Hanging Out with Nolan Hong

Bryan is the Executive Director of Mental Health America of Hawaiʻi. He shared how his childhood experiences led to his lifelong commitment to helping others and working in community support, and a crazy story about dropping out of college on orientation day and going across the country by himself in search of his next step of life. We also talked about the impact of covid on mental health in our...

Ron Mizutani was one of Hawaii’s first Hawaiian news anchors. He worked in TV news for KHON for over 30 years, and later went on to become the CEO of Hawaii Foodbank. Today he’s the President and CEO of PBS Hawaii and an advocate for mental health. Ron is currently working on a book about his journey with depression and anxiety.

Savy is CEO/Founder of Gimme a Break, a nonprofit whose mission is to care for caregivers by giving an emotional and physical break as well as resources for continued well-being. We talked about how she helped her Japanese-speaking mom learn English while she was still in school, how she found her passion for helping people after she created her own carnival in her parent’s garage to raise f...

Ashley is a digital marketing expert and owner of Baxter Digital Media Group. We talk about growing up on a farm in Texas, wanting to be a professional barrell racer (?!!), how she got rid of her Texas accent (and how it comes back), and going from working in marketing for Fortune 500 companies to doing work that makes a difference in the world. Learn more about Ashley at her website , follow her...

Dr. Jill Omori ( Ep 44 ) is the Infectious Disease Officer for the City and County of Honolulu and Director of the Office of Medical Education, John A. Burns School of Medicine. With the COVID-19 case numbers surging in Hawaii, we asked her to join us for some Q&A related to testing, quarantine at home, what measures we should be taking now to keep ourselves and our families safe, precautions...

Lynn is president of the Nisei Veterans Legacy. She shares about her father who was a member of the 442nd, her 30-year career with the federal government, what it was like working at the Pentagon, being in Washington D.C. when 9/11 happened, and how that event played a critical role in her career. Learn more about the Nisei Veterans Legacy

Erin is the visionary behind Choco leʻa, maker of artisan chocolates in Manoa Valley. She shared about her mission (“bringing peace to our world, one chocolate at a time”) and how that mission pushed her to be open with her professional and personal struggles at the onset of the pandemic, which in turn led to her writing her first book, “Bringing Peace To Our World, One Chocolate...

Robert Cazimero is an icon of Hawaiian music, with a career that spans over 4 decades. This was an AMAZING hang out sesh. Robert shared stories about his parents, growing up one of 12 siblings, getting his start with Peter Moon’s The Sunday Manoa, performing with his brother Roland as the Brothers Cazimero, becoming a kumu hula, and even his go-to karaoke songs. (Heads up, there are a few sw...

Jamie and I are back with another check in episode. Just us, talking about our experiences with depression and anxiety — realizing we needed help, getting therapy, getting on medication. We’re not experts at all and this is not medical advice! We’re just sharing our own personal experiences and hoping that it may be of help to others .

Paul is the swiss army knife of audio in the UK. He’s been a radio Dj for over 3 decades, and is now also a podcaster, a live streamer, a wedding entertainment coordinator, and owner of an audio equipment retail shop and a recording studio. Aside from his silky smooth voice, he also has a fantastic British accent! We talk about all things audio and learn a bit about UK radio in this “l...

Our first ever siblings episode features friends of the show, Kyle Shimabukuro ( Ep 1 ) and Jill Chung ( Ep 59 ). We got them together to share hilarious childhood stories, Kyle’s pranks on Jill, gut busting Dad stories, how they experienced the ballistic missile false alarm, and probably one of the most random (and ignorant) discussions we’ve ever had on the show.

To get Jamie on camera willingly would take a miracle, or it could be because live video experts Luria and Kali are gurus in empowering people to be their YOUniquely You selves 🙂 We talk about how Luria got her online career started and came up with the idea to take Live Streaming Pros to where it is now, the phenomenal origin story of how Kali became Luria’s right-hand woman, plus some rea...

