The StoryCorps mobile recording booth has stopped in D.C., and will be set up at the Library of Congress now through May 18.
The booth is part of the nonprofit's mission to collect oral histories from across the United States; it's already collected more than 65,000 stories. StoryCorps launched the first "MobileBooth" from D.C. in 2005.
How does it work? A local participant and their prospective interviewee -- it could be a friend, family member or other loved one -- enter the recording booth for an intimate conversation that should last 40 minutes. A StoryCorps member will be there for introductions and to help with the recording process.
There's also an option for a solo interview, when a StoryCorps member ends up interviewing the person.
At the end of the interview, the recording goes to participants and to StoryCorps and the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, where the stories are archived.
StoryCorps partners with WAMU 88.5 to highlight D.C.-based stories. At the start of this session, radio show host Diane Rehm recorded an interview with her son asking the questions, according to Washingtonian.
Last year, President Barack Obama used the booth to record an interview with a mentee from the White House intiative My Brother's Keeper. Listen to a clip of that story here.
The Scene
The most fun things to do and places to be in D.C., Maryland and Virginia
Appointments to record in D.C. have already filled up, but interested participants can sign up for a waitlist or use the StoryCorps app.
Baltimore is the next stop on its 2016 tour, from May 19 to June 17. Check out more tour stops here.
Selected stories have been featured on NPR and published in books. Excerpts and animated shorts of interviews are available through the StoryCorps website.
After StoryCorps founder David Isay won $1 million from the 2015 TED Prize, the organization launched a free app that allows anyone to record and send their interviews without entering a recording booth.
