beginningspod

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to Eisner and GLAAD Award-winning comics writer Mark Russell. Born in Springfield, OR, Mark broke into professional writing with his book God Is Disappointed in You, a modern retelling of the Bible. This led to comics work writing Prez for DC in 2015 and a number of other comics in the last decade including The Flintstones, Exit, Stage Left!: The Snagglepuss Chronicles, Fantastic Four: Life Story, Superman: Space Age, Batman: Dark Age and many others. Most recently, Mark finished a run writing X-Factor for the first wave of post-Krakoa X-Men books and has a number of books on the horizon for publishers like Ahoy and Mad Cave!

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to cartoonist Rory Blank. Originally from Carrollton, Georgia, Rory eventually ended up in Austin for college, where he began making cartoons for the student newspaper. In the early 20-teens, Rory began posting his comics online on places like Tumblr and Twitter and began to gain a following. Most recently, Rory was voted the Best Cartoonist in Austin in the 2025 Austin Chronicle "Best of Austin" readers poll for the second year in a row!

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to writer and showrunner Selwyn Seyfu Hinds. Originally from Georgetown, Guyana, Selwyn and his family moved to Brooklyn in the 1980s, when he was 14-years-old. After graduating from Princeton, he began writing for The Village Voice. Then in the late 1990s, he became a hip-hop critic and then editor-in-chief at The Source magazine. As a TV writer, Selwyn wrote for Jordan Peele's Twilight Zone reboot and most recently created and showran the new Hulu show Washington Black, based on Esi Edugyan's novel of the same name, and all episodes drop next Wednesday!

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to musician Daniel Littleton. Originally from Annapolis, MD, Daniel's first band The Hated was part of the first wave of hardcore/post-punk/emo in the 1980s. In 1991, Daniel and Elizabeth Mitchell began recording together as Ida. They released their first three albums on the formative indie label Simple Machines, and as the '90s progressed they became loosely associated with a wave of chamber pop bands. Their next five albums were released on labels like Polyvinyl and Tiger Style Records, and in the late aughts, the band went on hiatus. Recently though, they began performing again in support of Numero Group's 4-LP reissue of their fourth album Will You Find Me.

(Picture by Chris Sikich)

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to Eisner Award-winning comics writer Kelly Sue DeConnick. Born in Columbus, OH, Kelly Sue moved around a lot as a child and eventually got into comics professionally through adapting translations of manga. Since the mid-aughts, she has jumped between creator-owned work for publishers like Image such as Pretty Deadly and Bitch Planet, and work-for-hire at Marvel and DC, including a defining run on Captain Marvel. Most recently, she created FML for Dark Horse. It returns this July, and is easily one of the best comics of the last year!

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to comics creator Michael DeForge. Originally from Ottawa, Michael had been making mini- and webcomics for years before he created his first "real" comic Lose, which was published by Koyama Press in 2009. Since then, he's published over a dozen books and collections through publishers like Koyama and Drawn & Quarterly, and also worked as a designer on Adventure Time for six seasons. His latest book Holy Lacrimony was published through Drawn & Quarterly just a few months ago, and it is fantastic!

(Photo by Matthew James-Wilson)

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to musician David Bazan. Originally from Phoenix, AZ, David started Pedro the Lion in 1995, and his first full-length album It's Hard to Find a Friend was released three years later on Jade Tree. In 2005, David recorded a more synthesizer-focused album as Headphones, and then a year later, Pedro the Lion broke up. David continued to record music under his own name, releasing albums on labels like Barsuk and Polyvinyl, and then in 2017, Pedro the Lion got back together and began a five-album cycle, with each album focusing on a city that David grew up in. The most recent was last year's Santa Cruz, which came out on Polyvinyl/Big Scary Monsters. 2025 marks the 20th anniversary of Headphones' lone album, and to commemorate the occasion, Suicide Squeeze just released a remastered edition at the end of May, and folks, it's just as fantastic as it was back in 2005!

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to Merrill Garbus and Nate Brenner of the band Tune-Yards. Started by Merrill in the mid-aughts, Tune-Yards first official release Bird-Brains came out in 2009 on 4AD. Almost immediately, the band began to garner acclaim from Pitchfork, the Village Voice and many other publications. After the release of Bird-Brains, Merrill moved to Oakland where Nate lived, and since then, the two have recorded five more albums, a number of singles, as well as the score to the Boots Riley film Sorry to Bother You. Their latest, Better Dreaming, just came out a few weeks ago on 4AD, and it's wonderful!

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to Constance Keane, Jamie Hyland and Sean Nolan of the band Dublin and London-based band M(h)aol. Formed in 2014, the band released a few EPs and singles in their early days, but it wasn't until 2023 that they released their first, full-length album Attachment Styles. A mere two years later, they've put out their second album Something Soft on Merge Records, and it's a delight!

