Today's guest is many things. A fiercely independent singer, songwriter and musician. A bestselling author and blogger. A playwright and director. A riveting speaker and a viral TED Talk-er. A crowdfunding mom. An ardent feminist. And a fearless activist.Living and breathing at the cutting edge of expression in all forms, Amanda Palmer is an iconic, bold and sui generis performer constantly innovating what it means to be an artist in the modern age.Getting her start as a busking eight-foot bride statue in Harvard Square, she would go on to form one-half of the inventive, punk cabaret act The Dresden Dolls before launching one of the most successful crowd-funded solo careers in music history.Leaning into her devoted audience to support her seemingly endless fount of creativity, Amanda helped resuscitate the ancient art of artistic patronage, giving us all permission to ask. And more importantly perhaps, the encouragement to receive.Further to this idea, The Art of Asking, Amanda's sensational 2013 TED Talk, would go on to be viewed over 20 million times and led to her New York Times bestselling memoir, The Art of Asking: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Let People Help*.Leveraging her legion of 15,000 Patreon supporters, Amanda’s career is wholly devoted to her adoring fans eager to support her creations. Her latest offering, There Will Be No Intermission, is a beautiful, haunting and powerful solo album and world tour that grapples with the very personal and social emotional landscape of abortion, miscarriage and death.This past May I had the good fortune to witness Amanda's epic 4 1/2 hour show at the Ace Theatre here in LA. I was extremely moved by it. And even more privileged to host this conversation with her the following day.This is a conversation about what it means to be radically compassionate — open-hearted to even those we deem undeserving — and why humanity depends on empathy for its survival.It's about the strength that can be gathered when we're courageous enough to be truly vulnerable.It's about the perniciousness of perfectionism — the true enemy of creative expression.Why asking help is so hard, but crucial — also welcome.And some uncomfortable truths about my hero Henry David Thoreau. Hint: it involves donuts.In the spirit of vulnerability, I'll freely admit I was a bit nervous and intimidated — I mean who wouldn't be?Nonetheless, it was an honor to spend an hour with one of the great creative voices of our time. I'm delighted to share the experience with you today.The visually inclined can watch our entire conversation on YouTube here: bit.ly/amandapalmer459 (please subscribe!)Enjoy!Rich

Tattoos. High intensity sound. Stage diving. For the unfamiliar, it's chaos. Scary. Violent, even. But to today's guest, being hardcore straight edge is magical — a grassroots community dedicated to art, not anarchy. Celebrating life. And making the world a better place.Best known around the world as the charismatic, energetic and always smiling front man for hardcore punk band H2O, Toby Morse was raised by a single mom in Massachusetts before moving to New York City in 1988 with a dream of becoming a musician. Immersing himself in the burgeoning punk rock scene of Manhattan's Lower East Side, he worked odd jobs. He was a roadie. And in 1994, inspired by Bad Brains, he formed a band that would ultimately become synonymous with the Straight Edge and Positive Mental Attitude (‘PMA”) movements.Their self-titled debut album came out in 1996. Over the years, H2O has played alongside acts like No Doubt and Misfits. In 1998 and 1999 they joined the Warped Tour. Still together, the band continues to pack venues the world over, including a recent European tour that featured Toby's teenage son Max on drums.A dedicated vegan who has never himself touched drugs or alcohol, Toby is also a family man, self-professed “Emo Dad” and the founder of One Life One Chance — a non-profit dedicated to inspiring elementary, middle and high school students to make healthy choices and live a drug-free life. Through public speaking engagements, Toby informs kids how possible it is to maintain PMA, break stereotypes, be a leader, and maintain self-respect.Toby first came on my radar a couple years ago by way of podcast favorite, Cro-Mags frontman and fellow hardcore PMA warrior John Joseph. A friend of JJ's is a friend of mine, so I got hip to Toby's Instagram and quickly fell in love with his consistent flow of uplifting posts. His family-centric high vibe. The gentle, beautiful and uncompromising way he celebrates individuality, honoring the misfits and uplifting the weirdos. And his unwavering commitment to serving kids with his enthusiastic message of hope and positivity.I needed to know more.So here we are.Of course, this is a conversation about Toby's life. Being raised by older brothers who taught him to skate, introduced him to the music that would define his life and scared him straight. It's about what he learned about life from Bad Brains, Cro-Mags and Napoleon Hill. It's about veganism. Parenting. Art. And, of course, PMA.But most of all, this is a conversation about honoring non-conformity — exalting what makes you uniquely you. It's about the importance of community and family. And it's about the courage to blaze your own path.The visually inclined can watch our entire conversation on YouTube here: bit.ly/tobymorse458 (please subscribe!)One thing is for sure — I've found a new friend in Toby. I'm inspired by his wisdom and example. And I'm honored to share his extraordinary life with you today.Peace + Plants,Rich

