Listen Bitch Presents TELL ME WHY YOU'RE SPECIAL

In this powerful episode of Listen Bitch Presents: Tell Me Why You’re Special, Branden sits down with Mike Gomoll, founder of Joey’s Song, a nationally recognized charitable organization created in honor of his son Joey.

Mike shares the emotional journey of raising a child with Dravet Syndrome, a rare and severe form of epilepsy that profoundly impacted his family’s life. He opens up about the uncertainty of diagnosis, the challenges of special needs parenting, the strain placed on relationships, and the difficult reality of watching a child face obstacles most parents never imagine.

Throughout the conversation, Mike reflects on Joey’s remarkable spirit, his love for music, and the lessons he taught everyone around him about joy, resilience, and living fully in the present moment. The discussion explores grief, anger, unconditional love, parenting, marriage, faith, community support, and the complicated emotions families experience while caring for children with significant medical needs.

Mike explains how Joey’s Song transformed from personal heartbreak into a nationally respected charitable movement that raises money for epilepsy and neurofibromatosis research through music, advocacy, and community connection. What began as grief became a mission that continues helping countless families facing similar challenges.

This episode is a powerful reminder that while tragedy may shape our stories, it doesn’t have to define them. It’s a conversation about turning loss into legacy, finding purpose through pain, and discovering hope in the middle of life’s hardest seasons.

Joey Gomoll died in 2010, just shy of his 5th birthday, after battling a rare form of epilepsy called Dravet's Syndrome his entire life. Upon his passing, his family started  a charity called Joey's Song to help raise money to fund research grants focused on finding treatments and cures for rare, intractable, pediatric epilepsies. In the 15-plus years since Joey's death, Joey's Song has grown from a few acoustic guitars in a sports bar to a multi-day concert series featuring Grammy winners and Rock n Roll Hall of Famers (Members of bands like Cheap Trick, Guns N Roses, The Go-Go's, The Bangles, Tears For Fears, Garbage, Portugal.The Man, Goo Goo Dolls, Eve 6, Everclear and many more). This amazing collection of musicians gathers every January in Madison, WI. They volunteer their time and talent, and form a series of supergroups throughout the weekend for a one-of-a-kind concert event.

Since its inception, Joey's Song has been a part of over $ 2 million raised and has had over 10,000 attendees in just the last two years.

Joey's Song is the story of finding meaning in tragedy, of the amazingly generous spirit of the rock music community, and of how one family can turn a couple of emails into an event that impacts an entire community.

You hear the stories of how artists who normally sell out big stadiums come together to play these amazing one-and-done shows. How the super groups are formed and some behind-the-scenes stories that will leave you in awe of these talented artists and maybe scratching your head about how it all comes together.

https://www.joeyssong.org
Because Joey's Song is a 100% volunteer organization - no paid staff and all of our performers donate their time and talent - we are able to take the bulk of ticket sales, donations, and merchandise sales and turn them into research grants.  Our website and social media provide regular updates and links to our various events and activities, and allow anyone to join us in our fight to end these terrible seizures that take lives and steal futures.

By going to our website and following via social media, you will get access to incredible performances and the chance to win one-of-a-kind experiences - like artist meet and greets and signed memorabilia - all in service of our mission to fund this desperately needed research.

In this episode of Listen Bitch Presents: Tell Me Why You’re Special, Branden sits down with Tony Teneglier, creator of the podcast Work Sucks, But I Like It, for a deep conversation about burnout, workplace culture, fulfillment, leadership, and what it actually means to build a meaningful life.

Tony shares his personal journey through career burnout after following traditional success paths that promised fulfillment but ultimately left him feeling disconnected. Together, Branden and Tony explore how modern work culture often rewards exhaustion, hustle, and status while ignoring purpose, relationships, and personal well-being.

The conversation dives into workplace leadership, employee engagement, manufacturing culture, office politics, and the growing disconnect between personal values and company expectations. Tony explains how understanding people as individuals—not just employees—can dramatically improve workplace morale, retention, and performance.

Branden and Tony also discuss authenticity in podcasting and social media, the dangers of chasing external validation, and why real conversations matter more than carefully curated online personas. They challenge the self-help industry’s obsession with shortcuts and emphasize the importance of discipline, consistency, and long-term growth.

Tony shares insights from his PhD work studying flow states in the workplace and explains how organizations can create environments where people thrive rather than simply survive.

This episode is for leaders, entrepreneurs, managers, employees, and anyone questioning whether success without fulfillment is really success at all.
Tony lives by a simple standard: say what you do, do what you say.

