On today's episode I talk to Suki Kim , a novelist, investigative journalist and the only writer ever to go live undercover in North Korea to investigate and write a book from the inside. In 2002, she travelled to North Korea, where she witnessed both Kim Jong-il’s 60th Birthday celebrations as well as his death, and she later wrote a number of pieces for Harper's about the country. Suki is a recipient of a Guggenheim, a Fulbright, and a George Soros Foundation Open Society fellowship. As well, ...
Aug 04, 2016•1 hr 10 min
On today's episode I talk to musician Barbara Manning . Barbara is prolific songwriter originally from California, where she spent part of her childhood on a commune. While attending Chico State University in 1983, Manning played bass with the seminal jangle-pop band 28th Day, and since then she's recorded a number of albums under her own name and has played with and fronted a number of amazing bands including World of Pooh, SF Seals, The Go-Luckys!. She's collaborated with everyone from Jon Lan...
Jul 28, 2016•41 min
On today's episode I talk to Cole Escola . Cole is a comedian, actor, and writer; one of the 2014 OUT 100; as well as one of Time Out New York 's Top Ten Downtown Cabaret Performers. He was the co-creator, writer, and star of the lo-fi cult-hit TV show Jeffery & Cole Casserole , which ran on Logo for two seasons, and also originated the role of Bridget Everett's fetus in Rock Bottom . Cole currently plays Billy Eichner's nemesis Matthew on Hulu's Difficult People , which is now in it's secon...
Jul 21, 2016•1 hr 18 min
On today's episode I talk to storyteller Adam Wade . For the past thirteen years, Adam has been a fixture in both the New York City storytelling and comedy scenes. He is the winner of 20 SLAMS at The Moth, including two GrandSLAM Championships, and has toured across North America with The Moth Main Stage. In addition, Adam's Time Out Critic's pick solo show The Adam Wade from NH Show has been running since 2010, and his first album Adam Wade: The Human Comedy was just released last year! This is...
Jul 14, 2016•1 hr 19 min
On today's episode I talk to writer/directors Charles Rogers and Sarah-Violet Bliss . Charles and SV broke out with their film Fort Tilden , a satire of Millennial Brooklyn, which won the Grand Jury Award at SXSW 2014. Since then, they've written on the first season of Netflix's Wet Hot American Summer revival, and are the co-creators of the forthcoming TBS series Search Party starring Alia Shawkat. This is the website for Beginnings , subscribe on iTunes , follow me on Twitter ....
Jul 07, 2016•1 hr 31 min
I used to do bonus episodes of the show somewhat regularly called "Field Guides" where I'd talk to people about the actual steps they took to create a project or about a specific topic around the theme of creating things for a living. Like, I talked to Abbi and Ilana about how they actually made the Broad City webseries (back before it was even a TV show!) - and the idea is to try and demystify making TV, videos and other creative things on a professional level. Today on the show I talk to Teren...
Jun 30, 2016•1 hr 33 min
On today's episode I talk to Wes Miles of the indie rock band Ra Ra Riot . Originally from New Jersey, Wes has been playing music for most of his life. Ra Ra Riot formed in January 2006, playing at houses and venues around the Syracuse University campus. After recording a demo, they started to attract attention, eventually getting signed to Barsuk Records, who's released all four of their albums The Rhumb Line , The Orchard , Beta Love , and their latest Need Your Light (all are very worth your ...
Jun 23, 2016•1 hr 13 min
On today's episode I talk to avant-garde violin duo String Noise . For over half a decade, Conrad Harris and Pauline Kim, the husband/wife violin duo comprising String Noise, have built a reputation as relentless contemporary music advocates with a punk sensibility. They've done this through their covers of bands like Deerhoof, Bad Brains, Black Flag and Minutemen and through their classical performances, the two having premiered works by composers like Christian Wolff, John King, Phill Niblock,...
Jun 16, 2016•1 hr 24 min
On today's episode I talk to musician Oli Chang. Originally from Australia, Oli is one-half, along with Jack Milas, of the celebrated ambient dream-pop band High Highs . Since 2011, they've released a self-titled EP and two albums Open Season and Cascades . All of them are wonderful. In addition, Oli also has his own solo project called Animal Feelings! This is the website for Beginnings , subscribe on iTunes , follow me on Twitter ....
Jun 09, 2016•1 hr 9 min
On today's episode I talk to comic and TV writer Christopher McCullough AKA Jackson Publick. Chris began his comics career after a superhero spoof of his caught the eye of The Tick creator Ben Edlund, who asked Chris to write a spin-off, which then led to writing for the animated and live-action series. In 2003, Chris and his writing partner created the fantastic animated series The Venture Bros. for Adult Swim, which is currently their longest running original series. This is the website for Be...
