I met Carina in 2014 in college and let me say Carina was and still is one of the funniest and amazing people in my life. Carina always knew how to make me laugh, literally until I peed. Carina and I were also in a band, and no I’m not saying the name because 1, please don’t look for the videos and 2, I’m still not sure why we named our band that in college but we did have a pretty fire band photo that I still kinda love to this day. Other than parading around being the annoying 1st years and singing random songs or making up our own, Carina and I got really close over the 4 years we were in school together. Carina and I had pretty similar mindsets and I guess pretty similar traumas/mental health issues. Although we could both be pretty blunt and make a joke of anything, Carina is the sweetest and most understanding person I know. She could make fun of any person that walks including her closest friends but if anyone else tried someone she loved she was the first to speak up. I have many videos of fun times with Carina, just random stuff from singing Hamilton at midnight instead of going to parties to running around campus with her beloved bucket/safari hat that she literally didn’t take off for I swear like 6 months. Carina and I both moved to LA after graduation and eventually moved into an apartment together in Glendale. And at the time I will say that both of us were going through a lot. And because we were children on our own in the world with our first big girl jobs and big girl problems, we definitely did not handle living together well. After about 6 months I decided to move out and we didn’t speak to each other for I would say about a year. After some time, and a lot of growth and reflection, we started sending each other tik toks and I think, if I remember correctly, the first few were funny and then they started to become more serious talking about growth and maturing and becoming new people until eventually one of us texted the other a long text about how we are sorry and have grown and understand each other and hope we can be friends again. I think we both needed that time apart and in that moment we both needed to come together. I still think about this time and how grateful I am that we both had that time apart and were able to grow, especially me. I’d like to think that I am such a different person than I was when we lived in Glendale. That I’ve learned a lot about myself and learned a lot about how to deal with friendships and literally grow up. Since then, Carina and I have both moved out of LA, I think we both realized that the dreams we had of living in LA and “thriving” wasn’t really the dream life we thought it was going to be, and that is 100% okay! Also since then Carina has gotten married and I hope she doesn’t hate me for saying this but I vividly remember a night her and I were sitting on the floor of my bathroom, don’t ask what we were doing, but she told me she didn’t think she would ever get married and that she wanted to travel for the rest of her life and be free, that I would probably get married first and have kids sooner… Now listen, life throws you curve balls and lessons especially when you think you have it all figured out. But Carina was right about most of what she said except she got married first and to one of the best people anyone could have ever found for her, ever. And she travels and sees so much of the world. Life is so beautiful in that way. I am so happy for her and I’ve probably said it way to many times that she’s tired of hearing it and I am so proud of the person she is continuing to become. She inspires me everyday and gives the best advice without judgement and I couldn’t ask for a better friend in my life. Anyone that knows Carina knows how blessed they are to have her in their life and that’s definitely evident in this conversation.

I met Ebony in 2014 at school. She was my first roommate and although by the next semester I had moved into my own dorm alone because we just couldn’t agree on the temperature in the room, plus I think we were both the type of people that just need our own space and place to relax alone, we remained friends and grew even closer as the years went on. Ebony taught me to have pride in myself and in my skin. To love who I am and integrate it into my art and my life as much as possible. After that first year of college Ebony and I went on to have the same classes until we graduated, both going into producing and producing films and struggling through many classes together. Since then I’ve watched her take New York literally by storm, kill it while getting her masters and continue creating art that she loves and inspires other people. She has used her gifts to help and teach younger generations and even though that was not a path I thought she would go down I can tell that it is definitely her calling. She inspires people to push boundaries and push themselves outside of their own boundaries and use their voices to enact change and hear Gods message and spread it. I would say that I never told Ebony how much she inspires me but that wouldn’t be true. I’ve told her literally so many times how great she is and how I can’t wait to see how far she goes. I know that ebony will be the greatest at literally anything she puts her mind to, so well spoken and so smart and I hope you call can see that in this conversation.

Amie came into my life in the summer of 2019. I was working as an assistant at a small boutique agency in LA. I remember the day she came in, I knew that her and I would either butt heads or get along. I say that because she was just like me. And you know how people who are like you are either your friend or your foe? Well this industry was so competitive and honestly, as we discuss in this episode, superior at pitting women against each other. So honestly, I was sure she was here to boot me out of a job, almost certain of it. But after about a week, I swear we were best friends. Amie and I have been through a lot of things together and we made it out alive. The things we discuss in this episode seem a bit shocking but to be honest it is common in the industry we came from. The culture that surrounds the entertainment industry, and I’m sure many others, is toxic. For woman, people of color, LGBTQ plus, and any other community that is an “other.” Yeah it can be shocking but its true, even though it looks like change is being made, under the surface its still stuck in the stone age. With that being said, I have cut out some names for the sake of avoiding any issues. If you are, however, aware of who we are discussing lets just keep that to ourselves. We’ve had enough drama in that department, you’ll see… Anyway, in this episode we talk about a lot of different topics from beauty standards, womanhood, and all of the things that come with it. I am very proud of the woman Amie has become, both because of what she has been through with the company we worked for but also in her personal life. All of which she shares with me, with us. Amie is fearless and open about who she is becoming and I hope that in all that we discuss someone is able to take something from what she says. And if anything I hope its that you are beautiful and loved at all stages of your life, all body types and if someone doesn’t see your value, its not your job to prove it.

