I’m always making lists. I love lists.
This is my list of five amazing local women that are compelled to create and curate various media… for your ears!
These women are all artists and they all make things we can listen to, including…
PODCASTS!
Stephanie:
Stephanie is currently working as a stay at home mom to her young son. It keeps her pretty busy, but she’s spent the last year jumping into all kinds of exciting creative business ventures.
Prior to giving birth, Stephanie spent a lot of time reading tarot cards, doing reiki and other spiritual healing services, and making all kind of crystal and essential oil products. She slowed down a bit after giving birth but she’s back to making room sprays and beautiful candles and reading tarot cards and organizing workshops. Stephanie’s witchy products can be found on her Instagram for Lady L’s Cupboard and her delightful podcast about being a millennial witch in a modern world can be found here.
Listen to Stephanie’s podcast, Wickedly Bewitching, if you’re interested in witchcraft, the occult, the paranormal, and the occult. Stephanie is definitely a warm soul who wants to spread a message!
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Arley :
Arley has been making music in Thunder Bay for years. She is a professional singer, songwriter, poet, and mentor to up and coming musicians. She’s not new to the scene but she’s been making some amazing new (sound) waves recently with the release of her latest album Letter Kite Sessions in October, as well as a new podcast called The Creative Journey.
The album is a solid selection of tracks that really highlight Arley’s strong and soulful voice. The album can be found here, along with a previous album release in 2017. It’s important to note that Arley does not have a record label and everything she releases and sells is done on a small scale. Arley can frequently be found late at night packaging up cds to send off to customers. If you’re not interested in hard copies, Arley’s music can be found on iTunes as well.
And the podcast, The Creative Journey, can be found using most podcast listening apps. I use Castbox and was able to type Arley Cox into the search bar and her podcast came up right away. Arley has done a fabulous job taking listeners through her own creative processes as she endeavours to help others find their own creative paths.
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Mandy :
Mandy is an IT specialist and a web designer by trade, but she’s also so much more! She loves hanging out with her dog, drinking coffee, collecting oddities, being crafty, and she’s the funniest person in the world, according to her best friend.
That’s pretty high praise!
Mandy has always been interested in the bizarre and the strange. As a life long Thunder Bay resident, she’s also intrigued with local lore and legends. In fact, she pretty much loves anything weird and spooky. And that’s what her podcast – The Piecast – focuses on: the strange and unusual, bonus points for creepy local stories!
This self professed geeky gal has a website where she keeps track of all her creativity. Her blog, her podcast, her costume ideas, her crafts, and web design work. The podcast can be found through the website or on most podcast listening apps, such as Spotify or Castbox.
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Miki :
Nothing else really matters here except that Miki is funny. Yep. That’s it. Nothing else. Never mind that she’s a dedicated worker and an amazingly resilient woman who has overcome countless hardships. That’s all unimportant.
Because she’s funny.
Miki is a founding member of the Thunder Bay comedy event planning group, Incidents Comedy. They specialize in organizing comedy shows where any earned money is donated to charity.
There haven’t been many shows during lockdown so Miki has been honing her humour and gathering followers through other venues. Her tiktok videos have gained some traction (and they’re very funny) and of course, a podcast. Because everybody has a podcast so Miki should too!
The podcast, Over the Edge, will soon be available on most podcasting platforms. Miki talks about anxiety and coping mechanisms (such as making funny videos) and what she finds hilarious. For now the first episode can be heard here.
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Crystal:
Crystal is a young hardworking mother who makes a lot of noise. But it’s good noise. Her dad was a gifted guitar player and I know Crystal has followed in his footsteps. She is also an Anishinaabe hand drummer, a nurse practitioner, a PhD student, an author (this book and this book), and the host of a radio show and a podcast. How does she even have time?
Her radio show on LU Radio, Zee’s Place, is a place where Crystal highlights strong women, local musicians, and up and coming indigenous news makers. It’s a safe and inclusive space.
Her podcast, Under the Same Stars can be found here, and on other podcast platforms like Castbox. The podcast is a healing journey as Crystal (Zongwe Binesikwe) talks about her personal healing as an indigenous woman and seeks to lift up other indigenous and non-Indigenous people in their own journeys towards healing.
