Conversations with a Creator

J. Ack & Shadcore
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Society & Culture

Behind every creative work is a real story. Conversations with a Creator sits down with musicians, writers, filmmakers, producers, and builders to uncover the moments that sparked their creativity and the journey that followed. Hosted by J. Ack and Shadcore. Weekly, every Wednesday.

  1. 1d ago

    What We Built and What It Cost

    No guest this week, it's just J. Ack and Shadcore. For the Season 1 finale of Conversations with a Creator, the hosts reflect on what it took to build the show from a mic at an Oxford Exchange meetup to eleven conversations with creators across music, comics, mental health, faith, literature, and hip-hop. They walk through every guest, share what each conversation gave them, and close out a season built around one idea: the creative life is a human life. Season 2 drops September 23. Chapters/Timestamps: 00:00 Season One Wrap: How Conversations with a Creator Began 04:22 Finding the Guests: Building the Season One Lineup 10:57 Looking Back Part 1: Ray, NPC Chop, and Jiggy Ja 22:02 Looking Back Part 2: D Mix, Evan, and Steph 29:04 Looking Back Part 3: Ronnie Barad, Prowess, and Wordsworth 38:47 Closing the Season with Doodle Bug of Digable Planets 43:19 Behind the Boards: Producing and Editing Season One 47:13 Sound, Gratitude, and What's Coming in Season Two Connect with Season 1 Honorees: Ray Billingsley — Cartoonist, Curtis Comic Strip 🌐 billingsleyart.com 📧 chutneydevoe@aol.com MPC Chop (Alessandra Levy) — Content Creator, Voice Actor, Musician 📱 TikTok, Instagram & YouTube: @MPCChop 🌐 alessandralevy.com Jaire Harrell — Creative, Faith-Driven Content Creator 📱 Instagram: @jaire_harrell | @harrellfamilycreative Dylan Mixer (D-Mix) — Composer, Film Scorer, Musician Evan Whitehead — Mental Health Advocate, Balance Boundaries Breaks Stephanie Wynn — Author, IBD Advocate 📚 NavigatingIBD.com Ruth Danoff — Author (Holy ADHD), Entrepreneur (Arctic Undies) 📚 Holy ADHD — available on Amazon Ronnie Burrage — Jazz Drummer, Educator, Professor Prowess the Testament — MC, Poet, Artist 🎵 prowessthetestament.bandcamp.com Wordsworth — MC, Producer, Educator Doodlebug (Cee Knowledge) — MC, Digable Planets, Author, Graphic Novelist To support the show or kick it with us, visit Conversations with a Creator

    What We Built and What It Cost

  2. Aug 12

    Doodlebug on What Originality Really Meant in Hip-Hop's Golden Era

    Digable Planets co-founder Doodlebug also known as Cee Knowledge joins J. Ack and Shadcore for a wide-ranging conversation about the creative life behind one of hip-hop's most original groups. From the era when originality was enforced by the crowd, to the world-building behind his Afrofuturist graphic novel, Doodlebug reflects on thirty-plus years of making music that makes people feel good and think critically. A conversation about craft, identity, and what it means to still be building. Chapters/Timestamps: 00:00 The Essence of Music and Its Impact 02:59 The Formation of Digable Planets 06:09 The Unique Chemistry of the Group 09:00 Creative Processes and Collaborations 11:46 The Legacy of Blowout Comb 14:56 Timelessness in Music 18:02 The Journey of Doodle Bug 20:51 Future Projects and Aspirations 23:59 The Graphic Novel and Its Themes Connect with Doodlebug aka Cee Knowledge: 🌐 ceeknowledgepresents.bandcamp.com | 🌐 epic-heavenearth.com | 📱 IG: @officialdoodlebug Come kick it with us at Conversations with a Creator

