Episode 140

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Published on:

26th Aug 2025

Michael McDonald with Andrew Walen

We take a trip back to the 70s, 80s and back to now as we sing, in a gravelly soulful voice, the praises of one Michael McDonald, Brother of Doobie, maestro of the piano, and owner of cool hair. Our guest is our friend, musician, author, and mental health advocate Andrew Walen, who is a longtime friend of Lynne and Leslie's, and a longtime devoted fan of Michael McDonald's. This was a really really fun episode, where we talk reinvention, fandom, and why we don't like the term "Yacht Rock", while we love the music put in that genre. We hope you love it.

Andrew Walen, a magna cum laude graduate from Berklee College of Music ('95). His journey began with him moving from Boston to Nashville where he thrived as a singer/songwriter and guitarist. Known for his performances in the iconic Lower Broadway clubs, Andrew released several CDs and had his songs recorded by artists across various genres, including children's music, R&B, rock, and country. Andrew later shifted his talents to music journalism, writing for both local and national publications. Andrew earned a degree in social work from the University of Tennessee and built a successful 20-year career as a psychotherapist and mental health executive in Nashville and Baltimore. Andrew felt drawn back to his first love: music. He opened the School of Rock in Pikesville, where he combines his deep industry knowledge and therapeutic skills to inspire and mentor the next generation of musicians.

You can find him and School of Rock Pikesville on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, and you can find the article that Leslie wrote about Andrew for the Baltimore Banner here!

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About the Podcast

Fine Beats & Cheeses
with Leslie & Lynne
Fine Beats & Cheeses with Leslie & Lynne celebrates cheesy pop culture.

About your hosts

Leslie Gray Streeter

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Leslie Gray Streeter is an author, veteran journalist, and speaker whose memoir “Black Widow” was published in March 2020 by Little, Brown, and Company. She is the lifestyle columnist for the Baltimore Banner, formerly the longtime entertainment and lifestyle columnist and writer for the Palm Beach Post. A native of Baltimore, Md, and a University of Maryland graduate, she and her work have been featured in The Miami Herald, the Washington Post, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Atlantic, the Today show, SiriusXM, O, The Oprah Magazine, and more. She lives with her son Brooks in her hometown of Baltimore. She’s a slow runner, an amateur vegan cook, and a true crime and “Law and Order” enthusiast.

Lynne Streeter Childress

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Lynne Streeter Childress is an actor, director, teaching artist, and playwright. She is the founding artistic director of Building Better People Productions, a theater for young audiences company in Annapolis, MD. Her 28-year career in professional theater includes performing at the Kennedy Center, Arena Stage, and Adventure Theatre and teaching for institutions like the Folger Shakespeare Library and Baltimore School For the Arts, where she is currently a member of the theater faculty.  Lynne has seen firsthand how theater can communicate the most important things in the clearest and most interesting of ways, especially to young people. She lives in Annapolis, MD, with her husband and son.