Surviving Artists

Normally, we talk to everyday, working artists about where they come from, where they are now, and how they define success. We'll still be doing that – but first: the pandemic has changed so much about how we create, emote, and relate to each other. In our first season, we had the benefit of speaking to many of our friends, so we decided to check-in with everyone on how they are coping and staying creative.

Hello. It’s a pandemic, and we’re all figuring out our own way of muddling through and caring for each other. Here’s a quick episode where Will and Amanda check in on each other, share the ways we’re staying creative, and discuss the importance of doing and consuming art at a time like this. We hope this chat provides a little bit of levity and calm in these wild times. Stay safe, stay healthy, and let us know how you’re doing @surviving.artists on IG.

To cap off our first season, we turn the tables on Will. Besides being an actor and musician, he's the original idea man behind "Surviving Artists". In this episode, he tells Amanda about his first-ever performance in elementary school, the home-made film that earned him a million hits on YouTube, and the life lessons he learned at the William Esper acting studio.

Amanda Lewellyn is a journalist and writer in New York City. From "Surviving Artists" HQ – aka Will's house – she chats with Will about the books she read under the dinner table growing up, that one time at summer camp, and why journalism needs to get with the times. Follow Amanda on Twitter here: https://bit.ly/2QqvNvl And on IG here: https://bit.ly/36Dz5B2

Brandon Choi is a Brooklyn-based musician, writer, and software engineer. In this episode, he talks to us about spending his childhood at Barnes and Noble, the time he interviewed "Crazy Rich Asians" author Kevin Kwan, and using art as a way to connect people in his community. Read Brandon's story for BuzzFeed here: https://bzfd.it/2SUOngV

Kaitlin Paige Longoria is an actor, musician, and painter. She chats with us about how a rendition of "Happy Birthday" sent her traveling around Europe, being called to New York, and using Tinder to learn more about the William Esper acting conservatory.

Sid Gopinath is a multi-talented artist based in New York City. In this episode, we revisit some poetry written by a preteen Sid, and Will and Sid reflect on their high school band's pivotal first performance in their Minnesota hometown. Against his better judgment – and to Amanda's delight – Sid also explains why Taylor Swift's "Tiny Desk" concert resonated with him. Find Sid's work at www.sidgopinath.com You can presave "December/July" here: distrokid.com/hyperfollow/cedarlake/decemberjuly His band bluesoul is here: wearebluesoul.com Listen to bluesoul on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2SCfP2V

Jordan McDonald aka MUNITY is a Brooklyn-based musician and actor. From his home studio, he tells us about a pivotal cruise ship rendition of "God Bless America", how getting skin cancer changed his trajectory, and why he's so driven to create. Check out Jordan's music at https://linktr.ee/munity

Once upon a time, Will came to Amanda with an idea for a podcast. This January, we're launching our first season of "Surviving Artists". Listen to learn how we got here. Subscribe to hear from extraordinary surviving artists on where they come from and how they define success.