Eugene Tapahe grew up on the Navajo Nation with no running water and no electricity, raised by his grandmother in the Diné language, learning ceremony before he learned English. As a Native artist, he's spent his life being asked to speak for all 576 federally recognized tribes, as if one brown face could carry that. He couldn't. No one can. And the anger that built from being flattened into a single story almost became the whole story.

Now he's a Diné photographer, the creator of the Art Heals: Jingle Dress Project, and the first Native American to have a solo show at the BYU Museum of Art. In this conversation with host Elleyne Aldine, Eugene talks about the dream that started it all during COVID, the soil samples he washed from 98 places across America, and the moment he realized he'd become the thing he was fighting.

Topics discussed:

00:00 - Growing up on the reservation with his grandmother
04:00 - The Art Heals: Jingle Dress Project and the dream that started it
06:30 - The first dance at the Bonneville Salt Flats
11:30 - The 100-year-old Ojibwe origin of the jingle dress
18:30 - The first Native American solo show at the BYU Museum of Art
19:00 - The weight of being asked to represent all 576 tribes
23:00 - Washing the cities off the soil samples
31:00 - The boarding schools and the trauma that didn't stop with one generation
32:30 - The moment he realized he'd become what he was fighting
36:30 - His grandmother's advice: Take it to the woods.

🔗 CONNECT WITH EUGENE TAPAHE:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eugenetapahe/

ABOUT CULTURS:

Reaching millions annually, CULTURS champions unique cultural identity, transforming culturally fluid populations (multiethnic and/or geographically mobile people like Third Culture Kids) from being invisible outliers to originals. This includes people of culture in the rapidly growing DNA testing-fueled Not Parent Expected (NPE) community. Our world-class, veteran team of researchers and professionals spans five continents.

Get the free identity rebuild workbook: https://cultursmag.ac-page.com/rediscover-your-heritage

Get social with us:

https://www.youtube.com/@CultursIntlMediaGroup
https://www.instagram.com/Cultursmag/
https://www.facebook.com/cultursmag
https://www.pinterest.com/cultursmag/

Join the CULTURS community: https://shop.cultursmag.com/products/culturs-membership

Original Music by Tommy McMillion, McMillion Entertainment
Makeup by Sedrique Olsen
Styling by Sonja Henderson

In about 30 seconds, one DNA test erased the name, the heritage, and the Latina identity Dr. Paulette Bethel had carried her entire life. The family she thought she came from was not the family her genes pointed to, and a long-held secret reshaped everything she believed about herself.

In this episode, Paulette opens up about the grief of losing an identity that felt unshakable, what it took to rebuild from truth, and how that pain became the foundation for her NPE (Not Parent Expected) Identity Disruption Model, now helping thousands navigate the same kind of loss.

Topics discussed:

00:00 - The moment a DNA test shattered her identity
02:33 - Growing up culturally fluid in New Orleans
03:50 - Joining the Air Force after a difficult divorce
06:38 - Building a blended TCK family across Asia
08:41 - Leading a foster care nonprofit in Hawaii
14:19 - Why she finally took the Ancestry DNA test
16:22 - Discovering zero percent Native American ancestry
18:24 - Grieving the loss of being Latina
20:28 - Creating the Identity Disruption model from her own pain
38:53 - Bella's front porch and the power of gathering

CONNECT WITH DR. PAULETTE BETHEL:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulettebethel/

Get the free identity rebuild workbook: https://cultursmag.ac-page.com/identity-workbook

ABOUT CULTURS:

Reaching millions annually, CULTURS champions unique cultural identity, transforming culturally fluid populations (multiethnic and/or geographically mobile people like Third Culture Kids) from being invisible outliers to originals. This includes people of culture in the rapidly growing DNA testing-fueled Not Parent Expected (NPE) community. Our world-class, veteran team of researchers and professionals spans five continents.

