Wide Open with Ashlyn Harris

This week, Ashlyn sits down with breakdancer Sunny Choi. It’s been about a year since Sunny achieved her childhood dream of competing in the Olympics, though as a kid she thought she’d do it as a gymnast. Sunny takes Ashlyn through her upbringing and the personal battles she had to overcome to make it to the largest stage of her sport. Plus, she opens up about the high of getting breakdancing into the 2024 Paris Olympics and the low of learning that it would not be included in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

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Ashlyn sits down with legend and entertainer, Margaret Cho. They talk about growing up in a queer bookstore in San Francisco, why dominatrixes should be well paid, and why we laugh. Digressions include Margaret’s beloved dogs, lesbian yearning, and a laundry list of improvements to the Queer Ultimatum.

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Ashlyn sits down with model and entrepreneur Lauren Chan for a conversation about Lauren’s divorce and late-in-life coming out, becoming a queer trailblazer in the fashion world, and why leading with vulnerability can actually be a power move. Lauren also opens up about using basketball as both an outlet and an identity, the pressure girls face around body image in sports, and what it really took to pivot from corporate publishing to the runway—while shutting down online haters along the way.

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This week, Ashlyn connects with dancer, actor, and mental health practitioner Alyson Stoner. Listeners may know Alyson from their childhood roles in Cheaper By the Dozen, Camp Rock, and much more, but these days they’re exposing the “toddler to train-wreck pipeline” that child actors are up against. Alyson’s new memoir, Well Adjusted Despite Literally Everything, details their personal journey in this system and how they have begun to heal from it. Alyson and Ashlyn connect over a passion for mental health advocacy, discovering who they are beyond what they do, and protecting kids in entertainment, sports, and beyond.

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Ashlyn gets real with Marion Jones: Olympian, Tarheel, and one-time fastest woman on Earth. Marion takes Ashlyn back in time, to when she spent 49 days in solitary confinement and finally realized what she needed to tell the world. They talk through the regrets, guilt, and tears that paved the way for change– from tabloids to jail, fairweather friends to mothering when the world wants to write your story for you.

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In this episode, Ashlyn sits down with Krista Tippett — journalist, author, and host of On Being — for a thoughtful conversation about what it means to explore spirituality with openness and humility, and how meaningful conversations can help us make sense of the world. Together they unpack how hosting is an act of hospitality and dialogue is a form of adventure — a way of searching for knowledge together, one question at a time.

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On this episode, Ashlyn gets wide open with YouTube star, model, and actor Gigi Gorgeous. Fresh off some big news, the two get vulnerable in a conversation that spans knowing yourself, caring for the queer community, and experiencing huge life events in the public eye.

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On this episode of Wide Open, Ashlyn Harris sits down with emotional expert, scientist, and Yale professor Dr. Laurie Santos to talk about that thing we’re all chasing: happiness. Why isn’t it as easy to be happy, to experience joy, as it should be? How do we recognize the moments we’re heading over the edge, and pull ourselves back? Newsflash: it’s not your fault. Tips, tricks, and digressions into sports metaphors abound.

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On this episode of Wide Open, Ashlyn Harris sits down with trailblazing model Coco Rocha. Coco opens up about carving out a distinct voice in an industry that often demands conformity, and how she’s stayed grounded by sticking to her values. They also talk about body image, boundaries, the challenges of pregnancy, and joys of motherhood. It’s a candid look at reinvention, resilience, and leading with intention.

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In this episode, Ashlyn sits down with Diana Flores, quarterback for the Mexican national flag football team. Flag football was recently announced as a new sport in the 2028 summer Olympics, and that’s largely due to Diana and her teammate’s efforts to get the sport recognized. She tells Ashlyn about that effort, how she fell in love with flag football in the first place, and how playing with boys helped her understand her power. She also shares who she is off the field and why she aims to be a role model for any woman chasing wild dreams.

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