Paris Brown always had an eye for opportunities community and collaboration, and she uses those skills everyday as Associate Publisher for The Baltimore Times. The hyper local newspaper has been around for decades and boasts a circulation in the tens of thousands, in a time when digital media dominates. Listen as we talk about Paris’s childhood in New York, her HBCU experience, and the history of The Baltimore Times.

Break music: eu-IV

Simone is the founder of Charm City Table, one of Baltimore’s wildly successful food blogs. Back before food blogging was a viable income stream, Simone just enjoyed happy hour with friends and taking pictures of the delectable plates of food. Eventually she started documenting her adventures, and CCT boasts nearly 100k followers on Instagram. Listen as Simone talks about the ins and outs of the foodie/blogger industry, her brutally honest take on a business she knows can do better, and why she thinks “unbiased” reviews aren’t her approach to her work.

How many museums do you think are in the United States? What about the most prevalent type of museum? I assure you the answer to both of these questions will astound you, and those answers are provided by my guest Dr. Schroeder Cherry. In addition to his work in museum education and preservation, Dr. Cherry is a painter and puppeteer. We talk about his childhood growing up in Washington, DC, how his love for puppets predates Sesame Street, and the bright future of Baltimore’s arts scene.

This is the first episode I’m releasing with WYPR’s new podcast platform Your Public Studios and I couldn’t have asked for a better guest. If you’ve been listening for a while you’ll know I’m a big fan of anime and videogames, and Twitch streamer and cosplayer Nicki Nanami matches my nerd energy. We talk about life for Nicki in both of those worlds, prioritizing mental health over the social media rat race, and what inspires her to continue to build her brand in the face of online trolls.

Episode 101 marks the beginning of a new journey for the podcast. First and foremost, I’m publishing on Wednesdays now 😀 Second, I’m partnering with Baltimore’s NPR station, 88.1 WYPR who will distribute the podcast on their digital platform, “Your Public Studios”. Before my first episode is “officially” launched on the platform, I had the opportunity to talk to WYPR’s President and General Manager, Lafontaine Oliver (thanks Jamyla!). He talks about growing up in southeast DC, climbing the ranks of commercial and public radio, and we also talk about the goal of their podcast platform, and how my and other locally produced podcasts will help achieve that goal.

This episode marks two major milestones for the podcast. First and foremost, it’s my 100th episode! The release of this episode completes my “Road to 100” challenge I started over a year ago. The second milestone, the release of this podcast comes with the news that I have partnered with 88.1 WYPR to distribute the podcast on their network, Your Public Studios. The content of the podcast will stay the same, but things will inevitably change so I can bring you consistent, and consistently quality content. Thank you to everyone who has been a guest, gave me advice and helped me along the way!

Stephen Towns is your quintessential “small town boy” who moved to the big city. His hometown of Lincolnville, South Carolina has a population of less than 1500, according to the 2020 Census. Sick of working retail and factory jobs, Stephen moved from his hometown to Columbia, then to DC and finally to Baltimore to find work. Along the way Stephen found himself in his art, and celebrates the divinity and perseverance in the African diaspora in all of his work.

We’ve all met Ernest Shaw before. Multiple times in fact, the thing is a lot of people don’t KNOW that they’ve met him. They’ve met him the way they’ve met Tom Miller, Megan Lewis, McKinley Wallace, and countless others in Baltimore City. You’ve walked, driven, and in other manners passed by murals that were painted by Ernest, murals that in my opinion immortalize his contributions to Charm City. Listen as we talk about the good and bad of 70s and 80s Baltimore, his encyclopedic knowledge of West African culture and its connections to Black American culture, and the importance of creativity as an image maker and an educator.

Starting the new year off right with a brand new episode of the podcast! Ucheoma is a digital artist and creator of the web series Vibe Check. It’s all about checking in with yourself, de-calcifying your 3rd eye, and the eternal battle between good and geese. Because geese are evil. We also talk about Uche’s childhood, how he got into art, and when he was at a crossroads in his life, the universe sent him not one but TWO messages to follow his heart.

Episode art: Ucheoma Uzosike (IG: @ucheomaaa)

It’s been a while since I’ve looked outside of Charm City for a guest, and after months of following Tynesha (tie-neesha) on IG, I decided to reach out for an interview. They’re from Norfolk, VA, about 30 minutes from Virginia Beach. Norfolk is about a 4 hour drive from Baltimore, and the military town has its own culture and vibe. Listen as we talk about Tynesha’s childhood in Norfolk, her ventures up north for college, the hustle it took to keep the lights on, and working with the biggest names in media.

Audio from the live show with me, MTR Network’s Rob Lee and Thomas James, local legend and culture protector. We discuss the work that went into curating “Repercussions”, an exhibition of abstract black art. We also talk about the genre of art itself and how it fits into the African diaspora. Enjoy!