<![CDATA[Absolutely Sure, No Idea]]>https://absolutelysurenoidea.comhttps://d32kcwy5dai345.cloudfront.net/8603d16b-b38b-4653-b10d-f1e0b97bd9a4.jpgAbsolutely Sure, No Ideahttps://absolutelysurenoidea.comPodcast for NodeThu, 28 May 2026 03:34:03 GMTPiper Watson & David RichardsonSome paths don't come with directions. This show is for the people who went for it anyway. Absolutely Sure, No Idea is a podcast hosted by Piper Watson and David Richardson — real conversations with artists, entrepreneurs, and creative people who chose their own path and built something extraordinary because of it.serialPiper Watsonhello@piperwatson.comYes<![CDATA[Kris Prochaska, Human Design Consultant and Licensed Therapist: On Bridging Psychology and Woo, Ketamine Therapy, and Becoming Who You Actually Are]]>If you've ever kept the woo parts of yourself separate from the professional parts — or wondered whether those two things could ever actually live in the same room — this conversation is for you.


Kris Prochaska has spent over a decade building a practice at the exact intersection of clinical psychology and things most therapists won't touch, and she makes it look deceptively easy.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Kris Prochaska — licensed therapist, Human Design expert, TEDx speaker, and ketamine-assisted psychotherapy practitioner based in Oregon. Kris has been bridging science and soul since 2012, helping clients decode their human design, shift deep-seated patterns, and integrate psychedelic experiences through her trauma-informed, clairvoyant approach to transformation.


Kris came to Human Design the way a lot of us come to the things that change everything — not by looking for it, but by running out of road with the old map. She'd spent years getting very good at figuring out what was wrong with people, including herself, before realizing that if you keep looking for what's wrong, you'll always find something. This conversation is about what happens when you stop diagnosing and start mapping — and what it actually feels like to decondition from who you were told to be.


  • What Human Design actually is — in under two minutes, for the skeptics
  • Her seven-year deconditioning process, and what she found on the other side of it
  • Why boxing yourself in — even with language you love — is where creative capacity goes to die


This one's for anyone who's been quietly living in two different worlds and wondering if they ever get to just be one person.


Kris Prochaska: www.krisprochaska.com


If this sparked something, our conversation with Terra Lopez — on burnout, identity, and the difference between who you are and who the industry wants you to be — is worth a listen. And DDM's episode gets into what it looks like to build something entirely on your own terms when your audience wants something else.


Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>f0763cce-65b7-40a0-ad4c-01b1dd5bd896_HamTrIFOBYWed, 27 May 2026 09:00:00 GMTIf you've ever kept the woo parts of yourself separate from the professional parts — or wondered whether those two things could ever actually live in the same room — this conversation is for you.


Kris Prochaska has spent over a decade building a practice at the exact intersection of clinical psychology and things most therapists won't touch, and she makes it look deceptively easy.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Kris Prochaska — licensed therapist, Human Design expert, TEDx speaker, and ketamine-assisted psychotherapy practitioner based in Oregon. Kris has been bridging science and soul since 2012, helping clients decode their human design, shift deep-seated patterns, and integrate psychedelic experiences through her trauma-informed, clairvoyant approach to transformation.


Kris came to Human Design the way a lot of us come to the things that change everything — not by looking for it, but by running out of road with the old map. She'd spent years getting very good at figuring out what was wrong with people, including herself, before realizing that if you keep looking for what's wrong, you'll always find something. This conversation is about what happens when you stop diagnosing and start mapping — and what it actually feels like to decondition from who you were told to be.


  • What Human Design actually is — in under two minutes, for the skeptics
  • Her seven-year deconditioning process, and what she found on the other side of it
  • Why boxing yourself in — even with language you love — is where creative capacity goes to die


This one's for anyone who's been quietly living in two different worlds and wondering if they ever get to just be one person.


Kris Prochaska: www.krisprochaska.com


If this sparked something, our conversation with Terra Lopez — on burnout, identity, and the difference between who you are and who the industry wants you to be — is worth a listen. And DDM's episode gets into what it looks like to build something entirely on your own terms when your audience wants something else.


Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">If you've ever kept the woo parts of yourself separate from the professional parts — or wondered whether those two things could ever actually live in the same room — this conversation is for you. </span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Kris Prochaska has spent over a decade building a practice at the exact intersection of clinical psychology and things most therapists won't touch, and she makes it look deceptively easy.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Today, Piper and David sit down with </span><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Kris Prochaska — licensed therapist, </strong><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Human Design</strong><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> expert, TEDx speaker, and ketamine-assisted psychotherapy practitioner</strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> based in Oregon. Kris has been bridging science and soul since 2012, helping clients decode their human design, shift deep-seated patterns, and integrate psychedelic experiences through her trauma-informed, clairvoyant approach to transformation.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Kris came to </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Human Design</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> the way a lot of us come to the things that change everything — not by looking for it, but by running out of road with the old map. She'd spent years getting very good at figuring out what was wrong with people, including herself, before realizing that if you keep looking for what's wrong, you'll always find something. This conversation is about what happens when you stop diagnosing and start mapping — and what it actually feels like to decondition from who you were told to be.</span></p><p><br></p><ul><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">What Human Design actually is — in under two minutes, for the skeptics</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Her seven-year deconditioning process, and what she found on the other side of it</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Why boxing yourself in — even with language you love — is where creative capacity goes to die</span></li></ul><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">This one's for anyone who's been quietly living in two different worlds and wondering if they ever get to just be one person.</span></p><p><br></p><p><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Kris Prochaska: </strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">www.krisprochaska.com</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">If this sparked something, our conversation with Terra Lopez — on burnout, identity, and the difference between who you are and who the industry wants you to be — is worth a listen. And DDM's episode gets into what it looks like to build something entirely on your own terms when your audience wants something else.</span></p><p><br></p><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>No00:57:09111full<![CDATA[Krylon Superstar: On Nineties Club Culture, Queer Performance Art, and The Meaning of Life]]>"God can't catch you if you don't jump." Krylon Superstar has been living by that principle since she left San Diego for New York in the nineties with no plan and a patchwork dress made of spray paint patches safety-pinned together. What followed was a life that looks like it couldn't possibly belong to one person.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Krylon Superstar — performer, artist, witch, model, fashion stylist, voodoo and ancestral magic practitioner, and one half of the Bay Area queer hip hop ballroom house duo Double Duchess. Krylon got her start as a performance artist and club kid in New York's East Village in the nineties, spent eight years in Berlin performing, modeling, and doing theater, and now lives in San Francisco.


From the Limelight to Berlin to Double Duchess, Krylon's creative life has never followed a map — it's followed a feeling. This conversation covers the decades in between: what it was like to be trans in New York in the nineties, what she had to set aside to survive it, and what she's learned about what art actually is and what it's for.


  • Why she thinks the Wizard of Oz has the wrong title — and what it says about where the good stuff actually happens
  • Going where your people are, and what happens when you actually do it
  • A quote about the meaning of life that someone named Compost told her — and why she's never forgotten it
  • Why perfection is just control in disguise — and what she does instead


Krylon Superstar: https://www.instagram.com/krylon_superstar/

Double Duchess: https://www.instagram.com/doubleduchess/


If this one moved you, our conversation with DDM — on building a creative life entirely on your own terms in a world that doesn't always make room for it — is worth your time. And Keenan Newman's episode asks a quieter version of the same question: what is art actually for, and when does it fall short?

