Powerfully Broken

What happens when you stop negotiating with fear and jump anyway? We sit down with Elec Simon—world-class bucket drummer, event MC, Jiu-Jitsu gold medalist, and relentless builder—to unpack the mindset that turns setbacks into fuel. From winning on stage to getting humbled on the mat, Elec shows how quiet discipline beats loud ego, and how listening to mentors can save you years of pain in business and in life.

We trace hi...

The story begins with loss and lands in purpose. We sit down with world-traveled bucket drummer and MC Elec Simon to unpack how a best friend’s death pushed him to build work that preserves life—school assemblies turned “motivational musical,” community shows that reach kids where they are, and a personal code that values impact over applause. It’s a conversation that blends art, mental health, and mentorship with a clear message: ...

If love keeps feeling like a storm, maybe the problem isn’t romance—it’s access. We sit down with Apostle Andre Dodson to talk about the kind of boundaries that change outcomes, the difference between truth and omission, and why respect means protecting someone’s heart when no one is watching. Andre brings the lived experience of a father, husband, and community leader to redefine what healthy partnership looks like when you finall...

What if love isn’t a feeling to chase but a responsibility you choose every day? We sit down with Apostle Andre Dotson—community leader, father, husband, and repeat guest—to explore how disciplined love outlasts mood swings, why honor dictates access, and how preparation turns heartbreak into wisdom. His candid reflections after divorce reveal a path many skip: the prep season where you assess patterns, rebuild standards, and devel...

The story opens on a fast street where violence felt normal and kids learned to run before they could read the signs. Melvin Cantrell takes us through Edgewood’s split reality—games and laughter on one side, stabbings and speeding cars on the other—and shows how a simple, stubborn no to drugs became the first brick in a new life. He talks about father wounds, the rush of being an athlete with a secret, and the moment friends’ funer...

What does it take to turn a twelve-year-old drug dealer into a community father who keeps kids safe and seen? Andre Dotson joins us to unpack the hard choices, small mercies, and steady mentorship that carried him from East Cleveland’s street economy to a life spent building structure, courage, and opportunity for the next generation. No gloss, no shortcuts—just the real mechanics of prevention: boundaries that hold, programs that ...

What does it really take to unlearn a street-made identity and rebuild a life that lifts others? We sit down with Andre Dotson—once a teen hustler in East Cleveland, now an apostle, youth mentor, CCW instructor, and mayoral candidate—to trace the choices, influences, and turning points that shaped his transformation. The story is raw and unvarnished: early drinking at 11, hustling at 12, juvenile life by 14, and the gravitational p...

In this powerful Season 2 episode of the Powerfully Broken Podcast, host Barbara L. Parker, MA, LPCC-S sits down with Ateira Ashley—mother, wife, cheer coach, and AKA—to unpack the real blueprint for long-term, healthy relationships.

Together, they discuss:

• Why friendship first matters more than chemistry
• How faith, family, and maturity sustain marriage through hard seasons
• Letting go of unrealistic expectations and embracing growt...

When comfort starts costing you more than change, it’s time to move. We sit down with Denia, a mentor to founders and a master connector, to unpack the real signals that tell you to quit the job, bet on yourself, and build a business that can breathe. From the first manual that launched her company to turning bottlenecks into revenue, she lays out a grounded path: generate cash, hire the right people, and let systems carry the weig...

What does it take to turn a life once steeped in chaos into a business that bottles peace for others to taste? We sit down with Kitten, founder and CEO of Nelijah One Winery in Akron, Ohio, to unpack how a love of wine, a tough health diagnosis, and a very blunt $300 receipt pushed her to create a low-sulfite, no-hangover wine brand that puts wellbeing first. It’s a story about resilience, flavor, and family—told with laughter, can...

What if the thing that tried to break you became the reason you lead with more courage, clarity, and care? We sit down with cheer coach and mentor Atira Ashley to trace the path from wrongful termination to a faith-fueled mission that’s raising confident girls and stronger communities—one routine, one voice, one choice at a time.

Atira opens up about the weight of travel, finances, and uncertainty, and how obedience shifte...

Your home is your nervous system. Realtor & creator Diahnna Curtis shows how to set energy boundaries, ditch chaotic relationships, and use small DIYs to turn any space into a calming, beautiful refuge—without big money.

What you’ll learn

• Energy hygiene: placing people at the right “distance” without drama
• Scent & sound therapy at home (lavender, woodsmoke, ritual cues)
• Budget-friendly DIYs that actually change how your spa...

There’s a reason Black wealth is projected to hit near-zero for too many families. Realtor leader Diahnna Curtis (President, Akron Realtist) breaks down how our homes are lost to probate, Medicaid estate recovery, and bad planning—and exactly how to protect them.

What you’ll learn

Why approvals ≠ closings: the hidden drop-off for minority buyers

The wealth math of homeownership (leverage, stability, legac...

She was the protector everyone called when things got ugly. Today, Kitten (Charlesetta Byers-Richardson) is the founder & CEO of Nalijaron Wines—and she’s sharing how she transformed street survival into a legitimate, legacy-building business.

What you’ll learn

• Why some girls “choose the life” (trauma, “protection,” fast cash) and how to exit
• Street loyalty vs. self-loyalty: the moment everything changed
• Turning hustle into a b...

Keys can feel heavier when life is heavy. We sit down with Diahnna Curtis—realtor, community leader, and caregiver—to trace how a home becomes more than an address when you’re navigating grief, surgery, and the hard math of a volatile market. What starts as a story about buying and selling turns into a blueprint for building stability: saving through feast-or-famine seasons, trusting your gut after an inspection, and designing for ...

After two marriages, violence, and the terror of choosing survival, Realtor & community leader Diahnna Curtis tells host Barbara L. Parker, MA, LPCC-S how she rebuilt: leaving abuse, working three jobs, choosing public assistance without shame, raising two daughters through activities and structure, and transforming health with intentional eating and meal prep (autoimmune-friendly).

What you’ll learn

• The moment you know it’s ...

Ever wondered how the person everyone leans on finds their own support? Stephanie Brooks—minister, mother, mental health advocate, and sexual minority advocate—joins us for a raw conversation about navigating life as both a support system for others and a human being with her own needs.

Stephanie unveils her powerful strategy for discerning when to process alone versus when to call in reinforcements. "Betrayal for me ...

After seven suicide attempts and years of stigma, mental-health advocate and trainer Shanika Suniyah Jordan chose help over silence. With host Barbara L. Parker, MA, LPCC-S, she unpacks faith vs. therapy, finding the right therapist (CBT/EMDR), and her “Release the DOPE” framework for letting go of shame, fear, and self-sabotage.

What you’ll learn

• Faith and therapy: why it’s not either/or
• How to find a therapist who fits (beyond “...

Men cry. Men break. Men heal. In this powerful roundtable, Brian D. Nordstrom Jr., Apostle Andre Dodson, and Will Van Dyke sit with host Barbara L. Parker, MA, LPCC-S & Co-Host Mary Kent to break the stigma around male emotions—especially for Black men—and talk boundaries, therapy, co-parenting, and choosing peace over chaos.

What happens when men's emotions are invalidated in relationships? Our raw, honest conver...