Okay so we kind of have the hangouts of all hangouts today because Kate Hudson and Kaia Gerber are joining us!  These two beautiful, talented and SPUNKY homegirls are the stars of Shell - a film that’s equal parts thriller, social commentary, and a wild ride into the future of beauty.

Shell asks a chilling question: if you could restore your youth and guarantee longevity with just a few treatments, would you? Elisabeth Moss plays Samantha, an actress who takes the plunge and is transformed but soon discovers the glossy world of Shell isn’t what it seems. At the center of it all is Zoe, the glamorous CEO played by Kate Hudson, and Chloe, a young woman played by Kaia Gerber, whose mysterious disappearance raises even bigger questions.

Directed by Max Minghella, Shell is a stylish thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat while also making us reflect on the extreme value we place on beauty.

Let's talk role models, beauty standards, personal boundaries and those botox appointments. 

Let's hang out!

From her unforgettable turn as Alma in The Handmaid’s Tale to her latest role in Out Standing, Nina Kiri continues to bring women’s stories of strength and resilience to the screen.

The film is based on the life of Sandra Perron, Canada’s first female infantry officer, who not only broke barriers in the military but also faced immense challenges, from gruelling physical demands to deep-rooted institutional sexism. Out Standing doesn’t shy away from those realities, and Nina brings Sandra’s resilience, vulnerability, and strength to the screen in such a compelling way, you can’t help but be gripped from start to finish.

In our homegirl hangout, we dive into the film's latest TIFF world premiere, to the physical and mental prep behind her demanding role, to bigger themes of resilience, sexism, and what it means to portray women navigating systems stacked against them.  

Let’s hang out!

Joining us this week is celebrated fashion stylist from right here in Toronto, Julianne Costigan, who’s the founder of COSTIGAN, a newly rebranded personal branding studio helping ambitious women define their style and lead with clarity and confidence.

Julianne’s team recently shared stats that stopped me in my tracks:

- 93% of women leaders say their appearance directly affects how others perceive their confidence.
- Nearly half have missed out on opportunities because of their image.
- 92% say that when they feel good about how they show up, they perform better.

So today, we’re diving into the power of intentional style: What does personal brand mean in 2025? How can you align your image with your inner strength?
And how do you avoid the trap of trends and actually build a wardrobe that’s real and authentic to you?

Let’s hang out!

Today’s guest has spent over two decades dancing on one of the most demanding stages in the world. Heather Ogden is the Toronto-born, Principal Dancer with The National Ballet of Canada, and she has lived inside the iconic role of Odette/Odile in Swan Lake since 2003. Just weeks after her final bow, Heather is joining us, not just as a celebrated ballerina but as a woman stepping into something new.  We’ve all been there; it’s exciting, nerve wracking, and you either lean into the unknowns or you let them stall you.  Girl is leaning in! 

Heather’s story is one of grit beneath all the grace, it’s a story of pushing through physical and mental limits, and of evolving alongside her art. If you’ve ever stood at the edge of change, wondering what’s next then this conversation is for you.

Let’s talk about identity, discipline, reinvention, and what it takes to leave something you love, ready to meet the next version of yourself.

Let's hang out!

If you’re someone who’s ever wondered if you really understand your body, like, truly understand how your fertility works, safe to say you are not alone. I’m in my late 30s, and recently, I walked into a fertility clinic for the very first time. What I saw surprised me: a room full of women, many around my age, quietly waiting, maybe searching for answers, just like me. And it got me thinking: Are more of us waking up to the fact that we should’ve been taught this stuff earlier? And what do we actually need to know now, especially if we’re looking at pregnancy and fertility later in life?

Today, I’m speaking with someone who brings both clinical expertise and lived experience to the conversation, Dr. Shirin Dason. She’s a physician trained in Obstetrics and Gynecology and Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. She’s also someone who’s navigated her own journey with infertility and pregnancy loss. So this isn’t just medical, it’s personal. On this episode, we’re talking all about the changing landscape of fertility, common misconceptions, emotional resilience, egg freezing, surrogacy, and what every woman deserves to know about her reproductive health before it feels urgent.

We have Dr. Dason on the other side so, let’s hang out!