    Doodlebug on What Originality Really Meant in Hip-Hop's Golden Era

  3. Aug 5

    Writing Until It Sounds Like Someone Else Wrote It | Wordsworth

    Brooklyn MC, author, and educator Wordsworth sits down with J. Ack and Shadcore for a wide-ranging conversation on craft, purpose, and reinvention. He unpacks the "stranger test" that governs how he writes, why he now leads with author over MC, and how teaching hip-hop keeps the art form alive. A deep talk about building a creative life that outlasts the spotlight. Chapters/Timestamps: 00:00 The Journey Begins: Wordsworth's Origins 03:02 The Influence of Music: Early Inspirations 05:58 The Emotional Impact of Hip Hop 09:01 Understanding the Process: From Fan to Artist 11:55 The Student-MC Connection: Writing in Rhymes 14:56 The Power of Clean Lyrics: A Conscious Choice 17:53 Storytelling in Hip Hop: Evolution of Style 21:05 Hip Hop Education: Teaching the Culture 28:04 Teaching Hip Hop: A Cultural Journey 32:05 From Music to Literature: The Birth of a Book 35:29 The Evolution of an Artist: Author vs. MC 40:04 Crafting Stories: The Art of Writing 45:19 Chemistry in Collaboration: The Making of an Album 55:47 Future Aspirations: Books, Courses, and More Connect with Wordsworth: 📱 @WordsworthBKLYN | TikTok: @wordsworthtiktok | 🌐 wordsworthproductions.com | Podcast: What Words Are Worth Come kick it with us at Conversations with a Creator

    Writing Until It Sounds Like Someone Else Wrote It | Wordsworth

  4. Jul 29

    Hip Hop as Martial Art: Prowess the Testament on Competition, Craft & the DC Open Mic Scene

    Prowess the Testament is an MC who builds worlds. Her projects pull from Sailor Moon's divine feminine, Dragon Ball Z's ego death, go-go music's live energy, and DC's underground hip hop lineage and she stitches it all together with mythology, lyricism, and stories hip hop hasn't told yet. She joins J. Ack and Shadcore for a conversation about creative identity, the 11 songs she wrote in one night after her laptop broke, what motherhood did to her voice, and why she sees hip hop as a competitive sport and a martial art. Chapters/Timestamps: 00:00 Welcoming Prowess The Testament: Women, Motherhood, and Hip Hop 09:04 Coming Up in DC: Go-Go Music, Open Mics, and Competitive Spirit 13:40 The KRS-One Shoe Story: How Prowess Got Her Name 20:06 Building Worlds: Anime, Comics, and Mythology in Her Music 24:50 Writing Sailor Moon: Eleven Songs in One Night 30:58 Writing, Recording, and Performing: Where the Truth Lives 37:59 From De La Soul to Lioness: The Artists Who Shaped Her 44:57 What's Next: Princess Peach, Sacred Water, and Finding Prowess Connect with Prowess The Testament: 🌐 mynameisprowess.com | 📱 @mynameisprowess | Bandcamp: Prowess The Testament Come kick it with us at Conversations with a Creator

    Hip Hop as Martial Art: Prowess the Testament on Competition, Craft & the DC Open Mic Scene

  5. Jul 22

    "We Created the Culture, We Just Don't Own the Infrastructure" | Black Music & Power

    Ronnie Burrage recited poetry with Duke Ellington at nine years old, played with the Black Artists Group at thirteen, and has spent decades since connecting the dots from African drumming to bebop to hip hop at Penn State, the New School, the Berlin Conservatory, and beyond. He joins J. Ack and Shadcore for one of the deepest conversations CWaC has had: the roots of Black music as a healing force, the ownership problem nobody wants to say out loud, what Amiri Baraka taught him about speaking truth without backing down, and why galvanizing the community is still the mission. Chapters/Timestamps: 00:00 The Essence of Music in Black Culture 07:06 Musical Heritage and Family Influence 13:51 The Impact of Influential Figures 21:08 Creating Authentic Music 24:50 Navigating the Music Industry 26:16 The Soul of Music: Jazz and Fusion 28:34 Moving Forward as One: Unity in Music 30:59 Collaboration Over Competition: The Power of Togetherness 32:53 Breaking Down Barriers: The Role of Music in Healing 38:32 The Healing Power of Music: A Deeper Connection 43:19 Teaching Through Music: The Hip Hop Curriculum 47:53 Creating a Legacy: Documenting Our Stories 50:15 Building a Creative Community: The Future of Music Connect with Ronnie Burrage: 🌐 Website: ronnieburrage.com 📱 Instagram: @RonnieBurrage 📱 TikTok: @RonnieBurrage Come kick it with us at Conversations with a Creator

    "We Created the Culture, We Just Don't Own the Infrastructure" | Black Music & Power

  6. Jul 15

    From Masking to Mastering: How Ruth Danoff Built a Community Out of a Late ADHD Diagnosis