Hey it's that guy. You know the guy, right?The guy with the crazy moustache in that Ben Affleck movie? The Man In Black from Lost? The Irish gangster in Sons of Anarchy?Oh, right. THAT GUY.Titus Welliver has one of the longest lists of working actor credits in Hollywood. Nonetheless, this über-talented veteran of stage and screen spent most of his storied career slightly outside Tinsletown's white hot spotlight.But that changed with the 2014 premier of Amazon's Original Series Bosch. A hardboiled noir crime procedural based on a series of Michael Connelly novels, the show caught fire and is currently in production on its sixth season. Suffice it to say, Titus' heavily lauded portrayal of  L.A.P.D. detective Harry Bosch landed him center on the zeitgeist stage.But this man is much more than an amazing actor finally enjoying his moment. He is a friend. And a true artist.Raised by a fashion illustrator mom and celebrated landscape painter Neil Welliver, Titus spent his formative years surrounded by a community of influential poets, writers, photographers and fine artists. Initially a painter himself, his father taught young Titus early and often that creative mastery required discipline. Patience. And a work ethic as rugged as New England winters.Perhaps an artist’s life was pre-destined for Titus. But his early passion for painting would eventually be displaced by a love of theater.It's a career that would eventually put him on a trajectory to work alongside some of the most brilliant minds in storytelling. People like David Milch, the creator of NYPD Blue, Deadwood and John From Cincinatti, who would become a father figure to Titus. Steven Bochco, producer of Hill Street Blues and L.A. Law. And Ben Affleck, who has cast Titus in all of his movies: Gone Baby Gone, The Town and Argo.In fact, it's been said that Titus has appeared in literally everything.This is a conversation about what it means to live a creative life. What is required to succeed an artist. And what it's like to devote your life to mastering a craft.We talk about how personal loss and fatherhood informs his process. Why gratitude and humility attract opportunity. And the importance of self-confidence, belief and personal drive in the artistic success equation.While art is subjective, not all art warrants merit. Bad art exists. And there is indeed an objective truth to good art.Titus is dedicated to this ethos. Today he shares his story.The visually inclined can watch our entire conversation on YouTube here: bit.ly/TitusWelliver457 (please subscribe!)I love this man. And it's a privilege to share his wisdom and experience with you today. I sincerely hope you enjoy the exchange.Peace + Plants,Rich

He’s back! One of the most fascinating and popular guests to grace this platform, Today Zach Bush, MD returns for a third mind-altering bend around the multiverse.For the uninitiated, Zach's varied interests belie attempts to properly define him — but I'll give it a try. One of the few triple board certified physicians in America with expertise in Internal Medicine, Endocrinology and Metabolism, and Hospice/Palliative care, he is the founder and director of M Clinic integrative health center in Virginia.In addition to his experience in functional medicine, longevity, autism, gut health, cancer, and many other areas of medicine, he is an avid environmentalist and activist involved in a multitude of projects that focus on ecology, regenerative agriculture, farmer well-being and spirituality.To advocate for soil health & food independence, Zach is also the creator of Farmer's Footprint. Seen through the lens of farmers and their communities, it's a documentary series & grassroots movement that evaluates the impact of monocrop farming and pesticide reliance on chronic disease and planetary health — while simultaneously exploring evidence-based solutions to rebuild living biodiversity and ultimately reverse climate change.But more than anything, Zach is a healer. A master consciousness. A gift to humanity. And someone I am very proud to call friend.Zach's initial appearance on the podcast (RRP 353) blew minds across the world. Our second conversation (RRP 414) was one of the most moving conversations of my life. So it just seemed right to invite Zach and his holistic health coach, consultant and yoga teacher wife Jenn Perell Bush to join us on our recent retreat in Italy.If you listened to either of our previous conversations, it would be reasonable to expect this discussion to further explore the impact of industrialized food systems on human and ecological health. However, that assumption would be wrong.Instead, we delve inside to explore our individual and collective experience with pain, both psychic and physical.We deconstruct our unhealthy obsession with comfort.We stress test the stories we craft that form our identity, stunt our evolution, and ultimately hold us hostage.And we explore a new path to freedom — liberation from that which ails us so that we can self-actualize, and together embrace our inherent divinity.Akin to the recent episode with Gemma Newman, MD (RRP 449), this exchange was recorded before a live audience of retreat attendees in Italy (thus audio only) and concludes with Zach leading a meditation, edited down for time and the sake of the listener.In closing, I want to express gratitude for our extraordinary Plantpower Italia community, who were collectively moved to donate $81,000 towards Zach’s Farmer’s Footprint organization and docu-series. On behalf of Zach, Jenn and the organization, thank you from the bottom of our hearts.Peace + Plants,Rich

