Worthiness Warriors

Chelsea and Kevin speak with poet, musician, teacher, and director of The Gay Men's Chorus Los Angeles, EJ Harrison about how music can heal you, using social justice as inspiration, moving through mental health challenges, and overcoming fears when it comes to something you're truly passionate about.

More about EJ:

Ernest Harrison is a poet, musician, and teacher. He is a proud graduate of Tuskegee University (2010) where completed his Bachelor's in English Liberal Arts. He later received his Bachelor's in Vocal Performance from Auburn University (2014), where he studied voice with world-renowned composers/conductors Dr. Rosephanye and William Powell. He then received his Master's in Choral Conducting from the University of Missouri (2016) under the tutelage of Dr. R. Paul Crabb. Ernest is currently ADB, concluding his Doctoral studies in Choral Music at the University of Southern California under the direction of Dr. Jo-Michael Scheibe.

Ernest became a member of the international Grammy Award winning choral ensemble, Conspirare, in 2019. He was an associate conductor for the Grammy Award-winning National Children's Chorus (2017-2022) and conductor of the Pasadena Conservatory of Music's Cantare Chamber Choir (2019-2022). Ernest is now Music Director and Head of Education and Outreach of the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles. Ernest has also taught as an adjunct professor at Pepperdine College, the University of Southern California, and Columbia University. He is currently teaching Voice and Music & Social Justice at Loyola Marymount University. Ernest is dedicated to the fight for social justice, equity, and inclusion in the choral classroom, on the concert stage, and in the world. Whether it be as a conductor, composer, arranger, vocalist, choral clinician, poet, or lecturer, his passion for people is the guiding light in every facet of his music making.

Instagram: @ej92187

Facebook: Ernest Harrison

Gay Men's Chorus Los Angeles (for tickets and more info!): gmcla.org

TW//Gun Violence. Chelsea and Kevin talk with event producer, LGBTQ inspirational speaker, and survivor of the Pulse Nightclub shooting, Neema Bahrami about self-acceptance, the challenge labels present, especially ones like "survivor" that carry so much weight and what to do when labels you are given aren't ones you identify with.

More about Neema:

Neema Bahrami is an event producer, survivor and LGBTQ inspirational speaker. His life has not been an easy journey. At a very young age, he became estranged from his family when they learned he was part of the LGBTQ community. As a confused teenager trying to find his place in the world, Neema turned to friends for support, even living on their sofas for a brief period of time.

Determined not to let his situation hold him back, Neema committed to becoming the best he could be. He began working 3 different jobs to make ends meet and get back on his feet. Always focused on the positive, when asked to look back at that pivotal time in his life, Neema laughingly says he simply convinced himself sleep was overrated and he persevered.

Since those early years, Neema has overcome tremendous obstacles to become a leading voice for the LGBTQ community. His is now driven by a passion for helping others learn to accept themselves and overcome their own personal tragedies.

Neema was the event manager the night of the tragic Pulse Nightclub mass shooting in 2016 in Orlando, Florida, during which 49 people were killed and more than 53 others were injured. Many were coworkers and close personal friends. Since that time, Neema has traveled the world, sharing his journey toward healing and speaking out about what he's done to overcome the tragedy in his own life since that tragic night.

Instagram: @neemathehost

Website: neemabahrami.com

Chelsea and Kevin sit down to have a deep, loving and vulnerable conversation with Amazing Race contestants Aastha Lal and Nina Duong about who they are and what they've learned as individuals and as a couple since being eliminated first on Season 34 of The Amazing Race. This episode covers everything from resilience, to the power of detachment and meditation, coming out stories, and so much more. Here is your chance to get to know the humans behind the short clips you see on your TV screen and gain incredible information in the process.

More about Aastha:

Born and raised in Queens, New York, Aastha Lal is a little lady who gets big laughs! Starting her career in 2010, she has since performed stand-up comedy in over 450 shows and headlined on some of the biggest stages around the world in cities like London, Toronto, New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Dublin, and Hong Kong.

