In These Uncertain Times

Malcolm Whitfield (he/him) stops by to make me laugh and share how he’s adapting his life as a comedian and writer and how he has found an unexpected release in the world of Dungeons & Dragons. Malcolm’s ability to differentiate satirical headlines from real ones is put to the test in the show’s first-ever game segment (!!!) and we make a hard pivot to wrap up with a conversation about restorative justice.

Malcolm Whitfield is a Rochester born and raised stand up comedian. In only the last 5 years, he has performed with a variety of great comedians, Like Mateo Lane, Aasif Mandvi, Chris Kattan, Samantha Ruddy, and many more. He is also a writer for The Hard Times, a satirical news site, focusing on music and pop culture.

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and guests and do not reflect any official policies or positions of any employer or affiliated organizations.

Paul Weiner (he/him) joins to discuss his process of creating abstract art, how the themes and iconography of our current moment are showing up in his work, and about how online culture can fuel some of our most intense rhetoric and deepen trenches. We also do a post-mortem analysis of the 2020 election cycle and think forward to what will happen in 2021 and beyond.

Paul Weiner is a 27-year-old artist who makes abstract paintings imbued with political and social meaning. Many of Weiner’s violently obscured and distressed artworks grapple with the contemporary identity and history of the United States. He also makes sculptures, prints, and drawings that contain a library of political and cultural symbols. Aside from abstraction, his work is best known for addressing the American flag and the 2012 Aurora theater shooting, which occurred in his hometown. Weiner’s recent text drawings address the COVID-19 pandemic, American activism’s relationship to power, and social media’s role in contemporary culture.

Weiner’s recent solo exhibitions include venues such as Krupic Kersting Gallery in Cologne, Nancy Littlejohn Fine Art in Houston, Carthage College in Kenosha, Long Road Projects in Jacksonville, and TWFINEART in Brisbane. His work was included in group exhibitions at Pablo's Birthday in New York, Athens Institute for Contemporary Art in Georgia, Museo Jumex in Mexico City, se! rum in Denmark, Delphian Gallery in London, Arvada Center in Colorado, Neuer Aachener Kunstverein in Germany, Re: Art in Brooklyn, Marquee Projects in Bellport, New York, and Mana Contemporary in Chicago among many others. He recently completed a commission of multiple paintings for Kehinde Wiley at the Black Rock Senegal residency.

...and… Trumpy Bear

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and guests and do not reflect any official policies or positions of any employer or affiliated organizations.

Teejay Hughes (he/him) chats with Derek about how social media can be a positive platform for inspiration, what people are getting right and wrong about influencers, and what your brand needs to pay attention to when dabbling in new social media platforms like TikTok.

Teejay is an Entrepreneur & Content Creator with a collective audience of over 600,000. Over the last 2 years he's been traveling the world working with brands to create inspiring content that empowers people to travel more often, and more freely. His fun-loving energy and creative direction has garnered partnerships with international brands like the Global Hyatt Corp., Marriott International Inc., Hostelworld, and various Boards’ of Tourism.

Outside of creating travel content, Teejay also helps people and brands create better content through short-form video tips. Tiktok knows him as their “Photographer Big Brother” where he empowers people to express their creative skills through photoshoot tutorials, content creation advice, and model/posing tips.

Before pursuing his own ventures full time, Teejay climbed the corporate ladder working at a NYC advertising tech company as a Manager of Brand Development. He led 4 teams across the CPG, Restaurant and Retail industries—overseeing account revenue growth, client relationships, and strategic direction for brands like Staples, Wingstop, and Sol De Janeiro.

Follow Teejay!

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and guests and do not reflect any official policies or positions of any employer or affiliated organizations.

As we wait for the final election results, some thoughts about the state of the election and our responsibilities regardless of who wins.

Trying something out with this new short episode format. What do you think? Let me know at [email protected].

Reading Material:

Dr. Cindi Love (she/her) joins Derek for a timely and wide-ranging conversation about how she led a team to transition a series of four national conferences for LGBTQ+ students into a virtual setting, why she’s hopeful about the rising generations, the forces of politics, religion and self-esteem and how they coalesce, how to begin the process of mending our political divide, and how folks can embrace spiritual harmony in their own lives.

Dr. Cindi Love is the Executive Director of Out for Undergrad (O4U) and served as CEO of the American College Personnel Association in Washington SC, member of the Washington Higher Education Secretariat, member of the Working Advisory Group to the US Secretary of State on Religion & Foreign Policy from 2013-2018.