What is the secret to running impossibly fast? Or distances longer than previously imagined?Beginning in the 1960's, an unknown farm boy turned coach named Bob Larsen launched a decades-long quest to find the ‘secret sauce' of speed and endurance that would eventually revolutionize the sport and catapult American running onto the national stage.This is the story of how Larsen took turned a rag-tag group of also-ran junior college athletes called the Jamul Toads into cult-favorite national champions. Later, he would apply his secret training regimen to athletes like Meb Keflezighi and Deena Kastor to create victories at the New York and Boston Marathons as well as the Olympics.To unpack this incredible yarn, today I sit down with New York Times Deputy Sports Editor Matthew Futterman.A graduate of Union College and Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism, Matthew has previously worked for The Wall Street Journal, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Star-Ledger of New Jersey, where he was a part of the team that won the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News in 2005.An avid marathoner, Matthew became obsessed with the history of American distance running and the training innovations that create champions. The result of this quest is his new book, Running to the Edge: A Band of Misfits and the Guru Who Unlocked the Secrets of Speed. Part Bob Larsen biography and part autobiography, it's a fascinating account of how one maverick coach discovered and developed the unorthodox paradigm that would launch American runners to unprecedented breakthroughs and ultimately inform the protocols of some of today’s most fleet of foot.From Bob Bowerman and Steve Prefontaine to the quest to break the 2-hour marathon, today's exploration focuses on the science behind running performance. The ongoing quest to find the secret sauce of speed and endurance. And the evolving crusade to run faster and farther than ever before.It’s about what can be learned from Bob Larsen's example, and the methods he pioneered that led to his stature as one of the greatest running coaches of all time.And it’s about our shared love for the sport of running.Even if running isn't your thing, I think you will find this conversation compelling. The stories are legend. And the life lessons applicable across disciplines.The visually inclined can watch our entire conversation on YouTube here: bit.ly/matthewfutterman455 (please subscribe!)I sincerely hope you enjoy the exchange!Peace + Plants,Rich

To be totally honest, I don't follow the pugilistic arts all that closely. But professional boxer barely describes this week's guest — a man who has faced stacked odds and overcome career-ending setbacks to meet the biggest moment of his life.Ask him how he did it, and Mike Lee answers with conviction: it's all about mindset.A professional light heavyweight boxer currently 21 – 0 with 11 knockouts, this Saturday, July 20th Mike will be fighting for his first world title against Caleb Plant — the current Undefeated IBF Super Middleweight World Champion. It’s Mike’s first fight in 13 months. On the other hand, Plant (18-0 with 10 knockouts) is fresh off his biggest victory. Suffice it to say, it’s shaping up to be quite the bout. And it's all going down live on Fox PBC, live from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.Hardly your average fighter, what compels me about Mike is the unique path he's blazed to arrive at this place. This is a guy who studied business at Notre Dame, where he relaxed by reading The Wall Street Journal and watching CNBC. When he graduated in 2009 with a 3.8 GPA in finance, he was welcomed with lucrative opportunities on Wall Street. But then he takes the road less traveled, turning every job offer down to pursue a lifelong dream: winning Chicago’s Golden Gloves.He did just that. The following year, he went pro, winning his first two professional fights. The national spotlight shone bright. Endorsement contracts followed. The boxing world, it appeared, was his oyster.You might say the rest is history. But that belies the severity of his next bout — a fight for his life that blindsided him outside the ring.At the peak of his career, after knocking out Tyler Seever in 2012, Mike fell prey to a mysterious health condition that would bench him for over two years. Experiencing great pain in his joints, severe headaches and debilitating chronic fatigue, doctors struggled to determine the cause. Some believed it was psychological. Others prescribed a multitude of drugs, none of which resolved his underlying predicament. But all of them told him he would never fight again. The hospital bed had become home. His identity challenged, he suddenly felt worthless, succumbing to a deep depression.Nonetheless, Mike never gave up hope. He committed to seeking alternative and non-traditional solutions, which culminated in a diagnosis: an auto-immune disease called Ankylosing Spondylitis. A version of arthritis, AS can be devastating both physically and mentally for anyone, let alone a professional athlete who pushes his body to the limit every day.The path forward hasn't been easy. Mike wakes up in pain every day. But he's gone all in on this comeback. And that's something worth all of us getting behind.Layered with life lessons and formative takeaways, this is a conversation about the value of perseverance. It's about deploying a potent mindset to keep your dream live, no matter the circumstances. It's about visualizing success. And it's about the importance of always giving back.The visually inclined can watch our entire conversation on YouTube here: bit.ly/mikelee454 (please subscribe!)An exemplary ambassador of sport, I really enjoyed Mike. I think you will too.Enjoy!Rich

