Cofounder of The Lazuli Collective, Brandon Holman is an avid mental health and wellness advocate with a true passion for supporting artists, creatives, labels and executives in the music and entertainment industry. In this inspiring episode Richard and Brandon talk about the stresses of the music industry, Brandon's involvement on the cutting edge of music- related tech, how Brandon was fired from Snapchat which ultimately led him down the path of mindfulness, meditation and sobriety, how...

Kenny Werner is a world-renowned pianist, composer, teacher and author from New York. His first book, Effortless Mastery has sold over 150,000 copies. He is currently the artistic director of the Effortless Mastery Institute at the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston. Werner is a Guggenheim Fellowship Award recipient for his seminal work, No Beginning, No End, and has performed with numerous jazz greats, including Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Lovano, Chris Potter, Ron Carter, John...

Elena Brower is a meditation and yoga teacher, artist, bestselling author and host of the popular Practice You Podcast. In this episode she talks about a Buddhist approach to yoga, how the blockchain can inaugurate greater independence and financial rewards for artists, how web3 can foster community, the relationship between creativity and mindfulness, and the three tenets of socially engaged Buddhism as practiced by the Zen Peacemakers. We also discuss how meditation can alleviate negativity...

Dr. AZA Allsop is a Resident at the Yale Department of Psychiatry, multi-instrumentalist deeply rooted in the experience of music from the African Diaspora and first-generation American from Trinidad. He is currently researching the effects of music and mindfulness as tools that help enhance empathy, social justice, health equity, and wellness. In this episode, he shares some initial findings on his research from The Music + Mindfulness Study,what neuroscience tells us about these practices,...

In our final episode of 2021, Richard Wolf gracefully guides us on a journey through music and mindfulness - exploring how the two practices are inextricably linked and support one another, why it’s the basis of this entire podcast, and why so many successful musicians are drawn to meditation. Richard shares the story of how he got into meditation, and eventually came up with the idea for his book In Tune: Music As The Bridge To Mindfulness. He also shares a powerful comparison between...

Valerie June is a singer-songwriter from Tennessee known for mixing the musical styles of folk, blues, gospel, soul, country, psychedelica and bluegrass. Her music has appeared on “The Best of The Year” lists from both The New York Times and Rolling Stone, and received public admiration from Bob Dylan. She is the author of a book of poetry and drawings, Maps of The Modern World, and an experienced practitioner of meditation and mindfulness. In this expansive episode Valerie shares the...

Orville Heyn is a professional singer, producer, composer, actor, teacher and mindfulness practitioner. He has worked as a vocal coach in film and television on programs like The Next Star, The List, and The Love Guru. Previous students of his include Mike Myers, Jessica Alba and Telma Hopkins. On this episode, Orville dives into his powerfully unique approach with vocalists: The Singer’s Body. He shares the story of creating the program after beginning his relationship with vipassana...

In this episode the noted neuroscientist & and mindfulness researcher Dr. Rael Cahn compares and contrasts the impact of long term mindfulness meditation practice and the acute effects of the psychedelic drug psilocybin on perception, attention and brain activity. We also discuss awareness practices, transcendence, binaural beats, how meditation works in the treatment of depression and addiction, and the future of mindfulness and psychedelic research. Dr. Rael Cahn is an MD/Phd and...

Dr. Chayim Newman holds a PhD in Clinical Psychology and has spent years of his life training in and practicing mindfulness and meditation. Dr. Newman co-founded the Tour Health Research Initiative (THRIV), the leading organization dedicated to conducting research on health and mental health in the touring music industry, and serves as the primary clinical advisor to Backline.Care. In this episode we talk about the reasons behind the music industry’s mental health crisis, the unique stressors...

In this episode we are delighted and honored to talk with musician, mystic, and laughter meditation teacher, Laraaji. He has been described as a pioneer, legend and icon of the New Age/Ambient music scene. His innovative approach to the zither, piano and vocals is considered ground-breaking in the field. We talk about the rising popularity of ambient music, selective awareness, the nonlinear and extra-dimensional nature of music, meditation and time; the therapeutic and spiritual qualities...

In this episode we talk with Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter, vocal + executive producer, Jenna Andrews. Jenna is known for her work with Drake, BTS, Jennifer Lopez, Jessie J, Little Mix, Max Martin and so many more. Jenna has also done A+R work for rising stars like Noah Cyrus, Lennon Stella and Benee. She has her own podcast about mental health in the music industry, The Green Room Talks. In this episode, Jenna and Richard dive into both the mental health and business aspects of working...

In this episode we talk with Constance Scharff, PhD; the Science Research Chair for Rock to Recovery, a non-profit supporting addiction recovery and mental health through music. Her research centers around using complementary health and contemplative practices to improve treatment outcomes among veterans, addicts and the mentally ill. Richard and Dr. Scharff talk about how her personal journey in recovery and mental health fuels her work, the unique benefits of music on the brain, mindfulness...

