#22 Hope For A Better Tomorrow - Richard Brown

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#22 Hope For A Better Tomorrow - Richard Brown

This week's show is full of inspiration! The team sits down with Richard Brown who is a founder of the organization Hope For A Better Tomorrow in Chicago. Christian and Richard reminisce about their friendship in college and the challenges of transitioning back to life in the inner city after attending a small private school in the suburbs. They also discuss the similarities of Black and Brown communities, along with the ways mentors can help improve the lives of our youth.

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#21 Heart of The City - Jay caves

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#21 Heart of The City - Jay caves

This episode is a special one with a well rounded conversation. Our guest is Jay Caves - the Founder and Creative Director of Heart of The City TV (Linked Below) in Chicago. We talk about his origins as a filmmaker and advice for fellow creatives. The crew also dives into the topic of violence in Chicago and how people are using religion and art to help create a different narrative.

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#20 Group Talk #4 - Lulu, Nati, & Vfig

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#20 Group Talk #4 - Lulu, Nati, & Vfig

On today's podcast we are joined by regulars Nati and Vfig along with a new special guest. Lulu is the creator of Lulusinsights.com and sits down to talk with us about her start in media and connecting with a few well known figures. The group talk then goes into a few different topics including Colin Kaepernick and Puerto Rico's Promosa bill.

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#19 Inspiration Talk - Christian & Vfig

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#19 Inspiration Talk - Christian & Vfig

Familia we are back at it with another episode! Christian and Vfig sit down to talk about some of the people who inspire them. Ramonita Bartolomei is Christian's grandmother who was a community leader and has a playground named after her at Chicago's James Monroe Elementary School. Vfig shares some insight about a college roommate that was a major inspiration. The pair also dive into some more education and Olympic talk!

It's a short, but really insightful episode! 

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#18 Group Talk #3 - Nati, Vfig, & Shadey

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#18 Group Talk #3 - Nati, Vfig, & Shadey

We are back again with another Group Talk! Nati, Vfig, and Christian are joined by good friend Shadey to talk about a few different things. Topics include Puerto Rico winning Olympic Gold, diversity in the US gymnastics team, and the upcoming football season! They also took some time to talk about relationships in the upcoming cuffing season!

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#17 Should I Go To College? - Carlos

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#17 Should I Go To College? - Carlos

This week's episode is completely different. Christian had some last minute meetings come up so Carlos held it down by himself. He discusses a book by James Altucher that discourages young people from attending college. Specifically, Carlos breaks down how the advice in the book applies to Black, Brown, low income, or first generation students.

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#16 Back After A Break - Christian & Carlos

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#16 Back After A Break - Christian & Carlos

The guys are back from a mid-summer break recharged and ready for more podcasts! Christian and Carlos cover a few topics like the excellent feedback on the Abel Muhammad and Adriana Almanza episodes. They also discuss why Carlos doesn't like KRS One and thinks Tupac is overrated! Things are wrapped up with a talk on Instagram adding stories and how we're going to use that for a new Salsa showcase on social media! 

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#15 Latinos & the Nation of Islam - Abel Muhammad

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#15 Latinos & the Nation of Islam - Abel Muhammad

We took a week off, but are now back stronger than ever. Student Minister Abel Muhammad joins La Verdad and we talk about different topics regarding the Nation of Islam. Did you know the Honorable Elijah Muhammad had some early Latino followers? What does it mean to be one of the Spanish speaking representatives of Minister Louis Farrakhan? How is the Nation of Islam different from what is accepted by most to be orthodox Islam?

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#14 Trump & Going Viral - Adriana Almanza

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#14 Trump & Going Viral - Adriana Almanza

You might remember this week's guest from a viral Facebook post last year. Adriana Almanza wrote an open letter to Donald Trump last summer that ended up getting shared over 143,000 times. It also resulted in news articles and follow up interviews seen by millions around the world. She sits down with the guys to discus the original post and her experiences after getting thrown into the public light. We also catch up on some of her future plans.

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#13 Music Production Talk - Nelson Rios

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#13 Music Production Talk - Nelson Rios

Nelson Rios has been making Reggaeton and Hip Hop beats for over ten years. He's also an old friend from Carlos' youth. The team gets all together to talk about the creative process and art of music production. They also answer the question: "Is Reggaeton dead??" and name their top five artists in the genre...sort of.

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#11 Union Organizing in Houston - Aliss & Paloma

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#11 Union Organizing in Houston - Aliss & Paloma

Today is a special episode where we have a group of guests that join us all the way from Houston, Texas!! Aliss and Paloma do some excellent work helping organize unions in Houston. We talk about some of their organizing strategies and the way subcontractors make it difficult to fight for fair wages. They also shed light on injustices faced by labor workers in the workplace.

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#10 Group Talk 2 - Christian & Guests

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#10 Group Talk 2 - Christian & Guests

Familia, epsiode 10 is full of great conversations again. We are joined by Christian's brother Anthony and his fiance Carla. Nati and Vanessa also join the crew making it the much requested Group Talk #2! They talk about Carla's experiences becoming a teenage mother with her first child and also about their transition process when incorporating Anthony into their life as a stepfather. Should you date with a child? When do you introduce your kids to the new significant other? What about handling custody with the former partner? 

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#8 A Chicago Salsa Story - Luis Alequin

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#8 A Chicago Salsa Story - Luis Alequin

Episode 8 is another great history lesson. We are joined by Christian's uncle, Luis Alequin, who was a former percussionist for 1970s Salsa bands in the Chicago area. He shares stories about his start in music as a young kid in Puerto Rico and breaks down some of the little known history of the early Chicago Salsa scene. Luis started playing with local groups, but eventually had the chance to back up legendary artists like Cheo Feliciano and Eddie Palmieri.

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#6 Teaching Urban Youth - David Blancas

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#6 Teaching Urban Youth - David Blancas

This week we are joined by David Blancas who is a teacher within Chicago Public Schools. We get some insight about his personal background and learn about some of the ways he works with students that face many different challenges. Episode 6 is very important because it applies to a lot more than just schools. David gives us some major keys to connecting with kids in an urban setting and helping them give their personal 100%.

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#5 An Education & a Dream - Osiel & Ross

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#5 An Education & a Dream - Osiel & Ross

Episode five of the podcast brings us a great convo with two friends in Chicago. Osiel is an elementary school teacher and Harvard University graduate who moved to the US from Cuba at age 13. We talk a bit about his journey and transition to life in the USA. Ross is an old friend who works for CBS and launched a podcast this week (Soundcloud.com/YoLetMeTalk). He joins us to add some laughs and include his experiences as a Mexican American. 

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#4 Detroit, Hip Hop, & Native Artistry - Sacramento Knoxx

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#4 Detroit, Hip Hop, & Native Artistry - Sacramento Knoxx

Episode 4 of the show is extra special as we come to you live and direct from Detroit, Michigan!! Carlos spent the weekend with friends and had the chance to catch up with an amazing artist from the city. Sacramento Knoxx is a Southwest Detroit native who has been producing music, writing rhymes, and teaching the community for years. His unique style and diligent work ethic has gotten the Chicano/Ojibwe artist chances to perform around the world and featured as a guest at major museums and universities. 

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