Epiphany and I met in 2016 at the University of Carolina School of the Arts. She and I became friends through a mutual of ours. It almost seems silly to say mutual because this person has meant so much to both of us over the years. Matsi is such a deep connection for everyone and a best friend to so many. Anyway, Epiphany and I became almost instant and close friends once we met. She was older than us but certainly the most fun. So many wine nights, Disney nights, heart to hearts and many musical numbers were sung in that apartment. But the most significant thing about Epiphany, in my opinion, has always been her heart. It didn’t matter what any of us were going through at any given time, if you called, she answered. Never judged, never made you feel any type of way about what was on your heart, she just listened and made it better in whatever way she could. Epiphany and I always connected in a way that I didn’t with other people. Her pure connection to the truth, seeking it out and bringing to light was always something I admired. She brought that not only to her personal life but to her work as well. It didn’t matter what position she had on set she was that light for everyone. So when I was I was deciding how to restructure this new season I already knew that Epiphany was apart of that list of people that inspired me. She may not know it but just by being who she is and carrying herself through all that she has been through in life, she has impacted me incredibly. My time at UNCSA would definitely not have been what is was without her, even with the short time we may have spent in school together. I could go on and on about how amazing the woman is but I’ll let her tell you. I hope you’re ready for a really incredible conversation.

In our final episode of the season the group of us sat down and discussed everything from pop culture to politics and representation plays a big role in moving forward. Really excited for you all to hear what they have to say! Episode is also available on Facebook, YouTube & and anywhere you get your podcasts! Thank you to: Grace Carol Siplon Jacobi Briguglio Caitlin Cook Edited by: Ash Malone Produced by: Shelby Adele Tyre a Doodle Bug Productions project

Grace Siplon is incredibly smart, introspective and well spoken. I really enjoyed talking to her about her writing and how her identity stretches beyond just surface level. We didn’t cut much from our conversation just because it was all too good to let go of! I hope you enjoy! Episode is also available on Facebook, YouTube & and anywhere you get your podcasts! Thank you to: Grace Carol Siplon  Jacobi Briguglio Edited by: Ash Malone Produced by: Shelby Adele Tyre  a Doodle Bug Productions project

I had the pleasure of meeting Lawrence for the first time in this interview. Not only is he an incredible person overall but his work as an artist is phenomenal. I was truly inspired by his thoughts and words about pride, being black and living in todays world. He’s so smart and talented and I can’t wait for you all to hear what he has to say! Episode is also available on Instagram, YouTube & and anywhere you get your podcasts! Thank you to: Lawrence Davis & Jacobi Briguglio Edited by: Ash Malone Produced by: Shelby Adele Tyre a Doodle Bug Productions project

On this episode CC talks about her relationship with christianity and how she hopes to use what she learned about herself after coming out and how it all effected her. Like I said, I have always been intrigued by her story and now have an excuse to talk to her about it and now share that with you! Episode is also available on Instagram, YouTube & and anywhere you get your podcasts! Thank you to: Caitlin Cook & Jacobi Briguglio Edited by: Ash Malone Produced by: Shelby Adele Tyre a Doodle Bug Productions project

This interview with Sara has to be one of my favorites. Not only is she one of the sweetest people, she is very smart and insightful. Sara takes a look back at how her upbringing effected her identity and how she plans to help future generations to not fall victim to what she went through. She explains how she uses art and craft to hopefully create a better future for those around her. I absolutely loved this talk with Sara and can’t wait for you all to listen! Episode is also available on facebook, YouTube & Instagram! Thank you to: Sara Maner Jacobi Briguglio Edited by: Ash Malone  Produced by: Shelby Adele Tyre  a Doodle Bug Productions project

Jacobi and I have known each other since around 2016. We worked together quite a few times in college on various projects. I’ve watched over the years as they have continued to stand in who they were and never falter and admired their ability to always speak up, especially for those who couldn’t. So when the idea to do a pride segment came up, they were the first person I thought of. Jacobi came on board as an interviewee and as a casting producer, helping me reach out and find this fantastic group of people that I was able to talk to and learn from over the past weeks. I am so excited to share this great discussion I was lucky enough to have with them on the show. If you'd like to watch the episode you can find us on Instagram, Facebook & Youtube!