Always Looking Up

In this week’s episode I sat down with Medusa. Medusa is a non-binary revenge-pop artist based in New York. They aim to transform stories of queer joy and agony into song “by any means necessary,” and credit their visceral production style to the somatic-emotional crossover specific to autism. We discuss having to mask parts of who we are depending on the situation, the experience of having our identities understood within the disability community, how music is another language to them how they use it to express emotions, the feelings and the power and the impact of seeing yourself represented in a space for the first time and much, much more.

Listen To Medusa's Music:

Apple Music

Spotify

Follow Medusa: Instagram:@adsume YouTube: Medusa TikTok:@adsume Website:https://medusa-adsume.com/

Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilana Website: https://www.jillianilana.com/ Email: [email protected]

In this week’s episode I sat down with Lachi. Lachi is a globally touring singer and songwriter, award winning social entrepreneur, GRAMMYs Chapter Board Governor, founder of the UN-recognized organization RAMPD (Recording Artists and Music Professionals with Disabilities), and host of PBS’ American Masters series ‘Renegades’. Born legally blind, Lachi uses her platform in music, storytelling and fashion to amplify identity pride and Disability Culture. Named a USA Today Woman of the Year, a “new champion in advocacy” by Billboard, and "a foot soldier for Disability Pride'' by Forbes, her cultural activism has landed her spots on national ads and TEDx stages, discussions with the White House, BBC, Good Morning America and The New York Times, and her bejeweled glam canes have popped up everywhere from New York Fashion Week to major LA movie premieres. We discuss the power of community and the importance in recognizing other people’s journeys, the differences between accessibility and disability inclusion, how the music industry transformed her and how she is transforming the music industry and much, much more.

Listen To Lachi:

Spotify

Follow Lachi: Instagram: @lachimusic TikTok: @lachimusic YouTube: Lachi Website: https://www.lachimusic.com/index.html

Follow RAMPD: Instagram: @rampd_up Website: https://rampd.org/

Shop Glam Canes HERE

Follow Me: Instagram:@jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilana Website: https://www.jillianilana.com/ Email: [email protected]

In this week’s episode I sat down with Isabel Mavrides-Calderón. Isabel is a disability justice activist and organizer. Her work focuses on advocating for policy change, accessibility, and anti-ableism. She has hosted numerous campaigns and protests for disability rights bills with the ACLU, Patients Rising and the Center for Disability Rights and, in 2022, she was celebrated as one of Teen Vogue’s 21 under 21, a list of changemakers, influencers, activists, and artists who have made a substantial impact in both their communities and the world. We discuss the fragility and importance of the ADA, how the ways in which people view us impacts policy, creating a legacy for the next generation and much, much more.

Follow Isabel: Instagam: @powerfullyisa TikTok: @powerfullyisa

Teen Vogue's 2002 21 under 21

Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilana Website: https://www.jillianilana.com/ Email: [email protected]

This podcast was edited and produced by Ben Curwin

To start I would like to issue a trigger warning. In this conversation we do discuss harassment, assault, and trauma. If these are triggers for you, please feel free to skip this episode.

In this week’s episode I sat down with Colin Buckingham. Colin Buckingham is a Writer, Actor, Model, and Producer based in Brooklyn, NY. His goal as a storyteller is to make projects that reflect the intersectional nature of disability and create opportunities for historically excluded and disenfranchised persons. We have a raw and honest conversation about the beliefs and behaviors we confront as little people living in an average-height world, how the world does not know and understand its image of dwarfism, what it takes to challenge these perceptions and much, much more.

Follow Colin: Instagram: @cocobucks Website: https://www.colin-buckingham.com

Follow Me: Instagram:@jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilana Website: https://www.jillianilana.com/ Email: [email protected]

This podcast was edited and produced by Ben Curwin

In this special episode I sat down with Emily Ladau. Emily is a disability rights activist, storyteller, digital communications consultant, author of the book Demystifying Disability: What to Know, What to Say, and How to be an Ally and editor of Able News at The Viscardi Center, a monthly print periodical and digital news outlet that serves as a resource for and amplifies the perspectives of New York’s diverse, vibrant disability community. In this conversation, we take a deep dive into the timeline and media firestorm surrounding Catherine, the Princess of Wales leading up to and in the days following her medical disclosure and examine what happened through a disability lens.