Jun 02, 2016•1 hr 44 min
On today's episode I talk to actor and writer Will Sharpe . Will grew up in Tokyo and London and went to university at Cambridge, where he was president of the Footlights Revue. After graduating, he began his acting career, first with the Royal Shakespeare Company and later on a number of TV shows including Casualty , Sherlock and Dirk Gently . As a writer, Will's written for Never Mind the Buzzcocks , and his first feature film Black Pond was nominated for a BAFTA award. Most recently, he wrote...
May 26, 2016•1 hr 7 min
On today's episode I talk to rapper and podcaster Open Mike Eagle . Originally from Chicago, Mike moved to LA where his hip hop career began, first as part of the collective Project Blowed and the trio Thirsty Fish, and later as a solo artist. He's released five albums: Unapologetic Art Rap , Rappers Will Die of Natural Causes , 4NML HSPTL , Dark Comedy , and his latest Hella Personal Film Festival . As a podcaster, he hosts two great shows: an interview one called Secret Skin and an Adventure T...
May 19, 2016•1 hr 17 min
On today's episode I talk to musician Ohal Grietzer . Born and raised in Ashkelon, Israel, Ohal moved to New York in 2001, where she began collaborating on a number of musical projects with people like Tunde Adebimpe of TV On The Radio, Tyondai Braxton, and Kyp Malone’s Rain Machine. Her latest album Acid Park is out this month on Styles Upon Styles Records. Separate from her work as a musician, Ohal is also a Palestinian-rights activist, a member of Anarchists Against the Wall, and is involved ...
May 12, 2016•1 hr 27 min
On today's episode I talk to musician Todd Goldstein . Originally from Boston, Todd started ARMS as a musical outlet for himself when he first moved to Brooklyn. ARMS was put on the backburner though when in 2006 he joined the indie rock band Harlem Shakes. They released one album on Gigantic Music before disbanding three years later, at which time, ARMS became Todd's primary musical focus. He's recorded a number of EPs under the moniker, as well as three albums: Kids Aflame , Summer Skills , an...
May 05, 2016•1 hr 12 min
I used to do bonus episodes of the show somewhat regularly called "Field Guides" where I'd talk to people about the actual steps they took to create a project or about a specific topic around the theme of creating things for a living. Like, I talked to Abbi and Ilana about how they actually made the Broad City webseries (back before it was even a TV show!) - and the idea is to try and demystify making TV, videos and other creative things on a professional level. Today on the show I talk to India...
Apr 28, 2016•59 min
On today's episode, I talk to stand-up and writer Bonnie McFarlane . Bonnie hails from Canada, where she grew up on a small farm in Alberta. An accomplished stand-up, she's appeared on everything from The Tonight Show to Letterman to Last Comic Standing and has her own HBO One Night Stand and Comedy Central Presents . In addition to being the director of the wonderful documentary Women Aren't Funny , Bonnie is also an author, and her memoir You're Better Than Me was recently published by Anthony...
Apr 21, 2016•1 hr 5 min
On today's episode, I talk to Peabody Award-winning and Emmy nominated stand-up and writer Josh Gondelman . Originally from Boston, Josh is currently based in New York where he previously wrote for Billy on the Street and currently writes for Last Week Tonight with John Oliver . In addition, Josh is the co-author (along with Joe Berkowitz) of the book You Blew It , and his latest comedy album Physical Whisper was released just last month. (And heck is it wonderful!)This is the website for Beginn...
Apr 14, 2016•1 hr 39 min
On today's episode, I talk to writer and actor Dylan Marron . Dylan is a Drama Desk-nominated writer & performer based in New York City. He is the voice of Carlos on the hit podcast Welcome to Night Vale and the co-creator and performer of Ridgefield Middle School Talent Nite , a 17-character middle school talent show, in which he and Jo Firestone play every role. Dylan's also an ensemble member of the New York Neo-Futurists, as well as the creator of Every Single Word , a video series that ...
Apr 07, 2016•1 hr 21 min
On today's episode, I talk to musician Larkin Grimm . A descendent of the Brothers Grimm themselves, Larkin grew up in a monastic order called The Holy Order of MANS. Spending her childhood in rural Georgia, Larkin eventually earned a scholarship to Yale, which she attended on and off for many years, using the intervening sabbaticals to travel all over the world. At Yale, she met Dave Longstreth and became a member of Dirty Projectors for a time, and after began recording music on her own, which...
Mar 31, 2016•1 hr 30 min
On today's episode, I talk to musician Scott "Spiral Stairs" Kannberg . Scott grew up in Stockton, California where he met his childhood friend and future bandmate Stephen Malkmus. Along with drummer Gary Young, the two formed Pavement in 1989, and went on to release five albums and a number of EPs, eventually becoming one of the biggest indie rock bands of the time. After the band broke up in 1999, Scott went on to record two albums as The Preston School of Industry and one album under his own ...
