This week, I’m speaking with Barbie Herron Conkling. The localism of southern California’s surf breaks has become legendary, but few can claim local status more than Barbie. With a family history stretching all the way back to the early days of Venice, her relatives literally built the beach communities in which she has spent most of her life.

Growing up in a home which often mirrored the wild west atmosphere that was Malibu in the 1970’s, Barbie developed a spirituality which would serve her throughout her teenage years and well into adulthood. She became a mother at a young age, giving birth to her eldest son, Lyon which she describes as ‘instant soul recognition’, and the two began a journey that was lifetimes in the making. As Barbie helped Lyon navigate a myriad of health challenges, she was forced to address her own struggle with addiction, being a single mother, and the reality of raising two other children, all while running a non-profit.

While she may shrug it off as master multitasking, Barbie’s ability to gracefully navigate the challenges life has presented her, and still find time to help those less fortunate, lends a heavy dose of credence to the notion that moms really can do it all. During the course of our conversation, we discuss her dual realities, the importance of being of service, and why she can so often be found wearing a hat.

It is my pleasure to present Barbie Herron Conkling on The Days Between..

This week, I’m speaking with Andy Mumma. Growing up, Andy never intended to be a small business owner, but the entrepreneurial seed was planted early and when combined with a love of cafe culture and a dash of punk rock, the result has been a series of wildly successful businesses in his adopted hometown of Nashville and beyond.

Andy’s passion for music began while washing milk trucks as a teenager and quickly evolved into touring with bands while he was still in high school. Broke and in need of a change of scenery, Andy made his way to the Music City, where he landed a job as a dishwasher, and through hard work eventually became a barista. His creative instincts ever present, Andy began meticulously planning his own coffee shop and 15 years later, when the opportunity presented itself, willed it into existence.

The first Barista Parlor was a labor of love taking almost a year to complete construction, as well as helping to heal a family rift that had lasted nearly a decade. 8 locations later, a tiki bar, a taco truck, and a pizza bar, Andy’s talent for creating spaces and passion for collaboration is undeniable. During the course of our conversation we discuss the Mennonite influence on his projects, dubbing punk rock from the radio, and learning to let go of where you think you should be and allowing the creative process to take you down roads you never could have imagined.

It is my pleasure to present Andy Mumma on The Days Between..

This week, I’m speaking with Nic Harcourt. When it comes to DJs, few, if any, have had more of an impact on popular culture than Nic. The confluence of his taste, audience, and the gift of timing have enabled him to soundtrack film, television, commercials and beyond. As host of some of the world’s most influential radio programs, listeners have been treated to a daily playlist of Nic’s favorite songs for more than 30 years. 

With a personal history as eclectic as his musical palate, and an appreciation having evolved into playing, music has been a constant during what has at times been a very chaotic existence. Nic’s career has spanned the globe, but it was Los Angeles where he would ultimately settle, participating in nearly every facet of the music business in a hustle to make ends meet. 

During the course of our conversation we discuss his struggles with alcoholism, spinning records with Michael Cain, and why success has no longer has anything to do with what he does for a living.

It is my pleasure to present the man who introduced me to Interpol, Nic Harcourt on The Days Between..

This week I’m speaking with Jennie Garth. With an acting career that has spanned over 30 years, Jennie has plenty of experience becoming someone else. As a young girl, a family trauma ripped her from the country roads of Illinois and transplanted her to the desert of Arizona, where she struggled to find her footing. It was a love of dance and a twist of fate that would serve as her reprieve as well as help to lay the foundation of a friendship which has lasted to this day.

Shortly after arriving in Los Angeles, Jennie found herself thrown into the center of a pop culture juggernaut, forcing her to sharpen her survival skills and establish relationships to help navigate the wind spell of fame. She would go on to appear in and produce dozens of productions, and after nearly two decades on television, Jennie chose to take a step back from the spotlight only to have her private struggles play out to a public audience.

After a lifetime of looking to others to provide her with a sense of stability, through therapy, Jennie grew stronger and learned to become her own rock as she embraced life in the role she was born to play, herself. During the course of our conversation, we discuss the moniker ‘Puddles’, being hypnotized for live television, and learning to date in her forties.

Please enjoy Jennie Garth on The Days Between..

This week I’m speaking with Olivia Hill. As Tennessee’s first openly transgender elected official, Olivia ran her campaign focused on being the most qualified person to sit at the table. A native of Nashville with over three decades of engineering experience, Olivia’s priority is helping to keep her hometown’s underground infrastructure on pace with its above ground development.

Raised by her mother to never give up, Olivia began the journey towards becoming herself at a young age. Having to reconcile an environment which told she should be one way, while internally feeling another, she spent her adolescence in constant turmoil and turned to the Navy in hopes of finding a solution. After nearly a decade, Olivia left a combat veteran with a myriad of skills, including how hide the parts of herself she needed to keep secret in order to remain safe.

Upon returning to Nashville, Olivia began her 25-year career with Vanderbilt University where she would ultimately transition and in the process receive what she calls a huge education. Olivia never set out to make history, but in a state intent on making life more difficult for its transgender community, her personal experience makes her the perfect person to do so, and those who supported her candidacy appear to agree.

It is my pleasure to present Olivia Hill on The Days Between..

This week I’m speaking with Mark Mahoney. As a tattooer, Mark needs no introduction. A pioneer of the single needle style, his work has inspired artists and set a standard for decades. An afternoon at the beach as a young boy set Mark on a path which has seen him bridge the gap between outsider and popular culture, helping to bring the art form into the mainstream.

