Dine & Dish With Dawn

“She encouraged me by listening to me.” (Phillip Phillips about his wife’s encouragement and the power of listening) A few weeks ago, I attended the Listen In event at the Capital One Cafe in Santa Monica for a truly 360-degree listening experience, which included a remote podcast taping of Dine And Dish With Dawn (sponsored by Capital One) - my show where we eat, drink, share stories...and, desserts. According to the Capital One Listen In Survey, nearly 1 in 5 Americans (18%) can’t remember the last time someone was completely focused on listening to them, which means that programs like Capital One’s can help you open your ears and minds to what people have to say. For Capital One, it helps them better understand how to help along their financial journey. And, truth talk – I was wearing mismatching earrings the whole evening...but, more on that later. Over Peet’s coffee and delicious locally sourced treats a la Capital One local partnerships, Phillip and I chatted about the food that excites us, the moments

Episode 6: Dine & Dish with John Oates   "All creative people need to make mistakes. If you can’t make creative mistakes, you’ll never progress…and, you’ll never find who you really can be. Creative mistakes are essential to the creative personality.” (John Oates on Dine & Dish with Dawn)   A little while ago, I had the pleasure of hosting John Oates (yep, THAT John Oates of Hall & Oates) at the Whisper Lounge at The Grove in LA. From being born “famous” by birthright as the first born grandson in an Italian Family to becoming a world-renowned rockstar and songwriter to watching Monty python with George Harrison at his house in Beverly Hills to being photographed by Andy Warhol to having the sports-betting southern gentleman, Hunter S. Thompson as a neighbor in Colorado, John’s life is filled with even more stories than his book, Change Of Seasons: A Memoir can hold. We talked creativity, dating advice, his advice to songwriters, why 80s pop is still so beloved, engaging and in demand…and, his ico

  Dine & Dish with Sarah Hepola “It’s not your job to save another person…but you can remind them of their value.” (Sarah Hepola) Y’all, I’ve got a girl crush…as the band Little Big Town sings…and, it’s on our guest today, Sarah Hepola. The New York Times Bestselling author of BLACKOUT and former Salon Editor has had essays appear in the New York Times Magazine, Elle, The New Republic, Glamour, The Guardian, Slate and The Morning News. She is also from my hometown of Dallas, which is where I dined and dished with her at the Wild Detectives Bookstore - a place that is even cooler than it sounds. Sarah’s book was recommended to me by my mother, an accounting professor as she thought I would love to read a book by a fellow Dallas girl-turned-writer. I, of course, resisted - as we sometimes do as daughters - until she kept bringing it up, and I had no choice but to buy it. Within the first 10 pages, I had decided I loved the book, respected the writer’s honesty…and knew that I just HAD to have her on my show.

"If you write the song that only you can write, or you do the thing that only you can do, you've removed yourself yourself from competition. You don't have to arm wrestle the world any more." (Peter Cooper) To kick off this first episode of Dine & Dish with Dawn, I'm dining & dishing with country music expert, Country Music Hall of Fame editor, Vanderbilt University Professor, and Grammy-nominated musician, Peter Cooper at Lockeland Table restaurant in Nashville, Tennessee. My friend - and former East Nashville neighbor - and I talk about everything from finding your passion to the challenges we face as artists, and chat about the many celebrities we have both worked with and those who inspire us, including Kris Kristofferson, Barbra Streisand, Dierks Bentley, Tom T. Hall, John Prine, Todd Snider, Liz Gilbert, Emmylou Harris, Kenny Chesney, Jim Carrey, Johnny Cash, and Cowboy Jack Clement. Prepare to laugh and be inspired... *Join me for each Dine & Dish with Dawn episode as my celebrity guests an

"Everything good that has happened to me has happened as the direct result of helping someone else." - Danny Trejo [embed]https://vimeo.com/175507048[/embed] *Film by Nelson Lee of Noteworthy Collective   For our fourth episode of Dine & Dish with Dawn, I didn't have to go further than right around the corner from my house to get my interview on…and leave with a new baseball cap on my head. There, I met up with Machete himself, actor & producer Danny Trejo, at his flagship restaurant, Trejo's Tacos, where we enjoyed street tacos and street corn, while he waved at fans who honked at us as they drove down La Brea. [Best_Wordpress_Gallery id="6" gal_title="Select Gallery"] Danny and I dished about everything including his time in prison (including 4 months in "the hole"/solitary confinement which led to a life-changing epiphany), addiction and recovery, the importance of having people around you that you trust, what Cinco de Mayo really means, how the whole world can think you're a movie star but you ca

"If you really just focus on what you enjoy doing the most, it's interesting how all the money and success comes your way if you're pursuing what is truly your passion." - Trey Fanjoy This third episode of Dine & Dish with Dawn finds me in Nashville interviewing my dear friend, storyteller, visionary, and - CMA, ACM, Billboard, MTV and CMT award-winning - director, Trey Fanjoy over soul food and deep soul talk. We are dining and dishing at Wendell Smith's  - a local Nashville institution, where southern soul food and service with a smile reign supreme. Trey and I chat about everything from shooting multiple music videos for Taylor Swift, to her muse Miranda Lambert and the connection they share, to George Strait and the seashores of Old Mexico and tales of Merle Haggard, to kind words from Keith Urban & Steven Tyler, how becoming a mother has actually elevated her career as a director, how the jobs we say no to are just as important as the jobs we say yes to and how she hopes that more women will get

"Anytime I've gone against my instinct, I've always lost." - Kim Carnes In this episode of Dine & Dish with Dawn, I'm dining and dishing with Bette Davis Eyes herself, the Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter, Kim Carnes. Though I had met her years before while I was working in a little beauty store in Nashville, I felt an instant kinship when we were reintroduced for this podcast, when we dined at her favorite restaurant in Nashville, the tantalizing Two Ten Jack. We chatted about everything from common coworkers and cohorts in Barbra Streisand and Quincy Jones to our love of Justin Timberlake to her experience writing an entire concept album for Kenny Rogers to the beauty of birthdays to lifelong dreams coming true to her epic experience with being a part of  "We Are The World," during which a guy named Michael Jackson held her hand the whole time. Get ready to fall in love with a dreamer...   To find out more about Kim Carnes: www.KimCarnes.com Thank you to the owners, chefs and staff of Two Ten