Melissa Ben-Ishay started her eponymous cupcake business over a decade ago, on a whim, and with the encouragement of her dad and brother. Over a decade later, they’ve sold over a staggering 100,000,000 cupcakes, and she has recently taken on the mantle of CEO and mother. There are a lot of awesome things about Melissa - but maybe the coolest is that she just tells it how it is. She joins John for a raw talk about what she’s learned doing business with family, how she met her husband (hint: it...

Every time I speak with today’s guest the world feels a little bit better. Keyon Harrold (@keyonharrold) is a Grammy-winning jazz trumpeter, immortalized by his musical portrayal of Miles Davis in Don Cheadle’s Miles Ahead. He has also recorded with the likes of Jay Z, Beyoncé, Gregory Porter and Common. Today on the show, Keyon talks about his reality of being a black man and father during these important but trying times. He also tells us what to expect next from the music world and why...

Hey! John Roa here. Welcome to my new show. I’ll be the first to admit—I have no clue what I am doing with my own podcast. But it sure is fun! I told my producers and my podcast team—the one thing we will ALWAYS do on The John Roa Show is to do things our own way. No rules. No conforming to a pre-built system. We’ll do things as we see fit. So, with that spirit in mind, we are flipping the first episode on its head. My friend Jordan Harbinger, one of the biggest podcasters in the world and...

The John Roa Show explores the gray areas of success through honest, raw and entertaining conversations with the most interesting celebrities, creative leaders and entrepreneurs. John’s diverse background as a successful entrepreneur, humanitarian and global adventurer creates a unique opportunity to explore some of the most important stories and topics of today.

It’s been seven weeks since the coronavirus pandemic began. In that time, John has talked to 19 different leaders. From a mega real estate broker, to the owner of a hair salon in Chicago, to an NFL coach, and the drummer of The Smashing Pumpkins.  This final episode of Leading from Home highlights some of these incredibly inspiring conversations and gives some insight into the ways in which people are leading with empathy, exploring the messiness of life, and offering some ways to navigate...

John speaks with performance coach Courtney Seard on the importance of managing expectations, and some ways to navigate life and business, through the coronavirus pandemic. 

John and his close friend, drummer Jimmy Chamberlin -- one of the founding members of The Smashing Pumpkins -- discuss how the coronavirus has affected the music industry, how it compares to other shakeups over the decades, and what may happen next.

Louis Black, co-founder of SXSW, joins John on today’s episode from an Airbnb in the small town of Lockhart, Texas, to talk about the festival’s cancellation, retirement, as well as, the profound and often unpredictable ways he’s helped transform Austin

Keyon Harrold, one of the foremost trumpeters of his generation, joins John on today’s episode to talk about cancelling his spring tour dates, writing songs with a conscience, and using jazz as a force for good. He even recorded a special track just for us, called "Peaceful Ghostown". This isn't one to miss.

The coronavirus is changing the entertainment industry worldwide. From theatrical releases to film festivals, the outbreak has effectively cancelled Hollywood. And there’s no end in sight. So, what will a post-pandemic Hollywood look like? John speaks with Academy Award-nominated film and TV producer Laura Bickford, who shares her feelings, predictions, and thoughts on returning to work. 

John’s joined by Kirsten Jordan, a real estate adviser with the mega-brokerage firm Compass, to discuss some of the ways the pandemic has changed the Manhattan luxury market, how she’s managing active listings remotely, and her real estate predictions.

John catches up with his shrink, Dr. Vince Passarelli, a New York City-based clinical psychologist, to discuss the mental health consequences of the pandemic, therapy options while quarantined, and the ways people can stay sane during this time.

John speaks with Wendy Cambor, managing director of Accenture, about the ways she’s connecting with her co-workers and meeting the COVID-19 challenges with creativity and kindness.

John speaks with Jenna Weiss-Berman, co-founder of Pineapple Street Studios, about the pros and cons of podcast consolidation, and how she’s leading her team and producing new content during the pandemic.