As the host of *Work Sucks, But I Like It*, an aerospace manufacturing leader, and an author, he challenges the myths around burnout, motivation, and success. With backgrounds in psychology and materials science, Tony brings honesty, discipline, and real-world experience to conversations about modern work—pushing people to stop waiting for motivation and start building integrity, mastery, and follow-through.

https://worksucksbutilikeit.com/quiz

In this episode of Listen Bitch Presents: Tell Me Why You’re Special, Branden sits down with peak performance coach and life strategist Jessie Torres for a powerful conversation about trauma, resilience, fear, grief, healing, and personal transformation.

Jessie shares her journey from surviving childhood abuse and shame to becoming a coach who helps others reclaim their lives. She opens up about how fear lived in her body, how trauma shaped her identity, and how years of survival mode created patterns that kept her small. Through courage, self-awareness, and intentional action, Jessie began rewriting the story she believed about herself.

The conversation explores the difference between being victimized and becoming trapped in a victim identity, the role fear plays in controlling decisions, and how challenges can become opportunities for growth when viewed through a new perspective. Jessie shares how stepping into uncomfortable experiences—including fitness competitions and improv classes—helped her build confidence and break free from limiting beliefs.

Branden and Jessie also discuss grief, faith, emotional healing, and the devastating loss of Jessie’s two brothers, including one who was murdered. Jessie explains how she found peace through processing grief, embracing what she calls “fierce grace,” and learning to find meaning even in life’s darkest moments.

This episode is for anyone who has experienced trauma, loss, fear, shame, or self-doubt and is looking for proof that healing, growth, and freedom are possible.

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For the last 18 years Peak Performance Coach and Life Strategist, Jessie Torres has coached thousands of High Performance People from all walks of life and various parts of the world that have achieved success and the highest level of fulfillment. Out of the top 120 coaches on the planet, Jessie ranked either number 1 or top 3 in every measurable category while working with the top coaching company in the world. Jessie is fueled by a passionate love for humanity and a burning desire to end suffering. She is driven to discover the truth of the client’s deepest potential and unlock the limitless opportunities that leave others in the dark ages! Bringing all levels of mindset, emotional intelligence, energy and strategy with an authentic, client driven approach. Jessie’s teachings will help you transform your life from pain or trauma into purpose and passion, what Jessie refers to as “Fierce Grace”.

https://iamfiercegrace.com/

https://unshakeablelife.com/life-coach

 In this episode of Listen Bitch Presents: Tell Me Why You’re Special, Branden sits down with Corwin (CJ) for a powerful conversation about faith, personal responsibility, resilience, legacy, and the transformative power of storytelling.

Corwin shares lessons from becoming a father at a young age, navigating mistakes that carried long-term consequences, and learning how accountability became the foundation for personal growth. Together, they discuss how many people spend years blaming circumstances while avoiding ownership of their choices, and why true freedom begins when responsibility replaces excuses.

The conversation explores faith in action, trusting God’s plan during uncertainty, and the difference between chasing social media validation versus building a meaningful legacy. Corwin shares how writing and storytelling can communicate biblical truth in a way that reaches people who might otherwise avoid traditional religious conversations.

Branden and Corwin also discuss neuroplasticity, emotional resilience, gratitude, discipline, long-term commitment, and why personal growth requires awareness of the patterns that shape our lives. This episode is a reminder that your past does not have to determine your future, and that lasting change starts with intentional choices made one day at a time.

If you’ve ever struggled with purpose, accountability, faith, or finding meaning beyond external validation, this conversation will challenge and encourage you.

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Corwin “CJ Moneyway” Johnson

Podcast Host | Author | Entrepreneur | Resilience Storyteller

Corwin “CJ Moneyway” Johnson is a globally recognized podcast host, best-selling author, and impact-driven speaker known for bridging faith, legacy, leadership, and personal transformation.

As host of The CJ Moneyway Show — ranked in the top 2% of podcasts globally by Listen Notes — CJ sits down with world-changers, entrepreneurs, and cultural voices to explore stories that inspire, equip, and shift mindsets. Through deep, unfiltered conversations, he unlocks the blueprint of purpose and power, one episode at a time.

He is also the creator and host of Planting Seeds with CJ, a newly launched show focused on spiritual growth, healing, and inner resilience — providing audiences with actionable insights for life’s toughest seasons.

✍️ Author & Messenger

CJ is the author of Both Eyes Open and Both Eyes Shut, two acclaimed works on faith, trauma, and personal growth. His highly anticipated third book, Faith Through Trials, drops in 2025 — a soul-level exploration of trusting the process when the path isn’t clear.

📬 Connect
• Website: https://cjmoneyway.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Socials: Available upon request or @cjmoneyway

https://pod.link/1707761906

What happens when the thing you’ve built your entire identity around is suddenly taken away?

