About Life in Parallel with Matt Marr and Kenneth Suarez
On Life in Parallel, we introduce our bubbles to your bubbles. Get to know extraordinary people who follow their passions and make an impact, just outside your social media zip code. Join Matt Marr and Kenneth Suarez as they interview these "do-lovers" through two radically diverse lenses, bridging divides through shared stories. New episodes weekly. Let's break the algorithm.
S1, E6: What If Your Art Didn't Have to Pay Rent? with The Watson Twins | Friends & Acquaintances
The Watson Twins have made seven records, sung with Jenny Lewis, CeeLo Green and the Kings of Leon, and built three event spaces in Nashville. (They just sold them.) How do they get it all done? There are two of them.Leigh and Chandra grew up harmonizing in Louisville, Kentucky (their mom banned singing at the dinner table), spent 15 years in LA's Silver Lake music scene, then moved to Nashville and turned a condemned 1956 building into a home for community. We talk about:why the business made the music betterwhat it means to serve the song, not the egothe four years it took to become an overnight successPlus: their mom's rule for splitting a cookie, which every parent of siblings needs.Know a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? We're booking Season 2 guests now. Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)Watch on YouTube · Follow us on Instagram · TikTok · Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.comFind The Watson Twins: thewatsontwins.com · InstagramMentioned:Jenny Lewis's Rabbit Fur CoatTheir latest records, Holler and Seeing Double (recorded live at The Basement East)Walkout song: "Carry On" by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. (They won backstage passes by entering every newspaper giveaway form in their coffee shop.)Breaking the algorithm: Jamestown Revival, the duo who once slept on their floor, then wrote the songs for the Tony-winning The Outsiders
4 Nov 2026
S1 E5: What's Scarier Than a Startup? Vulnerability with Ben Whitehair
Ben Whitehair has started companies, run a nonprofit, helped lead SAG-AFTRA and ridden bulls. None of that scares him much. Being deeply honest with his wife? That's the scary part.Ben grew up outside Denver and was unschooled from fourth grade (his family traveled the actual Oregon Trail). Then his parents divorced, and he landed on a ranch with an abusive stepdad and became a rodeo kid. Today he's an actor having his best year, a career coach and a brand-new dad. We talk about:• why passion is the lagging indicator, not the starting point• the safety net that made his big leaps feel small• what to do when working harder stops being the answerMatt and Kenny pegged him as a private-school, Ivy League guy. Ben plays that guy on TV.This episode includes discussion of childhood abuse, a murder-suicide, and a parent's mental illness.If you or someone you love is struggling, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (US).Know a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? We're booking Season 2 guests now. Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)Watch on YouTube · Follow us on Instagram · TikTok · Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.comFind Ben: benwhitehair.com · Instagram · Working ActorMentioned:• Bad Thoughts, Tom Segura's Netflix series• Howard Thurman's "come alive" quoteWalkout song: "Can't Hold Us" by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ft. Ray Dalton. (Front row. He held Macklemore's shoe.)Breaking the algorithm (he couldn't pick one):• Libby Pelican Seamans, speech-language pathologist turned business owner · Horseshoe Market• Dr. Patti Fletcher, tech executive and author of Disrupters · LinkedIn• Mary Jo Lorei, coach and trainer (and a former hairdresser) · Instagram
28 Oct 2026
S1 E4: Let Me Know When Stacy Comes Back with Stacy Solodkin | Friends & Acquaintances
At 18, Stacy Solodkin had a scholarship to the Art Institute of Chicago. She didn't go. In her family, art was a hobby. You got a real job. So she got one.Stacy spent 25 years building a talent agency that started with a fax machine and a pager. Then came stage III cancer, a comeback, and one question she couldn't shake. Now she's an experimental builder working in raw porcelain and fiber, with her artwork in six galleries. We talk about:why negotiating is a creative actBeth Stein, her agent alter egowhy she doesn't teach classes, and what to do instead (it costs about $20)Her plan for age 80 is a museum show. She calls that delulu. We call it a plan.Know a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)Watch on YouTube · Follow us on Instagram · TikTok · Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.comFind Stacy: stacysolodkin.com · InstagramMentioned:The KonMari MethodSchool of the Art Institute of ChicagoSanford MeisnerThe Creative Act by Rick RubinArt & Fear by David Bayles and Ted OrlandWalkout songs (she couldn't pick one):"Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson ft. Bruno MarsAny Prince song"I'm Alive (Life Sounds Like)" by Michael Franti & SpearheadBreaking the algorithm: Florence Given, "a portal of permission."
