Sound Stories

I recorded this while sick. Bare minimum makeup, maximum opinions. You're welcome. Here are 17 movies that deserve a bigger life than they got, some will rearrange your brain, some will make you sob in a way that's embarrassing, and at least one will make you rethink your entire relationship with Jennifer Lopez. Go watch something from this list tonight. Come back and fight me about it i...

I honestly thought this would be a quick one, it was not. In this episode are the books I've read this year, so far, the ones I loved, the ones I didn't finish, and the one I want buried with me when I die. No full reviews, just vibes, honest ratings, and some unsolicited opinions on how you should be reading poetry (slowly, with breathing room, not in one sitting like it's a Subway...

Hot take from someone who gets the show invites, and your $900 flip-flops are not making you look wealthy, they're making you look like you have $900 and questionable judgment. New episode on how fashion became the cheapest way to fake class, the quiet luxury shirt nobody can identify, the bag you posted three separate times, the brand that swears you're "one of us" right up un...

Solitude and loneliness are not the same thing. I don't know who needs to hear this but apparently a lot of you do. Loneliness is something that happens to you. Solitude is something you choose — and when you do it right, it's one of the most nourishing things you can do for yourself. This episode I'm sharing five things I actually do during my alone time that have genuinely changed...

Every generation thinks music is getting worse. Every generation is wrong， and also a little bit right. The data is real, lyrics have gotten simpler, songs have gotten shorter, and Spotify's algorithm has been quietly flattening every genre into the same digestible mush since 2015. But nobody is saying the music isn't the problem, the room is gone, and the shared moment is gone. You can...

I slid into McKinley Dixon's DMs to help him out when he is on tour in China. He ended up on my podcast. That's just how this works. McKinley Dixon is a rapper and multi-instrumentalist from Virginia, the kind of artist who makes rap music that sounds like it was built from the inside out. This is a last minute thing, the sound wasn't the best, I'll do better. Also: if you win...

Fair warning: I recorded this episode once already and forgot to press record. So what you're hearing is female rage, twice distilled. Pink tax isn't just about paying more for a pink razor. It's a design system — built to extract money from women by first creating the problem, then selling you the solution. This episode, we go deeper than the shampoo aisle. I'm part of the pro...

I met Kwaca two days before this was recorded. He sat down, we just became good friends immediately. Kwaca is a Korean singer-songwriter, producer, and guitarist based in Seoul. He's the kind of person who writes music the way other people journal, to feel things and then get over them. He's also the chief producer behind Gemini, one of the most exciting voices in K-R&B right now, an...

This episode has been living rent-free in my head for a long time. I almost made it a 5-minute video of me just yelling. I found a direction instead. You're welcome. We're talking about why everyone wants to be a DJ but nobody wants to dance. And I mean that literally and as a metaphor. We broke down why the barrier to entry for DJing is lower than ever, what that's doing to the cul...

Kicki Zhang, I met her though the old fashion way, I slid into her DMs. Now she's on the podcast. This is just how friendships work when you're a Third Culture Kid, you find each other in the wild and you just never let each other go. Kicki is a content creator based in Berlin, and one of the few people I know who has actually thought deeply about what it means to grow up as a visible mi...

Quick question: when you think about the people and things you love, are you on that list? Yeah. Didn't think so. This episode is about small, low-effort habits to stop being your own biggest bully. No vision boards. No 5am routines. Just a few things that might make you slightly less mean to yourself, one day at a time. Also I have a theory about white rice and soy sauce that I think you&apo...

There’s a difference between spending money and spending it like an adult, which one are you gonna be? I'm not saying you gotta buy what I'm telling you, but use it as a point of reference from who has spent a lot of BS money before.  #SoundStories #AdultMoney #IntentionalLiving #QualityOverQuantity #LifeStandards

Not everything cool costs money, some of it just costs intention and they can create a good time. This episode is 10 random, low-cost things that make life feel better, sharper, slightly cinematic. No productivity pressure, no self-improvement agenda, just small shifts that change the texture of your day. Give them a try, let me know how it went.

