Fiorella—or Fio—is a designer, illustrator, and content creator from Lima, Peru, living in Toronto, Ontario. She's a lifelong basketball player, so it's no surprise she's worked with organizations and sports brands like the WNBA, NBA, NFL, PWHL, and Asics. Not only was Fio named MVP of her high school basketball team TWICE, but she also played guard for the University of Toronto, and her mother played for Peru's Women's National Team. So, yeah, basketball (literally) flows through her veins. Fiorella has always been passionate about blending the intersections of design and sports, and she's on a mission to find meaningful work that allows her to share that passion with women around the world. Oh—who would play her in a movie? Regina George, that's who! Tune in for a talk about designing Canada's first outdoor WNBA court, why she left the world of architecture, and putting yourself out there on social media. Follow Fio on Instagram @fiorelladoodles, connect with her on LinkedIn, and see more of her work on her website, fiorellagranda.myportfolio.com.

Josh is an art director, illustrator, and author in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He's a sucker for LEGO minifigures and thought he'd never get a chance to illustrate a Little Golden Book—until he worked on four of them for LEGO! Josh has also worked with Scholastic, Highlights for Children, Discovery Education, Orion Telescopes and Binoculars, and other EdTech companies. He's spoken on stages like Creative South and ICON: The Illustration Conference and knows a thing or two about classic cartoons like Loony Tunes, Tom and Jerry, and Popeye. One of the most fascinating parts of his story is the parallels with his great-great-grandfather, Von G. It turns out that writing and illustrating kids' books is (literally) part of his DNA. Tune in for a talk about exploring his ancestry, being strategic with personal projects, and the difficulty of bringing LEGO minifigures to life in a kids' book. Follow Josh on Instagram @joshjlewis and LinkedIn, and see more of his work on his website joshjlewis.com and Dribbble.

Rebecca (she/her) is a queer woman of color born in Trinidad and Tobago. She's the Creative Director of Planthouse Studio, a queer-owned design studio built on the foundations of collaboration, inclusivity, and growth, dedicated to growing good things with good people. Bex is also the co-founder of Queer Design Club, the hub for LGBTQ+ creativity, and until recently, the Design Director at Ghost Note Agency. Some of my favorite works in her portfolio are for Hip Hop Caucus and the Center for Journalism & Democracy at Howard University, and she's also worked with the Obama Foundation Democracy Forum, Smithsonian's Anacostia Community Museum, Grammarly, and many more. Bex loves dim sum, Coca-Cola, Scrabble (like, on a competitive level), lives by the phrase "Be Good," and Maurice Cherry, Antionette Carroll, Debbie Millman, and Vanessa Newman inspire her. Tune in for a talk about building a community for creative people who identify as LGBTQ+, growing up in Trinidad and Tobago, and how we can all be better allies. Follow Bex on Instagram @beccabrooker, find more of her work on her website rebeccabrooker.com, and learn more about Queer Design Club and the Queer Design Count at queerdesign.club. Be Good.

Being open and transparent about my process is part of my DNA, so I want to bring you behind the mic and share some of the decisions that shape the tone and personality of this podcast. Small things about the show have changed throughout the first 25 episodes, but my intentions and the purpose of these interviews have stayed the same. It's still about inspiring people, helping them make fewer mistakes, and giving back to the creative community. Also, it's STILL a lot of work, lol, but it's also still a fulfilling and rewarding passion project to work on. Thanks for your support, and thanks for listening. Tune in for a talk about my podcasting guidelines, how I prepare for an interview, and a glimpse into the recording and editing process. Here's to the next 25! Cheers, y'all.

Erikas is a designer and illustrator who specializes in making playful geometric illustrations. He's also a boneheaded bird brain, and he knows it. Driven by his love for birds, he demands respect for pigeons, grackles, and sparrows, and he especially loves the Red-bellied woodpecker and the Scissor-tailed flycatcher. Originally from New York, Erikas has called Austin his home for the last decade and has created artwork for Austin FC, Half-Price Books, Oregon State Parks, Star Wars, HP, and many more. He's also been on the big stage and given presentations at Adobe Max and Creative Jam, and he will be a workshop leader at Design Ranch 2025. Erikas even has a course on Domestika—check it out here! Tune in for a talk about Dribbble shooting themselves in the foot, his fascination with birds, and why creating posters for Austin FC was so significant to him. Follow Erikas on Instagram @erik_as_erik, and check out fantastic artwork in his online shop.

Kilian is a Sacramento-based illustrator, designer, educator, and pixel wizard behind Great Raven Design Co. Take one look at his neck—you'll understand how much The Lords of the Rings means to him. I'm jealous of his Middle-earth-themed wedding a few years ago, but I think I could take him in a lightsaber duel. Kilian cut his teeth designing labels, t-shirts, and logos for the craft beer industry, and his artwork is ferocious and packed with intricate linework. If you have the coin, he'll draw mythical creatures, skeletons, and snakes until his eyes dry out. In addition to teaching Photoshop classes at Sacramento City College, he's a founding member of Tap in Creative Club and part of the "Sac Boys." Tune in for a talk about getting the most from a design conference, growing up in a family with two best-selling authors and a famous actor, and the turning point for his independent studio. Follow Kilian on Instagram @greatravendesignco and check out even more of his work on his website, greatravendesign.co. Live By The Lance.

