loves music

Julian distills 69 episodes into 10 lessons every independent musician needs to hear. After nearly two years of sitting across from independent artists, producers, and creatives, Julian steps behind the mic solo to share what the show has taught him. From why the music business and playing music for fun sit on opposite sides of the spectrum, to the real meaning behind "believe in yourself," to the Danny Beissel line that changed how he thinks about control, Julian gets into the practical and ph

Seth Aaron has been writing songs since he was 13. He's only now giving himself permission to go all in. The Philly soul and blues singer-songwriter spent two decades fitting music into a life that was designed for something safer. His first two albums showed range. His next one shows honesty. Record of Wrongs is Seth Aaron's most focused project yet: a collection of songs he's calling "Soultry," blending the storytelling of country with the emotional weight of soul. He and Julian (who happens

Danny Beissel got signed to Warner Music Group at 34, watched his rock band Fosterchild burn bright and fizzle out, and rebuilt himself in Laguna Beach: sober, meditating every morning, and writing the most personal record of his life. The Philly-born rock vocalist behind Fosterchild, the American Vinyl All Star Band, and now Featherborn joins Julian for a long-overdue conversation about writing anthemic songs that stay intimate, why licensing music is the new radio, and the phrase that changed

Cesar Rodriguez built an 11-year hip-hop podcast on one rule: never make a guest feel used. Cesar has hosted The Rodriguez Show out of Southern California for over a decade, starting as a hip-hop news show and evolving into a wide-ranging interview series with musicians, DJs, and creatives. He now freelances as a podcast producer through Rodriguez Podcasts. Cesar talks with Julian about the moment hip-hop hooked him for life, why marketing is still the hardest part of the job after 11 years, an

Shoni recorded her entire EP alone in a closet, engineered it herself, and wrote the standout track in 15 min. The New York-based R&B and soul singer-songwriter walked away from music for a decade after becoming a mom, and when she came back, she came back different. Shoni talks about recording Shades of Blues entirely on her own after a collaborator fell through, the Whitney Houston performance that gave her goosebumps at age five, why she names emotional intelligence as the number one quality

Kurt Sasso has 1,200 interviews and zero hiatuses, and he stopped chasing downloads years ago. The Ottawa-based host of Two Geeks Talking started his show a month before Joe Rogan and Marc Maron launched theirs, back when podcasting barely had a name. What began as a webcomic interview show evolved into one of the longest-running entertainment podcasts in the game, covering comics, TV, film, music, and video games. Kurt and Julian get into the real cost of building a massive body of work: the b