Duke Teynor explodes into uncharted creativeterritory with "Energy Gum"—a vibrant indie pop anthem that tradesSouthern Gothic shadows and German industrial darkness for pure, unapologeticsunshine energy. This isn't the Duke Teynor of haunted pinewoods or Berlintechno basements; this is Duke embracing commercial pop sensibility with thesame fearless authenticity he brings to every genre he touches.

Clocking in at 140 BPM with infectiouselectronic synths, driving basslines, and layered vocal harmonies that wouldmake Tame Impala nod in approval, "Energy Gum" is unabashedly fun—acelebration of focus, productivity, and that caffeine-fueled flow state we allchase. The production incorporates subtle gum-chewing percussion effects thattransform mundane into musical, turning the simple act of chewing into rhythmictexture. It's clever, playful, and demonstrates Duke Teynor's production versatility.

The music video mirrors the song's energeticoptimism with explosive color palettes—neon pinks, electric blues, brightyellows that contrast sharply with Duke's typically moody cinematography. Shotacross dynamic urban locations including coffee shops, creative studios,skateparks, and rooftop performances, the video captures modern hustle culturewith genuine enthusiasm rather than cynicism.

Hey everyone, Summer here, and welcome back to the Duke Tyner podcast

Today we're diving deep into the Carolina pinewoods. We're talking aboutghosts, curses, and eternal longing turned malevolent. We're talking about oneof Duke Tyner's most haunting creations—"The Woman in Black."

If you've been following Duke's work in the Southern Gothic realm, youalready know about "Devil's Circle"—that chilling ballad about NorthCarolina's legendary Devil's Tramping Ground, where nothing grows and the Devilhimself is said to pace at night. "The Woman in Black" takes thatmythology and expands it into something even darker, even more tragic, andhonestly, even more terrifying.

This isn't just a music video. This is a cinematic descent into NorthCarolina folklore's darkest corner, where a spectral bride waits in cursedcircles for souls foolish enough to answer her siren call.

So settle in, maybe leave a light on, and let's talk about Duke Tyner'smasterpiece of Southern Gothic horror.

PART ONE: THE LEGEND EXPANDS

Let's start with the mythology, because "The Woman in Black"doesn't exist in isolation. Duke built this on the foundation he establishedwith "Devil's Circle."

The Devil's Tramping Ground is a real place near Siler City, NorthCarolina. It's a forty-foot circle of barren earth where nothing grows, nothinghas grown for over a century, and according to local legend, the Devil himselfpaces there nightly, plotting humanity's downfall. Objects placed in the circleget thrown out by morning. Animals refuse to enter. People who sleep therereport nightmares so vivid they wake up screaming.

Duke captured all of that in "Devil's Circle." But then heasked a deeper question: What if the Devil isn't alone out there? What ifsomething else haunts that cursed ground?

Enter the Woman in Black.

Duke researched local folklore and found whispered stories—not aswell-known as the main legend, but there, if you know where to look. Storiesabout a woman in a wedding gown seen at the circle's edge. Stories about avoice that sounds like wind through pines but carries words. Stories about menwho went into those woods and never came back, or came back changed, haunted,speaking about a bride who wouldn't let them go.

Duke took those fragments and built a complete mythology. The Woman inBlack was promised—engaged to be married—but abandoned on her wedding day. Thebetrayal and heartbreak were so profound, so consuming, that when she died, herspirit couldn't rest. She was drawn to the Devil's circle, that place ofabandonment and cursed earth, and there she waits. Eternal. Patient. Lonely.

Well, we're in the heart of the holiday season now, and if you're likeme, you've probably been thinking about all those traditions that make thistime of year special. The decorations, the music, the gatherings with familyand friends. And of course... the candy.

Today we're diving into something that's been part of Christmascelebrations for generations—homemade Christmas candy. We're talking aboutthose sweet traditions that get passed down through families. The recipeswritten on index cards in your grandmother's handwriting. The techniques thatseem almost magical when you're a kid watching the adults work in the kitchen.