Mar 24, 2016•1 hr 6 min
On today's episode, I talk to TV writer Curtis Gwinn . Originally from Chicago, Curtis grew up in the suburbs outside of New York City, eventually finding his way to UCB. There he became a teacher and performer, and co-founded the team Death by Roo Roo, one of the best improv groups to come out of the theatre. His first professional jobs included writing for The Man Show and Human Giant , and from there he went on to co-create the Adult Swim show Fat Guy Stuck in Internet . Since moving to Los A...
Mar 17, 2016•1 hr 33 min
On today's episode, I talk to comedian Gareth Reynolds . Gareth's parents originally hail from the UK, but Gareth was raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He's co-created The Travel Channel show Mancations and the MTV show Failosophy , he's written for the Comedy Central show Idiotsitter , and nearest and dearest to my heart, he's the co-host of one of the best podcasts around The Dollop , an American history podcast he does with stand-up and Maron -writer Dave Anthony.This is the website for Beginni...
Mar 10, 2016•1 hr 13 min
On today's episode, I talk to stand-up and writer Jacqueline Novak . Easily one of the best and most creative stand-ups in New York, Jacqueline has been performing for over a decade. She has her own comedy album Quality Notions , she's appeared on The Late Late Show with James Corden , and recently Three Rivers Press published her first book How to Weep In Public , a part-memoir/part-comedic guide to dealing with depression.This is the website for Beginnings , subscribe on iTunes , follow me on ...
Mar 03, 2016•1 hr 35 min
On today's episode, I talk to the creators of the new HBO show Animals Phil Matarese and Mike Luciano . Phil and Mike are from New Jersey and Long Island respectively, and while working at an advertising agency together, the two created the webseries Animals , which was then shown at Channel 101 and garnered the "Best Comedy Pilot" award at the 2013 New York Television Festival. After a manager introduce the pair to the Duplass brothers, Mike and Phil moved to LA where the Duplasses helped them ...
Feb 25, 2016•1 hr 23 min
On today's episode, I talk to Tony-nominated actor Geneva Carr . Geneva is a film, theater and television actor originally from Jackson, Mississippi. After studying French at Mount Holyoke, she moved to Paris and began a career in the world of business. Banking proved to be a lackluster life though, and a chance rekindling of her childhood love of acting led to her pursuing it professionally. This has obviously paid off, as Geneva just ended a run on Broadway in the fantastic play Hand to God , ...
Feb 18, 2016•1 hr 25 min
On today's episode, I talk to comedian and writer Streeter Seidell . Streeter first gained popularity as part of the cast of CollegeHumor's online videos, including the viral series Prank Wars . This led to an MTV series with his fellow CollegeHumor colleague Amir Blumenfeld called Pranked . In 2013, Streeter wrote for the ABC sitcom Trophy Wife and a year later joined the writing staff Saturday Night Live .This is the website for Beginnings , subscribe on iTunes , follow me on Twitter ....
Feb 11, 2016•1 hr 19 min
On today's episode, I talk to filmmaker Alex Ross Perry . Alex was raised in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, and attended NYU, where he graduated from their film program. In 2009, he made his first feature film Imipolex on a shoestring budget, and since then, he's made three other films: The Color Wheel in 2011, Listen Up Philip in 2014 (which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival) and his most recent film Queen of Earth starring Elisabeth Moss, which had its world premiere last year at the Berlin Fi...
Feb 04, 2016•1 hr 20 min
On today's episode - the sixth anniversary of Beginnings - I talk to writer Rick Moody . Rick was born in New York City, and attended Brown and Columbia universities. His first novel, Garden State , was the winner of the 1991 Editor’s Choice Award from the Pushcart Press and his next novel, The Ice Storm , was published in May 1994 by Little, Brown and Company. The film version, directed by Ang Lee, was released by Fox Searchlight in 1997 and won best screenplay at the Cannes Film Festival. Sinc...
Jan 28, 2016•1 hr 8 min
On today's episode, I talk to musician Andrew Keoghan . Originally from New Zealand, Andrew is a Brooklyn-based indie pop/folk artist. His first album Arctic Tales Divide was released in 2011, and was short-listed for a Taite Music Prize, which is an annual prize awarded for the best album from New Zealand. His latest album Every Orchid Offering will be out later this year.This is the website for Beginnings , subscribe on iTunes , follow me on Twitter ....
Jan 21, 2016•1 hr 14 min
On today's episode, I talk to New York-based country music artist Laura Cantrell . Born in Nashville, TN, she came to New York to attend Columbia, and found that her abiding interest in country music helped her stay connected with her family roots. That interest was the motivation behind her long-running radio program The Radio Thrift Shop , which was on WFMU for thirteen years. She began her career as a recording artist as part of one of Mac McCaughan's first groups Bricks, and she even sings o...
Jan 14, 2016•1 hr 26 min
