Podcast Episodes
Jared Lustre on COVID-19, Writing, and Politics
Reading was Jarod’s path toward becoming a writer. Starting with children’s storybooks and then jumping to novels, he fell in love with literature. At 12 years old, he had amassed stacks of books in his home, and he would read them at the school library. Writing didn’t come until he was in high school when he wrote poetry for his crush. When he started, he realized that he enjoys writing, and he decided to continue. He shares that a lot of his writing skills came from the teachings of his junior high school teachers, who coached him both in speaking and writing while entering various competitions.
Podcast Episodes
Love In Its Fullest Colors: Philippe Hiñosa on Love and Faith
When love is described as good as this, why should anyone be denied of it? Philippe Angelo Hiñosa is a 22-year-old sociology student at the University of the Philippines – Visayas, and a writer whose pieces talk about family, education, politics, and his personal experiences. Like most Filipino people, Philippe was raised with faith and religion. In his essay entitled “Love and Faith”, he opens up about his personal experience as an LGBTQIA+ community member, and how it affected his own faith.
Podcast Episodes
On Paying It Forward
AJ’s love for comics started at an age far earlier than the time most people would have realized their dreams. While other kids were caught up with Legos and toys and guns, our artist was inside the comics section of newspapers. Most of us would not be familiar with Pugad Baboy, Kikomachine, Funny Komics, but for AJ, these were his world. More than just the graphics and the good laugh it brought to him, it became his inspiration. To be able to create art is something, but to have it impact an individual’s life is entirely apart. As a kid who experienced the power of such illustrations, he dreamt of being able to give back to the community the entertainment and comfort that he felt back when he was still so young. Fortunately, when the world sees you doing what you love for a good cause, it works its own magic to give you back the favor.
Podcast Episodes
What makes a Seizure Salad?
With Noel, Luigi, Adam, and Jack, everything felt like it just fell into place. From a simple jamming session, Seizure Salad grew and started to perform and release their own songs. The band members had various personal music influences: Michael Jackson, Metallica, 70’s and 80’s music. Their individual stories of how they got into music are just as adorable. Drummer Adam Martinez shares that his journey started when he started tapping on his table. When his mom noticed, Adam was immediately enrolled in a drum school.
Podcast Episodes
Pugfish: How Music and Friendship Come Together
So, what glues the band together? Pugfish’s answer is friendship. At the roots, Pugfish is more than a musical collective; they are a group of friends who have come together because of their passion for music. During the pandemic, they managed to stay connected by doing regular meetings for their album, in tandem with doing fun activities like watch parties.
Podcast Episodes
How Marivi Soliven Reinvented Herself Through Writing
Born Maria Victoria Vega Soliven-Blanco, Marivi Soliven is a Filipina author living in America. She's been working for almost two decades alone, so not much of her life has changed. In that sense, all of a sudden, due to the pandemic, her husband and daughter were at home 24/7, which might not sound a lot, but to her, it is actually a lot. She also goes with patience and definitely baking since she bakes every week, and they would visit some of her seniors since she doesn't have a sweet tooth even though she makes delicious pastries weekly.