Why is great food important? How and why did restaurants become culturally significant? And what life lessons can be gleaned from the world's greatest chef?There is no more enthusiastic ringmaster for this exploration than the merry man of food himself, Jeff Gordinier.A writer, journalist and author who sits at the converging junction of food and culture, Jeff is a frequent contributor to the New York Times and currently serves as the Food and Drinks editor at Esquire Magazine.A graduate of Princeton University where he studied writing and poetry, Jeff is a former writer and editor for Entertainment Weekly, editor at large for Details magazine and over the years has written about music and culture for a multitude of national publications, including Travel + Leisure, GQ, Elle, Creative Nonfiction, Spin, Poetry Foundation, Fortune, and many others.The occasion for today’s conversation is Jeff’s new book, Hungry: Eating, Road-Tripping, and Risking It All with the Greatest Chef in the World*. Equal parts mid-life crisis autobiography, adventure travelogue and biography, it chronicles the four years Jeff spent traveling with René Redzepi, the renowned chef of Copenhagen's Noma — recently fêted as the #2 best restaurant in the world — in search of the most tantalizing flavors the world has to offer. And yet, the book really isn't about food. A meditation on risk, re-invention, creative breakthroughs, and human connection, it sits atop my recommended summer reads.I first met Jeff in 2015 when he visited our home for a New York Times feature he was penning on the rise of veganism. Dubbed Vegans Go Glam, the piece caught fire, including a day spent as the #1 most e-mailed story on the entire New York Times website. Suffice it say, this was an insanely big moment for us, and the plant-based movement at large.In the aftermath of that experience, Jeff and I struck up a friendship He sent me an early copy of Hungry, which I devoured. It left me wanting to know more about Jeff. About food culture. About the mysterious René Redzepi. And what can be learned about life from this charismatic, cult-like genius redefining cutting-edge cuisine.So here we are. This is a conversation about total commitment to mastery. It's about creative expression. It's about the cruciality of constant, fearless re-invention. It's about investing in experience. And it's about the importance of deep human connection — to others, oneself, and the environment we share.As an anecdotal aside, it is this conversation that inspired my recent and uncharacteristically spontaneous decision to join Jeff and fellow food writer Adam Platt in Copenhagen a few weeks back. A once-in-a-lifetime, seat of our pants adventure I won't soon forget, we toured the city with René and his head fermentation wizard David Zilber (a seriously fascinating dude in his own right). We experienced the Noma phenomenon behind the scenes. And we enjoyed the premier of the restaurant's new forage-forward Plant Kingdom menu — a truly psychedelic experience incomparable to anything I have previously encountered.Peace + Plants,Rich

The tectonic plates of the workplace landscape are rapidly shifting. Gone are the days of multi-decade corporate allegiance, replaced with project-based careers. The rapid rise of the freelance economy. And a labor core increasingly distributed across the globe.What are the economic and social implications of this trend? How can the traditional office be re-imagined to fit this escalating movement? And what role can architecture and design play to deepen community and foster personal happiness?There is no better steward to explore these important questions than this week's guest, Miguel McKelvey.A talented, multi-disciplinary designer and entrepreneur, Miguel is the Co-Founder of WeWork — the ubiquitous, communal co-working space company — where he currently serves as the Chief Culture Officer, directing construction, architecture and web design for the business.Raised on a commune in Oregon, Miguel earned a Bachelor of Architecture degree from the University of Oregon, where he played on the Oregon Ducks basketball team for two years. Prior to WeWork, Miguel created the design framework and led the national retail roll-out for 170 American Apparel stores. Subsequently, he was involved in the early-stage development of several companies, including Green Desk, Barre3, Versation, and English, Baby!Because Miguel shares responsibility for creating and leading one of the world's most successful companies, one might predictably suspect this is a conversation about business. It is not. To be sure, we track his entrepreneurial journey. But this man's success has less to do with commerce and more to do with purpose. A deep commitment to community. And an intentional life devoted to fostering meaningful human connection.Over the course of two and a half hours, we explore how Miguel's unusual upbringing in a five-mother commune and his experience playing NCAA Division I basketball created the ‘Communitarian' philosophy that would later inform the cultural foundation for WeWork.We discuss Miguel's love of architecture and the important role design plays in modeling our professional and personal lives. How growing up in the town that produced Nike inspired an entrepreneurial drive to create an aspirational brand. And what his career at American Apparel taught him about engaging consumer culture at scale.But more than anything, this is a conversation with a remarkably humble man driven by gratitude and purpose to create new and original habitats that fuel a more connected world — and ultimately more fulfilling lives.The visually inclined can watch our entire conversation on YouTube here: bit.ly/miguelmckelvey452 (please subscribe!) Enjoy!Rich

