Cristina Jones is an opera singer, a voice teacher and an advocate for the blind. Cristina was born with an eye condition called retinopathy of prematurity, which eventually left her completely blind. But that didn't stop her from becoming a music nerd and at the ripe old age of 8, she started studying music. From there, she pursued her BA in Voice from Cal State Fullerton and then went on to study music at the very fancy, Royal Academy of Music in London. Now, she is combining her love of music with her passion for advocating for the blind with her new endeavor “Art in the Dark”.

On this episode, we talk about the importance of self-advocacy, self-discovery, and self-love. Cristina explains the deeply personal decision of choosing to work with a seeing eye dog, the complicated intersections of disability and feminism and why it is so important to choose your battles.

HOW TO CONNECT WITH CRISTINA

The Blind Soprano Facebook

LINKS YOU SHOULD KNOW

Art in the DarkCristina singing her face off

Nicole Rademacher is an experimental documentary filmmaker, a mom, a student, a world traveler, a communications guru and an adoptee. Her career journey has taken her from North Carolina, to Chicago, to Spain, back to North Carolina, to France, to New York, to Chile, and now to Los Angeles. Girl speaks three languages, holds an MFA in Electronic Integrated Arts and is now pursuing a dual Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy and Clinical Art Therapy.

In this episode, we dive into her winding career path, about how to harness your transferable skills and making sure to balance research with taking action. Nicole discusses her experiences navigating postpartum depression as an adoptee, her workshops on belonging and finding your own origin story, and how she advocates for the voice of the adoptee in a narrative saturated by the voices of the adopters. TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

FIND YOUR COMMUNITY - If you are going through trauma, depression, a feeling like you don’t belong, find your people. Find your community. Find support. No one should have to go at it alone.

HOW TO GET IN TOUCH WITH NICOLEnicolerademacher.comInstagram

LINKS YOU SHOULD KNOWhttps://howtobeadopted.com/https://artfuladoptee.com/http://www.thelostdaughters.com/http://www.adopteerightscoalition.com/http://iamadopted.net/

Frances “Franny” Michelle Lopez is the Executive Director for Los Angeles County Brewers Guild, but this girl has been exercising her ladyboss muscles since she was in high school. From taking over her school’s Kiwanis club, to starting her own vinyl record label (for fun) in college, to her current dominance in the LA Beer scene (girl even has a beer named after her!), Franny approaches everything she pursues with determination, a whole bunch of research and a dash of sass. On this episode, we talk about what it means to be a woman in male dominated industries, dive into the politics of craft beer, discuss how to fail gracefully and the importance of taking care of yourself first. Franny doles out some wisdom on how to navigate major career shifts and how sometimes, you just need to destress by killing some sh!t in Tomb Raider.

TAKE AWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE 

LEARN EVERYTHING - Looking to shift into that new career? Entering a male dominated industry? Become the expert. Know more than they do. Not only will you be able to hold your own, but your confidence will go up!

BUY LOCAL! - Just like your eggs, it is so important to support your local craft breweries. Your local brewery = community. Invest in your community!

HOW TO CONNECT WITH FRANNY

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LINKS YOU SHOULD KNOW

LA Brewers Guild

Franny Fullpint

Franbo Pils