Hyphenated with Joanna Hausmann and Jenny Lorenzo

Joanna and Jenny discuss whether or not shows like the new series GRISELDA are good for Latinos in Hollywood or just perpetuate harmful stereotypes, why the limited number of Latino TV shows and movies mean that nobody is ever happy with what's being released, and if the real harm to Latino representation in the entertainment industry is being done by the Latinos who are currently in power. (PLUS it's raining in L.A. and everybody is freaking out!)

Jenny and Joanna chat about Joanna's move to L.A. (for good this time) and share fun facts and anecdotes behind the reasons why various cities around the world are iconic. Originally recorded in February 2023 (and meant to be the relaunch of the podcast after a short break that ultimately lasted 9 months), please enjoy this previously unreleased episode that was thought to be lost to the ages by historians! (But it was just on a different hard drive.) 

Joanna welcomes her friend and colleague Filip Jeremic, as they discuss his hyphenated experience as a Serbian-Canadian, the similarities between Latin America and the Eastern European Balkans, and share some bonkers curses from each other's cultures (PLUS Joanna says a dirty word she's never said on the podcast before, which just happens to rhyme with something she has said a lot on the podcast… “um”)

Joanna and Jenny discuss how the end of the year always makes them sentimental, how weird it is that time seems to pass faster the older you get, the different things that make each of them cry, and how they would like to be reincarnated as the ducks at Disneyland (PLUS they breakdown the plot of John Wick!)

Jenny and Hyphenated producer Kevin chat about all things “Sangiving”, how the Thanksgiving experience is different (and important) for immigrant families, and why the yearly big holiday episode of their Abuela's Family web-series is not about Noche Buena. 

Joanna welcomes her friend (and colleague at Hamster & Great) comedy writer Alex Estrada, as they talk about when Alex found out that his father might've committed murder in the 70s, how that secret shapes his childhood, and the podcast he produced (The Estate) to unravel it all.

Jenny and Joanna discuss all things Spooky Season, including haunted houses, scary movies, Latino monsters, and they share the times when they've been touched by the supernatural... specifically when Joanna was hit on my a ghost (plus Jenny gives a tour of all her Halloween decorations, a great activity for an audio only medium like a podcast).

Joanna and Jenny talk about the current crisis in the Middle East involving Israel and Palestine, particularly how social media makes everybody feel like they have to have a black & white hot take on current events, and how that spreads misinformation and animosity. 

In this  abbreviated-Hyphenated episode, Joanna explains to Jenny how she figured out that the codes in the bills from her therapist were actually secret diagnoses, and they discuss whether or not everything needs a special label.

Jenny and Joanna tell stories about the times when they were scammed: Joanna just recently by a plumber wannabe kid named Ben; and Jenny when she was younger and had to go to court over it (and Kevin shares the time that the scammers felt too bad for him to scam him). PLUS, they try to scam the scammer!

In our first “Abbreviated-Hyphenated” episode, Joanna tells Jenny the story about the time she made dumb choices while sick, and how it runs in the family.

After an unexpectedly long hiatus, the ladies are back in podcast town, as they explain why it took so long for the show to return, how the podcast will be different going forward, and what they've been up to in the meantime. PLUS they talk about their periods in graphic detail and discuss their alphabet soup of disorders, cause it wouldn't be Hyphenated if they didn't!

Joanna and Jenny talk about what they did over the holidays, the types of superstitions Latinos observe for New Year Eve, some other New Years rituals from around the world, and why those types of traditions can be so strange but important. (*PLUS Hyphenated will be taking a short break in the new year, with a new episode coming later in January.*)

Hyphenated producer Kevin shares a compilation of the best moments over the last 100 episodes –including the topics of childhood, family and the weird & spooky– which have informed Joanna and Jenny's experiences with ‘living in the hyphen' (plus some of the best guests that have been on the show!)

To commemorate the 100th episode of the podcast, Jenny and Joanna look back at how Hyphenated came to be, and then read emails from listeners, including one person that listens to the podcast when they are feeling lonely, another who was inspired to give up being a telemarketing scammer and go back to theater, and few who were encouraged to get diagnosed and go to therapy after listening to the show (PLUS Kevin finally airs his grievances about what is the hardest part of producing the podcast!)

