Happy holidays! I'm grateful to have had such thoughtful conversations with all of my guests on Coffee with BAO in the last couple of months. And also for the the chance to share their stories and to get constructive feedback from many of you. Thank you so much.

There's no new episode of Coffee with BAO this week. But I wanted to tell you about why I started the show and where I'd like to see it go.

A lot of interview shows are what I consider "Success Porn," glorifying people who've done great things by detailing how hard they worked or how innovative their solutions were. That's cool, but that's not what I wanted to do with Coffee with BAO. On my show, I want to emphasize that it's OK to be a work in progress. I want to highlight stories of people who made a few wrong turns and reiterate that wherever someone is in their path, it's an ongoing process and that we call can keep learning from each other.

I wanna link to three podcasts that influenced the approach I took on Coffee with BAO.

"How I Built This" with Guy Raz for giving Insight into the struggles, failures, and pivots of people who have accomplished notable things. https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this

"Open Belly" with Danielle Lehman for Seeking out stories of immigrants, industry outsiders, and oftentimes, showing how people reinvent themselves to pursue their culinary dreams. Open Belly is exceptionally well-produced by my good friend Danielle Lehman and her team. https://www.openbellypodcast.com

"And the Writer Is..." with Ross Golan. I love the format of the casual conversation because such interesting stories are told that way. Ross draws a connection between a songwriter's life story and their work and their process. Overall, a great variety of music industry stories. https://www.andthewriteris.com

What's next for Coffee with BAO?

I'm looking forward to making Coffee with BAO even better in 2021 with better production value and more awesome guests. One thing I've been struggling with is getting more people to discover my show. So I'm asking you to help share your favorite episode with two people who you think would appreciate the show. I'm also using your comments and testimonials to apply for grants for the show. And when I get enough of a budget, I'll run some ads to grow my audience, so if you're feeling generous, please head over to coffeewithBAO.com to hit the blue "support" button and pitch in whatever you think this content is worth. It's a weird time, so no pressure.

Coffee with BAO will be back in January with a few improvements and a slew of fascinating guests!

Ep 27: Tonie – Music Artist and Educator

Coffee with BAOBy Bao Vo Creative, Inc.Mar 11, 2022