Work Forces
Brand Federation's Kelly O'Keefe and Matt Williams on the rise of the "Independence Economy" from the embers of the Great Recession -- and how a far more flexible workforce will evolve from the unprecedented pandemic of 2020.

Brand Federation's Kelly O'Keefe and Matt Williams on the rise of the "Independence Economy" from the embers of the Great Recession -- and how a far more flexible workforce will evolve from the unprecedented pandemic of 2020.
Dalal Salomon and John Harper of Salomon & Ludwin -- a top-ranked financial advisory founded during the Great Recession -- on their approach to the unprecedented dual health-and-financial crisis of the coronavirus pandemic.
Reuters Money editor Lauren Young on how the coronavirus outbreak is coursing through the global economy and markets.
UVA history professor Sarah Milov (The Cigarette: A Political History) and pediatrician Dr. Danny Avula, director of Richmond's health department, on the public-health and policy implications of Big Tobacco's pivot to vaping, heat-not-burn and other newfangled nicotine-delivery devices.
Olympic gold medalist Scott Hamilton has been fighting the odds ever since he was adopted as a newborn. Now in his 60s, he has fought cancer and dedicated his life to helping others struggling with illness and loss. As an author. Businessman. Advocate. Philanthropist.
VPM city hall reporter Roberto Roldan and Richmond For All's Chelsea Higgs Wise on how an ambitious public-private plan to replace Richmond's decrepit Coliseum both divided and united the city.
A poor Cuban immigrant's journey from honors student and star at the Federal Reserve Bank of Miami to obscene wealth with the Medellin cocaine cartel; to torture and federal prison; to a PhD and book publishing.
Richmond BizSense editor Michael Schwartz on scaling the digital journalism upstart; the Navy Hill debate; #RVADine; donuts; Scotts Addition; Manchester; Publix and much more.
Quits the grind of brokerage life; goes surfing in Hawaii; aces culinary school; washes dishes; busts tail at various restaurants in Honolulu, Baltimore, West Virginia and Richmond -- working up to opening his very own, Perch, in the ruins of an ancient Chinese restaurant. How Chef Mike Ledesma hustled.
Richmond, VA mayor Levar Stoney on his 2020 agenda. We discussed Monument Avenue, Navy Hill, schools, poverty, housing and the state of the Democrats in Virginia -- and nationally, into the presidential election.
The evolution of Silversun Pickups, the LA band that went from gigging for lunch money to registering 10 Top 20 hits on Billboard’s Alternative Songs chart -- on top of selling over a million records in the US. Founding members Brian and Nikki perform an acoustic set at RVA's RainMaker Studios. Footage to come...
Bestselling author Mitch Albom on his latest, Finding Chika: A Little Girl, An Earthquake and the Making of a Family -- which documents his life-changing experience as guardian for a sick orphan from Haiti.
His great-grandfather in segregated Richmond labored at the Jefferson Hotel's old carriage house. That same building now houses the Brandcenter, where Madison Ave. veteran Vann Graves is executive director. We discuss his career journey, the advertising industry and creativity-on-demand amid the dominance of mobile platforms.
Enjoying record ridership, Amtrak is en route to "breaking even" (**many asterisks**) for the first time in its 48-year history. But brutal service and capital spending decisions await. Devin Leonard unpacks his Bloomberg Businessweek story on Amtrak's future -- followed by our talk with Danny Plaugher of Virginians for High Speed Rail.
The Economist's Tamzin Booth on her cover package "The $650 Billion Binge: Fear and Greed in the Entertainment Industry." We were also joined by sector expert Michael Morris of Guggenheim Partners.
The concert Nada Surf performed for a taping of Full Disclosure at RVA's National. You can hear the band's interview on iTunes at link FullDRadio.com and on NPR.org / NPR One
The band Nada Surf on a quarter-century of grit, luck, euphoric "popularity," heartbreak and hustle to reinvent -- recorded for a live audience at The National in Richmond. This broadcast-length episode includes performances of "Hi-Speed Soul" and "Killian's Red."
Comedians Maz Jobrani (Comedy Central, "Jimmy Vestvood") and Jimmy O. Yang (HBO's "Silicon Valley"; "Crazy Rich Asians") on their peculiar roads to the industry -- and the creative hustle required to make it in comedy.
Markel Corp vice chairman Steve Markel on the insurer and investment shop as it approaches its 90th year in business. Worth $15 million when its shares debuted on Wall Street in 1986, Markel Corp is now a Fortune 500 member in 18 countries that is valued at more than $16 billion.
Michael Paul Williams, veteran Richmond Times-Dispatch columnist, on the battles for the soul of Richmond, "RVA" and Virginia -- 154 years after the Civil War ended. We discussed Monument Avenue, Navy Hill, gentrification, education, strategic corporate philanthropy, voter polarization and much more.
Bloomberg Opinion's Justin Fox takes us around the world of business news headlines. From China to agriculture to Tesla, Trump, Amtrak, GM, markets and the unusually long economic expansion. He previously wrote for TIME and Fortune and authored The Myth of the Rational Market: A History of Risk, Reward, and Delusion on Wall Street.
How Rachel Sobel parlayed career burnout, single motherhood and an urge to overshare into a little empire of authenticity called Whine & Cheez-its.
The journey of Nelson Aguilar....a kid smuggled out of Fidel Castro's Cuba and into Miami, where he became a notorious cocaine dealer who has spent half his life in prison. Nelson's story is a metaphor for the many things that have gone wrong between Havana and the U.S.
Chef Patrick Phelan on the long, winding journey -- dishwashing; rock stardom deferred; a castle in Italy; NY's culinary rat race -- that led to Longoven, which was just named #3 on Bon Appétit's list of America's best new restaurants.
David Lowery of Cracker and Camper Van Beethoven on the struggle to make a living in the era of music streaming. Also an angel investor and a PhD who lectures on the business of music at UGA, Lowery performs an acoustic set at Rainmaker Studios in Richmond.
Comedian Chris Gethard on his doubt-filled career ascent: from living with mental illness..to hustling big breaks..to his cable TV exploits and off-Broadway show "Career Suicide." Our co-host is Erin Mahone of the one-woman show "It Runs in the Family." We're on Twitter @FullDRadio
Since taking delivery of his Model 3 sedan, normally skeptical investor Vitaliy Katsenelson has morphed into Vitaliy Tesla-nelson. The zippy electric car has his mind racing in Ludicrous Mode -- about the money-losing company and its controversial CEO, and the numerous disruptions and opportunities in Tesla's wake. He takes us for a ride.
Longtime Cisco CEO John Chambers on the lessons learned from growing a once-sleepy network-equipment maker into a hulking multinational that was once worth $555 billion. Chambers now runs venture capital firm JC2 Ventures.
Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger (VA 07) on pressing matters local, regional, national and global -- from gun control to healthcare; China, Iran, Saudi Arabia; trade wars; and holding the Democratic center. In 2018, the former CIA officer became the first Democrat elected to her Congressional seat in 50 years -- and the first woman ever.
How do you go from a call-center in India to cake-pop queen of Virginia to aspiring pop-up-dinner doyenne? All without spending a single dollar on marketing. The story of Keya Desai Wingfield.