Kirk is an illustrator, animator, and art director, and he runs a small independent studio called BoneHaus with his skeletal sidekick, Skully. Unlike most of us, he didn't go to art/design school, but that's a good thing because he probably wouldn't be doing what he does today if he had. Why? Kirk isn't good at drawing—a weakness he's turned into a superpower. He's an expert with shapes and great at breaking things down to their most basic forms to build them back up again through relatable details. His illustration style has attracted clients like Apple, Google, Adobe, Facebook, Amazon, Rocket League, Disney, and MANY more. But his portfolio is also filled with kickass characters like Sub Zero, Doug Funnie, Gerald Johanssen, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Reptar. On top of great work, Kirk also has live streams on YouTube and is among the top 1% of teachers on Skillshare. Tune in for a talk about being an independent illustrator for over 10 years, collaborating with friends, and being six months away from (almost) hitting rock bottom. You can see more of Kirk's artwork on his website, bone.haus, Instagram @bonehaus, Dribbble, YouTube, and Behance. You can also level up by taking his courses on Skillshare.

Lisa is a Cleveland-based creative consultant specializing in lettering, murals, illustration, and graphic design. She's created over 125 murals in 9 US states AND 1 in France. She's made art for clients like Amazon, Meta, PepsiCo, Mercedes-Benz, Harley-Davidson, Aveda, StubHub, and many more. Lisa's obsessed with Lana Del Rey and tiki bars and has a creative crush on Gemma O'Brien. Once, she said, "If you throw a stone, you get a mural." I don't think she meant to say THAT, but you get the point—she loves making murals. Lol. Also, Lisa has been called the LeBron James of lettering, and in 2024, she was voted Best Artist in Cleveland. Tune in for a talk about lettering some of her favorite song lyrics, taking inspiration from William Morris and Jason Carne's Lettering Library and her approach to pricing murals. Lisa's easy to find on Instagram @lisa_quine, lisaquine.com, and other places like LinkedIn, Behance, and Dribbble.

Dan (aka Destiny Child, I meant Destiny Kid) is an artist, writer, illustrator, and designer specializing in hand lettering. His Instagram account @dandrawnwords is his creative sandbox, and he's created thousands of lettering compositions over the past decade. Phrases like: "Your Failures Fail to Define You" and "Tomorrow You'll be Glad You Did It Today." Those are shorter messages, but he's also created compositions with a hundred or more words, too—because why not when you love torturing yourself with FromSoftware boss fights? Like the rest of us, Dan is "working" on his professional portfolio (Destiny Kid Labs), and he's also the Art & Design Lead behind a moto lifestyle brand called Go Fast Don't Die. Did I mention he didn't attend design school? Tune in for a talk about creating cohesive compositions, closing the door on his chemical engineering career path, and varying the priority of words in his lettering. Follow Dan on Instagram @dandrawnwords, check out Go Fast Don't Die, and keep your eyes peeled for updates to Destiny Kid Labs.

Jacob is a Dingbat—MR. Dingbat to you—a designer and art director who runs a tiny graphic design studio in Austin, TX, also called Dingbat. His studio specializes in brand identity, packaging, illustration, and typography. Once upon a time, he worked at IBM and then Helms Workshop, and he's partnered with selected clients like Duolingo, Cratejoy, Emojibator, Kammok, and Fifty-Nine Parks. Did I mention he designs typefaces, too? Yeah, you can find them at Dingbat.xyz! Tune in for a talk about collaborating with other designers, tips for maintaining readability, and which typeface designer he would wipe from history. See more of Jake's work on Instagram and Dribbble, and browse his typefaces on Gumroad. Who knows, if you get into his inner circle, he might serve you a cortado from his coffee cart, Lil Dingus.

Adam is a designer and illustrator from Orlando, Florida. For the past 4.5 years, he's been working as a Senior Brand Designer at Acorns—basically, he draws squirrels for a living, lol. But, before the squirrels, he worked independently for a long time and created designs for big names like Disney, Target, Dunkin' Donuts, William Sonoma, and Cartoon Network. Eventually, his world started to fall apart. He lost some people close to him, Disney cut him off, and the social media demons got the best of him. Since then, he's picked himself back up, and 2025 is his redemption tour. Tune in for a talk about growing up without understanding financial wellness, making critical mistakes with a huge client, and how working in-house at Acorns provides the stability to move forward. Also, start investing :)

Kendrick is a Creative Director and VP of Creative at Shepherd, a full-service ad agency in Jacksonville, Florida. He surfs and skates, and you can find him at Kona Skatepark with his kids on the weekends. Kendrick is just an all-around swell guy, and his work is fantastically textured, smooth, slick, cute, gnarly, or literally whatever it needs to be. Despite working at the same agency—Shepherd—for TWENTY YEARS, Kendrick does plenty of independent work for clients like Nickelodeon, Target, ESPN Magazine, Billabong, and Reve Brewing. Tune in for a talk about agency life, typographic taste, and his work for The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run.

