Crude Conversations

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with Jerremy Santacrose, who’s also known by his rap alias, AKream, from back in the Arctic Flow days. Arctic Flow was an Alaskan rap group that started in 1999, and went on to influence and define what authentic Alaskan rap should sound like. The group consisted of Jerremy, Josh Boots, Soiled Seed, Nauseous and Alkota—four rappers and a beatmaker. Jerremy says that a defining characteristic of the group was that everyone and everything they did was so sincere. They were living in the moment, often caught up in illicit activity, and producing music that mirrored their lives.

Arctic flow unofficially disbanded in 2010. Jerremy says there was no big falling out, the group had just become stagnant and everyone wanted to go their separate ways. He also acknowledges that some of his actions most likely caused the disintegration of the group. And while it may be unlikely that we’ll ever hear an Arctic Flow reunion, the albums they put out and the shows that they did will forever be etched into the history of the Alaskan rap scene.

Jerremy doesn’t go by AKream anymore, his new rap alias is Kream Soda. Recently out of prison, he’s now on the path of clean living, self-discovery and self-awareness. He’s working on new music and he’s putting out a new episode of The Kream Soda Podcast every week.

When Cody originally contacted him about being on the podcast and talking about potentially sensitive things like Arctic Flow, drug addiction and prison, he said he was an open book because otherwise, what’s the point?

This week, Crude will be revisiting the top 5 most popular episodes of 2020. Number 2 on this list is with Joe Rambur, where we look at addiction through the perspective of a recovering alcoholic and drug addict. Joe took his first drink of alcohol at 13. Although his first experience getting high on opiates was at 14, it wasn't until adulthood that he became addicted. He smoked heroin for 12 years. He's been sober for the last 9 months, and for that he credits a program and turning his will over to his higher power.

He says that if telling his story can help somebody else get sober and stay alive, then it's worth telling.

This week, Crude will be revisiting the top 5 most popular episodes of 2020. Number 3 on this list is with John Stallone. John comes from a military family—his grandfather served in World War II, and his dad and his uncle served in Vietnam—so enlisting in the military was a no-brainer for him. He joined the US Air Force at 18. From 1998 to 2002, he served as a security forces member and was deployed four times in support of Operation Southern Watch and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. In 2002, at the age of 22, he joined the Alaska Air National Guard. After he left the Guard in 2009, he took a number of jobs where he was in a position to promote and encourage safety, namely as a safety officer for OSHA, and a bouncer in downtown Anchorage. The common thread that links these jobs is John's sense of duty. He says that one of the core values of the Air Force is, "service before self," which is something he continues to live by.

For a good portion of this conversation, John talks about his struggle with depression and PTSD. He talks about the psychological aftermath of spending 8 months in active war zones. How it was a continuous evolution of “hurry up and get ready” or “hurry up and get used to this.” But by the time you acclimated to that environment, it was time to go home. And then once you were home, you were forced to deal with everything you had been through—among civilians who have no frame of reference for war. In 2011, everything kind of came to a head and John had a mental breakdown. He called the Veterans Crisis Line and they helped him work through it and also directed him toward local mental health resources.

If you or someone you know is struggling with depression, the National Suicide Prevention Hotline and Veterans Crisis Line is 1-800-273-8255.

This week, Crude will be revisiting the top 5 most popular episodes of 2020. Number 4 on the list is with wildland firefighter Micah Booze. Booze has been a firefighter for over 15 years, five of which have been spent in Alaska. Fighting wildland fires in Alaska, he says, involves more than just putting water on the hot stuff. It involves strategic thinking.

This week, Crude will be revisiting the top 5 most popular episodes of 2020. Number 5 on the list is with Mike Ward, the co-owner of The Pioneer Bar. The Pioneer Bar, better known as Pio, is a classic Alaskan bar located in downtown Anchorage. It’s been around since the 1950s, before Alaska became a state. Back then, it was a working class bar with a regular crowd of blue collar workers and barflies. It eventually began to attract a younger crowd in the late 1990s. That trend has continued to this day, where crusty sourdoughs and weekend warriors drink side-by-side.

Mike’s relationship with The Pio goes all the way back to his childhood, when his dad was a regular there and he would bring Mike with him. That was around 1980. Mike and his business partner Dave Croffut bought the bar in 2013, and they quickly learned that the idea of owning a bar is much different than the reality of it. In reality, you have to deal with controlling crowds, local politics, and all the repairs that come with owning a 100-year-old building.

Francesca DuBrock is the Chief Curator at the Anchorage Museum, and she recently finished putting the finishing touches on Extra Tough: Women of the North, an exhibit dedicated to exploring how women have shaped Alaska and the circumpolar north. The exhibit was a massive undertaking, it took over 9 months to complete and now occupies the entire third floor of the Museum, which is about 7,500 square feet. It’s not intended to be a comprehensive history of the subject, but rather a multitude of snapshots that help explain how integral women are to the past, present and future of the north.  

Francesca says that a large part of unpacking all of this includes subverting cultural myths like ones that depict the brave, masculine explorer conquering landscapes. And, instead, portraying a cultural landscape where Indigenous people have lived for thousands of years. 

Chatter Marks is a podcast of the Anchorage Museum, and is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and Google Podcasts. Just search "Chatter Marks."

Thomas Chung says that he’s always been interested in art, even as a child, but that as he got older it became a means of self-preservation. His upbringing was marked by racism and homophobia, and art allowed him to express the emotions he didn’t consciously understand at the time. Those emotions, he would later realize, focused on cultural awareness and compassion, and would come to define much of his professional art.

In addition to being an artist, Thomas is also an assistant professor of Art at the University of Alaska Anchorage. There, he continues to champion diversity, equity and inclusivity. 

Chatter Marks is a podcast of the Anchorage Museum, and is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and Google Podcasts. Just search "Chatter Marks."

In this Special Conversation, Cody talks to Dr. Danny Mindlin about getting the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. Dr. Mindlin is an emergency room doctor in Anchorage, Alaska

In this Special Conversation, Cody talks with Dr. Danny Mindlin about where Alaska is with Covid-19. Danny is an emergency room doctor in Anchorage, Alaska. Currently, Alaska is diagnosing between 700 and 800 daily statewide Covid-19 cases. This interview took place on December 8, 2020.