Courtney E. Smith

Courtney E. Smith is a Dallas-based journalist, editor, and podcast producer who's spent over a decade exploring where food, music, and culture collide. Her work has appeared in Esquire, Pitchfork, Uproxx, and Eater.

As Editor at Eater, Smith managed a team of freelance writers while cranking out her own daily coverage of the Texas food scene. Her features have helped put restaurants on the map in a real way — stories that contributed to James Beard Award and Michelin recognition for the restaurants she covered.

Smith's podcast work shows the same editorial instincts in audio form. As executive producer at Nevermind Media, she oversaw shows like Songs in the Key of Death, which Rolling Stone announced and outlets like Esquire, Vulture, and NPR featured, plus Songs My Ex Ruined, which hit No. 2 on Apple's Music Podcast chart. Her freelance writing during this time tackled everything from murder ballads for Esquire to the abortion movement's soundtrack for Pitchfork to weird trends in music on reality TV for Uproxx.

Before diving into food and audio, Smith spent nearly five years as an editor and culture critic at Refinery29. She handled live coverage of high-pressure events such as the Super Bowl, the Grammys, and the White House Correspondents' Dinner, and wrote pieces that sparked national conversations.

Currently working freelance, she's still digging into the stories where food culture, music, and politics intersect.