Aydian Dowling is most known for being the First Transgender Man on the cover of Mens Health Magazine, and appearing on the Ellen Degeneres show, twice! Using his own personal struggles he has given voice to the trans community, documenting his personal transition and sharing it on line. Since then, Aydian has been creating content answering questions and offering insight to those who may still be struggling.In 2016, Aydian launched PointofPride.org a non profit which helps Transgender individuals around the world through programming and funding to help Trans people live more authentically in their bodies. On Reppin, Aydian talks about how he went from hiding who he was, how he summoned the courage to being liberated to live his most authentic life and finding acceptance and love. His story is one about overcoming fears, other people’s expectations and labels to truly embracing who you are. Aydian’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/AydianDowlingAydian’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alionsfear/Point Of Pride: https://pointofpride.org/Aydian’s Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCe5IabAzRyXqLpAib13Q2yw

Mary Beth Evans is an 8 time Emmy winner! She’s an immensely talented actress, producer and entrepreneur. Since 1986, she has breathed life into the beloved character Kayla Brady and part of super couple, Steve and Kayla on Days Of Our Lives.Mary Beth’s other credits include General Hospital, The Bay, Chasing Life, Body Of Proof and As the World Turns. She’s consistently in top form, hitting e-v-e-r-y beat and in e-v-e-r-y scene. Mary Beth has been a longtime favorite with audiences and has earned her spot as a daytime icon. Going beyond television, she’s a successful entrepreneur with Mary Beth’s Apple Pie and she also has a lifestyle and inspirational blog called Plank. Entertainment outlets have covered her career throughout the years so you may think you know her—but you have no idea. Mary Beth comes to Reppin and shares her personal stories, lessons learned and her sources of strength. This maybe an interview unlike any other, get to know this incredible woman behind the powerhouse talent

Tara Setmayer is a CNN Political Commentator, ABC News Political Contributor and former GOP communications director on Capitol Hill. Setmayer is a 2020 Harvard Institute of Politics Resident Fellow  and Senior Advisor for The Lincoln Project. She is currently the host of  "Honestly Speaking with Tara," podcast. She often appears on CNN's prime time programs and contributes to ABC's Good Morning America, Nightline and guest hosts The View. She's also made numerous appearances on HBO's Real Time w/Bill Maher. She a fierce opponent on air! She’s a lifelong Republican, resolute in her beliefs with the TRADITIONAL values of the GOP, and an outspoken critic of the current administration. Tara comes to REPPIN and gives us insight into who she is outside the political ring, where she draws her grit from and how she withstands the pressures of politics and what it takes to stand up against her own political party in an effort to restore the true principles of the republican party. Tara’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/TaraSetmayerTara’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetarasetmayer/?hl=en

From stage to screen, Keala Settle is a powerhouse talent. She made her Broadway debut in 2011 Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, then originated the role of Norma Valverde in Hands On A Hardbody on Broadway in 2013 and was nominated for the Outer Critics Circle Award, Drama Desk Award and Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Her other credits include Hairspray, Les Miserables and Waitress. In 2017, she portrayed Lettie Lutz in the film The Greatest Showman with Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron and Zendaya and sang the song “This Is Me. ” The song won the 2018 Golden Globe award for best original song and nominated for an Academy Award for the same category. In this very candid conversation, she shares why this award winning song made her feel so incredibly vulnerable and where she finds her strength and sense of belonging now.Keala’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/kealasettle

Nathalie Kelley, a Peruvian born actress known for her leading roles from the mega movie Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift, Vampire Diaries, Dynasty, UnREAL, Body Of Proof and Baker And The Beauty has a powerful discussion on REPPIN! She shares what devastated her, the awakening she had experienced, what she’s learned, how it’s changed her life and all the ways she’s giving back. Nathalie breaks down her project Ritual Community-how it’s set up to represent and serve underrepresented groups, honor ancient traditions and lineages and help enrich your life. This is an insightful and inspiring conversation with a talented actress and fierce activist who is out in front to preserve our earth, heritage and ultimately, make an impact on this world. Nathalie’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/natkelleyNathalie’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/natkelley/Ritual Community: https://ritualcommunity.mn.co/

