Interesting Humans

Bibi and Sarah have the time of their lives talking with the incredible Noella Eze in this episode that does not miss a beat from start to finish!

Noella takes us on an epic journey spanning several years and topics, holding nothing back in what is a masterclass in perseverance and self-determination, to say the least. From fighting off horrible professors to walking out of a job on day one to several health scares and surviving a third-world armed robbery/kidnapping, you simply cannot make this stuff up!

An incredibly interesting human, Noella wears several hats - tech wiz, advertising aficionado, fashion connoisseur, journalist, all-round badass... the list is a mile long.

You need to hear the episode to get it!

Episode references available on our website.

There is so much laugher on this episode, you'd be well within your rights to catch a bit of FOMO just listening. The energy and positive vibes are palpable in this hilarious but thought-provoking conversation with our guest, Arthur Odeka.

Arthur is an incredibly talented artist and animator who has worked on some of your (kids') favorite 3D animated shows, from Paw Patrol to 44 Cats. His journey from trying to suppress his artistic tendencies in favor of more "practical" disciplines (by Nigerian standards) to bursting onto the scene on the Canadian and international animation space is truly inspiring, and Bibi and Sarah have a lot of fun unpacking it with him.

Episode References available on our website.

On this episode, Bibi and Sarah have a great conversation with Gaurav Pramanik, an openly-gay man living and working in India. The conversation spans several topics including his childhood, first job and career growth, experience of homophobia in the workplace and his ongoing battle with a rare and obvious form of cancer.

Gaurav has many reasons to hide away from the world and not wish to interact, but his outlook on life is quite the opposite - bringing his light and his wonderful nature into every interaction, and this is evident in this conversation.

His attitude will leave you lifted, smiling and marveling at how he has overcome some truly unpleasant experiences through the course of his life.

Episode References available on our website.

At 54, Michelle's energy is so alive and rich, you never want to stop talking to her! And what a life she's living!

From growing up in Toronto to traveling the world from an early age to school in Europe before returning to Canada, Michelle is a true global citizen, and her experiences have shaped her worldview and broadened her mind in a way very few others can lay claim to. These beautiful influences invariably make their way into her art which she pours herself into.

The only thing more important to Michelle than her art, exploring the world and being active in the community is her family - amazingly supportive husband, two incredible daughters - Celeste & Mimi Bouchard (yes, that Mimi Bouchard) and the extended gang which includes Genie Bouchard (yes, that Genie Bouchard)!

Come along for the ride as we have a fun conversation about how Michelle navigated life as an artist raising two daughters, and how she made the decision to move out of the big city and settle in the picturesque little town of Wellington in Prince Edward County.

Episode references available on our website.

On this episode, Bibi and Sarah talk with Sibel Mufti, an inspirational human who has overcome so much personal distress to become the positive, cheery and accomplished person he is today.

As a Pakistani boy growing up in Dubai, Sibel could never have imagined the places he would go and the struggles that lay ahead of him. From finding out that he had a rare and serious cancer to battling chronic depression and enduring family woes, Sibel has had to pull himself back from the brink more times than he cares to count.

With a dogged determination to survive and make an impact, Sibel has gone on to live a life full of adventure and purpose. Crediting his family and closest friends with being the incredible support system that saw him through some of the darkest days, Sibel cherishes every relationship with a sincerity that could only come from a truly profound appreciation of life.

The story of Sibel therefore cannot be presented just in the context of his struggles. His accomplishments in education, technology, social outreach, and even art are necessary to fully grasp the awesome human that is Sibel Mufti, and we get to hear his story, as told by the man himself!

Episode references available on our website.

Naruro Hassan and Jasmine Amokao-Agyei are excellent examples of the strong, driven, intelligent and courageous black woman. In this powerful episode, Bibi and Sarah sit at a virtual roundtable with these two Arizona residents to discuss the incredible times we're living through and what it all means for the civil rights movement in the US.

After meeting on their college campus a few times, Naruro and Jasmine almost immediately knew that they had to combine their energy to advocate and drive meaningful change and awareness in the area of Black and African people, and help elevate the conversation.

On this episode, we discuss the current wave of events in the United States, most notably sparked by the horrific killing of George Floyd, and how Naruro and Jasmine are doing their part to ensure that the momentum doesn't fizzle out when the world moves on to the next "big" story.

Episode references available on our website.

From community worker to financial advisor, there's a clear theme through all of Harprit Gill's life - Helping people. Today, she puts her impressive knowledge of finance to use supporting people to make better money decisions and helping to create sustainable income and wealth.

But before she became the savvy money expert that she is, she had to survive a gauntlet of experiences that would break a person with a weaker will. Rising above her circumstances and exceeding every expectation that was had of her as a child of barely-literate immigrants, and with learning impairments, Harprit Gill is the perfect illustration of a phoenix rising out of the ashes.

Not one to hoard her knowledge, Harprit offers loads of free financial advice and mentorship to anyone committed to turning around their money situation.

Her conversation with Bibi and Sarah is quite the emotional rollercoaster, so buckle up!

Episode references available on our website.

We could not have chosen a better conversation to have in our first episode back post-COVID19!

From Alexandria, Egypt to Niagara, Canada at 14, Alyaa has long been a citizen of the world. Armed with a natural curiosity that's always thirsting for knowledge, she has taken on the world in a way that is uniquely hers.

In what is a truly interesting discussion, Bibi and Sarah talk with Alyaa about her Nubian heritage which she champions with her streetwear company, Nubian Narrative, how her family immigrated to Canada, her return to Egypt on vacation which turned into an entire adventure that lasted years before she finally came back to Canada.

We also touch on the weighty topics of religion, culture, independent thought, social entrepreneurship in the open, comfortable style that you've come to expect from our conversations.

Episode references available on our website.

NOTE: This week's episode almost didn't happen! We were stalled several times by the fire alarm in the building going off repeatedly. The fire department was called and it was a crazy time for everyone. And then an inexplicable humming started and almost had us throwing in the towel. Fun times! But technical and situational issues regardless, we're glad we were able to make this episode happen!
Our guest on this week's episode has a name that's an absolutely fantastic conversation starter - Byeon Sae. Yup, it's pronounced just like you thought it was. And that's just the beginning of the fun with Sae! Amateur photographer. Bass guitarist. Music producer. Audio-visual content creator. And none of these are even her day job!

Bibi and Sarah have a blast talking with Sae about arriving in Canada as a teenager with only a few words of English in her vocabulary and a whole bunch of stuff that's happened in her exciting life since. She’s certainly come a long way from being what she called “the typical shy Asian kid” who was unsure about everything.

In what turned out to be the last episode they could physically get together to record before #socialdistancing became a thing, Bibi and Sarah make the most of the conversation with Sae, and there are a lot of laughs in this episode!

Episode references available on our website.

Our guest on this episode began life as Michelle Laflamme, but is now proudly Brayden, an amazing transgender advocate who inspires with his words and actions.

During the course of this episode, Bibi and Sarah cover quite a few topics with Brayden, from what it was like to grow up as a boy who was identified by everyone else as a girl, the journey to accepting the possibility of changing gender, and how adjusting to a new reality has worked out so far.

Brayden also offers lots of advice and tips on how to stay positive and take charge of your narrative as a transgender individual. This episode is bound to resonate with a lot of people who have had to contemplate transitioning, while helping to educate those who might just wish to understand a bit more of what does on within the minds and lives of those going through what is a truly life-changing process.

Episode references available on our website.