In this powerful episode of Listen Bitch Presents: Tell Me Why You’re Special, Branden sits down with Janet Gesmi, a former professional violist whose career was shattered after a devastating car accident. What followed was a journey through grief, identity loss, faith, healing, marriage, and ultimately discovering a completely new purpose.

Janet shares the emotional reality of losing the career she spent years building and the difficult process of separating who she was from what she did. She opens up about a pivotal conversation with her husband that forced her to confront questions of worth, love, purpose, and identity beyond performance.

The conversation explores how suffering can become a doorway to transformation, how God often writes unexpected second chapters, and how beauty can emerge from life’s hardest seasons. Janet explains how her path eventually led her into translating life-changing books and bringing powerful messages to English-speaking audiences through language, faith, and storytelling.

Branden and Janet discuss grief, spiritual growth, marriage, personal reinvention, purpose after loss, overcoming identity crises, and learning to trust God’s plan when life doesn’t unfold the way we expected.

This episode is for anyone navigating a major life transition, career loss, unexpected hardship, grief, reinvention, or a season where God seems to be rewriting the script.

Sometimes losing what you thought was your calling is how you discover your true one.

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Janet Gesme became a translator by accident--or better said, by God' plan. She played viola and cello professionally for 29 before a car accident in 2015 ended her musical career. On that same day, a friend introduced her to a book by Martin Schleske. She ended up translating "The Sound of Life's Unspeakable Beauty" during her long, excruciating recovery. Now, 11 years later, she is playing viola again. Not just any viola, but the opus 304 "Schorschi" viola made by Martin Schleske. She is here today to talk about her translation of Schleske's second book, "Listening Hands: Eavesdropping on the Sound of Life.

https://[email protected]/

Tori Janae joins Listen Bitch Presents: Tell Me Why You’re Special for a brutally honest conversation about childhood trauma, grief, addiction, emotional safety, nervous system healing, trust issues, survival patterns, and breaking generational cycles.

Tori shares her story of growing up surrounded by drug and alcohol addiction, being conceived in a heroin rehab facility, and eventually becoming the person who broke a four-generation cycle of addiction and dysfunction. She explains how unresolved childhood trauma silently shapes adulthood through coping mechanisms like people-pleasing, hyper-independence, perfectionism, emotional isolation, and high achievement.

This episode dives deep into nervous system dysregulation, emotional safety in relationships, grief processing, trust wounds, chronic stress, healing after loss, and how trauma affects the body physically, emotionally, and psychologically.

Branden and Tori unpack the reality that many high achievers are unknowingly running on survival mode, driven by a “wound of not enough.” They discuss rebuilding identity after trauma, navigating difficult family dynamics, custody battles, addiction loss, and why healing requires emotional regulation rather than constant performance.

Tori also shares practical healing tools including breathwork, yoga, journaling, magnesium glycinate, mindfulness practices, movement, and nervous system support strategies that helped her heal from deep emotional wounds.

If you’ve struggled with trauma, grief, anxiety, people-pleasing, emotional exhaustion, trust issues, nervous system overload, or feeling stuck in survival mode, this episode will probably feel painfully familiar — and deeply validating.

Tori is a Transformational Life Strategist who has been coaching since 2010, working at the root level of human change; the patterns, wounds, and nervous system responses quietly running people’s lives beneath the surface. 

She holds three degrees in psychology and brings rare depth through training in trauma, energy psychology, nervous system science, leadership, and spiritual development.

Born into addiction and trauma, Tori rebuilt her life completely from the ground up and has since helped countless high-achievers do the same. Her clients don’t just transform themselves; their relationships shift, their businesses grow, and their families feel the shift.

Tori is an open book and she speaks candidly about growing up with addicted parents, leaving home at 17, losing her family, rebuilding after financial loss, ending an 18-year marriage, and surviving grief and trauma. She brings warmth, directness, and hard-earned wisdom to every conversation. Your audience will feel both seen and genuinely moved.

https://www.torijenae.com/opt-in-d7dec567-5a03-4245-b2fa-929599de006a

Tom Joseph, founder of Americans Mainstream Party and Main Street Party, joins Listen Bitch Presents for a heated conversation about election reform, political corruption, voter engagement, blockchain voting technology, AI-powered democracy tools, and the growing distrust in America’s political system.

Tom breaks down his mission to rebuild the election process through a new app that matches voters with candidates based on actual policy positions instead of party labels. Using blockchain technology, encryption, AI, and local issue-based committees, Tom believes the current political system can be disrupted from the ground up.

This episode dives into why so many Americans feel politically homeless, how party leadership and donor influence control elections, why voter participation keeps collapsing, and how modern politics has become more about power and money than representation.