Devon Levesque, a former athlete-turned-trainer and now entrepreneur talks with John and answers questions from fans on Instagram Live. He turned his passion into a business and is now an owner of the “most exclusive gym in NYC,” according to Forbes, and multiple other fitness-related ventures. You’ll hear his take on tips for staying healthy while staying at home and how he’s adapting his businesses to the quarantine.

Dave Morrow, CEO of Michigan-based Lume Cannabis, has had to change the way Lume does business because of the coronavirus. The global pandemic struck just as Michigan’s fledgling cannabis industry was expanding. Lume opened in December, just as recreational sales in the state became legal. A few months later, Michigan issued a stay home order, preventing customers from buying cannabis in stores.  Dave talks with John about the ways the global pandemic has affected his company and the cannabis...

Rich Antoniello is the CEO and Founder of Complex Networks, which runs video-first brands that cater to young Millennials and the Gen-Z market. He talks with John about the challenges and opportunities the coronavirus poses for businesses, and gives some surprising predictions of what’s to come next.

Rob LoCascio, the founder and CEO of LivePerson, is no stranger to leading during a disaster. LivePerson went public right before the dot com bubble popped. A few years later, he watched the Twin Towers fall from his office windows. But this global pandemic is challenging him in ways he never thought possible.  Rob talks about navigating the workplace in the time of the coronavirus, the ways his company is helping their employees work remotely, and most importantly, how to lead with empathy....

Alix Peabody, the founder and CEO of Bev – a beverage company in Los Angeles that makes canned wine – has had an incredible first year in the market. Alix had to overcome personal adversity to start the business, everything from a rare and serious medical condition, to overcoming imposter syndrome.  Then, right as she was finally gaining traction in one of the most competitive industries in the world, a global pandemic hit. Now, Alix, a first-time founder, is having to rethink her business...

Kevin Conroy Smith is one of a kind. He first built a network of tens of thousands of powerful people and started to host once-in-a-lifetime events—for free—for people inside that network that gained global notoriety. He organically spun that momentum into an experiential event agency that was throwing off millions of dollars in profit. Then a global pandemic hit, that made doing business illegal for Kevin, as groups were no longer allowed to congregate. If watching his business dissolve...

Alison Victoria is an entrepreneur, interior designer, the host of HGTV’s ‘Windy City Rehab’, one of the network’s best shows in its inaugural season. Just as she was wrapping up production for Season 2, a global pandemic hit, turning her world upside down. She joins John on the podcast today to talk about how she is managing through it, the effects on her show (and her livelihood), as well as some fun tips for home renovations, and what may be coming in the residential retail market.

Since opening three years ago, Diana Monteleone’s salon in Chicago was every young entrepreneur’s dream—loved by customers, profitable and rapidly expanding. Then, the pandemic hit, and like millions of other small businesses, Diana was forced into a deeply challenging situation, having to abruptly make weighty decisions that will have long-term impacts for her and her employees, and put everything she had been working on at risk. The episode today features a conversation with Diana from...

Sean McVay took the NFL by storm as the youngest head coach in history, taking over the LA Rams in 2017, and then went on to compete in the Super Bowl in just his second year on the job. He is the epitome of a leader, which he is now having to do from his home in Los Angeles, as he prepares for the NFL Draft, a new stadium opening, and managing both young and veteran players. John talks with Sean about how he is handling the crisis, how it’s impacting his ability to coach, his engagement, and...

Steven Galanis, the CEO of red hot tech startup Cameo, joins host John Roa to talk about how he’s leading his global team through the pandemic, what long-term impacts this may have on his company, and what Cameo is doing to help those in need. Also, John gives some perspective on the parts of the historic $2 trillion stimulus package that will have the biggest impact on entrepreneurs. For more information, please visit roa.com/podcast

Leading From Home ​ is a limited series of short conversations with entrepreneurs and leaders during the coronavirus pandemic, hosted by entrepreneur John Roa. It’s a podcast that tells the impactful, heartfelt, funny, and sometimes painful stories about the ways leaders are coping, the challenges they face, and their realities during these unprecedented times.