Andrew Ahn has reimagined one of my favourite rom coms growing up, The Wedding Banquet which was brought to us by legendary filmmaker Ang Lee in 1993.  It's a story about a Taiwanese man in New York who stages a marriage to please his traditional parents, only to have them show up for a full-blown wedding celebration. What unfolds is a story that’s both hilarious and heartbreaking, a sharp look at identity, cultural expectations, and the messy beauty of family.

Andrew’s version brings the story into the now with a stellar cast including Bowen Yang, Han Gi-Chan, Lily Gladstone, Kelly Marie Tran, Joan Chen, and Youn Yuh-jung, digging even deeper into themes of chosen family, queerness, and what it means to truly live authentically.

Without further ado, let’s hang out!

Homegirl Nation is now available to stream on Amazon Music and Audible! Another avenue to find our 5 seasons and counting featuring powerful female voices across Canada just like this week's guest.

Emily O’Brien was on a path that, from the outside, looked pretty typical. She graduated with honours, started a social media agency, and carved out her place in the world. But life has a way of throwing curveballs, and for Emily, one fateful trip changed everything. She found herself as a drug mule, incarcerated, facing the weight of her choices, and navigating a system that rarely offers second chances.

But instead of letting her past define her, she turned it into purpose. From inside prison walls, she came up with an idea that would not only rebuild her life but also open doors for others who had walked a similar path. That idea became Comeback Snacks, a popcorn company with a mission: to fight the stigma of incarceration by hiring and empowering formerly incarcerated individuals. With a bold slogan,"Popcorn so good, it’s criminal," Emily is proving that redemption isn’t just possible; it’s powerful as hell!

Today, we’ll talk about her journey from the innocence of childhood to the pressures that led her down an unexpected road, to what life was really like inside prison, and how she found the courage to start over. We’ll also dive into how she’s challenging perceptions and giving others a second chance through entrepreneurship.

This is a story of resilience, reinvention, and really good popcorn!

Let’s hang out!

Financial stress is a common topic of conversation in 2025 so what better way to kick off a new season of the podcast than with money expert Jessica Moorhouse! Known as the millennial money expert, Jessica is a speaker, financial counsellor, host of the More Money podcast, and the bestselling author of Everything About Money: The Hidden Barriers Between You and Financial Freedom. For over 13 years, she’s empowered people to take control of their lives by mastering their money and today, she’s here to help us unpack negative financial cycles, tackle today’s economic uncertainties, and so much more.

We have Jessica in studio and ready to go. Let’s hang out!

In 2023, the US Surgeon General issued an advisory stating that “social media use is associated with harm to young people’s mental health.” With four Ontario school boards suing social media tech giants for its “widespread disruption to the education system" coupled with the recent new safety features Meta has launched for teens, we can no longer ignore the proven impacts social media and excessive screen time is having on young minds.  From an increase in depression, anxiety, self harm and suicide, I think we have a collective duty to support our youth in navigating the digital world in healthy and supportive ways. 

My partner and I are producing our first event together in April of 2025 called OFFLINE - a one day inspofest for teens to encourage the power of in person connections, and a homegirl on the OFFLINE advisory board that we’re so blessed to have and who is one of the leading experts in digital wellness is Lisa Chang.  Lisa knows a lot about this ongoing issue that is heavily impacting young people today, but let’s be honest, they're ongoing issues impacting people in general today.  
 
As we close out Season 4 - and what a season it has been - we gotta talk digital wellness and then some with Lisa.

Let's hangout!

In the last 4 seasons of the podcast we’ve had a chance to hangout with a stacked roster of courageous and ambitious homegirls but none as young as Vritika Gupta.  This 14 year old powerhouse already has a career as an actor and she is quickly becoming one of Hollywood’s rising talents.  Fresh off her role as Reena Virk in the Hulu limited series Under the Bridge alongside Oscar nominee Lily Gladstone and Golden Globe nominee Riley Keough, Vritika joins us to talk about her breakout role and what it’s like being a self assured and go getting Gen Z today. 

We’ve created a community here at Homegirl Nation where secrets are traded and stories are shared so that we can all feel a little more empowered to show up more confidently as ourselves each day.  I’m so grateful Vritika is popping by today to share her truth with us today so let’s hang out!