The Groove & The Truth

Music, history, and the parts of the American story your textbook left out.

I’ve spent 45 years making music in Columbia, South Carolina. Somewhere along the way, I started noticing something. The music always knew things the history books wouldn’t say out loud.

That’s where this podcast started. The Groove & The Truth pairs Black American music with chapters of U.S. history that were skipped, softened, or left out entirely. Because when history skips steps, the present stops making sense.

This isn’t a lecture. It’s a conversation. Every episode opens with music, moves through history and personal story, and ends with something you can actually do with what you just learned.

The first episodes drop this September. Watch the promo video above, then follow along here for behind-the-scenes updates before launch.

I’m Walt. This is The Groove & The Truth. Now you hear it.

What is The Groove & The Truth?

The Groove & The Truth
Music, History & the Miseducation of America
I'm Walt Hemingway. I'm a vocalist, composer, and bandleader from Columbia, South Carolina, and I've spent over 45 years on stage. This show is my answer to something I kept seeing: smart, good-hearted people who believe in equality but never got the history that explains why inequality sticks around.
The Groove & The Truth pairs Black American music with the chapters of U.S. history that most textbooks skip or soften. Spirituals, Blues, Jazz, Gospel, Soul, Funk, and Hip-Hop aren't just sound. They're documentation. Every genre came out of a real set of conditions, and once you hear that history in the music, the present starts making a lot more sense.
Here's the thesis in one line: when history skips steps, the present stops making sense.
This isn't a lecture. It's sixteen episodes across four movements, built for anyone who's ever watched the news and thought, how did we get here? The story is personal too. My family has been in these rooms for generations, and that history walks through every episode alongside the music.
New episodes drop starting September 2026.
I'm Walt. This is The Groove & The Truth. Now you hear it.