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>62cee2d2-b2a2-4ea1-a5f1-46497ea5f5f1_HamTrIFOBYWed, 20 May 2026 09:00:00 GMT"God can't catch you if you don't jump." Krylon Superstar has been living by that principle since she left San Diego for New York in the nineties with no plan and a patchwork dress made of spray paint patches safety-pinned together. What followed was a life that looks like it couldn't possibly belong to one person.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Krylon Superstar — performer, artist, witch, model, fashion stylist, voodoo and ancestral magic practitioner, and one half of the Bay Area queer hip hop ballroom house duo Double Duchess. Krylon got her start as a performance artist and club kid in New York's East Village in the nineties, spent eight years in Berlin performing, modeling, and doing theater, and now lives in San Francisco.


From the Limelight to Berlin to Double Duchess, Krylon's creative life has never followed a map — it's followed a feeling. This conversation covers the decades in between: what it was like to be trans in New York in the nineties, what she had to set aside to survive it, and what she's learned about what art actually is and what it's for.


  • Why she thinks the Wizard of Oz has the wrong title — and what it says about where the good stuff actually happens
  • Going where your people are, and what happens when you actually do it
  • A quote about the meaning of life that someone named Compost told her — and why she's never forgotten it
  • Why perfection is just control in disguise — and what she does instead


Krylon Superstar: https://www.instagram.com/krylon_superstar/

Double Duchess: https://www.instagram.com/doubleduchess/


If this one moved you, our conversation with DDM — on building a creative life entirely on your own terms in a world that doesn't always make room for it — is worth your time. And Keenan Newman's episode asks a quieter version of the same question: what is art actually for, and when does it fall short?

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">"God can't catch you if you don't jump." Krylon Superstar has been living by that principle since she left San Diego for New York in the nineties with no plan and a patchwork dress made of spray paint patches safety-pinned together. What followed was a life that looks like it couldn't possibly belong to one person.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Today, Piper and David sit down with </span><strong style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Krylon Superstar — performer, artist, witch, model, fashion stylist, voodoo and ancestral magic practitioner, and one half of the Bay Area queer hip hop ballroom house duo Double Duchess.</strong><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Krylon got her start as a performance artist and club kid in New York's East Village in the nineties, spent eight years in Berlin performing, modeling, and doing theater, and now lives in San Francisco.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">From the Limelight to Berlin to Double Duchess, Krylon's creative life has never followed a map — it's followed a feeling. This conversation covers the decades in between: what it was like to be trans in New York in the nineties, what she had to set aside to survive it, and what she's learned about what art actually is and what it's for.</span></p><p><br></p><ul><li><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Why she thinks the Wizard of Oz has the wrong title — and what it says about where the good stuff actually happens</span></li><li><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Going where your people are, and what happens when you actually do it</span></li><li><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">A quote about the meaning of life that someone named Compost told her — and why she's never forgotten it</span></li><li><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Why perfection is just control in disguise — and what she does instead</span></li></ul><p><br></p><p><strong>Krylon Superstar</strong>: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/krylon_superstar/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/krylon_superstar/</a></p><p><strong>Double Duchess:</strong> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/doubleduchess/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/doubleduchess/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">If this one moved you, our conversation with DDM — on building a creative life entirely on your own terms in a world that doesn't always make room for it — is worth your time. And Keenan Newman's episode asks a quieter version of the same question: what is art actually for, and when does it fall short?</span></p><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>Yes01:02:20110full<![CDATA[Commercial Sets to Climate Refugees: Filmmaker Keenan Newman on Art, Activism, and Storytelling]]>Keenan Newman built a filmmaking career on the belief that stories have power. Then he stood in a Yup'ik village in Alaska filming people tear down their homes — and started to wonder about the limits of that belief.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Keenan Newman — documentary filmmaker and photographer based in Ventura, California, whose work has taken him from a Yup'ik village in Western Alaska to the West Bank to the Park Avenue Armory. His recent projects include NEWTOK, a film about the first climate refugees within US borders, and ASSEMBLY, which documents artist and activist Rashad Newsom's work toward Black queer liberation.


Keenan started in commercial work because he couldn't afford film school. Ten years later he was trying to figure out how to leave it. This conversation is about what gets clarified along the way — about what your role actually is, what art can and can't do, and what it looks like to build a creative life around something you believe in.


  • The moment in Alaska that made him question what he was doing there with a camera
  • Going from wanting his name on the marquee to seeing his role as service — and what changed that
  • How his definition of success in filmmaking has shifted over the last five years
  • The feast or famine reality of freelance filmmaking — and why he doesn't think it's going away


Keenan Newman: https://keenan.film

ASSEMBLY: https://assemblythefilm.com

NEWTOK: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/newtok/video-116909.html


If this one stayed with you, our conversation with Amy Toensing — National Geographic documentary photographer on keeping important work alive when the industry stops funding it — covers similar ground. And DDM's episode gets into what it looks like to make art entirely on your own terms when nobody's cutting the check.

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>d67b79b7-79fd-4808-b75b-7caaf1013b1f_HamTrIFOBYWed, 13 May 2026 09:00:00 GMTKeenan Newman built a filmmaking career on the belief that stories have power. Then he stood in a Yup'ik village in Alaska filming people tear down their homes — and started to wonder about the limits of that belief.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Keenan Newman — documentary filmmaker and photographer based in Ventura, California, whose work has taken him from a Yup'ik village in Western Alaska to the West Bank to the Park Avenue Armory. His recent projects include NEWTOK, a film about the first climate refugees within US borders, and ASSEMBLY, which documents artist and activist Rashad Newsom's work toward Black queer liberation.


Keenan started in commercial work because he couldn't afford film school. Ten years later he was trying to figure out how to leave it. This conversation is about what gets clarified along the way — about what your role actually is, what art can and can't do, and what it looks like to build a creative life around something you believe in.


  • The moment in Alaska that made him question what he was doing there with a camera
  • Going from wanting his name on the marquee to seeing his role as service — and what changed that
  • How his definition of success in filmmaking has shifted over the last five years
  • The feast or famine reality of freelance filmmaking — and why he doesn't think it's going away


Keenan Newman: https://keenan.film

ASSEMBLY: https://assemblythefilm.com

NEWTOK: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/newtok/video-116909.html


If this one stayed with you, our conversation with Amy Toensing — National Geographic documentary photographer on keeping important work alive when the industry stops funding it — covers similar ground. And DDM's episode gets into what it looks like to make art entirely on your own terms when nobody's cutting the check.