Bryony is a designer, author, and co-founder of UnderConsideration—a graphic design firm in Bloomington, Indiana. Over the last two decades, Bryony has managed the behind-the-scenes of various initiatives with her husband, Armin Vit, including Brand New (the blog), Brand New Conference, First Round, a bunch of other blogs, a podcast, and they've published five books including Graphic Design Referenced. Bryony is the type of person who comes up with a wild idea that seems impossible but always finds a way to make it a reality. It (legit) could be magic, but I bet it's because she has more follow-through than anyone I've ever met. She's serious about most things, like enough to know she's usually TOO serious, and she's the mastermind behind the ridiculously well-crafted conference materials at the Brand New Conference. IYKYK. Tune in for a talk about the perfect combination of confidence and self-doubt, designing for a critical audience, and the most dangerous day of her year.

Sarah is an illustrator, lettering artist, and muralist living in Austin, Texas. In 2019, she gave her two weeks' notice, left the corporate design world (USAA), and started Wild Vine Creative. For the past few years, her focus has been creating murals, and her artwork features organic shapes, an earthy color palette, and wildflowers like globemallow, fall aster, and bluebonnets. Don't be surprised if you spot some food and plant puns, too! Tune in for a talk about growing up in a military family, deciding to leave a full-time job to become an independent illustrator and muralist, and tips for lettering with a paintbrush.

Michael (aka Fugstrator) is an "illustrator who illustrates with design principles." He's the "People's Homie"—I made that up—and is a Senior Design Evangelist for Next Gen Creative Pros at Adobe. We all love his work, and I'm jealous of all the "space stuff" he creates. He's worked with aerospace clients like NASA, Blue Origin, Boeing, and other big companies like IBM, Oracle, and Skillshare—AND he's been on some of the biggest stages in the industry, like Adobe MAX. Tune in for a talk about getting expelled from college, living by the Pirate Code, and speaking to a crowd of 10,000 people.

Rick (aka Skeeletor in the competitive Skee-Ball world) is a lot of things—a Dark Artist, Creativity & Leadership Coach, Inner Monster Wrangler, Author, Educator, Podcaster, and World Builder. I met Rick around 2014 and have followed and supported his work since. Some of the best conversations I've ever had about self-doubt, imposter syndrome, and monsters have been with him. As a coach, he's helped thousands of leaders confront their fears, wrestle their inner imposter monsters, and find more within themselves. Most of all, he prioritizes creating a space for people to become their most authentic selves. Tune in for a talk about the inspiration behind his work, imposter syndrome, and why you should embrace the bog witch life.

Hank is an Art Director, Designer, and Illustrator originally from the muddy backwoods of Mississippi. He's created work with Instagram, Netflix, and Adobe, and he's the force behind Hank Designs Studios and Fuzzies Co.—a culture-focused illustration project. Our friendship goes back to 2019 when I met him at Design Week Huntsville in Alabama. He gave a fantastic presentation, and afterward, I taught him some of the secrets of competitive Skee-Ball—then we made it rain redemption tickets on dem fools. Tune in for a talk about avoiding math in Adobe Illustrator, finding inspiration for Fuzzies characters, and speaking on the main stage at Creative South.

Ash is a Co-Founder and Creative Director of Six Cinquième, a Montreal-based Strategic Brand Consultancy. She's created work for organizations like The National Black Canadians Summit, On Est Là!, a BIPOC-focused talent agency, and The Centre for Canadians of African Descent. Many design agencies say they're selective about the people they work with—but Six Cinquième proves they are. Their work uplifts Black creativity. It represents and has the power to inspire young, underrecognized designers to enter the design industry. Tune in for a talk about shifting your mindset, setting boundaries with clients, and trusting everything will work itself out.

Jesse is an Associate Creative Director at Marketing for Change, a research and creative agency propelled by behavioral science. He's also the tallest designer I know, plays in a volleyball league on Wednesday evenings, and will tell you the best chicken tender in Colorado Springs is from Ivywild Kitchen. When Jesse isn't winning ADDY or Telly awards, he's pushing passion projects—like T is for Tattoo—to new heights. Ha, new heights, lol. Tune in for a talk about working with a team, graphic design tattoos, and including passion projects in your portfolio.

Jason is an independent Senior Graphic Designer, Illustrator, and Muralist in Augusta, Georgia. This guy's been through the trenches and has worked at 24-hour sign shops, agencies, and everything in between. Even though he's worked with HBO, Nike, and the Atlanta Braves—Jason doesn't shy away from working with the local burger joint or the hardware store down the road. Small businesses are a part of his DNA. Tune in for a talk about recognizing opportunities, building trust with your clients, and genuine Augusta chicken bones.