For reasons both obvious and perhaps less so, this week's episode holds a very special place in my heart.There is something unique about sitting before a microphone that permits a species of conversation difficult to otherwise have. Done right, the inherent formality of putting it all on the record can countenance an experience of rare intimacy that scarcely transpires in the course of conventional human interaction.From the very beginning of this podcast journey, I've longed to host my father on the show. To provide a ceremonial opportunity to probe his life, uninterrupted. To learn things about him I've always wanted to know — but for whatever reason just never found the right occasion to ask.For years, I harbored the fear that if I didn't make such an experience a priority, it might never happen. And that would be something I would deeply regret for the rest of my days.My drive was never to share such an experience with an audience. I wasn't convinced the conversation I yearned for would be appropriate for public consumption. It's always been about creating a moment just for us. A document I could privately keep for posterity. And for my children.However, a compelling reason recently arose to transform this rumination into reality.A gentleman and a scholar, Dave Roll has spent the better part of his life studying history. The apex of this passion is an incredible new book entitled, George Marshall: Defender of the Republic*. An enthralling and deeply thoughtful chronicle of America's most distinguished soldier since George Washington, it's also a deeply prescient and timely meditation on selflessness, leadership, and the momentous importance of moral character in political and social structures. The embodiment of these ideals, Marshall influenced the course of two world wars, and helped define the American century.By way of background, my dad has enjoyed a very successful 35 year career as an accomplished attorney in the field of antitrust. Over the years, he successfully defended clients in investigations and enforcement actions brought by the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission. After government service at the FTC he matriculated to partner and ultimately managing partner of the prestigious Washington, D.C.- based international law firm Steptoe & Johnson. Later in his career, he founded the Lex Mundi Pro Bono Foundation, a non-profit, public interest organization that provides pro bono legal services to social entrepreneurs around the world.Now in his third act, Dave is enjoying a successful career as an author. Also historical biographies, his previous titles include The Hopkins Touch: Harry Hopkins and the Forging of the Alliance to Defeat Hitler* and Louis Johnson and the Arming of America*, a biography of Harry Truman's defense secretary.Enjoy!Rich

This week I sit down with Rebecca Rusch – one of the world’s greatest adventure athletes.Rebecca is a 7-time World Champion, best-selling author, activist, and Emmy winner. In addition to superhuman success on a mountain bike, she has performed at the elite level across a multitude of disciplines including rock climbing, white water rafting, and multi-day adventure events like Eco Challenge.Still crushing it at 50, Rebecca is redefining human capability in real time.Beyond athletics, Rebecca is a TEDx speaker, author of Rusch To Glory* and the founder of the Be Good Foundation. In addition, she is the event producer of Rebecca’s Private Idaho, a bike race in her hometown of Ketchum, and the protagonist in Blood Road, an extraordinary documentary that chronicles her 1,800 km mountain bike adventure along the Ho Chi Minh Trail to reach the site where her U.S. Air Force pilot father was shot down in Laos more than 40 years earlier during Vietnam.Dubbed ‘The Queen of Pain' by Adventure Sports magazine, Rebecca was named #6 on Active.com’s list of the World's Top 100 Athletes, Singletrack.com’s Mountain Biker of the Year, Sports Illustrated Adventure Racing Team of the Year, and Outside magazine’s Top 20 Female Athletes of the Year.Rebecca's accomplishments are beyond impressive. But today's conversation lives beyond elite performance to explore things like curiosity. The richness of adventure. Feeding the soul. Continuous personal growth. Redefining age. Contributing to the greater good. And giving back.But most of all, this is about what can be gleaned by leaning into the unknown. And living outside the comfort zone. Because there is so much more to this incredible woman than athletic prowess.I thoroughly enjoyed my experience with Rebecca. My hope is that it leaves you re-evaluating your personal limits. And inspired to live more adventurously.The visually inclined can watch our entire conversation on YouTube here: bit.ly/rebeccarusch450 (please subscribe!)Peace + Plants,Rich