Branden and Tom discuss gerrymandering, media suppression, Super PACs, congressional strategy, digital democracy, voter psychology, election transparency, and why both Republicans and Democrats often protect the same establishment systems.

Tom also shares his vision for restoring accountability, reducing campaign corruption, increasing voter participation, and creating a more transparent system where people actually feel represented again.

If you’re frustrated with politics, exhausted by division, skeptical of mainstream media, or questioning whether democracy still works the way it was intended to — this conversation is going to challenge you.

Tom Joseph is an innovator, business owner, and social activist. As the founder of Bookminders, he developed a transformative approach to outsourced bookkeeping and pioneered a remote-first employment model that prioritizes flexibility and work-life balance. As an activist and media producer, he launched Wilson's Fountain and America's Main Street Party, introducing a new method for nominating members of Congress. With a track record of leveraging technology for societal well-being, he applies a business-oriented approach to election reform.

https://www.mainstreetparty.org/nominating-process

Scarlett Stanhope, known as The Biz Hippie, joins Listen Bitch Presents for a raw conversation about money mindset, self-worth, burnout, entrepreneurship, emotional healing, abundance, and the hidden pressure behind success.

Scarlett opens up about going from a high-achieving workaholic battling depression, migraines, eczema, and emotional exhaustion to hitting rock bottom after a near-death experience that forced her to completely reevaluate her life. What followed was a journey from “business mode” into deep healing, self-discovery, nervous system work, and understanding the emotional relationship people have with money.

This episode dives into the truth nobody talks about: money is deeply tied to identity, safety, childhood conditioning, self-worth, and emotional regulation. Branden and Scarlett unpack why entrepreneurs sabotage success, why abundance feels unsafe for so many people, and how chasing external validation can quietly destroy your peace.

They also discuss entrepreneurship pressure, scarcity beliefs, financial comfort zones, spiritual bypassing, nervous system healing, abundance alignment, and the difference between performative success and genuine fulfillment.

If you’ve ever struggled with burnout, money anxiety, self-worth, business pressure, fear of success, emotional exhaustion, or feeling like no amount of achievement is enough — this episode is going to hit hard.

Scarlett also shares practical money mindset strategies and a free quiz to help listeners begin transforming their relationship with abundance and financial self-trust.

Scarlett aka The Biz Hippie, teaches coaches to conquer their finances and own their worth so they can be fully supported by the work they love! Scarlett harnessed the power of money to break free from her workaholic career path and pursue her dreams. She uses a combination of tangible money management strategies as well as a variety of coaching techniques to help her clients transform their mindset and relationship to money, allowing them to strategically achieve their goals and live their best lives

https://thebizhippie.com/quiz

Most people downplay what makes them unique. On  Tell Me Why You’re Special, I sit down with everyday people who’ve turned their experiences, struggles, and perspectives into something meaningful and we unpack the story behind what truly makes them stand out.

It’s a real conversation about identity, growth, and the moments that shape who we become. You have a story,  I’d love for my audience  to hear it.

Arky Jones is the creator of PersonalityPeek, a platform focused on helping people better understand themselves through personality insights, self-awareness, and personal growth. He combines personality concepts, Stoic wisdom, and practical self-help to help listeners gain clarity, improve their mindset, and build a stronger relationship with themselves.

https://personalitypeek.com/

Angela Burke, author of Real Girl’s Guide to Midlife, joins Listen Bitch Presents: Tell Me Why You’re Special for an honest conversation about midlife identity shifts, motherhood, hormones, emotional burnout, purpose, and what happens when women wake up one day realizing the life they built no longer fits who they’re becoming.

This episode dives deep into the emotional and psychological transition many women experience in their 40s and 50s — including parenting adult children, losing identity in motherhood, hormonal changes, nervous system overwhelm, grief, reinvention, and the fear of becoming invisible.

Angela shares how she sat on the idea for her book for nearly 20 years before finally stepping into her voice and creating something meaningful from her experiences. Together, Branden and Angela unpack why so many women feel isolated during midlife, how society dismisses women’s emotional and hormonal struggles, and why small brave actions can completely change the trajectory of someone’s life.

This conversation is raw, validating, healing, and deeply relatable for women navigating transition, reinvention, emotional healing, self-worth, parenting shifts, and personal growth.

If you’ve ever felt exhausted, disconnected, overwhelmed, invisible, emotionally stuck, or unsure who you are anymore — this episode will make you feel seen.

 is the author of REAL GIRLS GUIDE TO MIDLIFE, is an award-winning marketing strategist, mother of three, bonus mom to four, and fierce advocate for women reclaiming their stories at midlife. She splits her time between California and Australia with her partner, proving that the best chapters often require a passport, grit, and zero apologies. You can learn more at www.realgirlsguide55.com or follow Angela on Substack.