The Bridge

As the world continues to speed up technology, in many instances, the older generations are getting left behind. Heyang shares that in Beijing, there is an effort being made to educate businesses that not everyone is as tech savvy as they might think. John adds that the 254 million people in China age 60+ that are susceptible to being less than tech ready, is nearly the entire population of the United States, and we have our own challenges with seniors staying connected to the grid.

Brendan Davis began his entertainment career in 1990. He has been a producer on films premiering, competing, or winning at Sundance ("Metamorphosis", 2016; Sundance HK), Toronto (DEADGIRL, 2008; BORN TO DANCE, 2015), Berlin (BORN TO DANCE, 2016) and other top festivals. In 2013 Davis produced the first US season of long-running Chinese TV hit "Jia Pian You Yue" featuring Stan Lee, Justin Lin, M. Night Shyamalan, & Sean Austin. In 2019 he completed feature documentary CRAZYHOT, now available worldwide on demand. He is currently directing a documentary about leading global thinktank Horasis as well as producing MY FAVORITE SEASON for director Larry Sullivan. Brendan shares his experiences with John & Heyang in both China and the USA, when it comes to the film industry. 

Recently, China launched the Long March-5 Y5 rocket, carrying the Chang'e 5 lunar probe heading towards the moon to retrieve lunar surface materials. John & Heyang talk about monumental moments in their respective histories, like the lunar landing in 1969, the JFK assassination, the death of Michael Jackson and the summer Olympics in Beijing in 2008. The conversation then turns to the many things we use in everyday life, that came out of the space program-like cameras in our phones, CAT scans and Nike Air athletic shoes.

Life can often be boring, mundane and repetitive-so how do you find the "extraordinary in the ordinary" and begin to understand that just being who you are, is enough? John, Heyang and Cimcie discuss the aspects of life that we often miss, that actually contain opportunities to find the magic moments. John shares a story about working with Oprah Winfrey and how even one of the biggest names in the world, just needed a quiet space now and then, and the time that Ms. Winfrey surprised Annie Denver who was in the studio audience as John's guest with "Annie's Song." 

Eric de Fontenay founded MusicDish China as a creative music agency focused on producing and promoting live music events across China. Since producing its first tour during the Shanghai World Expo 2010 for Tomas Doncker, MusicDish has been managing and touring a growing roster of overseas artists such as award-winning act Sugar Blue. MusicDish has also produced events in North America and Europe for some of the biggest names in the Chinese music world such as Mayday, Jolin Tsai and Second Rose. Eric joins John & Heyang to share his path from being an economist, to creating one of the most successful promotional ventures in music.

When BeiBei sent John a text message with pictures of Covid-19 facemasks with pig snouts on them, he should have realized that it would lead to the many ways pig snouts (and feet) are enjoyed as a delicacy in China. Then it's on to alligator, ostrich and other assorted exotic dishes that most people haven't had on a plate in front of them. BeiBei has been busy making her version of "toast" and explaining the process and pushing John to see "toast" in a different way. As always, BeiBei and John find a way to work donuts into yet another episode of The Bridge, and finally the value of black sesame seeds, a staple of the Asian diet, is added to the menu.

BeiBei is back and talking about her favorite subject-food. From 15-year-old orange peel tea, to the finer aspects of eating vegetables, to not wasting food, to the challenge of getting kids to eat things that are good for them, BeiBei is all about using food science to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Then the conversation turns to the concept of a "pilgrimage" as a way of keeping the body, mind and spirit in order.

The Bridge launched in September of 2020, and one of the first guests to close the gap between east and west, was internationally renowned artist and author, Hillary Raimo. She brought a worldly perspective to the conversation with John & Heyang and dropped one of the most important concepts to consider in life-seeing the world with "a beginner's mind." Sadly, Hillary passed away on November 12th, 2020 at the age of 47, leaving a considerable body of work for us to learn from. This remembrance show features audio from that first episode, along with John & Heyang sharing thoughts about their friend.

It's the one day a year set aside for giving thanks, spending time with family and ingesting copious amounts of turkey. But the pandemic has had a role in changing many plans for Thanksgiving. John and Heyang open the phone lines and are joined by two listeners of The Bridge, Laura in Texas and Karen from Chicago, who share their own takes on the holiday, the lessons learned during these times, and what they are most grateful for.

As the news brings headlines of a possible Covid-19 vaccine, John & Heyang talk about the many elements that have gone into the race for a vaccine, including the $1 million dollar donation by country music superstar Dolly Parton, and the unusual reason why she made such a large donation to Vanderbilt University for a cure.