Joanna and Hyphenated producer Kevin share what they believe to be some of the most annoying and pointless platitudes-passing-as-advice out there, including “Follow your dreams”, “There are no dumb questions” and "Don't go to bed angry", they discuss why some of those saying are so pointless or even harmful, and then try to figure out how to update and improve the advice to be more useful. (Plus Joanna twerks!)

Jenny and Joanna welcome their friend Carolina Ravassa, a Colombian-American actor who voices the character Sombra in the video game OVERWATCH, as they discuss the process and experience of being a voice actor, how the interactivity of video games is different than the passive relationship with film and TV, and what it's like to interact with fans of immensely popular characters you bring to life (PLUS Joanna finally comes out as a video game nerd!).

Joanna and Jenny discuss the recent turmoil at Twitter, share their memories of long past social networks (such as AOL, MySpace, Tumblr and Vine), talk about the ways they utilize and engage with current social media platforms (like Facebook, Instagram and YouTube), and examine how Millennials went from LiveJournal to LinkedIn.

Jenny welcomes back her best friend Karla Guerra, who was born in Honduras to her Honduran mother, but raised by her Colombian step-father's family in the United States, as they talk about her experience not feeling Colombian, Honduran or American enough, growing up with family members who felt the need to overly-explain why she looked different than them, what it's like to interact with Hondurans when she wasn't raised with their customs and food, and how being “extra-hyphenated” might actually be the basis of Latin American culture.

Hyphenated producer Kevin shares a series of deleted conversations and funny moments that were cut out from the (almost) 100 prior episodes, including when Johanna and Jenny talk about why they're glad they were average looking when they were kids, reveal the times they feel they might've been bullies to others, Joanna schools Kevin on the difference between an elevator and an escalator, and Jenny has to stop recording because she found out her fans think she had a secret baby.

Joanna welcomes back comedian and writer Eitan Levine, to discuss the growing concern of antisemitism in the mainstream sphere, including recent inflammatory statements from Ye (formerly known as Kanye West), share their experiences with the harassment they receive when being openly Jewish on the internet, and dispel myths about Judaism. 

Joanna welcomes Evan and Andrew Gregory, part of THE GREGORY BROTHERS musical group that create the “songify” hits you all know (“Double Rainbow”, “Bed Intruder”, “It's Corn”), as they discuss being YouTube pioneers, how they ended up becoming the internet's premier remix masters, and the mystery and math behind going viral online.

Joanna and Jenny talk all things horror movies, as they discuss the ways different cultures tell scary stories, how the horror genre has changed and evolved to reflect the times over the decades, and why comedians, like Jordan Peele, are so good at creating scary experiences.

Jenny and Joanna discuss their experiences with all kinds of haunted houses, then Hyphenated producer Kevin talks with Jon Braver, creator of DELUSION, the first ever interactive horror theater company, about the emerging interactive theater industry and the process of creating immersive experiences. 

Joanna and Jenny try talking about the current trend in the news of celebrities cheating on their spouses, how tying your personal life into your social media and digital content brand can backfire when you have a perceived moral failing, and what exactly is a “Wife Guy” and why it might be a red flag.

Jenny welcomes documentary filmmaker Kareem Tabsch, co-director of the Netflix documentary “Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado” as they discuss how he ended up making a film about the famously flamboyant TV astrologer, plus he shares some behind-the-scenes stories about working with Walter, and gives us a peak at the future Latino-centric docuseries coming from him.

Joanna and Jenny discuss the recent situation where a group of Venezuelan migrants seeking asylum where sent from Texas to Martha's Vineyard by the governor of Florida, how they feel the whole stunt backfired on the intended purpose, and why it's disheartening to them when Venezuelan and Cuban immigrants already living in the U.S. look down on current migrants fleeing those same countries.