Sheldon Tawata and Alfie Gonzales are part of the Kuilei Outreach Program at Kapiolani Community College and they host a podcast called Kuilei Courageous Conversations. We talk about how they’re helping Hawaii high school students find their path in life and guide them as they plan for life after graduation. They share their insight into what concerns kids have these days and how to best hel...

Tif runs the Fur Angel Foundation, a Hawaii nonprofit that rescues, rehabs, and rehomes dogs. We talk about how she and her friends came up with the idea to start this organization and her love for learning and education. It’s a pretty great story about how she came to love school because it definitely didn’t start out that way! To learn more about Fur Angel Foundation and how you can...

Dr. Maya Soetoro-Ng is so passionate about teaching and making the world a better place. We talk in depth about how she does both and where it all comes from. She also shares stories about her childhood, bartending while going to college, and of course what it’s like growing up with a brother who just happened to become President of the United States. This was a really inspirational episode...

John Pullum is an entertainer, motivational speaker, magician, and former host of several tv shows on the Discovery Channel such as “More Than Human”. John’s whole mission in life is to make the world a happier place and boy does he do that. We talk about how he got started in magic at the age of 6, along with some great stories of how he discovered his mission in life. Watch Joh...

Just us, airing out some marital issues! We talk about our recent pseudo car accident, clarifying shampoo, work from home life, LEDA, why Jamie’s a good listener (and a stalker), and why Nolan thought Jamie was an old lady.

Wayne is an entrepreneur and co-creator of RaceWorz, one of the most unique and popular car shows in California. After college at UH, he moved to California to work at a little start-up called YAHOO (we get to hear some cool stories about the rockstar lifestyle that came with working inside the tech boom). After the dot-com bubble burst, Wayne started his own business in the car industry which led...

Jodi is a recently retired teacher and the daughter of the late Ron Bright, a local icon in Hawaii performing arts and education. She shares great stories about her dad and family and her passion for teaching. We also talked about the nonprofit in her father’s memory, “I’m a Bright Kid Foundation” and how it’s fulfilling his vision to unite people thru performing arts...

At the age of 12, Ally was diagnosed with a form of bone cancer. Since then, she has been sharing her journey in hopes of inspiring others. But of course, there’s more to Ally than her diagnosis. We got to talk her about her experiences and perspectives as a teen growing up in Hawaii and what high school was like during COVID (she’s 15 now). You think you may know her story already, bu...

We had a special listener request for an episode dedicated to the Filipino culture. So Maria, an immigrant from the Philippines who moved to Hawaii as a child but spent her summers in the Philippines, is here to share her family stories, her culture, and why every Filipino family has a giant wooden spoon and fork on the wall at home.

Haley was 2019 Miss Hawai’i Teen America & she’s the current Royal International Miss Pacific Island Teen 2021, and her mom Erica is owner of Gymboree Play and Music. They gave us a very real look into the mother-daughter relationship from both perspectives. We talked about their different experiences with bullying and how their relationship has grown through trust. Erica also revealed s...

Cy is a local actor whom you may recognize from several local commercials (including a series of spots with Nolan). We hear about his crazy story of deciding to move from Hawaii to LA in 6 days to take a job with Disney’s Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge. Plus some other great stories of his experiences in LA LA Land. Cy on instagram

Chelsea is a model and fitness coach. We talked about going from self-admitted tomboy to pageant queen, and how injuries and other setbacks took her off the path towards her goals, but she worked on her mindset to recognize other opportunities to keep moving forward. Chelsea’s website Chelsea on instagram

Ann is an American paracanoeist who competes in international-level events. She’s a World Champion in outrigger canoe and adaptive surfing, and is a Paralympian in the sprint kayak. Along with being a championship athlete, she’s an occupational therapist. In 2000, Ann was paralysed from the chest down due to an accident in Utah when a truck went through a red light and hit her car. We...