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Keenan Newman built a filmmaking career on the belief that stories have power. Then he stood in a Yup'ik village in Alaska filming people tear down their homes — and started to wonder about the limits of that belief.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Today, Piper and David sit down with</span><strong style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Keenan Newman — documentary filmmaker and photographer </strong><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">based in Ventura, California, whose work has taken him from a Yup'ik village in Western Alaska to the West Bank to the Park Avenue Armory. His recent projects include NEWTOK, a film about the first climate refugees within US borders, and ASSEMBLY, which documents artist and activist Rashad Newsom's work toward Black queer liberation.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Keenan started in commercial work because he couldn't afford film school. Ten years later he was trying to figure out how to leave it. This conversation is about what gets clarified along the way — about what your role actually is, what art can and can't do, and what it looks like to build a creative life around something you believe in.</span></p><p><br></p><ul><li><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The moment in Alaska that made him question what he was doing there with a camera</span></li><li><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Going from wanting his name on the marquee to seeing his role as service — and what changed that</span></li><li><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">How his definition of success in filmmaking has shifted over the last five years</span></li><li><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The feast or famine reality of freelance filmmaking — and why he doesn't think it's going away</span></li></ul><p><br></p><p><strong style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Keenan Newman:</strong><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> https://keenan.film</span></p><p><strong style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">ASSEMBLY</strong><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">: https://assemblythefilm.com</span></p><p><strong style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">NEWTOK</strong><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">: https://www.patagonia.com/stories/newtok/video-116909.html</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">If this one stayed with you, our conversation with Amy Toensing — National Geographic documentary photographer on keeping important work alive when the industry stops funding it — covers similar ground. And DDM's episode gets into what it looks like to make art entirely on your own terms when nobody's cutting the check.</span></p><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>No01:06:1919full<![CDATA[Melanie Mishler, Manifestation Coach: From Wedding Photographer to Hiding Your Woo to the Fuck It Moment That Changed Everything]]>The ache that something more is possible is easy to ignore — until it isn't. Manifestation coach and somatic teacher Melanie Mishler had a successful wedding photography business, a home in Belize, flexibility most people dream about. She was also quietly suppressing the work she actually felt called to do, and her body knew it before she did.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Melanie Mishler — manifestation teacher, trauma-informed somatic coach, creator of the Neuro-Somatic Manifesting™ method, host of Manifest with Melanie, and author of Women Who Want More. Melanie guides women over 40 to break free from the patterns keeping them stuck — through a blend of neuroscience, embodiment, and spiritual practice that she spent years hiding from her professional world before she finally stopped.


Melanie went from somatic therapist to wedding photographer to manifestation coach — not in a straight line, not with a plan, and not without a lot of sitting on the thing she really wanted to say. This conversation is about what finally made her stop waiting, and what happened when she did.


  • Why the more successful you are, the harder it is to pivot — and what that actually costs you
  • The fuck it moment — and what being messy has to do with clarity
  • Her closing advice, which Piper immediately said should be on a t-shirt


Manifest with Melanie Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/manifest-with-melanie/id1733330696

Website: https://melaniemishler.com


Love the pod today? You’ll love our conversation with Kris Prochaska — licensed therapist and human design expert on identity, self-trust, and permission to be who you actually are. And Terra Lopez's episode gets into what it looks like when your body finally forces the conversation your mind has been avoiding.

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>26e8c74f-9052-408c-8458-ff97b050ae7b_HamTrIFOBYWed, 06 May 2026 09:00:00 GMTThe ache that something more is possible is easy to ignore — until it isn't. Manifestation coach and somatic teacher Melanie Mishler had a successful wedding photography business, a home in Belize, flexibility most people dream about. She was also quietly suppressing the work she actually felt called to do, and her body knew it before she did.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Melanie Mishler — manifestation teacher, trauma-informed somatic coach, creator of the Neuro-Somatic Manifesting™ method, host of Manifest with Melanie, and author of Women Who Want More. Melanie guides women over 40 to break free from the patterns keeping them stuck — through a blend of neuroscience, embodiment, and spiritual practice that she spent years hiding from her professional world before she finally stopped.


Melanie went from somatic therapist to wedding photographer to manifestation coach — not in a straight line, not with a plan, and not without a lot of sitting on the thing she really wanted to say. This conversation is about what finally made her stop waiting, and what happened when she did.


  • Why the more successful you are, the harder it is to pivot — and what that actually costs you
  • The fuck it moment — and what being messy has to do with clarity
  • Her closing advice, which Piper immediately said should be on a t-shirt


Manifest with Melanie Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/manifest-with-melanie/id1733330696

Website: https://melaniemishler.com


Love the pod today? You’ll love our conversation with Kris Prochaska — licensed therapist and human design expert on identity, self-trust, and permission to be who you actually are. And Terra Lopez's episode gets into what it looks like when your body finally forces the conversation your mind has been avoiding.

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">The ache that something more is possible is easy to ignore — until it isn't. Manifestation coach and somatic teacher Melanie Mishler had a successful wedding photography business, a home in Belize, flexibility most people dream about. She was also quietly suppressing the work she actually felt called to do, and her body knew it before she did.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Today, Piper and David sit down with </span><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Melanie Mishler — manifestation teacher, trauma-informed somatic coach, creator of the Neuro-Somatic Manifesting™ method, host of Manifest with Melanie, and author of Women Who Want More.</strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> Melanie guides women over 40 to break free from the patterns keeping them stuck — through a blend of neuroscience, embodiment, and spiritual practice that she spent years hiding from her professional world before she finally stopped.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Melanie went from somatic therapist to wedding photographer to manifestation coach — not in a straight line, not with a plan, and not without a lot of sitting on the thing she really wanted to say. This conversation is about what finally made her stop waiting, and what happened when she did.</span></p><p><br></p><ul><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Why the more successful you are, the harder it is to pivot — and what that actually costs you</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">The fuck it moment — and what being messy has to do with clarity</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Her closing advice, which Piper immediately said should be on a t-shirt</span></li></ul><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Manifest with Melanie Podcast:</span><a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/manifest-with-melanie/id1733330696" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> </a><a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/manifest-with-melanie/id1733330696" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204); background-color: transparent;">https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/manifest-with-melanie/id1733330696</a></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Website:</span><a href="https://melaniemishler.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> </a><a href="https://melaniemishler.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204); background-color: transparent;">https://melaniemishler.com</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Love the pod today? You’ll love our conversation with Kris Prochaska — licensed therapist and human design expert on identity, self-trust, and permission to be who you actually are. And Terra Lopez's episode gets into what it looks like when your body finally forces the conversation your mind has been avoiding.</span></p><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>Yes00:41:0818full<![CDATA[Jeff Bratton, Indie Record Label Founder: On Building a Career Around Music You Love]]>Most people who love music stay fans. Jeff Bratton started reaching out to labels he loved while still working corporate PR — and just kept leaning into whatever door had give. That was the late 2000s. Cascine Records came out the other side of it.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Jeff Bratton — founder of independent record label Cascine and artist manager for Yeule, Casey MQ, and Com Truise. Cascine has become a genuine touchstone in indie, electronic, and experimental music, built without a major label, a blueprint, or any particular certainty about what came next.


Jeff grew up in Maryland, fell in love with music in the DC and Baltimore rave scene, and spent years working in corporate PR before reaching out to the labels he actually cared about and offering to help for free. This conversation is less about how he built Cascine and more about what he believes made it worth building — and what it actually takes to survive in a creative industry when there are no guarantees. Hear why community isn't optional when you're making something without a blueprint. And what he and David found in each other early on — and why wise friendships might be the whole thing


Cascine: https://www.cascine.us

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cascine

Gallerie: https://www.gallerie.us/


Listen to our conversation with DDM — on building a creative career entirely on your own terms — it covers similar territory. And Jinji Fraser's episode gets into what it looks like to stay inside something without a plan and trust where it leads.

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>760dc2cb-6d8f-4700-8981-82a0d641413d_HamTrIFOBYWed, 29 Apr 2026 09:00:00 GMTMost people who love music stay fans. Jeff Bratton started reaching out to labels he loved while still working corporate PR — and just kept leaning into whatever door had give. That was the late 2000s. Cascine Records came out the other side of it.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Jeff Bratton — founder of independent record label Cascine and artist manager for Yeule, Casey MQ, and Com Truise. Cascine has become a genuine touchstone in indie, electronic, and experimental music, built without a major label, a blueprint, or any particular certainty about what came next.