Ned Shepard is a Grammy nominated songwriter, producer, DJ and remixer. As one-half of the duo Sultan + Shepard, he has co-written songs for David Guetta, Tegan & Sara, and Tiesto and remixed songs for Lady Gaga, Coldplay, Bruno Mars, Madonna, Ed Sheeran, Robyn and others. He has performed at festivals around the world including Tomorrowland, Ultra and EDC. In this episode, Richard and Ned discuss performance anxiety, the Zen of DJ'ing, touring across the world, club culture, and the...

Tune into the art of deep listening with a special bonus guided meditation perfect for the musically minded.Follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @WolfInTune https://www.richardwolf.net/Read "In Tune: Music As The Bridge To Mindfulness" https://tinyurl.com/tz67aqm

Xandy Barry is an award winning multi-platinum songwriter and producer who has collaborated with artists including Miley Cyrus, Lil Wayne, Baby E, Norah Jones, Rihanna, Zella Day, Family of The Year, Bon Iver, Creeper, Slash and many others.  He is the co-owner of WAX LTD, an independent record label, and co-owner of AUDIO WAX a joint venture with Universal Music, providing curated music for film and television across the globe. In this episode Xandy shares some highlight stories of artists...

Erica Krusen is the Senior Director at MusiCares and a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with a Master's degree in Counseling Psychology.  She is a co-founder of CoreAdvantage, a global consulting group that promotes health and wellness in the entertainment business, serves as a Board of Director for Rock to Recovery and has presented workshops and panels on a range of topics addressing mental health. In this episode Erica and Richard talk about what MusiCares does, who they help, what...

Curtiss King is a music producer, rapper and mentor. He makes videos about music production and mental health for his YouTube channel, Curtiss King TV. His production credits include artists such as Kendrick Lamar, Ab-Soul, E-40 and MURS, and companies like MTV, VH1, and Levi’s. As a recording artist he has charted as high as 4th on the Hip Hop iTunes charts twice. He’s also the author of “The Prosperous Hip Hop Producer”. In this episode he and Richard talk about music producer mindsets,...

Danny Goldberg has been working in the music industry since the late 1960s as a journalist, publicist, CEO and President of three major record companies, author and manager. His clientele has consisted of Hole, Sonic Youth, Bonnie Raitt, The Allman Brothers, and most famously - Nirvana. In this episode he shares tales of his epic journey in the music business; working with Led Zeppelin in the 70s, Sonic Youth introducing him to Nirvana, his friendship with Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love, and...

Ann Kline is an independent music supervisor who has been pairing music with television and film since the 90s. For many years she ran the music department for John Wells Productions, where she supervised iconic NBC shows ER and The West Wing, and feature films White Oleander, Nearing Grace and The Company Men. Her current projects include Showtime’s Shameless, Animal Kingdom on TNT, ABC’s hit series The Good Doctor, and many more. In this episode we talk about the shifting nature of the...

Krishna Das is a Grammy-nominated, internationally revered musician who specializes in the Hindu devotional music known as kirtan. KD began as a rock musician, playing in a small East Coast band that eventually would become Blue Oyster Cult. He began his lifelong spiritual journey in the 60s traveling to India and studying with the legendary teacher Ram Dass and his guru, Maharaj-ji. KD's spiritual practice is based on chanting the divine names and- until the recent pandemic-is on a never...

Frank Diaz is the Founder and Director of the Institute for Mindfulness-Based Wellness and Pedagogy and a professor at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. He is also Co-Director of the Music and Mind Lab and an Affiliate Member of the Cognitive Science Department at IU. Frank is also a recognized Zen Buddhist teacher and has taught secular and religious meditative practices to thousands of students across the United States. In this episode we talk about the uncertainties and...

Vanessa Cornett is the Director of Keyboard Studies and an Associate Professor of Music at the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis-St. Paul where she teaches classes in music performance, teaching, mindfulness, and the contemplative nature of art and music. She is also a licensed hypnotherapist and certified meditation instructor. In this episode we talk about her work with musicians and creatives who struggle with performance anxiety, the benefits and applications of mindfulness and how...

Impresario of the longest running touring music festival in North America, The Vans Warped Tour, Kevin Lyman has always included a philanthropic element in his events. In this episode, Kevin and I discuss the music industry’s mental health crisis; the effects of life on tour; and the toxicity of boredom, drugs and social media. He also talks about his new ventures; teaching event production at USC, and his upcoming 320 Festival - a 3-day virtual event to spread awareness and discuss the...

To discuss strategies for managing the difficult emotions of fear, anxiety and extreme stress that a pandemic can intensify, I invited mindfulness teacher Allen Weiss to join us.  Allen is the founding teacher and Director of Mindful USC and a senior teacher at InsightLA where he has taught mindfulness classes for the past 12 years. He also spent years of his life as a professional musician, touring the country opening for bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd and Bonnie Raitt. In this episode we talk...