She was the first woman to serve on the national Board of SigEp and currently serves on the American College Health Association Board. Love was plenary speaker at the final session of the United Nations UUO Compass Coalition for LGBT Human Rights, has authored numerous articles and several books. Love has been the invited guest of two US Presidents in recognition of her human rights work.

In 2018, Stetson University of Law named Dr. Love to the Facilitator Award for her 2016 contributions to the field of campus safety. Love is the former Executive Director of Soulforce. Between 1981-1993, Love was the founder and/or CEO/Chair of eight tech-related firms and developer of strategic alliances with Apple, Motorola and the TORO Company.  One of her firms was the largest Apple Education Sales Agency in the United States. Love was an inaugural member of MIT’s Birthing of Giants program for the top 50 Entrepreneurs in North America and received the David Bohnett Fellowship to the Harvard Kennedy School Executive Education Program for State & Local Officials. Her doctorate was completed at Texas Tech with a research emphasis in due process for underrepresented students.

Connect with Cindi via:

Connect with Out for Undergrad via:

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and guests and do not reflect any official policies or positions of any employer or affiliated organizations.

Courtnee Futch (she/her) chats with Derek about how she’s making cooking accessible, making the most of the resources you have, and how we should start giving ourselves permission and stop gatekeeping our potential. They wrap up with some great advice about how we can all bring a dose of Southern Hospitality to our daily lives.

Courtnee Futch, chef, baker, author, and entrepreneur, believes that the best food is meant to feel like home.  The Atlanta native has been baking and cooking professionally since the age of 17, when founding ThunderCakes Bakery and years later founding The Spred Catering Company. To complement her love of food, Courtnee also trained as a mixologist in Paris. To her, craft cocktail pairings serve as the final frill in a well-rounded dining experience.

In her first cookbook, Early Enough, Courtnee encourages home chefs of all levels to get experimental with their brunch palette while using accessible ingredients. Courtnee is currently based in Jersey City. 

Follow Courtnee on Instagram: @courtnee.mfchef

Order Courtnee’s first cookbook, Early Enough via her website.

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and guests and do not reflect any official policies or positions of any employer or affiliated organizations.

Derek chats with Joon Park (they/them) about how they help their clients future-proof their brands as a cultural strategist, the constant necessity of listening and attuning your actions as an ally, the power of being a role-model by living authentically, and the positive possibilities of uncertainty.

Joon Park is a cultural strategist at sparks & honey, where they consult tech, beauty, and food & beverage clients on how to future-proof their businesses. They are one of the founding members of GLAAD’s Campus Ambassador program and are a recipient of GLAAD’s first Rising Stars Grant, which annually honors LGBTQ+ changemakers across the nation. Since then, they’ve been featured in publications like Seventeen, Teen Vogue, and Huffington Post, where they continue to bring visibility to the next generation of leaders. Joon is an alum of the ADCOLOR FUTURES program and is the first transgender non-binary Mx. ADCOLOR. They have also spoken on stages like Cannes and ADCOLOR about topics like precision data, ethical design, and workplace diversity.

Follow Joon on Instagram: @joonyoungpark

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and guests and do not reflect any official policies or positions of any employer or affiliated organizations.

Derek chats with Katie Martell (she/her) about the vital responsibility of marketers during this time of public health crisis and racial justice reckoning. They discuss the power of saying "no" to make room for the most important things in life, and wrap up with an unexpected conversation on what makes for a lasting relationship.

Katie Martell is an "unapologetic marketing truth-teller." She is currently working on Woke-Washed, a documentary and book exploring the collision of marketing and social movements. Named “one of the most interesting people in B2B marketing" and a marketing voice on LinkedIn 3x, Katie has been a startup CMO, SaaS entrepreneur, communications consultant and served as Executive Director of Boston Content, New England’s largest community of content professionals.

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and guests and do not reflect any official policies or positions of any employer or affiliated organizations.

“In These Uncertain Times” is a new interview podcast about creating and connecting in the midst of uncertainty. I’ll speak with creators and thought leaders that are forging their path forward in the new normal created by the COVID-19 health crisis. We’ll hear about the cool projects they’re working on, chat about how they’ve adjusted their process, ways of communicating, and their methods of self-care. Each episode, we’ll imagine a brighter world on the other side of this not-so-bright chapter of history.