Follow Emily: Instagram: @emilyladau Twitter/X: @emily_ladau Website: https://emilyladau.com

Follow Me: Instagram:@jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilana Website: https://www.jillianilana.com/ Email: [email protected]

This podcast was edited and produced by Ben Curwin

In this week’s episode I sat down with Amanda Leduc. Amanda is a disabled writer and author of the non-fiction book Disfigured: On Fairy Tales, Disability, and Making Space and the novel The Centaur’s Wife. She is also an essayist and public speaker where she talks about accessibility and the role of disability in storytelling. We discuss the aspects of disability that are often ignored by those who write and tell stories, seeing disability as a marker of change and creativity, what it means to be a part of a community where the stories can be painful but are so rich and so full of love and much, much more.

Follow Amanda: Instagram: @amanda.leduc Website: https://amandaleduc.com

Follow Me: Instagram:@jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilana Website: https://www.jillianilana.com/ Email: [email protected]

This podcast was edited and produced by Ben Curwin

In this week’s episode I sat down with Alycia Anderson. Alycia is a TEDx motivational speaker, corporate Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Accessibility consultant, advocate, founder & CEO of The Alycia Anderson Company, and host of the podcast Pushing Forward with Alycia. We discuss making the decision to either lead or follow, disability inclusion in DEI efforts, daring to be bold and asking for what you want, what can happen when a brand actually listens to disabled people and much, much more.

Listen To Pushing Forward With Alycia:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Listen To My Episode of Pushing Forward With Alycia:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Follow Alycia: Instagram: @alyciaspeaking TikTok @alyciaspeaking LinkedIn: Alycia Anderson Website: https://alyciaanderson.com/

Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilana Website: https://www.jillianilana.com/ Email: [email protected]

This podcast was edited and produced by Ben Curwin

In this week’s episode I sat down with Hannah Bonam-Young. Hannah is a writer of romance novels including Next of Kin, Next to You, and Out On A Limb that feature a cast of diverse, disabled, marginalized, and LGBTQIA+ folks in romantic storylines that blend with the beautiful, messy, and challenging realities of life. We discuss how she got into writing, why she wanted to write romance, the need for more diverse, disabled authors in the genre, how beautiful it is to be loved for who you are, that disabled people are worthy of a happy ever after and much, much more.

Hannah's Books:

Next of Kin

Next to You

Out On A Limb

Follow Hannah: Instagram: @authorhannahby TikTok: @hannahby_writes Website: https://www.hannahbywrites.com/

Follow Me: Instagram:@jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilana Website: https://www.jillianilana.com/ Email: [email protected]

This podcast was edited and produced by Ben Curwin

In this week’s episode I sat down with Emma Vogelmann. Emma, also known as The Wheelchair Activist, is a disability activist based in the UK. She is the Policy, Public Affairs and Research Manager at Transport for All and host of The Wheelchair Activist Podcast. We discuss the differences in the US vs the UK in regards to disability representation, some of the impossible beauty standards that exist and the impact they have on the disability community, that disabled people are the experts on disability, how the world can change yet continuously tries to change us and much, much more.

Listen To The Wheelchair Activist Podcast:

Spotify

Apple Podcasts

Listen To My Episode Of The Wheelchair Activist Podcast:

Spotify

Apple Podcasts

Follow Emma: Instagram: @emma.vogelmann Website: https://www.thewheelchairactivist.com

Follow Me: Instagram:@jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilanaWebsite: https://www.jillianilana.com Email: [email protected]

This episode was edited and produced by Ben Curwin

In this week’s episode I sat down with Matthew August Jeffers. Matthew is an actor of stage and screen, having appeared on shows such as New Amsterdam, FBI, and The Blacklist and can currently be seen portraying Nat on the AMC show The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live and is about to be making his Broadway debut in the play An Enemy Of The People. We discuss the dance between recognizing limitations and accepting challenges, that dwarfism is not a monolith, seizing opportunities to affect the most change, what it means to him to be an actor with dwarfism and much, much more.

Follow Matthew: Instagram: @matthewaugustjeffers

Follow Me: Instagram:@jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilanaWebsite: https://www.jillianilana.com Email: [email protected]

This episode was edited and produced by Ben Curwin