Everyone loves talking about China, good or bad. But very few bother to really understand it. Consider this episode is your Chinese Modern Culture 101, through five real entry points, not stereotypes, not headlines: 王菲 2008 Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony 张艺谋 郭培/上官喆 张爱玲 I also talk about the Western habit of casually talking shit about China, while simultaneously living through thei...

我是特意在过年前录好这一集跟大家聊聊的。 问问你自己，你人生里， 第一次听到“我是为了你好”，是在什么时候？ 这句话听起来很温柔，但为什么觉得是一种暴力？ 这一期，我想把这句话拆开， 聊聊它如何在“关心”的名义下，对自己人生的信任。 Listen, share it to your people, or give me a 💚! Just do it loudly so my mom thinks I’m employed.

My 2026 first guest on Sound Stories is Leeyung 李睿洋. We talked about his new album Taste of Youth , and the five albums that influenced him the most — the records that shaped his taste, instincts, and relationship with music. Listen, send it to your people, or leave a FIVE STAR or a 💚!  Just do it loudly so my mom thinks I’m employed. Show love by following other outlets: IG: https://www.insta...

2026 isn’t about more trends, I'm personally soooo ooooover IT. It’s all about backlash now. The end of “clean girl.”AI everywhere — and the human response to it. Offline experiences becoming super important again. We are craving less polish, more personality. These are not predictions for the algorithm. They’re observations from watching culture crack, shift, and reassemble. Agree. Disagree....

These were the songs I kept coming back to in 2025, on walks, in cars, at 2am, on repeat like a crazy person. No rankings. No “best song ever” claims. Just the singles that refused to let me think of anything else. I did not include any songs from my best albums, just know it's implied. Let me know if any of these were your favorites, or not. Spotify: Qz 2025 Choas  https://open.spotify.com/p...

You have to admit, 2025 was a great year for music, and I don’t care which genre you gel to.   So here are my best, not yours, mine. With way too many late nights, skipped plans, and “one more track” tendencies. No filler. No algorithms. Just great music that stayed with me. Agree. Disagree. Let’s fight it out in the comments, nicely and intelligently, please.    I'm dropping another video on...

Honestly, there’s no theme for this one — it’s just me yapping about films, directors I love, and whatever else comes to mind. Consider this episode as you and me just hanging out, talking about cinema and everything around it. Show love by following other outlets: IG: https://www.instagram.com/soundstories.official/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3y45LciBq3hkAiLewfzPjy?si=58ae298f5d86435f...

So… do you actually know any of these women?   Everyone can name Nicki, Cardi, maybe Megan, but female rap is way deeper than the charts. I’m putting you on to the underground queens who spit harder, stranger, smarter, and sometimes sexier than the mainstream. If you already know them, congrats — your playlist is on point. If not, consider this your cheat sheet before someone side-eyes your ‘rap k...

This solo episode came from a comment someone left me: “How did you get yourself out of a very low point in life?” So I answered.  I share the lessons, the mindset shifts, and the little things that helped me climb out, maybe this can help you too. Show love by following other outlets: IG: https://www.instagram.com/soundstories.official/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3y45LciBq3hkAiLewfzPj...

Today I sat down with Hip Hop OG Doughboy (yes, he’s a big pro-wrestling fan) along with MKW’s Adrian & Coldray . 🖤 I don’t know much about professional wrestling, especially professional wrestling in China, so I asked them a punch of questions 🤼‍♂️🎤.

Let’s talk about my favorite musicians 🖤 and why I think relying on online music critics is one of the most unreliable things you can do. In this solo episode, it’s just me, my playlist, and some brutally honest thoughts. 🎶

Today I sat down with my friend Billy from Esoteric—many of you remember him from his OG influencer era, but now he’s living a whole new chapter as a young dad. 👶✨ We talked about Kanye (yes, kinda), fatherhood, and meditation. Drop a comment and tell me what you think! 🖤 Show love by following other outlets: IG: https://www.instagram.com/soundstories.official/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com...