Advertise on podcast: Speak Up St. Louis

Quinton sits with Chris Ryan, filmmaker, publisher, and entrepreneur based in St. Louis, Missouri. As founder and creative director of Once Films, he has spent two decades creating documentary and commercial work that has helped St. Louis nonprofits raise over $1.5 billion. That work has earned thirty Emmy Awards, six National ADDYs, and a CLIO. Additionally, he founded STL.org to document the people and places that make the region worth caring about. Professional pursuits aside, he serves as an EMT, volunteer firefighter, rescue diver, and disaster responder with Team Rubicon. In 2026 he was named a Community Changemaker by FOCUS St. Louis and recognized with the St. Louis Business Journal's Innovation in Philanthropy Award.

Quinton sits with Saj Issa, a Palestinian-American artist whose work spans painting, sculpture, ceramics, and video. She draws on her experience living between St. Louis and Ramallah, reflecting changing notions of a sense of home.

Quinton sits with Ronald Young, artist, former educator, and recipient of the Great Rivers Biennial award (GRB). Ron celebrates the resiliency of disenfranchised communities, calling attention to these sites before all memory of their existence is erased.

Quinton sits with Heather Beal, honoree of the St. Louis Visionary Awards for Outstanding Working Artist. She is a certified Dunham Technique instructor, touring worldwide in service as a renowned dancer, choreographer, actress, director, curator, and educator. Follow us! Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/speakupstlouis/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/speakupstlouis/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/speakupstlouis/ Buzzsprout: https://speakupstlouis.buzzsprout.com

Quinton sits with Daniel Puma, former associate editor for Feast Magazine in St. Louis. Follow us! Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/speakupstlouis/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/speakupstlouis/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/speakupstlouis/ Buzzsprout: https://speakupstlouis.buzzsprout.com

Dr. Bill’s acute awareness of being “different” inspired him to explore and subvert constructs of gender, sexuality, culture, and individual identity. Early influences of folk and fiber art traditions were passed down from his grandmother. He worked on trash trucks, switched trains on the Santa Fe Railroad, made a living as an archaeologist at the Cahokia Mounds, and restored historic architecture throughout St. Louis. Dr. Bill holds advanced degrees in physical medicine, acupuncture, and the fine arts including a BFA in Ceramics and Printmaking and an MA in Weaving from Pittsburg State University and an MFA in Multimedia from Washington University. Additionally, he studied dance with Katherine Dunham and DeBorah Ahmed, contact improvisation with Sarah Shelton Mann, West African percussion with Mor Thiam, and toured internationally with Gash/Voigt Dance Theater as an installation artist, videographer, and physician.

Tyler Small is a St. Louis based event photographer, digital producer at SLAM! Agency, board member of The Village Path, and, greatest of all, a proud father of two beautiful daughters.

New York-based artist, writer, and publisher Paul Chan came to prominence in the early 2000s with vibrant moving image works that touched upon aspects of war, religion, pleasure, and politics. Around 2009, following a decade of art-making, Chan embarked on a self-imposed break, turning his attention to experimental publishing and the economics of information by founding the press Badlands Unlimited. Taking the notion of a “breather” as its organizing principle, this exhibition surveys Chan’s activities since his voluntary break from that point to the present.

Culture curator and music business coach Julian Keaton is one of the leading voices in the St. Louis music community. For the past 15 years, Julian has worked with award-winning talent and organizations across the country as an artist, talent manager, radio show host/producer, blog contributor, event & festival curator, consultant, brand ambassador, and founder of music business education and artist development incubator, The Jewel Mine, music discovery platform, Stereo Assault and social mobile game Dimensions. As a creative, Julian is passionate about storytelling & producing innovative ways to communicate stories thru art, tech & food.

Herman "Lee" Jimerson II owns a wealth management practice in Saint Louis, MO in the Chesterfield area. He started his practice in 2017 and only 5 years later was nationally recognized as not just one of the fastest growing advisor practices, but a qualifying member of the Million Dollar Round Table. An organization that recognizes the top 1% of advisors in the industry. Lee shares with us his perspective and experience as a successful, young financial advisor in Saint Louis.

Alexa Seda, who will receive this year’s Emerging Artist award, is considered a rising star in the St. Louis arts scene. She weaves together her passion for theatre and urban design. As a co-producer at EncoreSTL, a platform that creates opportunities for Black and Brown artists through theatre and youth programs, she has also spearheaded the organization’s Cuéntame storytelling initiative, in collaboration with the Latinx Arts Network STL. With Seda’s background in public health specializing in urban design, her vision extends beyond the stage, such as her role in working to create equitable spaces through creative placemaking. Alexa is a 2024 Saint Louis Visionary  Awardee being honored with the Emerging Artist Award. The Saint Louis Visionary Awards is a  independent committee of women to celebrate the numerous contributions and achievements of women who work in or support the arts in St. Louis. From established working arts professionals and arts educators to emerging artists and community impact artists, each year's honorees are truly "visionary". https://www.vizawards.org/ https://www.encorestl.org/

Lisa Melandri is the executive director of the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis.

Artist, Designer, Producer, Patrick Gutierrez has his hand in many different creative outlets most notably through UVA a brand that Patrick started. He also serves as a Co-Manager of House of Vision (HOV).  An innovative "retail space selling apparel, art, books, and other youth and community member-created local products. Serving as a catalyst and entry point into successful entrepreneurship by removing barriers and risk, and providing a safe training ground for our youth and community members." He is using this opportunity to not share his expertise of screen printing with youth but also uplifting and mentoring them to be able to create the dreams they have for themselves. https://www.dreambuilders4equity.org/house-of-vision

Harvey E. A. Lockhart is a Grammy nominated music educator, saxophonist, and composer. He is also the Founder, Executive and Artistic Director for HEAL Center for the Arts in St. Louis, MO, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and multi-disciplinary center of music, arts learning, and performance.

Leon Hite, III, affectionately known as Coach Hite, is an energetic, innovative, and compassionate inspirational speaker! His gift for inspiring others has enabled him to speak to, coach, and mentor over 10 thousand people of all ages in both the corporate world and educational institutions. Currently, Coach Hite is the Director of Safety and Security for Jennings School District and the administrator for JETS (Jennings Education and Training School) which is the district’s alternative school. A man of God, devoted husband, father of three, and active member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Leon believes that we all possess the ability to be a better version of ourselves if we are willing to “Think Outside the Box”.