So in all honesty, I didn’t expect the first episode of Creative Maintenance to feature… well, me! But considering I talked Laura into doing this, it only felt fair haha. In case you missed the trailer we dropped, Creative Maintenance is a new series I’ve produced with my friend Laura Harvey, a photographer based in Vancouver who wants to have an honest dialogue about how we work. Across anonymous submissions, we chat with guests about the trials and tribulations of trying to build a career that you can be proud of, while also navigating the headf*ck of being a human being.

Getting to build this series with Laura has been a beautiful experience, and being the first guest feels like a colossal honour. It also feels serendipitous, because my attitudes and approach towards work have shifted so much in the last few years, especially in the aftermath of the pandemic years we all went through. I rarely get to talk about that, and Laura did such a brilliant job at making me feel comfortable enough to share these thoughts (intro song is Cassette Player by Rebecca Mardal).

When it came to the season finale for season 9, I admittedly overthought things. But as our world delved deeper into darkness, I kept finding myself thinking of how I wanted to leave you with a sense of hope. That led me to having Valerie June on, an American singer-songwriter/multi-instrumentalist who lives an extraordinary life. Valerie is an artist who’s very driven by people; learning from people, connecting with strangers both on stage and off. That curiosity has been a mainstay of her life, and that sense of whimsy is all over her latest album, ‘Owls, Omens and Oracles’ (which is out now). On this episode, I chat with Valerie about the vitality of seeing hope in others and why we need to always allow room to play in our lives.

Also, in case you missed the announcement: I’ll be launching a new series on June 9th with my dear friend Laura Harvey. That series is called Creative Maintenance, and the talks on there will reflect how so many of the disappointing experiences we have at work are a lot more universal than we often think. Episodes of that will be out all throughout the summer, along with season 10 of The New Exchange starting in September.

Before we wrap season 9, I’m happy to announce Creative Maintenance with Laura Harvey, a new mini-series I’ve produced. Laura is a ridiculously talented British-Chinese photographer based in Vancouver who deeply cares about community.

Creative Maintenance is a series about just that: highlighting how, as working creatives, we vitally need a sense of community. The format of the show is we take anonymous submissions from our peers about times in which they felt undervalued, where projects they’ve put so much of themselves into never saw the light of day. Together, we chat about these submissions, along with a guest for each episode, all to show how so many of the problems we face at work are more universal than we think.

The first episode will be out on Monday, June 9th. Be sure to follow Laura over on Instagram at laurahphoto and to visit her website to learn more about her and her work (Intro song is Cassette Player by Rebecca Mardal - from Epidemic Sound)