Shirlette Ammons is a Durham, NC-based musician, writer, and producer who grew up in rural Eastern North Carolina in an area called Beautancus near the little town of Mount Olive (where they make the pickles). As a musician, Shirlette has released four albums including her latest, called Spectacles which came out in April of 2024.

She’s published several books of her poetry, and is currently working on a podcast called “Tending” that explores the stories of Black farmers who were claimants in the class action lawsuit, Pigford vs. Glickman. That suit alleged that the USDA discriminated against Black farmers in its allocation of farm loans and assistance from 1981 to 1996. It was settled in 2011 for $1.25B - the largest Civil Rights settlement in history, at the time.

Shirlette also served as a producer on the Emmy and Peabody Award winning PBS series A Chef's Life which starred episode 339 guest Vivian Howard.