22 Oct 2026
S1 E3: "Boys Aren't Nurses" (in 1980s Nebraska) with Dr. James Q Simmons | Friends & Acquaintances
At 28, Dr. James Q Simmons walked away from a six-figure job at PepsiCo to become a nurse. His dad's first question was about the pension.Matt's longtime friend grew up in Omaha, survived a hate campaign in college and went viral in 2014 answering the health questions everyone Googles at 2 a.m. Now he's a nurse practitioner. We get into the one free thing that will improve your health tonight.This episode includes discussion of homophobic harassment, suicidal thoughts in childhood, and HIV.If you or someone you love is struggling, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (US). LGBTQ+ young people can reach The Trevor Project.Know a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)Watch on YouTube · Follow us on Instagram · TikTok · Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.comFind Dr. James: drjamesqsimmons.com · YouTube · Instagram · TikTokMentioned:Artemis IICDC diabetes resourcesSugarland and The ChicksFor the record: The Sound of Music and Oklahoma!Walkout songs (he couldn't pick one):"Million Dollar Bill" by Whitney Houston"Take Your Time (Do It Right)"Pickleball: "Big Bad Wolf"Breaking the algorithm:Dr. Jonathan P. Higgins, author of Black. Fat. Femme. · Black Fat Femme podcastJocelyn Fuller, James's best friend
22 Oct 2026
S1 E2: When You Don't Have the Rachel with Damona Hoffman | Friends & Acquaintances
Is there one perfect person out there for you? Damona Hoffman has been married for 19 years, hosted a dating podcast for 13, and wrote F the Fairy Tale. Her answer: no. "The one" is a unicorn. (Matt is still processing.)Damona was a Northwestern theater kid who didn't get the callback, then an NBC and Syfy executive. We talk about straightening her curls for TV, and the morning she stopped. Why your dating profile is a headshot and your first date is an audition.Know a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)Watch on YouTube · Follow us on Instagram · TikTok · Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.comFind Damona: damonahoffman.com · Instagram · TikTokMentioned:F the Fairy TaleDates & Mates with Damona HoffmanCake Mixfor colored girls who have considered suicideMan's Search for MeaningThe Gottmans' Four HorsemenVeronica Alweiss, life coachDurand Bernarr: "I don't need to be confident. I'm convinced."Walkout song: "This Is Me" from The Greatest ShowmanBreaking the algorithm: Rebecca Benenati, yoga teacher, doula and somatic coach. wellbornlifestyles.com · @rebeccabenenati
22 Oct 2026
S1 E1: Austria, Not Australia with Astrid LaMarche | Friends & Acquaintances
Austria. Not Australia. (There are no kangaroos. Please look at a map.)Astrid LaMarche grew up in her parents' café, bakery, and grocery store in Upper Austria. Then a stranger said hello on the San Diego harbor. Yep, she married him.Today she runs Austrian Cravings, where hundreds of thousands watch her stretch strudel dough. We talk about:overthinking her first Instagram post for six months (it was a loaf of bread)why American grocery store bread isn't up to her standardwhat happens when retirees see their mother's recipe on their phoneKnow a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)Watch on YouTube · Follow us on Instagram · TikTok · Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.comFind Astrid: Austrian Cravings Instagram · Facebook · Book a cooking class with AstridMentioned:1. April 2000, Astrid's must-watch comedyFire in the Belly: On Being a Man by Sam Keen, the book Kenny poorly paraphrasesAltenberg, Bad Leonfelden, Vienna, Bad Ischl and the ZillertalWalkout song: "Der Kommissar" by Falco. The intro counts.Breaking the algorithm: Leni vom Bichlhof, a Zillertal farmer who mows mountain pastures by hand.
21 Oct 2026
Season One Trailer: Life in Parallel Podcast drops tomorrow!
We can't wait to share this labor of love with you! Be sure to subscribe. The first three episodes drop TOMORROW, 10/22. And then a new episode every Wednesday.Know a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)Watch on YouTube · Follow @lifeinparallelpod on Instagram and TikTok · @lifeinparallelpod.bsky.social on Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.com
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