    Ruth Danoff spent 50 years not knowing she had ADHD masking, people-pleasing, and wondering why the world felt so relentlessly hard. Since her diagnosis and a layoff that freed her to finally stop, she's built Not Ruthless (a growing community for women with ADHD), started writing her memoir into Google draft emails, and is developing Arctic Undies electronically cooled underwear for people who've always been dismissed for "just running hot." She joins J. Ack and Shadcore for a conversation about creativity, reparenting, spiritual awakening, and what it looks like to finally let Ruth run the show. Chapters/Timestamps: 00:00 Journey to Diagnosis: Unmasking ADHD 10:51 Creating Not Ruthless: A Movement for Women with ADHD 20:51 Innovating Arctic Undies: A Solution for Body Temperature Dysregulation 30:24 Writing and Creativity: The Power of Expression 37:00 Future Aspirations: Building a Community and a Brand Connect with Ruth: 🌐 notruthless.com | arcticundies.com | 📱 @NotRuthlessADHD Come kick it with us at Conversations with a Creator

    From Masking to Mastering: How Ruth Danoff Built a Community Out of a Late ADHD Diagnosis

  7. Jul 8

    "Every Lived Experience Has to Be Talked About" | Three Books, Crohn's & Finding Purpose

    Stephanie A. Wynn has written three books all from lived experience, all to give someone else the game she didn't have. A Crohn's disease diagnosis after years of unexplained illness and heartbreak turned a business hustle into a purpose-driven mission. Her third book Navigating IBD is a six-week blueprint for patients and caregivers navigating inflammatory bowel disease and instead of going on Amazon, it's going directly into doctor's offices. She joins J. Ack and Shadcore for a full conversation about authorship, advocacy, purpose, and why you hustle backwards when there's no why behind the work. Chapters/Timestamps: 00:00 Purpose-Driven Actions 04:52 The Journey of Writing Books 10:11 Challenges in Publishing and Branding 15:05 Transforming Adversity into Advocacy 19:51 Finding True Purpose in Writing 27:50 Navigating IBD: The Journey Begins 29:21 The Importance of Structure in Creativity 37:14 Rebranding and Expanding the Podcast 43:08 Future Aspirations and Nonprofit Initiatives Connect with Stephanie: 🌐 Website: Stephanie A. Wynn | Navigating IBD 📱 LinkedIn: Stephanie A. Wynn Come kick it with us at Conversations with a Creator

    "Every Lived Experience Has to Be Talked About" | Three Books, Crohn's & Finding Purpose

  8. Jul 1

    "From Dope Addict to Hope Addict" | The Three B's, Burnout & What Oprah Validated

    Evan Whitehead became the youngest assistant superintendent in Illinois at 34 and spent the next several years proving it 10-to-12-hour days, unused PTO stacking up, no vacations, no pauses. Until everything shut down. In partial hospitalization, three words kept surfacing in every therapy session: balance, boundaries, breaks. He said them out loud, ended up facilitating half the program, and walked out with the framework that became his life's work. J. Ack and Shadcore sit down with Evan for a conversation about burnout, dual diagnosis, what COVID couldn't break, the moment Oprah's YouTube series validated everything and what it means to go from dope addict to hope addict. Chapters/Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction to Evan Whitehead's Journey 10:20 The Three B's Framework: Balance, Boundaries, and Breaks 20:54 Navigating Mental Health and Professional Challenges 22:53 The Importance of Mental Health and Mindfulness 31:14 The Journey of Recovery and the Three Bs 39:43 Creating Impact Through Authenticity 46:56 Scaling the Message: Organizational Change and Safety Connect with Evan: 🌐 Website: Balance Boundaries and Breaks 📱 Instagram: @balanceboundariesandbreaks Come kick it with us at Conversations with a Creator

    "From Dope Addict to Hope Addict" | The Three B's, Burnout & What Oprah Validated
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Behind every creative work is a real story. Conversations with a Creator sits down with musicians, writers, filmmakers, producers, and builders to uncover the moments that sparked their creativity and the journey that followed. Hosted by J. Ack and Shadcore. Weekly, every Wednesday.

Information

  • Creator
    J. Ack & Shadcore
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    13
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 J. Ack & Shadcore
  • Show Website
    Conversations with a Creator