Jeff grew up in Maryland, fell in love with music in the DC and Baltimore rave scene, and spent years working in corporate PR before reaching out to the labels he actually cared about and offering to help for free. This conversation is less about how he built Cascine and more about what he believes made it worth building — and what it actually takes to survive in a creative industry when there are no guarantees. Hear why community isn't optional when you're making something without a blueprint. And what he and David found in each other early on — and why wise friendships might be the whole thing


Cascine: https://www.cascine.us

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cascine

Gallerie: https://www.gallerie.us/


Listen to our conversation with DDM — on building a creative career entirely on your own terms — it covers similar territory. And Jinji Fraser's episode gets into what it looks like to stay inside something without a plan and trust where it leads.

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">Most people who love music stay fans. Jeff Bratton started reaching out to labels he loved while still working corporate PR — and just kept leaning into whatever door had give. That was the late 2000s. Cascine Records came out the other side of it.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">Today, Piper and David sit down with </span><strong style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">Jeff Bratton — founder of independent record label Cascine and artist manager </strong><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">for Yeule, Casey MQ, and Com Truise. Cascine has become a genuine touchstone in indie, electronic, and experimental music, built without a major label, a blueprint, or any particular certainty about what came next.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">Jeff grew up in Maryland, fell in love with music in the DC and Baltimore rave scene, and spent years working in corporate PR before reaching out to the labels he actually cared about and offering to help for free. This conversation is less about how he built Cascine and more about what he believes made it worth building — and what it actually takes to survive in a creative industry when there are no guarantees. Hear why community isn't optional when you're making something without a blueprint. And what he and David found in each other early on — and why wise friendships might be the whole thing</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">Cascine: </span><a href="https://www.cascine.us" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">https://www.cascine.us</a></p><p><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">Instagram: </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/cascine" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/cascine</a></p><p><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">Gallerie: </span><a href="https://www.gallerie.us/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.gallerie.us/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);">Listen to our conversation with DDM — on building a creative career entirely on your own terms — it covers similar territory. And Jinji Fraser's episode gets into what it looks like to stay inside something without a plan and trust where it leads.</span></p><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>No01:03:2217full<![CDATA[Yoga Studio Founder to Contemporary Artist: Kim Manfredi on Reinvention and the Tension Between Art and Livelihood]]>Abstract painter Kim Manfredi ran one of Baltimore's most beloved yoga studios for 15 years. Before that, a decorative painting company for 15 years. She was just waiting for the moment to say yes to painting again.


This one's for anyone who's walked away from an opportunity because something else needed them more — and wondered for years whether that was the right call.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Kim Manfredi — abstract painter, founder of Charm City Yoga, and one of Piper's former teachers. Kim earned her MFA from MICA studying under Grace Hartigan and Joyce Kozloff, and her painting Sillmangreen was acquired by the Palm Springs Art Museum for its permanent collection. She has an upcoming solo exhibition and outdoor public commission at the Laguna Art Museum in 2026.


Kim was represented by C. Grimaldis Gallery in Baltimore and walked away from it to stay committed to the yoga community that had grown out of the carriage house where her decorative painting company worked. She went back to graduate school twenty years after her undergraduate degree. When the art path presented itself again, she recognized it. This conversation is about what it takes to keep choosing the same thing across a life that keeps changing shape around it.


  • Walking away from a promising opportunity with the Grimaldis Gallery in her early career to run a business
  • The "old lady role models" she found when she needed proof that being found later was still possible
  • How she structures each body of work so she can find freedom
  • What it actually looks like to sell enough to support a practice


Kim Manfredi: https://www.kimmanfredi.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kimmanfredi/


If you liked this episode, our conversation with Melanie Mishler — on walking away from a successful creative business to follow what you were actually called to do — covers similar territory. And Amy Toensing's episode gets into what it looks like to keep a creative practice alive when the conditions keep changing around it.

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>4158f700-2168-453a-904a-2ad53b137a7a_HamTrIFOBYWed, 22 Apr 2026 09:00:00 GMTAbstract painter Kim Manfredi ran one of Baltimore's most beloved yoga studios for 15 years. Before that, a decorative painting company for 15 years. She was just waiting for the moment to say yes to painting again.


This one's for anyone who's walked away from an opportunity because something else needed them more — and wondered for years whether that was the right call.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Kim Manfredi — abstract painter, founder of Charm City Yoga, and one of Piper's former teachers. Kim earned her MFA from MICA studying under Grace Hartigan and Joyce Kozloff, and her painting Sillmangreen was acquired by the Palm Springs Art Museum for its permanent collection. She has an upcoming solo exhibition and outdoor public commission at the Laguna Art Museum in 2026.


Kim was represented by C. Grimaldis Gallery in Baltimore and walked away from it to stay committed to the yoga community that had grown out of the carriage house where her decorative painting company worked. She went back to graduate school twenty years after her undergraduate degree. When the art path presented itself again, she recognized it. This conversation is about what it takes to keep choosing the same thing across a life that keeps changing shape around it.


  • Walking away from a promising opportunity with the Grimaldis Gallery in her early career to run a business
  • The "old lady role models" she found when she needed proof that being found later was still possible
  • How she structures each body of work so she can find freedom
  • What it actually looks like to sell enough to support a practice


Kim Manfredi: https://www.kimmanfredi.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kimmanfredi/


If you liked this episode, our conversation with Melanie Mishler — on walking away from a successful creative business to follow what you were actually called to do — covers similar territory. And Amy Toensing's episode gets into what it looks like to keep a creative practice alive when the conditions keep changing around it.

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p>Abstract painter Kim Manfredi ran one of Baltimore's most beloved yoga studios for 15 years. Before that, a decorative painting company for 15 years. She was just waiting for the moment to say yes to painting again.</p><p><br></p><p>This one's for anyone who's walked away from an opportunity because something else needed them more — and wondered for years whether that was the right call.</p><p><br></p><p>Today, Piper and David sit down with <strong>Kim Manfredi — abstract painter, founder of Charm City Yoga</strong>, and one of Piper's former teachers. Kim earned her MFA from MICA studying under Grace Hartigan and Joyce Kozloff, and her painting Sillmangreen was acquired by the Palm Springs Art Museum for its permanent collection. She has an upcoming solo exhibition and outdoor public commission at the Laguna Art Museum in 2026.</p><p><br></p><p>Kim was represented by C. Grimaldis Gallery in Baltimore and walked away from it to stay committed to the yoga community that had grown out of the carriage house where her decorative painting company worked. She went back to graduate school twenty years after her undergraduate degree. When the art path presented itself again, she recognized it. <strong>This conversation is about what it takes to keep choosing the same thing across a life that keeps changing shape around it.</strong></p><p><br></p><ul><li>Walking away from a promising opportunity with the Grimaldis Gallery in her early career to run a business</li><li>The "old lady role models" she found when she needed proof that being found later was still possible</li><li>How she structures each body of work so she can find freedom</li><li>What it actually looks like to sell enough to support a practice</li></ul><p><br></p><p><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Kim Manfredi:</strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> </span><a href="https://www.kimmanfredi.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.kimmanfredi.com/</a></p><p><strong>Instagram:</strong> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/kimmanfredi/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/kimmanfredi/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">If you liked this episode, our conversation with Melanie Mishler — on walking away from a successful creative business to follow what you were actually called to do — covers similar territory. And Amy Toensing's episode gets into what it looks like to keep a creative practice alive when the conditions keep changing around it.</span></p><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>No01:07:1516full<![CDATA[Whoever Cuts the Check Sets the Deck: Rapper DDM on Artistic Integrity and Funding Your Vision]]>DDM has been building a creative career in Baltimore — a city he'll be the first to tell you wasn't designed for it — for over two decades. He's done it mostly on his own terms, mostly with his own money, and with a clarity about the difference between art and fame that most people spend their whole career trying to figure out.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Dapper Dan Midas, a.k.a. DDM — Baltimore rapper, performer, culture commentator, and host of the Secretary of Shade YouTube channel, which has amassed over 23,000 subscribers through live book readings and sharp political and pop culture commentary. DDM currently stars in the short film F^¢k '€m R!ght B@¢k, which premiered at Sundance and is streaming on Paramount+ and Showtime.