More about Nina:

Nina is a born creative thinker with an unrelenting desire to solve problems through unique solutions. She served in the US Army National Guard for seven years, with one deployment (Operation Iraqi Freedom). She now serves as the Director for Business Development and Senior Consultant at Fisheye Learning, working on special projects and turnkey business solutions for clients including Facebook and Microsoft. Add her on LinkedIn: Nina Duong.

Instagram: @aastha.lal @sillybanina

TikTok: @aastha.lal

LinkedIn: Nina Duong

Chelsea and Kevin sit down with sustainable stylist, Charline Zeroual, to discuss how your personal style isn't just about making a good first impression, it goes much deeper. From how your clothes can affect your mood, how you feel about yourself, and impact the way you present to the world, Charline shows us that clothes are more than just skin deep.

More about Charline:

Charline is a Sustainable Wardrobe Stylist dedicated to helping women everywhere benefit from the fundamentals of personal styling while also focusing on a more conscious approach to fashion consumption. She has helped many women of all silhouettes and life stages—each with unique needs and tastes. And she has seen first-hand what a boost personal styling can be for self-image and confidence. She is honored to provide a service that is truly transformative!

On a personal note, Charline is a French-mompreneur of three little ones who enjoys working out, traveling, and cooking. She approaches every challenge with good energy, good vibes, and plenty of good humor! So, when you're ready to take that next step towards creating your perfect wardrobe and reclaiming (or claiming for the first time) that confident glow, she can't wait to meet you!

Instagram: @sustainable.wardrobe.stylist

Website: charlinezeroual.com

Kevin and Chelsea talk about how making friends in adulthood can sometimes bring up the things that scare us that most. Whether we are romanticizing what adult friendships look like because of the media or we feel super lonely we are in this together and you're definitely not alone. Come along today for some camaraderie, tips, and tricks of how to tap into friendships regardless of the stage you're in in life.

Some additional notes:

What are secondary emotions exactly? They are emotions fueled by other emotions.

For more information and to buy Chelsea's book, Inexplicably Me, learn more about her Flip the Script course, or Blog check out her website chelseaaustin.com. You can also learn more about and order Kevin's book, The Family Next Door, here! Be sure to connect with us on social media as well!

Instagram: @chelseaaustinmdw @kevinscot

TikTok: @chelseaaustinmdw

Twitter: @chelseaamdw @KevMontDub

Facebook: @ChelseaAustinMDW @thefamilynextdoorbook

Kevin and Chelsea sit down with former radio and TV host turned self-mastery coach, Andrea Lowell to talk about making self-mastery approachable and understandable. From hitting your emotional rock bottom, feeling out of alignment in your career and taking the leap to leave to radical self-awareness, Andrea walks us through her own spiritual journey and its practical applications to your life.

More about Andrea:

Andrea Lowell, a former TV and radio host for The Playboy Morning Show (No.2 on the SIRIUSXM charts), quit her successful hosting job to pursue a higher calling after feeling miserable and bored for far too long. Taking that leap of faith, she is now a Self Mastery Guide and the creator of The I AM Everything Project, her signature self mastery mentorship program.

Her potent coaching centers around the never-ending practice of self awareness, which propels the spiritually-minded to next-level frequencies, mindset, and connection to The Divine (and therefore next-level manifestation!).

Andrea has more than a decade of experience in this type of work, assisting women on their journeys of expansion with absolute success, due to her unique style of practical integration, spiritual alignment, radical self-honesty, and mind-body-spirit balance within daily life.

Andrea's practical methods of spirituality and self-healing are profoundly life-altering. Always straightforward and sustainable, she guarantees bliss to those who follow her loving and simple suggestions.

Instagram: @theiameverythingproject

Website: andrealowell.com

Kevin and Chelsea talk about why sometimes it feels so hard to just be happy and what are some fun new (and old classic) ways to tap into that happiness and maybe even realizing that happiness doesn't have to be the answer.

