Pop It

We're recapping the Aloha Worcester panel hosted by Arts Worcester during the POW! WOW! festival last week. The panel, moderated by Arts Worcester's own Ryan Hacker, featured three artists based out of Hawaii: Kaplan/Kapache and Roxanne and Matt Ortiz of Wooden Wave. We discuss our students' reactions to the new murals along with the week in pop culture. What do you think of Taylor Swift's new album? How do you like The Righteous Gemstones on HBO? Drop us a line on instagram @popitworcester.

Over the next week, Natasha Lillipore will paint a mural in Worcester's Great Brook Valley neighborhood as part of the POW! WOW! Worcester festival. Lillipore is a contemporary illustrator based out of Southern California who has designed emojis for Topshop, live-painted at Rihanna's Fenty Puma pop-up, and released a major cosmetics collection. You can catch a glimpse of her on the dance floor at the POW! WOW! Worcester opening party at 8 p.m. Saturday at Electric Haze at 26 Millbury St., Worcester.

Recommerce may be one of the hottest trends of 2019, but Molly McGrath has been curating unique retail experiences at Grime in Worcester for a long time. Molly's personal style and fearless attitude are proof that sometimes the shopkeeper is just as important as the shop. She is organizing this year's Film Wars at Wormtown Brewery. Round up your friends and make a movie from 9/19-9/22 for a 9/28 premier.

Do you have your WWE Smackdown LIVE! tickets yet? Molly talked to Elias "the Drifter" about his rise as an American professional wrestler, the women making WrestleMania milestones, and the strict diet of a superstar athlete. Get to know the sinister songsmith through a series of 'would you rathers.'

Thank you for supporting this project over the last year. We take a lot of pride in elevating women's voices in the city of Worcester and we never imagined how quickly this community would embrace our efforts to do so. For our 50th episode, we answered 20 questions submitted by teenage girls from Central Mass. We did our best to speak with with honesty and vulnerability. We'll be back in August! Until then, you can find links to our favorite episodes at www.popitworcester.com or drop us a line on instagram: @popitworcester.

Aussie researcher Clare Smith and local veterinarian Whitney Allen discuss their scientific paths on this episode of Pop It, taped at the AC Hotel. Clare is chasing a question: 'What makes us sick?' while Whitney strives to educate pet owners across New England. We talk Steve Irwin, cube-shaped feces, and exotic critters.

Sub Pop CEO Megan Jasper is a Worcester native with a passion for punks and pranks. She began as an intern for the iconic Seattle record label and has worked her way up. Some of Sub Pop's recent releases include albums by Iron and Wine, The Postal Service, Band of Horses, Flight of the Conchords, Fleet Foxes, The Head and the Heart, The Shins and Father John Misty. Sub Pop's first certified platinum release was Nirvana's 1989 album, "Bleach."

We also spoke with Worcester's Best Server (and favorite mama) Jenny Pacillo. Jenny recently performed Kid Rock's "Bawitdabaw" at Worcester Celebrity Karaoke and stole the show. She compares WWE notes with Molly and gets honest about motherhood.

Nikki Bell is the CEO and Founder of LIFT, Living in Freedom Together. LIFT is a survivor-led organization working to end prostitution and empower individuals to exit and recover from the impacts of commercial sexual exploitation. Nikki reminds us that as long as there's a price on one woman's head, there's a price on every woman's head. She critiques S.I. Rosenbaum's recent Globe piece "The case for legalizing sex work." The AC Hotel generously hosted Pop It for the taping of this episode. Central Massachusetts Freedom Coalition has advocated for all hotels in Worcester to train employees to identify and properly report suspected sex trafficking.

Anita Amin talks Indian weddings, melted frosting, and three legged dogs on this week's episode of Pop It, taped at the AC Hotel. Anita has patterned her friendships after Leslie Knope and her pets after April Ludgate. She loves Worcester's rebirth almost as much as she appreciates its gritty past. When was the last time you dusted off your Boxcar Children Cookbook?

We are joined by our guest Michelle Miller, Director of the Center for Women in Enterprise. This week, we're hosted at Worcester's posh AC Hotel. Michele helps women increase their personal growth, professional success, and financial independence. We imagine what it would be like to own a shop in the Canal District. Michelle talks Sarah through the Strategyzer business canvas, determining value propositions, revenue streams, and customer relations for her hypothetical business venture: "Memoir." We also hear the success story of https://getyourhomedetox.com. You can contact Michelle to receive free help with your own business plan by phone at 508-453-9206 or email at [email protected]. One more thing, are you team Lindsay or team Paris?