DDM came up in the rap battle scene not to be a battle rapper, but because that's how you got noticed in Baltimore in 2005. In the following two decades of self-funded projects and a vision that was always bigger than the budget, DDM shares an honest reckoning with what the public actually wants from you versus what you want to make. This episode went places we didn't see coming and has more genius one-liners per minute than anything we've ever recorded!


The conversation goes from rap battles to wrestling to anxiety to his mom visiting mid-episode — and somehow it all connects


He's got a theory about art and fame that will make you rethink your creative decisions


And how to build a creative career from a city that doesn't manufacture fame


If you’ve ever been stuck between making art you want and making what sells, give this episode a listen.


Secretary of Shade: https://www.youtube.com/c/SecretaryOfShade

DDM on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dapperdanmidas/


If you liked this episode, our conversation with Terra Lopez — musician and activist on burnout, creative identity, and making art on your own terms — covers similar ground from a different angle. And Jinji Fraser's episode gets into what it looks like to build something without a roadmap and trust it anyway.


Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>fb2b5f4a-3be2-47b4-bf39-f79d327afdbd_HamTrIFOBYWed, 15 Apr 2026 09:00:00 GMTDDM has been building a creative career in Baltimore — a city he'll be the first to tell you wasn't designed for it — for over two decades. He's done it mostly on his own terms, mostly with his own money, and with a clarity about the difference between art and fame that most people spend their whole career trying to figure out.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Dapper Dan Midas, a.k.a. DDM — Baltimore rapper, performer, culture commentator, and host of the Secretary of Shade YouTube channel, which has amassed over 23,000 subscribers through live book readings and sharp political and pop culture commentary. DDM currently stars in the short film F^¢k '€m R!ght B@¢k, which premiered at Sundance and is streaming on Paramount+ and Showtime.


DDM came up in the rap battle scene not to be a battle rapper, but because that's how you got noticed in Baltimore in 2005. In the following two decades of self-funded projects and a vision that was always bigger than the budget, DDM shares an honest reckoning with what the public actually wants from you versus what you want to make. This episode went places we didn't see coming and has more genius one-liners per minute than anything we've ever recorded!


The conversation goes from rap battles to wrestling to anxiety to his mom visiting mid-episode — and somehow it all connects


He's got a theory about art and fame that will make you rethink your creative decisions


And how to build a creative career from a city that doesn't manufacture fame


If you’ve ever been stuck between making art you want and making what sells, give this episode a listen.


Secretary of Shade: https://www.youtube.com/c/SecretaryOfShade

DDM on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dapperdanmidas/


If you liked this episode, our conversation with Terra Lopez — musician and activist on burnout, creative identity, and making art on your own terms — covers similar ground from a different angle. And Jinji Fraser's episode gets into what it looks like to build something without a roadmap and trust it anyway.


Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">DDM has been building a creative career in Baltimore — a city he'll be the first to tell you wasn't designed for it — for over two decades. He's done it mostly on his own terms, mostly with his own money, and with a clarity about the difference between art and fame that most people spend their whole career trying to figure out.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Today, Piper and David sit down with </span><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Dapper Dan Midas, a.k.a. DDM — Baltimore rapper, performer, culture commentator, and host of the Secretary of Shade</strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> YouTube channel, which has amassed over 23,000 subscribers through live book readings and sharp political and pop culture commentary. DDM currently stars in the short film F^¢k '€m R!ght B@¢k, which premiered at Sundance and is streaming on Paramount+ and Showtime.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">DDM came up in the rap battle scene not to be a battle rapper, but because that's how you got noticed in Baltimore in 2005. In the following two decades of self-funded projects and a vision that was always bigger than the budget, DDM shares an honest reckoning with what the public actually wants from you versus what you want to make. This episode went places we didn't see coming and has more genius one-liners per minute than anything we've ever recorded!</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">The conversation goes from rap battles to wrestling to anxiety to his mom visiting mid-episode — and somehow it all connects</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">He's got a theory about art and fame that will make you rethink your creative decisions </span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">And how to build a creative career from a city that doesn't manufacture fame</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">If you’ve ever been stuck between making art you want and making what sells, give this episode a listen.</span></p><p><br></p><p><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Secretary of Shade</strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">: </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/SecretaryOfShade" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/c/SecretaryOfShade</a></p><p><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">DDM on Instagram:</strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/dapperdanmidas/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/dapperdanmidas/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">If you liked this episode, our conversation with Terra Lopez — musician and activist on burnout, creative identity, and making art on your own terms — covers similar ground from a different angle. And Jinji Fraser's episode gets into what it looks like to build something without a roadmap and trust it anyway.</span></p><p><br></p><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>No00:53:0115full<![CDATA[Jinji Fraser, Raw Chocolate Maker: On Building a Business Without a Plan and Honoring Family Legacy]]>Jinji didn't go into this thinking she'd own a business. She arrived, looked around, and thought — how has this even happened? Thirteen years later she's still asking that question, just from a much deeper place. This conversation covers what it actually feels like to stay inside something without a plan, let it evolve, and trust that the next version of it will make sense when it gets here.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Jinji Fraser — award-winning craft chocolate maker, founder of Jinji Chocolate, and collaborator with Cacao Road Media, a documentary series amplifying stories of resilience across the cacao supply chain. Jinji has spent over a decade working alongside her father and best friend, advocating for women- and family-owned cacao farms, and building a business that keeps revealing new reasons to exist.


  • We explore what it looks like when a business finds you instead of trying to plan it to a tee.
  • The breakfast conversation with her dad that completely changed her personal mission behind the chocolate.
  • Where the work is going next — and why it has nothing to do with chocolate bars


Jinji Chocolate: https://www.jinjichocolate.com

Cacao Road Documentary Series: https://www.instagram.com/cacaoroad


If this one resonated, our conversation with Terra Lopez — musician, activist, and someone who's rebuilt her relationship with her own creative work from the ground up — is worth your time. And Amy Toensing's episode gets into what it looks like to keep going inside a life you've built when the conditions around it keep changing.


Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>1f9e161f-45c1-40bd-8366-137915cbc481_HamTrIFOBYFri, 10 Apr 2026 09:02:00 GMTJinji didn't go into this thinking she'd own a business. She arrived, looked around, and thought — how has this even happened? Thirteen years later she's still asking that question, just from a much deeper place. This conversation covers what it actually feels like to stay inside something without a plan, let it evolve, and trust that the next version of it will make sense when it gets here.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Jinji Fraser — award-winning craft chocolate maker, founder of Jinji Chocolate, and collaborator with Cacao Road Media, a documentary series amplifying stories of resilience across the cacao supply chain. Jinji has spent over a decade working alongside her father and best friend, advocating for women- and family-owned cacao farms, and building a business that keeps revealing new reasons to exist.


