The Story of Steve Kough, An NFL Player, Drug Smuggler and Father who Might Just Own a Priceless Work of Picasso’s Art

First Episode Is Available Now

New York, NY – October 18, 2021 – Somethin’ Else, in partnership with Sony Music Entertainment and Vespucci, today announced the premiere of “Hemingway’s Picasso,” its new investigative podcast series exploring the high-flying life and times of Stephen Kough – an NFL journeyman male model, and one of the most well-connected smugglers in 1980’s Miami. The first episode is available now.

Hosted by writer and author of the true crime memoir Down City Leah Carroll, the podcast traces Kough’s wild adventures, digging into the truth behind his most treasured piece of art: a beautiful ceramic sculpture, crafted by Picasso and gifted to Ernest Hemingway at the author’s Cuban home, the Finca Vigia…or so the story goes. Supposedly lost during the Cuban Revolution, the artwork resurfaced when Kough took it as a payment for drug run for Pablo Escobar. Kough passed away in 2018, passing the piece down to his son Stevie, a skateboarding hippie growing weed in California.

In “Hemingway’s Picasso,” Carroll works to understand the history of the ceramic – Is actually a Picasso? Did it really come from Hemingway? Was it meant for the King of Cocaine, Pablo Escobar? Or was Steve Kough another big talker?

Host Leah Carroll said, “‘Hemingway’s Picasso’ offers an immersive look into the seedy and beautiful world of 1980’s Miami, where the cocaine skylines are reflected blue by the sky and water. Join us as we trace this tale of aspiration, legacy and difficult love, as Steve Kough passes this ceramic down to his son Stevie. And we’re left to wonder — is this is a treasure or a curse?”

“Hemingway’s Picasso” is a Somethin’ Else production. Senior Producer is Pallavi Kottamasu. Associate Producer is India Witkin. Executive Producers are Lizzie Jacobs, Tom Koenig, Steve Ackerman, Johnny Galvin, Daniel Turcan, and Nick Katz.

Listeners can subscribe to “Hemingway’s Picasso” on all major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Stitcher. For more information on “Hemingway’s Picasso” and all other Sony Podcast shows, follow @SonyPodcasts on Twitter and Instagram.