The CEO of Wella Company, a global leader in the $100 billion beauty industry, Annie Young-Scrivner discusses her inspirational American Dream story and how it has shaped her as a leader, the importance of mentorship and representation, and why empowering women in the economy is part of Wella Company’s mission.

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Called “perhaps the most potent female singer of her generation,” she is currently getting raves in the role of Virginia Woolf in the Metropolitan Opera’s world premiere of The Hours. Hear how she went from an unknown who was told she had no talent to singing on the world’s most important stages—and the life lessons she learned along the way.

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In a typical opera season, she will oversee as many as 4,500 costumes as well as the people who put them on and take them off the Met’s performers. As Director of Costumes, Wardrobe, Wigs, and Makeup, Spangler is the highly organized hub of a nightly whirlwind that makes magic happen on one of the world’s most important stages.

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New York Jewelry Week is on right now. And if you’re in NYC that’s the perfect venue to see the Plan B Art Project, a traveling exhibit created by jewelry artist Shauna Blythe Burke as a way to raise funds and awareness for reproductive rights and Planned Parenthood. Shauna has been joined in the project by 70 other artists—female and male—among them acclaimed Baltimore jewelry designer Rebecca Myers. Hear what Shauna and Rebecca have to say about women, collaboration and artistic inspiration.

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The first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize, Edith Wharton wrote novels like “The Age of Innocence” and “The House of Mirth” that remain popular today. We revisit this interview with Susan Wissler, executive director of Wharton’s estate, The Mount, to get fascinating insights into this multifaceted writer and designer of homes and gardens.

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This week the Poetry Foundation awarded Nikki Giovanni the Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize to recognize her lifetime achievements. Giovanni burst on the literary scene in 1968 with her first book of poetry, Black Feeling Black Talk. Since then, she’s published in every genre, collecting countless honors along the way. We revisit this 2021 conversation with the writer who is still teaching and inspiring others today.

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Why do some people get Covid—but show no symptoms? That’s one of the mysteries being unraveled by Dr. Jill Hollenbach, immunogeneticist at the University of California, San Francisco, and head of The Hollenbach Lab. Hear how she went from a childhood as a self-described “science nerd” to leading important research at the intersection of immunology and genetics.

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For the first time, an Asian American person will appear on US currency, when a new quarter featuring actress Anna May Wong makes its debut on October 24. Learn why Wong was such a big star in the 1920s and 30s. We revisit this episode with Arizona State University professor Dr. Karen Leong, who tells why it's time for a new appreciation of Wong, as both a captivating actress and a crusader against racism.

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The former New York Times critic, and author of the recent memoir Constructing a Nervous System, talks about the genius of the First Lady of Song, Ella Fitzgerald, and how Fitzgerald helped shape Jefferson's own perspective.

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Judit Polgar is considered the greatest female chess player of all time—one who’s beaten many of the world's top male players. And on October 8, she once again hosts her  annual Judit Polgar Global Chess Festival—an opportunity for girls and boys (and adults) to get into the game. We revisit this interview with Polgar, who has been making headlines since she became a Grandmaster at age 15. 

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