Get social with us:

https://www.youtube.com/@CultursIntlMediaGroup
https://www.instagram.com/Cultursmag/
https://www.facebook.com/cultursmag
https://www.pinterest.com/cultursmag/

Join the CULTURS community: https://shop.cultursmag.com/products/culturs-membership

Original Music by Tommy McMillion, McMillion Entertainment
Makeup by Sedrique Olsen
Styling by Sonja Henderson

Chris Armas grew up in a Puerto Rican, Cuban, and Italian household where family, discipline, and hard work came first. In 1970s New York, his parents avoided speaking Spanish at home to protect their children from discrimination — but their culture still shaped everything he became.

Now a National Soccer Hall of Fame inductee and head coach of the Kansas City Current, Armas reflects on his journey from Long Island youth soccer to the US National Team and the highest levels of coaching. He shares lessons on identity, leadership, teamwork, and the values that built his career.

Topics discussed:

00:00 - Growing up in a Puerto Rican and Cuban household
03:02 - Family values and hard work
05:18 - Soccer’s growth in the United States
07:10 - College soccer and the LA Galaxy
09:09 - Getting drafted into MLS
11:14 - David Beckham’s impact on US soccer
14:10 - Transitioning from player to coach
17:05 - Life after retirement from soccer
20:14 - Coaching from New York to Manchester United
21:10 - How soccer shaped his identity
24:35 - Puerto Rican culture and family traditions
27:14 - Experiencing discrimination growing up
34:04 - Building culture as a coach
39:18 - Entering the Soccer Hall of Fame
42:22 - Advice for young athletes

🔗 CONNECT WITH CHRIS ARMAS:

ABOUT CULTURS:

Reaching millions annually, CULTURS champions unique cultural identity, transforming culturally fluid populations (multiethnic and/or geographically mobile people like Third Culture Kids) from being invisible outliers to originals. This includes people of culture in the rapidly growing DNA testing-fueled Not Parent Expected (NPE) community. Our world-class, veteran team of researchers and professionals spans five continents.

Get social with us:

https://www.youtube.com/@CultursIntlMediaGroup
https://www.instagram.com/Cultursmag/
https://www.facebook.com/cultursmag
https://www.pinterest.com/cultursmag/

Join the CULTURS community: https://shop.cultursmag.com/products/culturs-membership

Original Music by Tommy McMillion, McMillion Entertainment
Makeup by Sedrique Olsen
Styling by Sonja Henderson

Culture. Discomfort. Resilience. These are worth more than any degree.

Joe Hyrkin, former CEO of Issuu and Silicon Valley veteran, didn't build his business skills in a boardroom or classroom. They were earned on the streets and trains of China.

In this episode, he shares what nearly a decade in China taught him about negotiation, resilience, and reading any room you walk into.

Topics discussed:

00:00 - Introduction
01:45 - Cross-cultural childhood
03:41 - What led him to China
07:44 - Navigating a new culture
12:09 - Learning how to negotiate
16:33 - “I was not gonna be Chinese”
21:46 - Traveling vs. discovering
26:23 - From Hong Kong to Silicon Valley
30:01 - Building video before YouTube
34:00 - Resilience as a business skill
37:42 - Early days of social media
40:24 - How AI is history repeating itself
41:32 - The CEO years
45:29 - Why some businesses survived COVID
51:38 - 3 principles for entrepreneurial success

🔗 CONNECT WITH JOE HYRKIN:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joehyrkin/

ABOUT CULTURS:

Reaching millions annually, CULTURS champions unique cultural identity, transforming culturally fluid populations (multiethnic and/or geographically mobile people like Third Culture Kids) from being invisible outliers to originals. This includes people of culture in the rapidly growing DNA testing-fueled Not Parent Expected (NPE) community. Our world-class, veteran team of researchers and professionals spans five continents.