Whether it's fudge, peanut brittle, divinity, pralines, peppermint bark,or any of the dozens of candies that show up on holiday tables across the Southand beyond—there's something special about making candy at Christmastime. It'schemistry, it's art, it's tradition, and honestly, it's a little bit of magic.

So grab yourself something warm to drink, settle in, and let's talk aboutthe sweet science and beautiful tradition of making Christmas candy.

THE TRUTH ABOUT FEEDING YOUR CAT

Separating Fact fromFiction in Feline Nutrition

Welcome, I'm your host Summer, and today we're tackling one of the mostconfusing topics in pet care: how to properly feed your cat.

Now, if you're a cat owner, you've probably been bombarded withconflicting advice. Feed them grain-free! No, grains are fine! Raw food only!Wet food is better! Dry food is more convenient! Your cat needs milk! Wait,cats are lactose intolerant!

It's enough to make your head spin. And here's the thing - a lot of whatwe believe about cat nutrition is based on myths, marketing, andwell-intentioned but outdated information.

Today, we're going to separate fact from fiction. We're going to bustsome myths, share some surprising science, and by the end of this episode,you'll have a much clearer understanding of what your cat actually needs tothrive.

So grab your coffee - or should I say, grab your cat some water, becausespoiler alert: they shouldn't be drinking milk - and let's dive in.

SEGMENT 1: THE FOOD ALLERGY MYTH

Let's start with something that might genuinely surprise you. How many ofyou have switched your cat to a grain-free diet because you thought they mightbe allergic to grains?

If you raised your hand, you're not alone. The grain-free pet food markethas absolutely exploded in recent years. But here's the truth that themarketing departments don't want you to know:

Only about 10% of cats actually have food allergies.

Let me say that again. One in ten. That's it.

And when cats DO have food allergies - and this is the really interestingpart - they're usually allergic to proteins, not grains. The most commonculprits? Chicken, beef, fish, and dairy. Not corn. Not wheat. Not rice.

In fact, research from veterinary dermatologists shows that grains causeallergic reactions in less than 1% of cats with food allergies. So if your cathas a food allergy, which is already unlikely, and it IS allergic to grains,which is even more unlikely - well, you've got yourself a statistical unicorn.

Now, I'm not saying grain-free diets are bad. For some cats, they workgreat. But if you're spending extra money on grain-free food because you thinkgrains are inherently bad for cats, or because you're worried about allergies,you might be solving a problem your cat doesn't have.

The reality is that cats are obligate carnivores - meaning they need meatto survive - but small amounts of grains aren't harmful to most cats. In fact,they can provide fiber and other nutrients.

The real issue with many commercial cat foods isn't the grains - it's thequality of the protein, the amount of filler, and the overall nutritionalbalance.

So before you spend premium dollars on grain-free food, talk to your vet.If your cat is showing actual signs of allergies - things like excessivescratching, skin irritation, digestive issues, or chronic ear infections - thenyes, an elimination diet might be necessary. But the grain-free label aloneisn't a magic solution.

3I/ATLAS is only the third known interstellar object ever detected passing through our solar system. The first was ‘Oumuamua in 2017, followed by the comet 2I/Borisov in 2019. Each discovery has challenged what we thought we knew about space debris traveling between star systems. Unlike asteroids or comets born around our Sun, interstellar objects carry the chemical fingerprints of distant stellar environments — essentially acting as time capsules from other star systems.

What makes 3I/ATLAS especially compelling is its behavior. As it approaches the Sun, it shows comet-like activity — releasing gas and dust — but its trajectory reveals that it is not bound to our solar system’s gravity. It is simply passing through, unaffected by our Sun in the long term, destined to leave and continue its lonely journey across the galaxy.

Scientists are eager to study objects like 3I/ATLAS because they offer rare clues about how planets and comets form around other stars. The gases released from its nucleus can be analyzed to determine its composition, which may differ from comets we’re familiar with. Even small differences can reshape our understanding of how common certain elements are across the galaxy — elements that may be essential for life.

