In episode 9 of Before the Come Up, we sit down with Dalisu Jwara from South Africa. In this deeply moving & inspiring episode, we learn about his upbringing in Johannesburg, love for South African music, and diverse global career experiences that have brought him to where he is today.

In episode 8 of Before the Come Up, we sit down with Nine Chantawasinkul. Originally from Thailand, Nine tells us about his upbringing, how he got his name, and what eventually led him to Columbia. Along the way, we hear about his passions for fitness, traveling, and exploring new places off the beaten path. He also shares stories from working in consulting at McKinsey. This role allowed him to travel to many countries as well.

In episode 7 of Before the Come Up, we sit down with Nia Johnson. After leaving her hometown in Massachusetts, she discovered her passion for venture capital and affinity for big cities — which ultimately led her to Columbia. Listen to hear about Nia’s unique experience, career advice, and what’s it’s like to be low-key Twitter famous. (You can follow her at @_johnsonator.) You won’t want to miss it!

In episode 6 of Before the Come Up, we sit down with John Scalamandre. Originally from Lond Island, John tells us about his upbringing and what eventually led him to Columbia. Along the way, we hear about his passions for EDM music, playing the piano, and investment banking - all of which he plans to do post-MBA.

In episode 5 of Before the Come Up, we sit down with Nehika Miglani. We learn about her upbringing in the San Francisco Bay Area and her career journey in tech sales on the West Coast. We also dive into what led her to CBS to fuse her passions for entrepreneurship and the beauty industry. She is a licensed esthetician as well as a classicly trained pianist obtaining an Associates Degree in Piano Music Performance from The Royal Conservatory of Music.

In Episode 4 of Before the Come Up, we sit down with New York City native Javaun Francis. We learn about his exciting career journey from Wall St to Texas and his passion for traveling the world. We also find out what it was like growing up in NYC and how he navigated being both American and Jamaican. 

In the third episode of Before the Come Up, we sit down with Taylor Xie. We discuss her experience growing up in a remote, mountainous part of China before moving to Hong Kong for college. Since graduating she has worked in finance with a focus on real estate, most recently at Goldman Sachs in Shanghai.

In the first episode, we talk to Leon Galhardo, who was born and raised in Brazil. He previously worked in finance and real estate and is targeting a career in real estate investment banking after his MBA. 

Leon has been practicing martial arts since the age of 4 and has had incredible experiences, from being a professional MMA fighter to representing his state and country in Karate. Listen to learn how he used martial arts as a vehicle to meet people, experience different cultures, and explore the world! Whatever you do, DO NOT MISS the last 30 minutes of this one! 

As a way to learn more about the inspiring people in my MBA class at Columbia Business School, I started “Before the Come Up,” a weekly podcast focused on bringing to light the remarkable stories and life experiences that make up the historic CBS class of 2023. Each week the podcast will feature a different member of the class to learn about their background and journey to CBS and explore their passions and motivations and any fun stories they’d like to share. 

Intro and outro music is by my amazing sister Sofie, and the song is her latest single, “If You Don’t Stop.”