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to musician Maia Friedman. Originally from Los Angeles, Maia's family moved around to different California locales, and eventually after college Maia ended up in New York. She formed the band Uni Ika Ai in 2016, joined Dirty Projectors in 2018 and began the band Coco around 2020. As a solo performer, she's released two albums, her first Under the New Light in 2022 and her latest, Goodbye Long Winter Shadow just came out on Last Gang Records, and it's great!

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to political cartoonist Dwayne Booth AKA Mr. Fish. For over 20 years, Dwayne has been creating political cartoons for publications like Harper’s Magazine, Truthdig.com, the Los Angeles Times, the Village Voice, Vanity Fair, Mother Jones, The Advocate, and many, many others. In addition, he was an animated character designer for Bento Box Entertainment and is the subject of a 2017 award-winning documentary by Pablo Bryant called Mr. Fish: Cartooning from the Deep End. His books and collections include Go Fish: How to Win Contempt and Influence People, WARNING! Graphic Content, And Then the World Blew Up, Long Story Short: Turning Famous Books into Cartoons, and his most recent Nobody Left, which was published by Fantagraphics.

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to musician David Longstreth. Originally from Southbury, CT, David recorded his first album The Graceful Fallen Mango after dropping out of college. After returning to finish his degree, he began recording under the name The Dirty Projectors, and in 2003, Western Vinyl released their first album The Glad Fact. They continued to record albums and slowly built a name for themselves in the thrumming Brooklyn music scene of the aughts. In 2009, Domino released their album Bitte Orca to a great deal of acclaim, and in all, the band has released 20 albums and EPs; their latest, Song of the Earth, is a collaboration with the German orchestral group s t a r g a z e, and it's fantastic!

(Photo by Jason Frank Rothenberg)

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to musician Krisitin Hersh. Originally from Atlanta, Kristin's family moved to Newport, RI when she was six. Here she met Tanya Donelly, and they formed Throwing Muses when they were teenagers. After moving to Boston years later, they quickly became part of the burgeoning scene that produced everyone from the Pixies to the Lemonheads, and the band similarly found success. Since 1986, they've released eleven albums on labels like 4AD, Rykodisc and Fire Records. In addition, Kristin has also recorded a dozen albums under her own name and as 50 Foot Wave, she has recorded two wonderful albums as well. And as always with guests who have had prolific careers, this is just the tip of the iceberg!

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to musician Tina Halladay. Originally from Long Island, Tina met Matt Palmer, and Kyle and Hart Seely in college, and formed Sheer Mag in 2014 after they had all moved to Philly. From 2015 to 2016, the band released three EPs - titled I, II and III - and then performed at Coachella and on Seth Meyers, and since then, they've steadily built a following. Their next two albums were released on Wilsuns Recording Company, and their latest, Playing Favorites, just came out last year on Third Man, and it's incredible!

(Photo by Colin Lenton)

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to musician John Davis. Growing up in Cambridge, MA, John formed The Folk Implosion with Sebadoh and Dinosaur Jr.'s Lou Barlow in the early 1990s. Their first album 1994's Take a Look Inside was a brilliant lo-fi pop record, and then a year later, a song of theirs on the Kids soundtrack blew up, and in the diverse atmosphere that had been created in Nirvana's wake, the band was noticed by a number of larger labels. Their third album would be released by Interscope, after which John left the band. As a solo artist, John has released many albums under different names on labels like Shrimper, and just last year, Lou and he got back together to make a new Folk Implosion album. Walk Thru Me was released on Joyful Noise last June, and it is quite wonderful!

(Photo by Jackson Keys)

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to cartoonist Anders Nilsen. Growing up between Minneapolis and the mountains of Northern New Hampshire, Anders is the artist and author of ten books including Big Questions, The End, and Poetry is Useless. His work has been featured in the New York Times, Poetry Magazine, Kramer's Ergot, Pitchfork, The New Yorker and elsewhere. His comics have been translated widely overseas and his painting and drawing have been exhibited internationally. Anders' work has received three Ignatz awards as well as the Lynd Ward Prize for the Graphic Novel and Big Questions was listed as a New York Times Notable Book in 2011. His most recent work Tongues vol. 1 was just published by Pantheon and like everything else he does, it is wonderful!

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook                           

[beginningspod]

It's time for Beginnings, the podcast where writer and performer Andy Beckerman talks to the comedians, writers, filmmakers and musicians he admires about their earliest creative experiences and the numerous ways in which a creative life can unfold.

On today's episode, I talk to comics creator Daniel Warren Johnson. Originally from Massachusetts, Daniel started in the world of cartooning with his web-comic Space Mullet, which ran from 2012 to 2017. This led to work at Dark Horse, and eventually Image published his comic Extremity, which netted him an Eisner Award nomination (he would go on to win four for other things). Since then, he's created a number of other series for Image including Murder Falcon, Do a Powerbomb and his latest The Moon is Following Us. In addition, Daniel is writing (and doing some of the art for) the new Transformers series for Skybound, and it's a delight!

I'm on Twitter , Bluesky and Instagram, and you can get the show with:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Amazon Podcasts

YouTube Podcasts

Permalink RSS Feed                  Facebook