Podcasts · Society & Culture

All There Is with Anderson Cooper

CNN Podcasts

68 episodes

Grief can feel so lonely but talking about it and listening to others share their experiences helps. In all new episodes of this award-winning podcast, Anderson Cooper continues his deeply personal exploration of grief in all its complexities. In moving and honest discussions, he learns from others who have faced life-altering losses.

More about the show

Join the community to share your story and watch Anderson's weekly streaming show All There Is Live at cnn.com/allthereis

Episodes page 1 of 2

  1. Wynonna Judd: ‘Broken and Blessed’ with Grief

    · 46 min

    Wynonna Judd is a country music superstar who got her first record contract at 18 singing with her mother Naomi. In this moving conversation, she talks with Anderson Cooper about her mother's suicide in 2022, grieving…

  2. Sheryl Sandberg On Finding Love And A Deeper Joy, After Loss

    · 43 min

    When Sheryl Sandberg’s husband, Dave Goldberg, died suddenly in 2015 at 47, she believed she would not find love or “pure joy” again, but she has. She talks with Anderson about her experiences and about an open letter…

  3. Charlamagne Tha God: Feelings Are The Hardest Thing To Acknowledge

    · 29 min

    Charlamagne Tha God, co-host of “The Breakfast Club,” talks with Anderson about grief and his experiences with anxiety and depression. He reflects on the death of his close friend Jas Waters, healing from childhood…

  4. Gary Sinise: ‘The Hole In The Heart Is Always There’

    · 26 min

    Gary Sinise’s son Mac died in 2024 at 33 after a yearslong battle with a rare cancer called chordoma. He shares with Anderson the music his son created in his final year and how Mac still feels “very present” in his…

  5. NASCAR's Kurt Busch Remembers His Brother Kyle

    · 31 min

    NASCAR champions and brothers Kurt and Kyle Busch spent decades racing each other before Kyle’s sudden death in May at 41. Kurt talks with Anderson Cooper about their years of “sibling rivalry,” the “brotherhood” they…

  6. Travis Barker: The ‘Wound That Almost Never Heals’

    · 34 min

    Travis Barker’s mom, Gloria, died the day before he started high school. In 2008, the Blink-182 drummer survived a plane crash that killed four people, including two of his closest friends. The only other survivor,…

  7. Grief Is Not A Problem To Be Solved

    · 40 min

    Journalists Danielle Crittenden and David Frum's 32-year-old daughter, Miranda, died unexpectedly in 2024 from complications related to a brain tumor she had survived several years earlier. They talk with Anderson…

  8. Nicole Avant on ‘Standing in Faith’ After Mom's Murder

    · 35 min

    Nicole Avant’s 81-year-old mother, Jacqueline, was murdered in 2021 by an intruder in her home. Nicole’s father, Clarence, came to live with her and died peacefully, two years later, when he was 92. She talks with…

  9. Sharon Stone's Complicated Grief

    · 36 min

    Sharon Stone has experienced many losses in her life, most recently the death of her mom, Dorothy, in 2025. She tells Anderson Cooper she felt relief after her death and "free from my mom, free from her trauma." For…

  10. Mikaela Shiffrin On the ‘Maze’ of Grief For Her Dad

    · 39 min

    Mikaela Shiffrin is considered the greatest alpine skier of all time. Her dad, Jeff, was one of her biggest champions. When he died in 2020, she wasn't sure she would ever ski again. She talks with Anderson about her…

  11. Amanda Peet: ‘There’s No Algorithm For Grief’

    · 36 min

    Both of actress Amanda Peet’s parents were in hospice care when she learned she had breast cancer. Her father died the same weekend she was diagnosed, and her mother died some four months later. Now cancer free, she…

  12. Mariska Hargitay Knows Loss And Longing

    · 36 min

    Mariska Hargitay was three when she survived the car crash that killed her mother, actress Jayne Mansfield. She talks with Anderson Cooper about her search to know her mother, and heal the pain of her past. For more of…

  13. Sheinelle Jones on Grief and Joy

    · 28 min

    Today show co-host Sheinelle Jones' husband, Uche Ojeh, died in May 2025 from glioblastoma. Seven months later, she lost her grandmother. She talks with Anderson Cooper about parenting after loss and trying to hold…

  14. Isaiah Thomas: The Loneliness of Grief

    · 33 min

    Isaiah Thomas's youngest sister, Chyna, was killed in a car crash the night before he played in the 2017 NBA playoffs. In 2024, his oldest sister LaQuisha died as well. Isaiah tells Anderson Cooper he is "still…