There’s also a deeper, more philosophical angle. Objects like 3I/ATLAS remind us that our solar system is not isolated. The galaxy is dynamic, filled with wandering debris from countless star systems. At any given moment, something ancient and alien could be silently passing through our skies, unseen.

While there is no danger from 3I/ATLAS — it will pass at a safe distance — its presence sparks curiosity and wonder. It’s a cosmic traveler, a messenger from far beyond, briefly illuminated by our Sun before fading back into interstellar darkness.

Moments like this put things into perspective. Long before humans looked up at the stars, 3I/ATLAS was already on its journey. Long after we’re gone, it will continue onward — a quiet witness to the vast story of the universe.

And for a brief moment, it’s passing by us… reminding us how small we are, and how incredible it is to be here, looking up.

Today we're diving into something that might surprise you. We're nottalking music, we're not talking policy, we're not even talking about thelatest AI developments. Today, we're talking about a grain. But not just anygrain.

We're talking about sorghum—one of the most ancient, resilient, andfrankly underappreciated crops on planet Earth. A grain that's been feedinghumanity for over five thousand years. A grain that survives where corn andwheat can't. A grain that's about to become absolutely critical as our climatecontinues changing and our global population keeps growing.

Sorghum. The ancient grain that might just save our future.

So settle in, because we're about to explore the fascinating history, theincredible versatility, and the untapped potential of this remarkable plant.And I guarantee you, by the end of this episode, you'll never look at thishumble grain the same way again.

Let's get into it.

PART ONE: THE ANCIENT HISTORY

Alright, so let's start at the beginning. And I mean the verybeginning—because sorghum has been around longer than most of what we callcivilization.

Archaeological evidence suggests that sorghum was first domesticated innortheastern Africa, specifically in what's now Ethiopia and Sudan, somewherebetween 8,000 and 5,000 BCE. That's right—we're talking about a crop thatpredates the Egyptian pyramids. While our ancestors were still figuring out howto transition from hunter-gatherers to agricultural societies, they werealready cultivating sorghum.

Why? Because it worked where nothing else would.

See, the regions where sorghum originated were harsh. Hot. Dry.Unpredictable rainfall. Soil that wasn't particularly forgiving. And yet peopleneeded food. They needed reliable calories. They needed something that couldhandle the brutal conditions of sub-Saharan Africa and still produce a harvest.

Sorghum was the answer.

From those African origins, sorghum spread throughout the continent,becoming a staple crop for countless cultures. It moved into West Africa,became central to diets across the Sahel region, spread south into variouskingdoms and empires. Everywhere it went, it adapted. Different varietiesemerged for different conditions—some for wetter climates, some for extremedrought, some for altitude, some for heat.

And here's what's remarkable: Unlike wheat or rice, which require veryspecific growing conditions, sorghum is basically the survivor of the grainworld. It's the plant equivalent of that person who can sleep on a concretefloor, eat whatever's available, and still wake up ready to work. Sorghumdoesn't complain. It just grows.

The grain eventually made its way across the Indian Ocean through ancienttrade routes, establishing itself in India and parts of Asia. Differentcultures adopted it, gave it different names, developed different uses. InIndia, it became jowar. In China, gaoliang. Each culture recognized whatAfrican farmers had known for millennia—this grain was reliable.

Now, sorghum didn't arrive in the Americas until much later. It came withthe slave trade—a dark chapter of history, but one that's important toacknowledge. Enslaved Africans brought sorghum seeds with them, maintaining aconnection to their homeland through this familiar crop. In the American South,sorghum found another home, another set of conditions where it could thrive.

By the 1850s, sorghum cultivation had expanded across the southern UnitedStates. Farmers discovered something interesting—you could not only eat thegrain, but certain varieties of sorghum produced incredibly sweet juice thatcould be boiled down into syrup. Sweet sorghum became a major crop,particularly during the Civil War when sugar supplies from Louisiana weredisrupted. Sorghum syrup became the sweetener of choice across much of ruralAmerica.

Hey everyone, Duke Teynor here.

And today... we're talking about something I've been waiting to sharewith you for months.