  • We explore what it looks like when a business finds you instead of trying to plan it to a tee.
  • The breakfast conversation with her dad that completely changed her personal mission behind the chocolate.
  • Where the work is going next — and why it has nothing to do with chocolate bars


Jinji Chocolate: https://www.jinjichocolate.com

Cacao Road Documentary Series: https://www.instagram.com/cacaoroad


If this one resonated, our conversation with Terra Lopez — musician, activist, and someone who's rebuilt her relationship with her own creative work from the ground up — is worth your time. And Amy Toensing's episode gets into what it looks like to keep going inside a life you've built when the conditions around it keep changing.


Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Jinji didn't go into this thinking she'd own a business.</strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> She arrived, looked around, and thought — how has this even happened? Thirteen years later she's still asking that question, just from a much deeper place. This conversation covers what it actually feels like to stay inside something without a plan, let it evolve, and trust that the next version of it will make sense when it gets here.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Today, Piper and David sit down with </span><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Jinji Fraser — award-winning craft chocolate maker, founder of Jinji Chocolate, and collaborator with Cacao Road Media,</strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> a documentary series amplifying stories of resilience across the cacao supply chain. Jinji has spent over a decade working alongside her father and best friend, advocating for women- and family-owned cacao farms, and building a business that keeps revealing new reasons to exist.</span></p><p><br></p><ul><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">We explore what it looks like when a business finds you instead of trying to plan it to a tee.</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">The breakfast conversation with her dad that completely changed her personal mission behind the chocolate.</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Where the work is going next — and why it has nothing to do with chocolate bars</span></li></ul><p><br></p><p><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Jinji Chocolate</strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">: </span><a href="https://www.jinjichocolate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">https://www.jinjichocolate.com</a></p><p><strong style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Cacao Road Documentary Series</strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">: </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/cacaoroad" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">https://www.instagram.com/cacaoroad</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">If this one resonated, our conversation with Terra Lopez — musician, activist, and someone who's rebuilt her relationship with her own creative work from the ground up — is worth your time. And Amy Toensing's episode gets into what it looks like to keep going inside a life you've built when the conditions around it keep changing.</span></p><p><br></p><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>Yes00:51:1614full<![CDATA[Music Was Cheaper Than Therapy. Musician Terra Lopez On Industry Burnout, Grief, and Falling Back in Love With Creating]]>When burnout finally catches up with you, it doesn't always arrive as exhaustion — sometimes it arrives as a blood transfusion and a doctor telling you your heart might stop. Musician and mental health advocate Terra Lopez has spent over a decade making music as Rituals of Mine, building a career in an industry she loves, and quietly burning out doing it.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Terra Lopez — Sacramento-born musician, activist, NPR podcast host, and Community Manager at Backline, the nonprofit connecting music industry professionals with free mental health resources. Terra fronts the electronic R&B project Rituals of Mine, has toured with Deftones, Alice in Chains, and The Mars Volta, and hosts This Is What It Feels Like, which won NPR's Best Interview Award in 2024.


Terra started making music because it was cheaper than therapy. What followed was a decade of wearing every hat — artist, publicist, activist, podcast host — until her body made the decision she wouldn't. This conversation is about what happens after that, and what it actually looks like to fall back in love with something you almost walked away from.


  • Hear the story of the week Terra was ready to quit music entirely — and the unexpected guest the universe dropped in her lap in return
  • Unpack how she found work to truly sustain her music, and the key thing to look for.
  • Hear why momentum isn't just a ‘nice to have’ for her — but a prescription for mental wellbeing.


If this one hit close, our conversation with Amy Toensing — National Geographic documentary photographer on keeping a creative career alive when the industry keeps getting harder — covers similar ground from a different angle. And our episode with Kim Manfredi gets into what it looks like to rebuild your creative identity after you've let one version of it go.


Terra Lopez: https://www.instagram.com/terralopez

Rituals of Mine: https://www.instagram.com/ritualsofmine

This Is What It Feels Like / TIWILF Project: https://www.instagram.com/tiwiflproject

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>5193c0b6-56ff-4ff9-b848-66e48e3a0b6c_HamTrIFOBYFri, 10 Apr 2026 09:01:00 GMTWhen burnout finally catches up with you, it doesn't always arrive as exhaustion — sometimes it arrives as a blood transfusion and a doctor telling you your heart might stop. Musician and mental health advocate Terra Lopez has spent over a decade making music as Rituals of Mine, building a career in an industry she loves, and quietly burning out doing it.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Terra Lopez — Sacramento-born musician, activist, NPR podcast host, and Community Manager at Backline, the nonprofit connecting music industry professionals with free mental health resources. Terra fronts the electronic R&B project Rituals of Mine, has toured with Deftones, Alice in Chains, and The Mars Volta, and hosts This Is What It Feels Like, which won NPR's Best Interview Award in 2024.


Terra started making music because it was cheaper than therapy. What followed was a decade of wearing every hat — artist, publicist, activist, podcast host — until her body made the decision she wouldn't. This conversation is about what happens after that, and what it actually looks like to fall back in love with something you almost walked away from.


  • Hear the story of the week Terra was ready to quit music entirely — and the unexpected guest the universe dropped in her lap in return
  • Unpack how she found work to truly sustain her music, and the key thing to look for.
  • Hear why momentum isn't just a ‘nice to have’ for her — but a prescription for mental wellbeing.


If this one hit close, our conversation with Amy Toensing — National Geographic documentary photographer on keeping a creative career alive when the industry keeps getting harder — covers similar ground from a different angle. And our episode with Kim Manfredi gets into what it looks like to rebuild your creative identity after you've let one version of it go.


Terra Lopez: https://www.instagram.com/terralopez

Rituals of Mine: https://www.instagram.com/ritualsofmine

This Is What It Feels Like / TIWILF Project: https://www.instagram.com/tiwiflproject