  15. Cameron Crowe on Grief, Memory and Music

    · 39 min

    Writer and director of “Almost Famous” among other films, Cameron Crowe, talks about the death of his sister Cathy when he was 10 years old, and how he has come to be "in conversation" with her now, all these decades…

  16. Rachel and Jon Goldberg-Polin: ‘ Grief is a Badge of Love’

    · 45 min

    Rachel and Jon Goldberg-Polin talk with Anderson Cooper about their evolving understanding of grief since the murder of their son Hersh by Hamas after 328 days in captivity. For more of “All There Is with Anderson…

  17. Sarah Wildman: Let Grief Be Messy

    · 41 min

    New York Times writer and editor Sarah Wildman’s daughter Orli was 10 when she was diagnosed with a rare liver cancer. Anderson reached out to her after reading her remarkable essays about Orli's life and death. Their…

  18. Dax Shepard: Grief, Fatherhood, and Friendship

    · 36 min

    Actor, writer and podcast host Dax Shepard recalls his father's final days, and how they changed Dax's understanding of him. In this emotional conversation recorded live at the New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane…

  19. Sara Bareilles: 'Life's Holiest Lesson'

    · 41 min

    In a new song "Home" that Sara wrote after listening to Anderson’s talk with Stephen Colbert, she sings, "What is broken cannot heal 'till it's known and loved by name." In this moving conversation she shares "Home"…

  20. Robert Irwin: Finding Strength in the Vulnerability of Grief

    · 49 min

    Robert Irwin was just two when his dad, “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin, died. Now 22, Robert talks with Anderson about growing up with grief and how he's able to still "feel" his dad. For more of “All There Is with…

  21. Gavin Newsom

    · 28 min

    California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks with Anderson about growing up the child of divorced parents whose pasts were rarely talked about. Newsom witnessed his mom's death by doctor-assisted suicide and says it's only…

  22. Eric Church on Grief, Grace, and Faith

    · 43 min

    The year country music superstar Eric Church turned 40, he survived a life-threatening blood clot and headlined a Las Vegas music festival that two days later became the scene of the deadliest mass shooting in modern…

  23. ‘Dying is the Opposite of Leaving’: Remembering Andrea Gibson

    · 35 min

    Is dying really "the opposite of leaving?" Are we "reincarnated in those we love?" Poet Andrea Gibson thought so, and in this moving conversation, Anderson speaks with Andrea's wife Megan Falley, about Andrea's battle…

  24. Yiyun Li: ‘The Wound That Won’t Heal’

    · 38 min

    Author Yiyun Li lost both of her children to suicide. Vincent at 16. James at 19. She talks with Anderson about why she doesn't use the words "grief" or "process," instead describing her pain as "an abyss," and a…

  25. Patti Smith: The ‘Sacred Wounds’ of Grief

    · 42 min

    Singer, poet, author Patti Smith has experienced the deaths of her husband, guitarist Fred “Sonic” Smith, her brother Todd, and her lifelong friend and artistic soulmate, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. Time doesn’t…

  26. Kelsey Grammer: A Brother’s Love and Loss

    · 33 min

    In 1975 Kelsey Grammer’s 18-year-old sister, Karen, was murdered. For fifty years his loving memories of her were colored by questions about her death. In this moving conversation, Kelsey tells Anderson how he finally…

  27. Ben Stiller: Facing His Past

    · 34 min

    Ben Stiller spent the last few years going through boxes of photos, letters, and recordings that his parents, the famous comedy duo known as "Stiller and Meara," left behind. He shares with Anderson the parallels he…

  28. Nick Cave: Grief’s Jagged Edges

    · 44 min

    Musician Nick Cave has experienced the death of two of his sons. He tells Anderson how, over time, these losses have changed his relationship with the world; expanding his heart and widening his “capacity for love.”…

  29. Tig Notaro: Finding What Matters

    · 32 min

    Comedian Tig Notaro recently witnessed the death of her friend, poet Andrea Gibson, after a years-long battle with cancer. Being by Andrea's bedside was a profound experience for Tig and she talks about its impact on…

  30. Kenny Chesney

    · 31 min

    Country superstar Kenny Chesney reflects on the loss of friends and a beloved dog. He and Anderson also share their connection to a family who experienced a profound loss. Plus, Anderson talks about the death of David…

  31. Ken Burns' History With Grief

    · 45 min

    Documentary filmmaker Ken Burns has been called “America’s biographer,” but in this moving conversation, he reveals how his own history has been shaped by early loss - the death of his mother Lyla when Ken was eleven…

  32. Luke Bryan: Grief, Faith, and Music

    · 49 min

    Luke Bryan is one of country music’s biggest stars. He's also faced great loss. In this personal and revealing conversation with Anderson, Luke shares how faith, family, and music have helped him "do what you do to get…

