Who's This For

It’s probably not a secret by now that I do this show as an excuse to chat with people I find fascinating. So, thanks for indulging me. Chatting with Ryan James Quinn was a chance to share our love for radio, music, community, and just being genuine in this crazy world. We also talk about Dirty Chai Radio, his streaming station, which I think you should check out when you want some good music in y...

“Michael Perry is the kind of author who makes you scrap your lead sentence five times when you write about him. His prose is so full of poignant adjectives it’s like a silage-stuffed silo at the end of autumn – warm, pungent, and ready to nourish.” Me - 2014 Catching up with Michael Perry is a true joy. He’s someone I’ve been honored to know for a little over 15 years and I respect the good graci...

As this podcast has evolved, I’ve realized I’m interested in talking to people who are helping make sense of this journey through life, including the shit we're scared to death of. That’s what made this conversation with Steve Slocum and Megan from Green Bay Oncology so compelling to me. Throughout our chat, we explore rural cancer care in Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula, communicating diffi...

When I decided to focus on this podcast and invite guests who have intrigued me throughout my life, Robyne Robinson was at the top of that list. Not only was she a news anchor I admired on KMSP, she’s also someone I knew was fostering the art scene in my early 20s through her galleries. So this discussion wasn’t just a treat, it was the full meal. Throughout our chat, we explore art scenes in Minn...

It’s not often I get to talk with someone that helped shape mediums I genuinely love. So my chat with Matty Staudt was a thrill. Matty co-founded Stitcher before the iPhone era, helped launch the iHeartRadio Podcast Network, and now works with creators through Creator X helping connect smaller shows with brands that actually fit their audiences. He’s someone who has seen podcasting from the very b...

For nearly forty years Jim McGuinn has been a familiar voice, playing amazing music on the radio. He has introduced countless bands, programmed stations that shape entire music scenes, and carried a name that is not the one he was born with. In this conversation for Who’s This For we sit down to talk about what it means to be yourself when a microphone is always in front of you. Jim tells the stor...

In my interview with Marsha Hovey, we send it into a discussion about how a place like Trollhaugen develops a Troll’s brand voice that’s become beloved nationwide. Marsha’s work as the marketing director at Trollhaugen is a great example of what authentic regional storytelling can look like. She’s someone thinking carefully about how to communicate with people rather than just sell to them. Her ap...

My conversation with Simon Adler was exactly why I love doing this show. For forty or so minutes we got to really dive into what keeps us creating. Simon’s work with Radiolab is exquisite, and it’s inspiring to see him bring that same creativity to his work for Johns Hopkins and his multidimensional collaboration, Windstar Enterprises. His creativity grows out of early roots in music and internati...

Who’s This For? is the communicator’s podcast. A place where we try to sneak a peek behind Oz’s booth. To kick off Season 2, I couldn’t think of anyone better than recording artist, memoirist, and the artist-in-residence at Georgetown University, Dessa. Her knack for intertextuality has impressed me ever since her days as a poet and MC, through her solo career starting with the mind-blowingly pers...

Ever feel like marketing is just shouting into a void? Or that your message gets lost in a sea of spam and self promotion? My guest this week, the brilliant Erin Trowbridge, is here to flip the script. Erin is a marketing strategist with decades of experience, from economic development to higher education, and shes a co founder of Four Peas Consulting. Shes built her career on one powerful, simple...

For nearly forty years Jim McGuinn has been a familiar voice, playing amazing music on the radio. He has introduced countless bands, programmed stations that shape entire music scenes, and carried a name that is not the one he was born with. In this conversation for Who’s This For we sit down to talk about what it means to be yourself when a microphone is always in front of you. Jim tells the stor...

Ever feel like the version of yourself you present to the world isn't the real you? Like you're playing a part, and it's slowly draining the life out of you? My guest this week is Inga Orth, a Wisconsin dairy farmer, licensed cheesemaker, and the former host of the PBS series "Around the Farm Table." For over a decade, she showed up on camera with a smile, telling beautiful s...

This week on Who's This For? , I get to talk with someone I’ve been calling a friend for nearly two decades, Matt Banker . Matt is a walking example of creating with intention, having taken a wild journey from a fine arts degree in sculpture to running a marketing firm for a very specific niche: accounting firms . We'll talk about his journey, the weirdly similar skill sets of art and mark...

Struggling to know what to post on LinkedIn? You're not alone. This week, Bradley Jacobs, founder of Mylance, breaks down the exact strategies he used to build a massive audience and a multi-million dollar business directly from LinkedIn. We dive deep into the simple but powerful framework that one of his clients used to build a $1.5 million pipeline. Learn how to move beyond connection requests t...

In this episode of Who's This For? , I sat down with the brilliant Julia Barton , a podcast story editor who has worked with some of the biggest names in the business, including Malcolm Gladwell. If you've ever wondered how to make your show a better listening experience, Julia is the person you want to talk to. We get into the fascinating history of audio, a topic Julia explored during her Neiman...

I’m joined on the podcast by multi-talented visual communicator, Branden Nall. We discuss his creative journey, from filming high school sports to becoming a professional photographer. Branden shares how his photography workflow adapts for different clients, whether he’s shooting a corporate event or a professional sports game. We also talk about how the final use of a photo, such as for a print a...

My guest, Micah Davis , is an incredible full-time video maker, and it was so clear how his outgoing nature and pure joy in community directly fuel the amazing work he creates. We talked about how his journey started with a slightly sneaky plan to get into music festivals for free, which actually birthed his super popular "Walkabout Talkabouts." These aren't your typical "gotcha" interviews; they'...

In this "Who's This For" episode, I had a fantastic chat with my good friend, comedian Cullen Ryan , to really dig into what makes a comedian truly connect with an audience. We quickly got into the nitty-gritty of how top-tier performers go beyond just having great jokes. Cullen broke down how years of dedicated practice and meticulously honing their craft are the real secret sauce. It's about dev...

This week, we’re getting into the weeds (in the best way) of political communication with Wisconsin State Representative Jodi Emerson. How do you actually break through the noise online? What does it take to connect with people across increasingly stretched-out districts—and still sound like yourself? Jodi gets real about the pressure of having every word picked apart, the constant scramble for at...

What does it truly take to connect, heart to heart? In the kickoff episode of "Who's this for?", we explore this question with our first guest, the prolific writer, professor, and documentarian B.J. Hollars. From the world of radio dramas to the impact of documenting a community's forgotten story, we discuss how to build bridges, foster inclusion, and leave a lasting impression. Tune in to learn w...