Nicola Correia-Damude is an award winning actor and singer. You’ve seen her on Shadowhunters, Burden Of Truth, October Faction, The Strain, Coroner and My Spy. Nicola has also been nominated for a Canadian Screen Award for her Guest Starring performance on Remedy and received the Best Actress in a feature film award at the San Diego FilmOut Festival for her work in Margarita. Nicola comes to REPPIN and shares her personal challenges of being mixed race, self identification, body diversity, inequalities, what she’s learned and what she’s doing to open doors for others. You’ll see she’s not only a talented actress and singer-but she’s out in front working to open doors for others. Nicola’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/nicolancd Nicola’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicolasummer/?hl=en

Aarti Sequeira is a popular mainstay on Food Network after winning season six of Food Network Star with her trademark combination of an infectious giggle and a unique food signature: American favorites with an Indian soul. She steps out of the kitchen to hang out on Reppin. She talks about her upbringing and how those experiences have helped her move through the world. She reveals her first choice for a career, hardships she faced and her path to being one of the most popular and beloved food personalities. Aarti’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/aartipaartiAarti’s instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aartipaartipics/?hl=en

Beth Sullivan trail blazed for women when she created, wrote and served as the sole executive producer of Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman-one of the most popular and beloved series of the 90s. The series starred Jane Seymour who plays Dr. Michaela “Mike” Quinn a doctor who leaves a privileged life in Boston to carve a career out in the old West. The series ran on CBS for six seasons and aired in over 100 countries! Beth shares how fought to create a series that was western, a genre that hadn’t been on air in years, in a time slot that was considered a throw away, that had excitement, integrity and substance. Beth shares how she had the strength to fight for what she believed in and how that lead her to one the biggest hits in television history, how she opened doors for other women and her decades long friendship with Jane! Beth also updates us on her life and the possible reboot!

A pandemic is raging around the world, as front line heroes, like doctors and nurses are desperately fighting to save lives. But who is fighting for them? Meet Rebecca Love. She is a nurse entrepreneur, author, TedX Speaker and the first nurse featured on Ted.com, and part of the inaugural nursing panel featured at SXSW 2018. In 2019, Rebecca, along with a group of leading nurses in the world, founded and is President of SONSIEL: The Society of Nurse Scientists, Innovators, Entrepreneurs & Leaders, a non-profit that quickly attained recognition by the United Nations as an Affiliate Member to the UN. As a nurse, she has had her share of crisis where life and death can rest in her choices. Rebecca shares some of the experiences she’s found herself in, how she navigated them and how those situations was where she found her voice and her grit.

Osric Chau is a Canadian actor and martial artist who starred as Kevin Tran on the CW’s mega hit Supernatural! Some of his other credits include Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, Blood and Water, Demon X, Arrow and The Flash. Osric shares some personal stories about self identity and discovery, you’ll find out what risks he’s taken, if they have paid off, what he’s learned and what he’s doing be the change he wants to see. This is an incredibly insightful conversation with this amazing talent.Osric’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/OsricChau

Sierra Bogess is best known world-wide for the iconic role of ‘Christine Daae’ in Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera, but the creator and composer, Lord Webber has said “she’s the best, the best Christine certainly.” Sierra made her Broadway debut as Ariel in Disney’s The Little Mermaid, where she received the Drama Desk and Drama League Nominations, as well as the Broadway.com Audience Award for Favorite Female Breakthrough Performance. Her additional Broadway credits include Master Class, It Shoulda Been You, The Phantom of The Opera (Broadway, London’s West End and the televised 25th Anniversary production of Phantom), and School of Rock. In the West End, she has appeared as Fantine in Les Miserables and originated the role of Christine Daae in Love Never Dies, the sequel to The Phantom of the Opera, receiving an Olivier Award Nomination for her performance.Sierra has also toured all over the world with her concert show. Listen in on our conversation, she shares the lessons she’s learned, how she’s using her platform to make positive contributions and what she practices everyday. She is a beloved leading lady—meet the woman behind this incredible talent. Sierra’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/sierraboggessSierra’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/officialsierraboggess/Sierra’s Website: https://sierraboggess.com/

Liris Crosse, dubbed “The “Body” and “The Naomi Campbell of Plus” is a model/actress and trailblazer in the fashion industry for full-figured and African American women pushing curvy women into mainstream fashion! In 2015, Liris was one of a few models selected to walk the runway for reality TV competition, Project Runway’s, first ever plus size collection at New York Fashion Week. That honor was followed by being chosen as one of the models for the show’s first season to include plus size models for the weekly competition premiering in August 2017. Liris was also named one of the two model winners of Project Runway to be featured in Marie Claire magazine, a first for plus models. You’ve also seen her in American Vogue, Essence to British Cosmopolitan. Find out what challenges she’s faced, how’s she’s using her platform to help others and what her attitude is on and off the runway. Liris’ Website: http://www.lirisc.com/Liris’ Twitter: https://twitter.com/LirisC

