis of Goose.
🪿 Follow What’s The Reason For This? for more conversations from inside the jam, bluegrass, and live music world.
💬 And send this episode to the friend who still thinks Goose is Christian rock. 😂