It was with the outlaw motorcycle clubs of Massachusetts where Mark would first practice his craft, saving members a trip to neighboring Rhode Island. After a short stint in art school, he found himself in New York City in the late 70’s, expanding his body of work on a clientele that included some of the most notorious musicians in history. With tattooing illegal in Manhattan, Mark made his way to The Pike in Long Beach, California where he cut his teeth and was exposed to single needle tattoos, popular with Chicano artists, but shunned by the larger tattoo community.

Mark would eventually land in Los Angeles, where he set up shop on The Sunset Strip, but the journey there wasn’t without his fair share of tragedy. During the course of our conversation, we discuss kicking Charles Bukowski’s ass, the East Coast/West Coast hip-hop rivalry of the 90’s, and the Shamrock Social Club, his home for the last 22 years. The term legend gets thrown around a lot, but when it comes to Mark, it’s difficult to think of a more accurate way to describe him, save only for the word humble.

It is my privilege to present Mark Mahoney on The Days Between..

This week I’m speaking with Duane Sorenson. As a coffee roaster, Duane’s passion forever changed the world of specialty coffee. Having grown up in a small town in western Washington, it was a love of music that first led him through the doors of a local coffee shop in the ninth grade. Encouraged by his father, Duane’s ability to differentiate varietals began to emerge.

By the time he left high school, Duane was a barista. Naturally competitive, he immersed himself in Seattle’s coffee scene in the early 90’s, working multiple jobs and refining his technique. When an opportunity to learn to roast coffee presented itself, Duane dove in headfirst and within a few months was roasting full time.

It was a source trip to Panama and a desire to work directly with farmers that inspired what would become Stumptown Coffee and at the same time set into motion a movement known as the Third Wave. With his goals accomplished and his company having grown to meteoric heights, Duane sold Stumptown, a decision that was not without speculation or consequence.

After opening a series of acclaimed restaurants in his beloved Portland, Duane is back on the roaster with his new venture, Puff Coffee. During the course of our conversation, we discuss his preference for hiring employees with passion over experience, taking care of people, and why success is a naughty word.

It is my pleasure to present Duane Sorenson on The Days Between..

This week I’m speaking with Wayne Kramer. When it comes to lives, Wayne has lived several. As the founder of seminal rock band MC5, he began his musical career at just 16 years old. By 1967, the MC5 were serving as the house band at the Grande Ballroom and Wayne was working full time. As racial tensions reached a fever pitch around the the country and in his hometown of Detroit, he crossed paths with poet and activist John Sinclair who shared his revolutionary fervor and would become a mentor throughout his life.

Shortly after the MC5 imploded, Wayne found himself in federal prison, which he documents at length in his book, The Hard Stuff: Dope, Crime, the MC5, and My Life of Impossibilities. After serving 2 1/2 years of a 4 year sentence, Wayne headed to New York City where he remained for a decade, playing music, continuing to use drugs, and living what he describes as the same year, ten times.

In the mid nineties, Wayne began a new life in Los Angeles, where he signed a recording contract and began touring only to see his efforts come crashing down as a result of what he calls, ‘an inside job’. Tired of carrying on the facade of sobriety, Wayne turned to Bob Timmons to help him take the steps toward a better life. Now 24 years sober, Wayne discusses how talent isn’t enough, why he thinks NWA picked up where MC5 left off, and his work with the C.A.P.O. Center and the non-profit Jail Guitar Doors, named after The Clash song he helped inspire.

Please enjoy Wayne Kramer on The Days Between..

This week I’m speaking with Rebecca Woolf. As a writer, Rebecca found recognition early on, having first been published while she was still in High School. An adolescence spent in the idyllic beach town of Encinitas, California offered Rebecca extraordinary exposure to mortality, which has served her throughout her life, both personally and professionally.

Known for her unflinching honesty, Rebecca quickly amassed an audience with her blog, Girl’s Gone Child. Through writing she was able to monetize her experience as a young mother, as well as emotionally connect with a community outside of her daily existence. As her family grew and her relationship faltered, Rebecca made plans to leave her marriage when tragedy struck. Again, she turned to the sanctuary of the page, producing her memoir All of This: A Memoir of Death and Desire, in which she documents navigating life as a widow and single mother of four at just 37 years old.

From layered relationships, to societal expectations, to the nuance of carrying multiple emotions at once, Rebecca’s ability to articulate the messiness that it is to be human is truly a gift. During the course of our conversation, we discuss watching her husband take his last breath, being DTF, and why she doesn’t have a favorite color.

It is my pleasure to present Rebecca Woolf on The Days Between..

This week I’m speaking with Chef Sean Sherman. Growing up on the Pine Ridge Reservation, Sean had plenty of time to explore the wide open spaces provided by the South Dakota Badlands. Equipped with a natural curiosity, Sean developed an extensive knowledge of the edible flora surrounding him which he has utilized throughout his career. Self-taught, Sean learned to cook at a young age using available ingredients and a healthy dose of creativity.

Rising through the ranks of the Minneapolis food scene of the early 2000’s, Sean found himself in an executive chef position in just a few short years. Having reached a point of being overworked and burnt out, he packed a bag and headed to Mexico. Encounters with the native Huichol sparked a passion to learn more about his own culinary heritage, which would ultimately result in Sean opening the Tatanka food truck and his restaurant Owamni.

A three time James Beard Award winner, Sean founded the non-profit NĀTIFS with a mission among other goals, to educate tribal communities and younger generations about indigenous culture, in an effort to counter centuries of American Colonialism. During the course of our conversation we discuss hustling sushi, his chosen moniker ‘The Sioux Chef’, and why he doesn’t serve fry bread.

Please enjoy Chef Sean Sherman on The Days Between..