She went from being a stay at home mom with 70 something friends on Facebook and wanting to have an online conversation about gun safety to founding a movement called Moms Demand Action- Americans fighting for public safety measures that protect people from gun violence. Now, Moms Demand Action has established a chapter in every state of the country and is part of Everytown for Gun Safety, the largest gun violence prevention organization in the country, with nearly 6 million supporters. In addition to her work with Moms Demand Action, she’s an active board member of Emerge America, one of the nation’s leading organizations for recruiting and training women to run for office. Meet Shannon Watts and you’ll see she’s a mother, leader and warrior. She shares her experiences, beliefs, the immense pressure she faces -how releases stress & how she keeps it all together.

At 15 years old, Jamie Margolin founded the youth climate action organization Zero Hour with Nadia Nazar and serves as co-executive director. Zero Hour was in response to what she saw after Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico and her personal experience during the Washington Wildfires. Zero Hour has led the official "Youth Climate Marches" in Washington, DC and 25+ cities around the world during the summer of 2018. Jamie represented the organization at international leadership events like the C40 Mayors summit and the UN Youth Climate Summit. She also serves as a media spokesperson for the youth climate movement, going on national and international TV, radio, and print publications to spread the word about climate justice and the youth movement. She’s written Op-Eds for various publications such as The New York Times, Teen Vogue, TIME Magazine, and The Guardian, and has been on both American and international speaking tours for climate justice all while being in high school!! Jamie is one of Teen Vogue’s “21 Under 21” girls changing the world in 2018, One of People Magazines 25 women changing the world in 2018, Fuse TV’s Latina Trailblazer of 2018, one of The Today Show’s 18 under 18 Groundbreakers of 2019, MTV EMA Generation Change winner of 2019,  and one of the BBC's 100 most influential women of 2019. All while being in high school!! Find out what drives this young woman to be the unstoppable force she is and what sacrifices she’s had to make to try and save the planet. Zero Hour: http://thisiszerohour.org/

We depend on the news and on the people who bring it to us. But who are they? Can you depend on them to bring you facts. Well, today you will meet one of those people-and find out why he’s someone you can count on! Aaron E. Carroll, MD, MS is a Professor of Pediatrics, Associate Dean for Research Mentoring, and the director of the Center for Pediatric and Adolescent Comparative Effectiveness Research at Indiana University School of Medicine. He is also Vice President for Faculty Development at The Regenstrief Institute. In addition to being a regular contributor to The Upshot at The New York Times, he has written for many other major media outlets and is an Editor-in-Chief at The Incidental Economist, an evidence-based health policy blog, and he also has a popular YouTube channel called Healthcare Triage, where he talks about health research and health policy. Aaron’s twitter: https://twitter.com/aaronecarroll Healthcare Triage: https://www.youtube.com/user/thehealthcaretriage

Sherry cola is a talented comedian, actress, and writer. She has emerged over the last year as a rising star in the entertainment industry. Named a “Fresh Face” at the world-renowned Laugh Factory, “One to Watch” in 2019 by People Magazine, and “11 Asian American Comics Who Need To Be On Your 2020 Radar” by Entertainment Weekly and she has opened for Arsenio Hall and Ronny Chieng. Currently, you can find her on the hit show Good Trouble as Alice Kwan, a down to earth, selfless, first generation Asian-American lesbian. Sherry is breaking barriers on television as an actress, as a comic and in her real life. Find out how Sherry found her own voice and strength in being true to herself. Meet this breakout star.Sherry’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/shrrycolaSherry’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shrrycola/

Michelle Hurd is an extraordinarily talented actress with an impressive list of credits that includes Law and Order SVU, Daredevil, Blindspot, Hawaii Five-O, Gossip Girl, ER, 90210 to Younger -just to name a FEW! And currently you can find her starring on the hit Star Trek: Picard as Raffi Musiker! Michelle shares personal stories that impacted her and shaped how she views the world. She talks about the challenges she faced professionally and personally and why she is a fierce advocate for equality and justice for all. This is an insightful, powerful and intimate conversation—and one you don’t want to miss. Meet this amazing actress and you’ll find out she’s even more incredible in real life.