  33. Coming Back To Life

    · 33 min

    In this special episode of the podcast, Anderson reports from Rome following the death of Pope Francis, and speaks to religion professor Elaine Pagels who lost both her 6-year-old son Mark and her husband Heinz. Visit…

  34. Love Is What Survives

    · 54 min

    In the season three finale, Anderson plays some of the more than 6000 voicemails he has received from podcast listeners about what they have learned in their grief that might help others. Learn more about your ad…

  35. Doris Kearns Goodwin

    · 32 min

    Pulitzer Prize winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwin knows what it’s like to face the past. She talks with Anderson about how Abraham Lincoln and other historic figures dealt with grief, and how she has. She went…

  36. David & Amy Sedaris

    · 30 min

    David and his sister Amy Sedaris have lived through the deaths of their mother, father and sister, and most recently, Amy’s pet rabbit. They join Anderson for a heartfelt, and at times irreverently funny, conversation…

  37. A Message from Anderson

    · 3:17

    Anderson checks in with an update about the podcast and invites listeners to call the All There Is voicemail. Visit the All There Is online grief community at cnn.com/allthereisonline Learn more about your ad…

  38. Tyler Perry: Letting Go

    · 36 min

    This week marks 15 years since actor and filmmaker Tyler Perry lost his beloved mother, Willie Maxine Perry, at 64 years old. Tyler shares with Anderson how he’s avoided his grief by pouring himself into work, and how…

  39. Remembering Eddie Van Halen

    · 27 min

    Before they co-founded one of the most successful rock bands in history, Alex and Eddie Van Halen were two kid brothers with a love of music. In an emotional, and musically rich interview, Alex talks about Eddie’s life…

  40. Revisiting Ashley Judd: Grief, Love and Naomi

    · 41 min

    When Naomi Judd died by suicide in 2022, after a long struggle with mental illness, her daughter Ashley found her. In this deeply moving, revealing, and insightful conversation Ashley Judd talks about the trauma she…

  41. Andrew Sullivan: What Suffering Reveals

    · 34 min

    Author Andrew Sullivan grew up in Britain seeing his mom struggle with mental illness. He came to America as a young gay man and was named editor of The New Republic magazine, just as his friends began dying around…

  42. Will Reeve: The Long Journey Into Grief

    · 35 min

    America knew actor Christopher Reeve as Superman, but to Will Reeve, now an ABC News correspondent, he was “Dad.” Will was 12 years old when his father died in 2004, and then in 2006 his mom Dana Reeve also died. Will…

  43. Irene Weiss: The Soul Never Forgets

    · 39 min

    How do you live with loss that is beyond comprehension? When Irene Weiss was 13 years old she and her family were deported to Auschwitz. She and her older sister were the only survivors. Now 93 years old, Irene talks…

  44. Creating A Companionship With Grief

    · 36 min

    After suppressing grief for decades, Anderson reached out earlier this year to psychotherapist and author Francis Weller to ask for help. In this very personal conversation Anderson reveals some of what he’s learned…

  45. Whoopi Goldberg: Why Did Y’all Leave Me?

    · 35 min

    Whoopi Goldberg sits down with Anderson for a candid and moving conversation about the life and deaths of her mother Emma Johnson and her brother Clyde. Visit the All There Is online grief community at…

  46. Andrew Garfield’s Grief

    · 43 min

    Andrew Garfield's mother Lynne died from pancreatic cancer in 2019. In this deeply moving and emotional episode Andrew talks with Anderson about how grief is now the only way for him to feel close to his mom again.…

  47. Season 3: All There Is

    · 2:28 · Trailer

    Grief never goes away but we can learn to live with it and learn from it. In Season 3 of All There Is, Anderson Cooper continues his deeply personal journey to understand his own feelings of grief in all its…

  48. Sharing Our Grief

    · 36 min

    This episode, the season finale, is a reminder that none of us is alone in our grief. Anderson shares some of the thousands of extraordinarily moving voicemail messages he’s received from listeners. Learn more about…

  49. A Son’s Struggle, A Father’s Grief

    · 33 min

    Charlie Shelin was an exceptionally bright child who worked hard for years to keep the dark thoughts in his head from consuming him. In this moving conversation, his dad, Randy, talks with Anderson about Charlie’s…

  50. Mama Shu: Turning Loss Into Love

    · 29 min

    Shamayim Harris, known in Detroit as Mama Shu, knows all too well the pain of loss. In 2007 her 2-year-old son Jakobi Ra was killed in a hit and run accident, and in 2021 her other son Chinyelu was murdered. Mama Shu…

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