Crude Conversations

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with radio and podcast host Alexis Sallee. Alexis has worked in radio for about ten years now. She started right out of high school at 90.3 KNBA in Anchorage, Alaska. She was a sound editor on a radio program called Earthsongs. She now hosts and produces INDIGEFI . Both of those programs feature modern music by indigenous artists. In addition to INDIGEFI, s...

In this episode, Cody and Dustin H James talk to Fairbanks Ladies of Wrestling, better known as FLOW. Two summers ago, FLOW gave Crude access to the green room before their event at Williwaw Social in Anchorage on July 20. Cody and Dustin talked with event organizer and FLOW co-founder Donald Crocker, and wrestlers Leslie Dope, TJ Rocks Rivera, Thunder Thighs and Freya the Slaya.  The following in...

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with Fairbanks-based rapper Josh Silva, better known as Alaska Redd. Redd is one of the pioneers of Alaska hip hop. He’s been pursuing it for over 20 years. And in that time, he’s had to learn what a successful career in hip hop looks like in Alaska, that it can’t follow the conventional route of radio-play and touring because many times local radio station...

In this Special Conversation, Cody talks with Jasmin Smith, an entrepreneur and community activist. On May 30, Jasmin hosted the "Icantbreathe Social Distance Rally" in Anchorage following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Thousands of people gathered at the rally to protest against police brutality and systemic racism. 

In this episode, Cody talks with three prominent black voices in the Alaska community to understand the conversations and the perspectives of Alaskans in the wake of the killing of George Floyd. Floyd’s death has sparked worldwide protests and rallies against police brutality and systemic racism in the United States. Alaska has seen a number of these rallies, including in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Pal...

In this Special Conversation, Cody catches up with Cliff Groh, who raises some important questions about Alaska's economy during COVID-19, including short-term and long-term solutions to current and ongoing issues. Cliff is a former Alaska Revenue Department official and longtime advocate for the Permanent Fund Dividend, and a board member of Alaska Common Ground , a non-profit that focuses on Ala...

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with Anchorage-based photographer Kerry Tasker . Kerry says that to be a freelance photographer in Alaska, your skillset has to be versatile. Because Alaska is such a small market, there’s not a whole lot of consistency in the type of work you do. Meaning, one day you might be taking headshots for a business and the next day you might be shooting video for...

In this Special Conversation, Cody and his wife, Carrie Hambach, talk about being in quarantine for eight weeks together. There's a lot of scary news out there right now, so they decided to highlight some of the positive outcomes of the quarantine.

In this episode, family and friends share some of their favorite memories of professional snowboarder Chris Larson. About a month ago, Larson took his own life. Without speculating on reasons why he did it, this episode focuses on the life of Larson.   If you didn’t know Larson, then the best way to understand him is that he was someone who came from a loving family, he had loyal friends and he wa...

In this Special Conversation, Cody talks with Cliff Groh about Alaska's economy during COVID-19. Cliff is a former Alaska Revenue Department official and longtime advocate for the Permanent Fund Dividend, and a board member of Alaska Common Ground , a non-profit that focuses on Alaska’s public policy issues.

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with Zach Carothers of Portugal. The Man . Zach grew up in Wasilla, Alaska, where he spent most of his time skateboarding, snowboarding and playing music. He started playing music in elementary school programs. Then in high school, he played for a band called The Dependable Letdowns. The next band he played for was A New Hope, which eventually changed its n...

In this Special Conversation, Cody catches up with Dr. Andy Elsberg for an update on where Alaska is with COVID-19. Andy is an emergency room doctor at Providence Hospital in Anchorage, Alaska.

In this Special Conversation, Cody talks with David Reamer about how Alaska has historically reacted to pandemics. David is an academic and public historian based out of Anchorage, Alaska.

In this Special Conversation, Cody talks with Heidi Hill about how COVID-19 is effecting Abused Women's Aid In Crisis (AWAIC) and their resources. Heidi is the Grants and Program Director at AWAIC in Anchorage, Alaska.  If you or someone you know is currently in an abusive relationship, you can call AWAIC's 24-hour crisis support hotline at (907) 272-0100.

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with professional snowboarder Louie Vito . Louie grew up in Ohio, where winter is short and there wasn’t much of a snowboard scene. So if he wanted to pursue snowboarding at a professional level, he had to travel. At that point, his dad was his mentor and his coach. He would bring Louie to events, competitions and snowboard camp. Louie eventually enrolled i...

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with musician Emma Hill. Emma is a prolific Alaska folksinger and songwriter. She released her first album when she was 19. Since then, she’s released seven full-length albums, a live album, and two EPs. The focus of her music has always been introspective, focusing on healing, recovery and more recently mental health. She says that she’s always been a hear...

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with retired pararescueman Jimmy Settle. Jimmy details his arduous journey to becoming a pararescueman, or PJ, in his book “ Never Quit .” He talks about the endless hours of training and everything it took to become a PJ. All of that training ultimately led him to a heavy firefight in the Watapur Valley in Afghanistan in 2010. He was part of a military ope...

In this Special Conversation, Cody talks with Jerico Masangay about the effects COVID19 is having on high school seniors. Jerico is a senior at West High School in Anchorage, Alaska. 

In this special conversation, Cody talks with Lisa Sauder about the effects COVID-19 is having on Anchorage's homeless population, and how Bean's Cafe is reacting to it. Lisa is the Executive Director of Bean's Cafe, a soup kitchen in Anchorage, Alaska.   If you'd like to donate to Bean's Cafe, Lisa says that "whatever you can do will be spent right here in our community to feed those who need it...

In this special conversation, Cody talks with teacher Abby O'Neill about the Anchorage School District shutdown as a result of COVID-19. Abby is a kindergarten teacher in Eagle River, Alaska. 

In this special conversation, Cody talks with Dr. Andy Elsberg about COVID-19. Andy is an emergency room doctor at Providence Hospital in Anchorage, Alaska.  Andy would like to thank the Alaska Emergency Medicine Associates management team. Dan, Sami, and Ben, and all the folks in the back hall of the ED, Jaime, Brenda, Liana, Karen, Matt and everyone else who has put countless hours into making t...

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with journalist and author Malcolm Harris . Malcolm writes essays and books that are analytical of the establishment and the status quo. His first book, “ Kids These Days: Human Capital and the Making of Millennials ,” deconstructs many myths associated with being a millennial. Including the idea that millennials are lazy and entitled. His second book, “ Sh...

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with professional stuntman Peter Wallack . Peter jokes that he just kinda fell into being a stuntman. After pursuing a number of different majors in college, he eventually decided to focus on technical theatre at the University of Alaska Anchorage. There, a mentor suggested that he become a stuntman. Not giving it too much thought, Peter went on with his li...

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with his wife, Carrie Hambach. This episode was Carrie’s idea. She’s an avid listener of the podcast, and she’s been telling Cody that he needs to put himself out there more, that he needs to reciprocate more with guests. For the record, Cody says the reason he doesn't usually put himself out there in these conversations, is because they aren’t about him, t...

In this episode, Cody has a conversation with Olympian and climate activist Callan Chythlook-Sifsof. Callan’s life has been a mixture of snowboarding, social justice, and climate activism. She was raised in Aleknagik, Alaska, a village of about 300, just outside Dillingham. Aleknagik, like Dillingham, is a community that relies on fishing, and is located near Pebble Mine . So, Callan has been arou...