Reppin is coming back from hiatus. But before we premiere Season 2, we have my technical director and musical composer Nelson Pinero as a guest. Together, we take you behind the scenes, we give you a glimpse of what it’s like to produce this podcast, and share some of our thoughts and favorite moments.

This is the Season 1 finale of Reppin! And we’re closing it with Kelly Sue DeConnick, who is a talented comic book and television writer. Some of her notable credits include DC’s Aquaman, Avengers Assemble, Pretty Deadly, Bitch Planet, Casanova and Captain Marvel. She is a self-proclaimed feminist and uses her position in comics to promote feminism and feminist ideas. She started the #VisibleWomen movement on Twitter that gives other women comic artists a hand up by giving them visibility and possible professional opportunities. With her husband, she has a creative company called MilkFed Criminal Masterminds. Kelly Sue is a thoughtful, passionate, outspoken woman. Find out who this incredible woman is and what and who she fights for! Buckle up because this episode of Reppin is a RIDE!! Kelly Sue’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/kellysue MilkFed Criminal Masterminds: https://milkfed.us/

Adam Jacobs is a talented actor well known on stage and beyond. He originated the lead role of Aladdin on Broadway shouldering Disney’s spectacular production. He’s also played Marius in Les Miserables, Sky in Mamma Mia and Simba in the Lion King. Adam, being mixed Filipino-Jewish ethnicity, shares how he struggled to find his place, until he found the stage and himself by becoming others. What was perceived as his weakness ultimately, became his core strength. Adam’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/AdamJacobsNYCAdam’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adamjacobsnyc/

Meet Mitra Memari- she’s one of the very few POC who is also a woman and a partner at major US, award-winning architecture and interior design firm. Born in Iran, Mitra shares stories of her childhood where she experienced trauma, how she coped and how those obstacles shaped her. She details how she broke into a male dominated field, found her voice and how she evolved into being one of the leaders. This episode of Reppin is about being an immigrant, a woman, what it means to be a leader, it’s about shattering barriers—it’s about being a bad ass.

Currently, she’s on ABC’s hit show Emergence as Dr. Abby Frasier, some of her other credits include Gotham, Twilight Zone, Tell Me A Story, The Get Down to New Amsterdam! The talented and lovely Zabryna Guevara comes to hang out! She gets personal and details how she went from “disappearing” in crowds to finding her voice and strength then evolving into a successful actress on some of the most popular television shows. She shares intimate stories about growing up in New York City, challenges she’s overcome and how much family means to her. Get to know this talented actress and amazing woman on this episode of Reppin. Zabryna’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/ZabrynaGuevaraZabryna’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zabrynaguevara/?hl=en

You’ve seen him as Detective Nick Amaro on NBC’s Law and Order SVU, he’s been on Cold Case, Brain Dead, Scandal, The Shield and his credits go on and on. Currently, he plays the terrifying cartel boss Miguel Galindo on FX’s hit Mayans M.C. Danny Pino comes to Reppin and gets personal. He shares some powerful experiences, you’ll gain insight on what and who has inspired him, how he carries all of those lessons with him and how he hopes to pay it forward. Get to know the man behind all of these amazing performances. Danny’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDannyPinoDanny’s Instgram: https://www.instagram.com/eldannypino/?hl=en

Joanna Hausmann is a Venezuelan-American comedian, writer, actor and social media personality. She has garnered over 70 million views virally and her biweekly show “Joanna Rants” has collectively reached over 50 million views. Joanna comes to Reppin opens up about the challenges of being a media personality, the confusion she receives when people find out she’s Latina and spills the beans on her grievances with Snow White. Hilarious and insightful—this is a conversation you don’t want to miss! Meet this dynamic woman behind all of the viral videos.

Meet Benjamin Melzer, a model based in Germany. On Instagram, along with 114k followers, you’ll see his fantastic portfolio, his work out regimen and washboard abs. What you don’t see is the inner turmoil he experienced. Born Yvonne Melzer, Benjamin says “I was a boy for as long as I can think.” Struggling for years with never feeling like he was in the right body and never having any sense of inner comfort or peace. But at 23 yrs old, he took the steps towards gender reassignment. After many painful surgeries he became Benjamin. Listen to his journey, how he went from feeling scared and alone to becoming the first transgender model on the cover of Men’s Health Magazine in Germany and see how he’s making a difference.Benjamin’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benjaminryanmelzer/?hl=en