Get social with us:

https://www.youtube.com/@CultursIntlMediaGroup
https://www.instagram.com/Cultursmag/
https://www.facebook.com/cultursmag
https://www.pinterest.com/cultursmag/

Join the CULTURS community: https://shop.cultursmag.com/products/culturs-membership

Original Music by Tommy McMillion, McMillion Entertainment
Makeup by Sedrique Olsen
Styling by Sonja Henderson

Your hair is different in every climate. Your voice is different in every room. You've gotten good at switching, but you've never gotten comfortable with it.

Orion Brown, founder of Black Travel Box, created her brand because the beauty industry had a simple answer for travelers like her: figure it out yourself. But building the brand meant rejection from manufacturers, facing implicit bias every time she walked into a pitch, and fighting for limited funding.

This episode explores what it looks like to stop performing long enough to ask what it's been costing you.

Topics discussed:

00:00 - Introduction
02:00 - Black Travel Box
03:49 - Where the global beauty industry is lacking
05:54 - The Starter Kit + product line
09:47 - Why she had to formulate the products herself
14:58 - From pre-med to brand manager
22:16 - Losing authenticity in corporate environments
23:53 - The Unmasking Audit
24:33 - Why she finally left corporate
32:12 - The Japan trip that started everything
35:57 - Funding challenges no one warned her about
40:10 - Implicit bias and masking your way to funding
48:20 - Trinidad Carnival + body neutrality

🔗 CONNECT WITH ORION BROWN:

https://theblacktravelbox.com/

ABOUT CULTURS:

Reaching millions annually, CULTURS champions unique cultural identity, transforming culturally fluid populations (multiethnic and/or geographically mobile people like Third Culture Kids) from being invisible outliers to originals. This includes people of culture in the rapidly growing DNA testing-fueled Not Parent Expected (NPE) community. Our world-class, veteran team of researchers and professionals spans five continents.

Get social with us:

https://www.youtube.com/@CultursIntlMediaGroup
https://www.instagram.com/Cultursmag/
https://www.facebook.com/cultursmag
https://www.pinterest.com/cultursmag/

Join the CULTURS community: https://shop.cultursmag.com/products/culturs-membership

Original Music by Tommy McMillion, McMillion Entertainment
Makeup by Sedrique Olsen
Styling by Sonja Henderson

His grandparents fled Spain. His parents left Mexico. He grew up hiding it all.

Chef Alex Villar, co-founder of The Cooking Clubhouse, was once ashamed of everything that made his family different — pig roasts in the backyard, loud dinner parties, and a Spanish-speaking home. But those exact cultural roots later became the blueprint for his business.

In this episode, Alex shares how growing up between cultures shaped him as a chef, entrepreneur, and culturally fluid adult that he is today. Plus, stay for a special segment with Khadija Taylor, who breaks down the Spanish-inspired tablescape for this episode's Culturs Celebrations dinner.

Topics discussed:

00:00 - Introduction
04:13 - Alex’s experience as a third culture kid
08:10 - Why his family really left Mexico
10:46 - Advice for anyone that grew up differently
13:10 - How his parents’ risk became his own
18:10 - The Cooking Clubhouse: concept and inspiration
25:39 - Finding his business partner and fellow TCK
27:33 - How living between cultures built his career
29:17 - Challenges of growing The Cooking Clubhouse
32:46 - The history and culture of tapas
34:25 - Inside the Paella experience and what’s in the Paella Kit
38:06 - The Spanish Dinner Tablescape

🔗 CONNECT WITH ALEX VILLAR:

https://thecookingclubhouse.es/about-us/

🔗 CONNECT WITH KADIJA TAYLOR:

https://www.hosahomes.com/
https://www.instagram.com/homeandsanctuaryllc/

ABOUT CULTURS:

Reaching millions annually, Culturs champions unique cultural identity, transforming culturally fluid populations (multiethnic and/or geographically mobile people like Third Culture Kids) from being invisible outliers to originals. This includes people of culture in the rapidly growing DNA testing-fueled Not Parent Expected (NPE) community. Our world-class, veteran team of researchers and professionals spans five continents.