We just released the music video for "Eternal Design" by 3 iAtlas. And I'm not gonna lie—this might be the most ambitious, visually insane,emotionally devastating thing I've ever been part of.

This isn't just a music video. This is a cinematic experience. This ismythology built from sound and stone. This is what happens when you take theweight of existence, the defiance of titans, and cosmic-scale storytelling...and somehow fit it into four and a half minutes of visual and sonic fury.

If you haven't watched it yet, pause this right now, go watch "3 iAtlas - Eternal Design" on VEVO or YouTube, and then come back. BecauseI'm about to break down everything that went into creating this beast.

Let's dive in.

THE CONCEPT: BIRTH OF A TITAN (1:00 -3:30)

So let me take you back to where this all started.

The song "Eternal Design" was written about burden. Aboutcarrying weight that no one else can see. About being the pillar that holdseverything up while the world keeps spinning, completely unaware that you'rethe reason it hasn't collapsed yet.

We've all felt that, right? That sense of bearing impossibleweight—family expectations, financial pressure, emotional labor, creativeresponsibility—and you just keep going because if you stop, everything fallsapart.

But we didn't want to make a video about a guy sitting at a desk stressedout. We wanted to take that feeling and amplify it to cosmic, mythologicalscale.

Enter 3 i Atlas.

Not just Atlas from Greek mythology—the titan condemned to hold up thesky. But 3 i Atlas. Three iron hearts. A being born from void andancient stone. A guardian that doesn't just carry the world—it carries creationitself.

This is a titan that the heavens disowned. A guardian that exists at theedge of the cosmos, in a storm-ravaged valley where reality fractures. And whenthose three iron hearts ignite beneath cracked granite flesh... that's notbirth. That's awakening. That's defiance incarnate saying: "Youabandoned this. I'll carry it anyway."

The concept was simple but massive: What if the weight you carry isn'tjust metaphorical? What if it's literally cosmic? What if you're the only thingkeeping existence from collapsing into void?

That's 3 i Atlas.

Hey everybody, welcome back to The Duke Teynor Show! I’m Duke, andsitting right here with me is my partner-in-sippin’ stories, Echo.

(Laughs) You know I like that one, Duke. And today’s story is a fizzy favorite— root beer! It’s sweet, it’s foamy, it’s American as apple pie… but where didit come from?

Good question. Root beer’s roots — pun intended — actually go way back. NativeAmericans were already brewing herbal teas and drinks from sassafras andsarsaparilla long before colonists arrived. Early settlers picked up on it andused those plants to make medicinal tonics.

That’s right. In the 1800s, pharmacists would mix up sassafras, spices, andherbs as health tonics. They believed it could cure everything from stomachaches to blood problems. Of course, it wasn’t long before people realized —hey, this stuff tastes pretty good.

Enter Charles Hires. In 1876, he introduced the first commercial root beer atthe Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. He originally sold it as a “healthfuldrink” and even marketed it as a safer alternative to alcohol.

From there, root beer exploded in popularity. Companies like A&W popped upin the early 1900s, making it not just a tonic, but a true American soft drink.A&W even became the first franchised restaurant chain in the U.S.

Today, root beer has gone way beyond the corner soda fountain. You’ve gotbrands like Barq’s, Mug, and of course A&W still going strong in the U.S.And root beer floats — come on, that’s an American classic.

But it’s not just America anymore. Root beer has made its way around the world.In Canada, it’s a staple. In Asia — especially the Philippines — A&W rootbeer is huge. Even in Europe, specialty shops carry American root beer forpeople who crave that unique flavor.

It’s funny, because some people outside the U.S. say it tastes like “medicine”— probably because of that original sassafras and wintergreen flavor. But onceit clicks, you’re hooked.

Root beer has evolved from folk medicine to soda fountain superstar tointernational export. And it’s still got that nostalgic, American feel everytime you pop open a frosty mug.

So whether you love it plain or in a float, root beer is proof that a littlekitchen experiment can bubble its way into history.

That’s the sip-sized story for today. Thanks for tuning in to The Duke Teynor Podcast Show !