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">When burnout finally catches up with you, it doesn't always arrive as exhaustion — sometimes it arrives as a blood transfusion and a doctor telling you your heart might stop. Musician and mental health advocate Terra Lopez has spent over a decade making music as Rituals of Mine, building a career in an industry she loves, and quietly burning out doing it.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Today, Piper and David sit down with Terra Lopez — Sacramento-born musician, activist, NPR podcast host, and Community Manager at Backline, the nonprofit connecting music industry professionals with free mental health resources. Terra fronts the electronic R&amp;B project Rituals of Mine, has toured with Deftones, Alice in Chains, and The Mars Volta, and hosts This Is What It Feels Like, which won NPR's Best Interview Award in 2024.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Terra started making music because it was cheaper than therapy. What followed was a decade of wearing every hat — artist, publicist, activist, podcast host — until her body made the decision she wouldn't. This conversation is about what happens after that, and what it actually looks like to fall back in love with something you almost walked away from.</span></p><p><br></p><ul><li><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Hear the story of the week Terra was ready to quit music entirely — and the unexpected guest the universe dropped in her lap in return</span></li><li><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Unpack how she found work to truly sustain her music, and the key thing to look for.</span></li><li><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Hear why momentum isn't just a ‘nice to have’ for her — but a prescription for mental wellbeing.</span></li></ul><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">If this one hit close, our conversation with Amy Toensing — National Geographic documentary photographer on keeping a creative career alive when the industry keeps getting harder — covers similar ground from a different angle. And our episode with Kim Manfredi gets into what it looks like to rebuild your creative identity after you've let one version of it go.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Terra Lopez:</span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/terralopez" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </a><a href="https://www.instagram.com/terralopez" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">https://www.instagram.com/terralopez</a></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Rituals of Mine:</span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/ritualsofmine" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </a><a href="https://www.instagram.com/ritualsofmine" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">https://www.instagram.com/ritualsofmine</a></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">This Is What It Feels Like / TIWILF Project:</span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/tiwiflproject" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </a><a href="https://www.instagram.com/tiwiflproject" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">https://www.instagram.com/tiwiflproject</a></p><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>Yes00:50:5013full<![CDATA[Amy Toensing, National Geographic Photographer: When the Work Keeps Getting Harder to Fund]]>Making a living as a documentary photographer has never been easy — but right now, it's a different kind of hard. National Geographic contributor Amy Toensing has spent over two decades doing the work anyway, and this conversation is about what that actually costs, and why she keeps doing it.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Amy Toensing — award-winning documentary photographer, visual journalist, and longtime National Geographic contributor whose work has taken her from Indigenous communities in Australia to opioid-ravaged towns in rural Ohio. Amy co-directed INHERITANCE (2024), a vérité documentary 11 years in the making that premiered at Slamdance and toured communities across the country.


Amy didn't pick up a camera because she wanted a career — she picked it up because it made the world feel more legible. What followed was two decades of fieldwork, a creative partnership with her filmmaker husband Matt, a production company, a kid, and an 11-year film nobody was really paying them to make. The industry she built that life inside of has been quietly contracting ever since. This is a conversation about what staying in it actually looks like.


Piper and David are surprised to hear why Amy's most meaningful image isn't from Papua New Guinea or Uganda — it's from a quiet lakeside campsite in the Adirondacks


  • Hear what happens when an industry that trained you to hide behind the camera suddenly tells you to put yourself in front of it
  • Sit with the question Amy and her husband revisit almost every week — and why there's no clean answer
  • Unpack what it actually takes to follow one family for 11 years when documentary funding only goes to celebrity stories and true crime
  • Hear about the easier path that would have required her to stop creating entirely — and what she did with it


Send this one to the creative person in your life who's been quietly wondering if staying scrappy is still a valid plan.


LINKS:

INHERITANCE (2024): https://www.inheritancethemovie.com

Amy Toensing: https://www.amytoensing.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amytoensing


If this one resonated, our conversation with Keenan Newman— a documentary filmmaker who made peace with using commercial work to fund the stories that actually matter — covers similar territory from a different angle. And our episode with Kim Manfredi, painter and yoga studio founder, gets into what creative reinvention actually looks like when you're doing it midlife without a roadmap.


Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>0936ca95-e787-4d00-8a76-bc6c8e89228c_HamTrIFOBYFri, 10 Apr 2026 09:00:00 GMTMaking a living as a documentary photographer has never been easy — but right now, it's a different kind of hard. National Geographic contributor Amy Toensing has spent over two decades doing the work anyway, and this conversation is about what that actually costs, and why she keeps doing it.


Today, Piper and David sit down with Amy Toensing — award-winning documentary photographer, visual journalist, and longtime National Geographic contributor whose work has taken her from Indigenous communities in Australia to opioid-ravaged towns in rural Ohio. Amy co-directed INHERITANCE (2024), a vérité documentary 11 years in the making that premiered at Slamdance and toured communities across the country.


Amy didn't pick up a camera because she wanted a career — she picked it up because it made the world feel more legible. What followed was two decades of fieldwork, a creative partnership with her filmmaker husband Matt, a production company, a kid, and an 11-year film nobody was really paying them to make. The industry she built that life inside of has been quietly contracting ever since. This is a conversation about what staying in it actually looks like.


Piper and David are surprised to hear why Amy's most meaningful image isn't from Papua New Guinea or Uganda — it's from a quiet lakeside campsite in the Adirondacks


  • Hear what happens when an industry that trained you to hide behind the camera suddenly tells you to put yourself in front of it
  • Sit with the question Amy and her husband revisit almost every week — and why there's no clean answer
  • Unpack what it actually takes to follow one family for 11 years when documentary funding only goes to celebrity stories and true crime
  • Hear about the easier path that would have required her to stop creating entirely — and what she did with it


Send this one to the creative person in your life who's been quietly wondering if staying scrappy is still a valid plan.


LINKS:

INHERITANCE (2024): https://www.inheritancethemovie.com

Amy Toensing: https://www.amytoensing.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amytoensing


If this one resonated, our conversation with Keenan Newman— a documentary filmmaker who made peace with using commercial work to fund the stories that actually matter — covers similar territory from a different angle. And our episode with Kim Manfredi, painter and yoga studio founder, gets into what creative reinvention actually looks like when you're doing it midlife without a roadmap.


Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Making a living as a documentary photographer has never been easy — but right now, it's a different kind of hard. National Geographic contributor Amy Toensing has spent over two decades doing the work anyway, and this conversation is about what that actually costs, and why she keeps doing it.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Today, Piper and David sit down with Amy Toensing — award-winning documentary photographer, visual journalist, and longtime National Geographic contributor whose work has taken her from Indigenous communities in Australia to opioid-ravaged towns in rural Ohio. Amy co-directed INHERITANCE (2024), a vérité documentary 11 years in the making that premiered at Slamdance and toured communities across the country.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Amy didn't pick up a camera because she wanted a career — she picked it up because it made the world feel more legible. What followed was two decades of fieldwork, a creative partnership with her filmmaker husband Matt, a production company, a kid, and an 11-year film nobody was really paying them to make. The industry she built that life inside of has been quietly contracting ever since. This is a conversation about what staying in it actually looks like.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Piper and David are surprised to hear why Amy's most meaningful image isn't from Papua New Guinea or Uganda — it's from a quiet lakeside campsite in the Adirondacks</span></p><p><br></p><ul><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Hear what happens when an industry that trained you to hide behind the camera suddenly tells you to put yourself in front of it</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Sit with the question Amy and her husband revisit almost every week — and why there's no clean answer</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Unpack what it actually takes to follow one family for 11 years when documentary funding only goes to celebrity stories and true crime</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Hear about the easier path that would have required her to stop creating entirely — and what she did with it</span></li></ul><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Send this one to the creative person in your life who's been quietly wondering if staying scrappy is still a valid plan.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">LINKS:</span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">INHERITANCE (2024): </span><a href="https://www.inheritancethemovie.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">https://www.inheritancethemovie.com</a></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Amy Toensing: </span><a href="https://www.amytoensing.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">https://www.amytoensing.com</a></p><p>Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/amytoensing" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">https://www.instagram.com/amytoensing</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">If this one resonated, our conversation with Keenan Newman— a documentary filmmaker who made peace with using commercial work to fund the stories that actually matter — covers similar territory from a different angle. And our episode with Kim Manfredi, painter and yoga studio founder, gets into what creative reinvention actually looks like when you're doing it midlife without a roadmap.</span></p><p><br></p><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>No01:00:3312full<![CDATA[Two Friends. No Map. One Podcast. Meet Piper and David]]>Some people take the conventional path and spend years wondering what the other one looked like. Some people take the unconventional one and spend years wondering if they made a mistake. This show is for the second group.