Get social with us:

https://www.youtube.com/@CultursIntlMediaGroup
https://www.instagram.com/Cultursmag/
https://www.facebook.com/cultursmag
https://www.pinterest.com/cultursmag/

Join the Culturs community: https://shop.cultursmag.com/products/culturs-membership

Original Music by Tommy McMillion, McMillion Entertainment
Makeup by Sedrique Olsen
Styling by Sonja Henderson

Download the FREE Room Audit: https://cultursmag.ac-page.com/room-by-room-audit

Same neutral walls, same trending furniture, same safe choices. This is more than a design problem; it's identity on mute.

Kadija Taylor is a holistic interior designer with roots in Sierra Leone and Liberia, and the founder of Home and Sanctuary. Her philosophy is simple: if someone walks into your home and can't tell you live there, something's wrong.

In this episode, Kadija and Elleyne explore why culturally fluid people erase themselves from their own spaces, how your design choices at home change how you show up in the world, and why chasing trends is the fastest way to lose yourself in your own house.

Topics discussed:

00:00 - Introduction
02:50 - Kadija’s journey: from real estate to design
05:46 - What "holistic interior design" actually means
08:31 - How your home reflects you (whether you realize it or not)
13:02 - Bold moves, color, and identity
21:07 - The Trinidad and Tobago Tablescape
36:47 - How to design your own cultural tablescape

🔗 CONNECT WITH KADIJA TAYLOR:

https://www.hosahomes.com/
https://www.instagram.com/homeandsanctuaryllc/

ABOUT CULTURS:

Reaching millions annually, Culturs champions unique cultural identity, transforming culturally fluid populations (multiethnic and/or geographically mobile people like Third Culture Kids) from being invisible outliers to originals. This includes people of culture in the rapidly growing DNA xxx dxx dxxf testing-fueled Not Parent Expected (NPE) community. Our world-class, veteran team of researchers and professionals spans five continents.

Get social with us:

https://www.youtube.com/@CultursIntlMediaGroup
https://www.instagram.com/Cultursmag/
https://www.facebook.com/cultursmag
https://www.pinterest.com/cultursmag/

Join the Culturs community: https://shop.cultursmag.com/products/culturs-membership

Original Music by Tommy McMillion, McMillion Entertainment

Download the FREE Sparkling Crumb Journal: https://cultursmag.ac-page.com/free-journal

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” hits very differently past 40. For Andrea Bazoín, it sparked a four-year search for what she calls her “soul match.”

Some people might call that a midlife crisis, but Andrea says she was following the next sparkling crumb. In this episode, she takes you inside her search — the moments of doubt, what kept her moving forward, and the breakthrough moment when everything finally came full circle.

Topics discussed:

00:00 - Introduction
01:49 - How her cultural identity shaped her career decisions
04:10 - Why she left a long career behind and the struggle to start over
07:24 - What she did to find her "soul match" job
08:31 - Why “fake it ‘til you make it” can backfire
13:02 - Support, self-worth, and the privilege of searching
17:09 - How she kept moving while searching for what was next
20:36 - The moment that changed everything

🔗 CONNECT WITH ANDREA BAZOIN:

https://www.andreabazoin.com/

ABOUT CULTURS:

Reaching millions annually, Culturs champions unique cultural identity, transforming culturally fluid populations (multiethnic and/or geographically mobile people like Third Culture Kids) from being invisible outliers to originals. This includes people of culture in the rapidly growing DNA testing-fueled Not Parent Expected (NPE) community. Our world-class, veteran team of researchers and professionals spans five continents.

Get social with us:

https://www.youtube.com/@CultursIntlMediaGroup
https://www.instagram.com/Cultursmag/
https://www.facebook.com/cultursmag
https://www.pinterest.com/cultursmag/

Join the Culturs community: https://cultursmag.com/membership/