Caged No More Podcast

This week I'm joined by Ryan Foster, owner of Moxie Ink, whose story is one of the most powerful examples of redemption you'll hear. Ryan opens up about growing up in rural California, getting addicted to meth at a young age, serving multiple prison sentences, learning to tattoo behind bars, battling heroin addiction, and losing everything before finally finding lasting recovery. We also t...

This week I'm sitting down with Renaissance Ranch alum Fergie to talk about a recovery journey that's been anything but easy. We get into childhood trauma, addiction, repeated relapses, overdoses, treatment, and the guilt and shame that kept pulling him back. But we also talk about the power of community, faith, accountability, and why he's now helping others find recovery as a case ma...

Curtis Marsh shares his story of success, addiction, losing everything, and finding purpose again through recovery, service, and faith. From Wall Street success to jail, addiction, and rebuilding his life, this conversation dives deep into personal accountability, alignment, inner peace, and helping others rise above their own chaos. If you’re struggling, rebuilding, or trying to become a better v...

Jose shares his story going from 20 years in gang life and federal prison to building a legit business and providing for his family. We talk about growing up in poverty, getting involved in gangs at a young age, doing time, and what it really takes to walk away from that life. This episode is about discipline, responsibility, and making the decision to change for real. If you’re trying to level up...

In this episode, I sit down with Brian from UAPS, one of the pioneers of peer support in Utah. We dive into his story from juvenile prison, addiction, and mental health struggles to helping build the peer support system that’s now changing lives across the state. We talk about what peer support really is, why lived experience matters more than just textbook knowledge, and how it’s transforming rec...

I sit down with Mr. Regal the Barber and really unpack the journey. From being a young dad at 16, homeless, hustling, and eventually doing time… to building a real business, becoming a father with purpose, and leading by example. This isn’t just about success. It’s about growth, accountability, and becoming the man your kids need you to be. We talk about gang culture, prison, fatherhood, fitness,...

In this episode of Caged No More , Smaqs sits down with Michael Ulibarri , Executive Director of Defy Ventures Utah . Michael shares how growing up in Rose Park surrounded by crime and incarceration led him into prison at a young age. After multiple prison sentences and years inside the system, he eventually began changing his mindset and focusing on personal growth. Today, Michael works with Defy...

In this powerful episode, Smaqs sits down with his brother Sione "CeeOne" Kauvaka, a Tongan American who grew up in Salt Lake City and spent over 20 years incarcerated before completely transforming his life. Sione opens up about growing up with immigrant parents, falling into crime and gang life at a young age, and how alcohol and poor choices eventually led to prison. He shares what it...

In this powerful episode, Smacks sits down with Nicole Vowell to talk about trauma, incarceration, addiction, chaos, and what real healing looks like. Nicole opens up about growing up around addiction and incarceration, losing her father at a young age, being separated from her mother, and navigating a childhood filled with violence and instability. She shares how those early experiences shaped he...

In Part 2 of this conversation, Branden Campbell continues his story by diving into what real recovery actually looks like after the decision to get help is made. Branden opens up about recognizing addiction as a response to trauma, emotional dysregulation, and years of unresolved internal struggles. He shares how prescription medications slowly took control, how addiction hid behind responsibilit...

In Part 1 of this powerful conversation, we sit down with Branden Campbell , bassist for the multi-platinum band Neon Trees , to talk about the parts of the journey most people never see. Branden opens up about growing up in Las Vegas, finding music at a young age, discovering faith, and eventually achieving massive success in the music industry. But even with family, spirituality, and a dream car...

In this powerful episode of Caged No More , we sit down with our brother Damaar Jones for a deep and honest conversation about a cage most people never talk about — the addiction to attention, validation, and social media . Damaar opens up about stepping away from over 50,000 followers, deleting every platform, and confronting the uncomfortable truth about how attention, lust, pornography, alcohol...

In this episode, we sit down with our brother Manny, and man… this one is powerful on a different level. Manny takes us through the real journey, his childhood, the streets, 11 prison terms, toxic relationships, addiction, and the moment everything finally shifted. This isn’t just a story about surviving. It’s about choosing to break every generational chain, finding faith again, rebuilding from t...

From celebrated BYU running back to full-blown opioid addiction, Alema Harrington opens up about his powerful journey through pain, identity, relapse, faith, and redemption. Alema shares how pressure, injury, and painkillers at BYU led him into a secret addiction that cost him his marriage, his career, and nearly his life. But when everything fell apart, God found him — through treatment, brotherh...

In this episode, Portia Louder opens up about what it really means when God takes everything from you — the job, the relationships, the pride, the plans — until all that’s left is surrender. This is one of the most transparent and faith-filled conversations yet. Portia talks about being broken down to the point where the only option was to let go, trust God, and rebuild from scratch. If you’ve eve...

From playing golf tournaments alongside Tiger Woods to becoming Hawaii’s Most Wanted, Kyle Quilausing story is one of the wildest redemptions you’ll ever hear. In this episode, Kyle shares how he went from a golf prodigy on the Big Island—raised by a chief of police and trained by his grandfather—to a meth addict, fugitive, and inmate in solitary confinement. But what happened in that seven-by-sev...

Brad Jensen — better known as The Sober Bodybuilder — joins Smaqs to share his raw, powerful story of addiction, incarceration, and redemption. From a middle-class upbringing to drug trafficking and heroin use, Brad opens up about the moments that nearly ended his life — and the one arrest that actually saved it. This episode dives deep into: His first drink at 13 and how body image shaped his add...