I might have a story for you - with Matt Levinson

Brooke Webb is larger than life. From sneaking in to a Nirvana gig through a broken window (and landing right on the stage, in front of Dave Grohl’s massive right calf), to touring Sonic Youth. Running away to join the circus through to her current gig as Chief Executive of the Sydney Writers Festival. She’s lived a hundred different lives and relished every one. You often hear cliches about life being a journey, Brooke’s life is a...

Belqis Youssofzay is an architect who grew up in Afghanistan and India, moving to Sydney’s central coast as a teenager. From dreamy photography to the Powerhouse renewal, her work reflects that unique journey - this fascinating conversation covers so much ground, from Muriel’s Wedding and swimming cossies to the role of museums and culture in society. A real joy to get this time with one of the city’s most interesting new architect...

Kenny Yong-soo Son makes stunningly handcrafted metal objects from metal, concrete and sometimes timber, beautifully shaped spoons, a cup, dustpan and broom, a light shade, even a starkly geometric bookmark. If that wasn’t enough, he runs one of Sydney’s much loved restaurants, Sang By Mabasa, pushing the thinking around Korean food. His work is extraordinary, and deeply tied up in family and friendship, the everyday as well as the...

Mel Greblo is a startup founder and CEO working to help women rebuild their lives after family violence. At least a quarter of Australian women are affected by this insidious and deeply destructive form of abuse, which so often leaves victim survivors financially impoverished with battered self esteem, a tough base to build a new life. Helping them back up is such an important mission, I was fascinated to talk with Mel about her li...

Ricky Simandjuntak has had a hand in so much that is good about music in our city right now. Sampa The Great, The Kid Laroi, Becca Hatch, ONEFOUR - four entirely different acts, all global stars or stars in the making - and you can see him front and centre in the new Netflix doco Against All Odds, as ONEFOUR’s manager. I started talking with Ricky for a project on live music, and there was so much in it about music, culture, brandi...

Jess Hill has almost unbelievable stores of nerve. A teen actor who convinced advertisers to get on board with a Dolly meets Time magazine startup at 19, she’s made a career of doing things few of us have the courage for. Fearless and tenacious in pursuit of a story, she’s rigorous, passionate and deeply affecting in the telling of them. Despite staring down a deadly cancer, Jess has changed the conversation on one of the most insi...

Topher Boehm took the risky move of going foraging for native flowers to create the yeast for his beers instead of getting a typical off-the-shelf starter, and the results are truly imaginative and special.

His story starts in Dallas Texas, with stops in Rome and northern Spain, and an unfolding love affair with Sydney. It takes in cosmology and big data astrophysics, and building the tables and chairs in the brewery from scrap. I ...

Shaun Christie-David has created some of Sydney’s best places to eat. In the infamously precarious world of running restaurants, he’s making opportunities for refugees and people seeking asylum, Aboriginal people, people who’ve dealt with addiction and a range of disadvantage to find their way into good work. It’s practical and extraordinary work, and yet despite knowing all that, it was a chance conversation one night that really ...

Meagan Loader is one of the most influential people in music and radio. A key player in the creation of FBI radio and Double J, she’s nudged and shaped the careers of countless talented people. Meagan is someone who creates space for people to succeed and succeed on a large scale, she’s mischievous and fun, empathetic and encouraging, she taught me so much. I feel so indebted to her, for her encouragement, leadership and disarming ...

Jess Cook is an absolute force, one of those people who electrifies a room. She’s a leader in Sydney’s creative community with a record of building real things - particularly the big welcoming room and stage that is 107 Projects in Redfern - but go back and she’s been involved in countless shows, performances, projects and festivals. When I first met Jess I was blown away by her creative entrepreneurial spirit and energy, but I’d n...

Ben Peake is an architect, responsible for playful, clever and creative work like Annandale’s photogenic Concrete Blonde house and Blacktown’s Woodcroft neighbourhood centre. He writes about architecture. He’s won awards. But he’s also kicked against the edges of the profession, pushing for change, including campaigning for the iconic Sirius building. So it might surprise you to know he came to architecture late, after plenty of su...

Dan Ilic is the most relentlessly creative person I know. Comedian, actor, TV producer, prolific on social media, podcaster and radio host, he’s driven surges of controversy for decades, stirring up front page stories, howls from politicians and passionate audiences. He’s also incredibly purposeful, often dropping everything for a crucial campaign. What’s most surprising to me is that he’s not a household name, I’ve always wanted t...

Gemma Smith’s work has taken shape as paintings on canvas and chessboards, architectural sculptures and a big Sistine Chapel Ceiling esque painting high above Brisbane’s Supreme Court. It’s uncontrived, yet controlled and deliberate. There’s something joyful and exhilarating, all wildly gesticulating brush strokes and colour. The process seems crucial and it’s something you don’t see in the gallery, I’ve always been intrigued to kn...

Lynn Dang is a tech leader, with long stints at computing giants Microsoft and IBM, and a mentor to many through her roles with Australia for UNHCR, SheEO and others. She’s passionate, focused, with a powerful influence. Exactly the sort of person you’d hope would be shaping the talent pipeline for a major tech company. And at least part of that strength and empathy stems from her family’s escape from Vietnam when Lynn was four yea...