Jenny welcomes her best friend Karla Guerra, who is a Marketing and Publishing Producer for Hi-Rez Studios, as they talk about her journey working her way up in the video game industry without a college degree, and the undertaking to help create video games that feature diverse and inclusive characters (as well as the origins of the very particular best friends nickname Jenny and Karla have for each other).

Jenny and Joanna share various idioms and expressions from their home countries and try to explain their history and meaning, including “Un arroz con mango” and “Cachicamo diciéndole al morrocoy conchudo”, as well as other strange sayings from around the world. (With a cameo from Jenny's dog Delilah, who's antics coin a brand new 'modismo'.) 

Joanna and Hyphenated producer Kevin exchange their favorite fun facts with each other, including who were the ‘Blue People of Kentucky', the unexpected history of ketchup, how “gabagool” is not a real word, and why a samurai could've faxed Abraham Lincoln (and a super cool factoid about the Panama Canal that just did not impress Joanna at all).

Joanna welcomes Ximena Sariñana, who started her career playing the child villain on the telenovela LUZ CLARITA and is now a Grammy Nominated singer-songwriter, as they talk about the constantly changing music industry, what it was like being considered a “Diva” while growing up as a child performer, and finding a balance as an artist and creator.

Joanna and Jenny chat about “Back to School” time, how the thought of it still gives Jenny anxiety today, why it didn't have the same affect on Joanna when she went to school in Venezuela, and what ways we still look for similar opportunities for reinvention as adults.

Jenny and Joanna discuss the current state of the entertainment industry, how corporate mergers end up cancelling Latino led shows like GORDITA CHRONICLES and movies like BATGIRL, why the age of the streaming services has ultimately closed more doors than it's opened, and when algorithms control how authentic what you watch can be.

Joanna welcomes CEO and entrepreneur Andrea Petersen, as they discuss the benefits of being financially literate, how  investing your money doesn't have to be so daunting, and what SCHOOL OF WHALES, the real estate crowdfunding platform Andrea co-founded, is doing to help people achieve financial mindfulness.

Hyphenated producer Kevin interviews Joanna and Jenny (separately) about why both of them were too busy to host the podcast this week. Turns out they each had a very packed and eventful week working at San Diego Comic-Con, Jenny moderating a panel for an upcoming Disney show in front of 4000 people, and Joanna on a panel for another upcoming Disney show that she is the head writer for (and that both she and Jenny voice characters on).

Jenny welcomes back Dr. Stacy De-Lin, board-certified physician and an Associate Medical Director at Planned Parenthood, as they discuss the loss of reproductive rights due to the overturn of Roe v. Wade, and the impact restricting abortions in the United States will have on pregnant and non-pregnant people alike. 

Jenny and Joanna share their childhood experiences with SUMMER VACATION, like being sent to an American-style sleep-away camp in the grassland plains of Venezuela, spending the entire vacation in abuela and abuelo's backyard learning about botany and talking to parrots,  getting bullied at science camp, and falling in love during summer school (as well as wondering whatever happened to all those kids that signed their yearbooks).

Joanna welcomes her Dad, noted economist Professor Ricardo Hausmann, as he tries to explain what it takes for some countries to be prosperous, why he followed a career in economics, and how his job as an educator is not so different from Joanna's job as an entertainer.

Joanna and Jenny discuss the recent passing of Joanna's aunt, how different cultural rituals can help us process grief, what we can do to remember those we've lost, and the role spirituality can play in death.

Jenny welcomes comedy performer Tony Rodríguez, who was recently cast as the new voice of Julio, the gay Latino character on THE SIMPSONS. On this Pride Month episode they discuss why queer representation in media is important, how Tony took a chance and landed the role of a lifetime, and Jenny's own history making casting on Hanna-Barbera's JELLYSTONE! 

Joanna and Jenny chat about DADS, what made Father's Day initially controversial, how imposing gender norms can limit a child, and the way each of their father's parenting approach made them the women they are today. (And they attempt to get one of their dads on the phone!)

Jenny and Joanna talk about which are the least and most sexually satisfied countries in the world, how religion, population, weather, politics and even cuisine can affect that ranking, and how Latin American country stack up against each other.