Some additional notes:

The books mentioned in the episode:

Come As You Are by Emily Nagoski

The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron

And the word Chelsea was looking for in the beginning was, in fact, norepinephrine, which is a naturally occurring chemical in your body that can be stimulated to increase your mood when taking a cold plunge.*

*Please note we are not scientists…this information came from Google…and here is an article where the many benefits of cold plunging can be found

For more information and to buy Chelsea's book, Inexplicably Me, learn more about her Flip the Script course, or Blog check out her website chelseaaustin.com. You can also learn more about and order Kevin's book, The Family Next Door, here! Be sure to connect with us on social media as well!

Instagram: @chelseaaustinmdw @kevinscot

TikTok: @chelseaaustinmdw

Twitter: @chelseaamdw @KevMontDub

Facebook: @ChelseaAustinMDW @thefamilynextdoorbook

Kevin and Chelsea talk with personal finance experts and hosts of the Queer Money Podcast, John & David Auten-Schneider to talk about why it's easier to talk about sex than money and some of the barriers the LGBTQ+ community experiences when it comes to financial well-being.

More about John & David:

After working in the pale, male and stale-run financial services industry and seeing their community constantly left out of the conversation they decided they wanted to help more folks in the LGBTQ+ community reach not only financial sustainability but to thrive financially.

Thriving financially is more than just making a lot of money. It's also using tools and tips that help us keep and grow the money we work so hard to earn.

Over the past 5+ years, they've published over 300 episodes of their podcast with notable guests such as Dominique Jackson of POSE, Gaby Dunn of BuzzFeed and author of Bad with Money, Patrick L. Riley, field producer for Oprah, Todd Sears of Outleadership and many more.

They break down often hard-to-understand money topics into easy-to-understand stories that highlight folks across the whole rainbow spectrum. Their goal is to see more queer folks reach financial freedom.

Podcast: The Queer Money Podcast

Motley Fool Study: LGBTQ+ Finance

Instagram: @queermoneypodcast

Twitter: @debtfreeguys

TikTok: @queermoneypod

Website: debtfreeguys.com

Kevin and Chelsea sit down with their partners to dive into how to make a family business work, what it means to support those you love versus enable them, how to treat your family

like an ecosystem, and what makes our family unique besides the whole two gay dads thing.

"It's complicated" is without a doubt the most used phrase in this episode. And we all know that family is complicated and if you feel that at times with your own family, you're definitely not alone. We've all been there even when it looks like we have it all together on the outside.

For more information and to buy Chelsea's book, Inexplicably Me, learn more about her Flip the Script course, or Blog check out her website chelseaaustin.com. You can also learn more about and order Kevin's book, The Family Next Door, here! Be sure to connect with us on social media as well!

Instagram: @chelseaaustinmdw @kevinscot

TikTok: @chelseaaustinmdw

Twitter: @chelseaamdw @KevMontDub

Facebook: @ChelseaAustinMDW @thefamilynextdoorbook

Kevin and Chelsea talk with Olympic Gold Medalist and purpose-led champion, Benita Fitzgerald Mosley about Benita's story and how sports or any passion can have a profound effect on your sense of self and confidence.

More about Benita:

Benita Fitzgerald Mosley, an Olympic Gold Medalist and purpose-led champion in sports and business, is responsible for stewarding LeagueApps partnerships with North American professional sports leagues and their respective youth development initiatives. She also drives the advancement of the NextUp community platform and as President of FundPlay leads this LeagueApps program to support youth sports organizations and foster sports experience opportunities for young people from underserved communities. Prior to joining LeagueApps, Fitzgerald Mosley served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation USA and also previously worked as Chief Operating Officer for the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee and Chief of Sport Performance for USA Track & Field. Fitzgerald Mosley is a graduate of the University of Tennessee with a B.S. in Industrial Engineering and a charter member of the Tennessee Volunteers Hall of Fame.

LinkedIn: Benita Fitzgerald Mosley

Instagram: @benitafmosley

Info on FundPlay: LeagueApps.com