Absolutely Sure, No Idea is a podcast about creative people, creative career changers, and unconventional entrepreneurs who chose a path without a roadmap — and are still figuring it out.


Hosted by Piper Watson and David Richardson, two people who've known each other since the nineties, grown up on opposite coasts, and each built incredible creative pathways without knowing exactly what it was going to look like.


In this intro episode, they get into who they are and why this show exists — David's journey from fronting a band on the Warped Tour circuit to building a cornerstone of San Francisco's queer club scene, getting sober, and eventually becoming a substance abuse counselor.


Piper's path from art school to a 3,000-mile bicycle trip through Eastern Europe to National Geographic photo camps to LGBTQ wedding photography to running a nonprofit and becoming a coach. And the moment on a mountain road in the Czech Republic where her life changed forever.


  • What it actually feels like to not know what's next — and do it anyway
  • The difference between being known for something and building something that means something
  • Why the conventional path felt like it was never quite built for either of them
  • What "absolutely sure, no idea" means to each of them personally

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>0be86598-aa64-4d44-9c45-cd8c4e1c899c_HamTrIFOBYFri, 10 Apr 2026 08:59:00 GMTSome people take the conventional path and spend years wondering what the other one looked like. Some people take the unconventional one and spend years wondering if they made a mistake. This show is for the second group.


Absolutely Sure, No Idea is a podcast about creative people, creative career changers, and unconventional entrepreneurs who chose a path without a roadmap — and are still figuring it out.


Hosted by Piper Watson and David Richardson, two people who've known each other since the nineties, grown up on opposite coasts, and each built incredible creative pathways without knowing exactly what it was going to look like.


In this intro episode, they get into who they are and why this show exists — David's journey from fronting a band on the Warped Tour circuit to building a cornerstone of San Francisco's queer club scene, getting sober, and eventually becoming a substance abuse counselor.


Piper's path from art school to a 3,000-mile bicycle trip through Eastern Europe to National Geographic photo camps to LGBTQ wedding photography to running a nonprofit and becoming a coach. And the moment on a mountain road in the Czech Republic where her life changed forever.


  • What it actually feels like to not know what's next — and do it anyway
  • The difference between being known for something and building something that means something
  • Why the conventional path felt like it was never quite built for either of them
  • What "absolutely sure, no idea" means to each of them personally

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p>Some people take the conventional path and spend years wondering what the other one looked like. Some people take the unconventional one and spend years wondering if they made a mistake. <strong>This show is for the second group.</strong></p><p><br></p><p>Absolutely Sure, No Idea is a podcast about creative people, creative career changers, and unconventional entrepreneurs who chose a path without a roadmap — and are still figuring it out.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>Hosted by Piper Watson and David Richardson,</strong> two people who've known each other since the nineties, grown up on opposite coasts, and each built incredible creative pathways without knowing exactly what it was going to look like.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>In this intro episode, they get into who they are and why this show exists</strong> — David's journey from fronting a band on the Warped Tour circuit to building a cornerstone of San Francisco's queer club scene, getting sober, and eventually becoming a substance abuse counselor.</p><p><br></p><p>Piper's path from art school to a 3,000-mile bicycle trip through Eastern Europe to National Geographic photo camps to LGBTQ wedding photography to running a nonprofit and becoming a coach. And the moment on a mountain road in the Czech Republic where her life changed forever.</p><p><br></p><ul><li>What it actually feels like to not know what's next — and do it anyway</li><li>The difference between being known for something and building something that means something</li><li>Why the conventional path felt like it was never quite built for either of them</li><li>What "absolutely sure, no idea" means to each of them personally</li></ul><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>Yes00:33:3211full<![CDATA[Season 1 Trailer: Absolutely Sure, No Idea]]>TRAILER — Absolutely Sure, No Idea

If you've ever made a life path decision you couldn't fully explain — changed careers, bet on yourself, walked away from something that looked great on paper — you already know what this show is about.


Absolutely Sure, No Idea is for the person who's already made some version of the leap. Not the wide-eyed beginner. The one who's been in it, had some wins, taken some hits, and is still figuring out what's next.


Hosted by Piper and David, this is a show about creative careers, unconventional paths, and the honest, sometimes uncomfortable reality of building a life that looks a lot different than everyone else around you. Every episode features artists, entrepreneurs, and builders who've done something without a roadmap — and lived to talk about what that actually looked like.


Sometimes funny, sometimes heart-breaking, but always thought-provoking real conversations with people who chose the harder, messier, more alive version of things.


Season 1 is out now. Subscribe wherever you listen so you never miss an episode.

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]>891313e5-ddce-42cb-95d9-b78edc5c0f46_HamTrIFOBYFri, 20 Mar 2026 11:00:00 GMTTRAILER — Absolutely Sure, No Idea

If you've ever made a life path decision you couldn't fully explain — changed careers, bet on yourself, walked away from something that looked great on paper — you already know what this show is about.


Absolutely Sure, No Idea is for the person who's already made some version of the leap. Not the wide-eyed beginner. The one who's been in it, had some wins, taken some hits, and is still figuring out what's next.


Hosted by Piper and David, this is a show about creative careers, unconventional paths, and the honest, sometimes uncomfortable reality of building a life that looks a lot different than everyone else around you. Every episode features artists, entrepreneurs, and builders who've done something without a roadmap — and lived to talk about what that actually looked like.


Sometimes funny, sometimes heart-breaking, but always thought-provoking real conversations with people who chose the harder, messier, more alive version of things.


Season 1 is out now. Subscribe wherever you listen so you never miss an episode.

Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea:


Podcast Instagram: http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea

Co-Host David Richardson: https://www.davomakes.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/

Co-Host Piper Watson: https://www.piperwatson.com/ on IG: https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/


New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen

]]><p><strong>TRAILER — Absolutely Sure, No Idea</strong></p><p>If you've ever made a life path decision you couldn't fully explain — changed careers, bet on yourself, walked away from something that looked great on paper — you already know what this show is about.</p><p><br></p><p>Absolutely Sure, No Idea is for the person who's already made some version of the leap. Not the wide-eyed beginner. The one who's been in it, had some wins, taken some hits, and is still figuring out what's next.</p><p><br></p><p>Hosted by Piper and David, this is a show about creative careers, unconventional paths, and the honest, sometimes uncomfortable reality of building a life that looks a lot different than everyone else around you. Every episode features artists, entrepreneurs, and builders who've done something without a roadmap — and lived to talk about what that actually looked like.</p><p><br></p><p>Sometimes funny, sometimes heart-breaking, but always thought-provoking real conversations with people who chose the harder, messier, more alive version of things.</p><p><br></p><p>Season 1 is out now. Subscribe wherever you listen so you never miss an episode.</p><p></p><p><strong style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Connect with Absolutely Sure, No Idea: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Podcast Instagram: </span><a href="http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">http://instagram.com/absolutelysurenoidea</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host David Richardson: </span><a href="https://www.davomakes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.davomakes.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/davo_makes/</a></p><p><span style="background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">Co-Host Piper Watson: </span><a href="https://www.piperwatson.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.piperwatson.com/</a> on IG: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/__piperwatson/</a></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(250, 251, 255);">New episodes drop every Wednesday — subscribe wherever you listen</span></p>Yes00:01:231trailer