Episodes

Adam’s back from a long vacation and hitting the ground running with a Hollywood heavyweight, Lou Diamond Phillips. From La Bamba to Longmire, Lou’s career has been a masterclass in range, resilience, and reinvention. In this episode, Lou talks about stepping into the role of Brent in his new film ET TU, a darkly funny dramedy about love, betrayal, and the beautiful chaos of live theater. He opens up about imposter syndrome, the mentorship of young actors, and what still connects him to Richie V...

Adam is on Vacation - Please excuse the scrappy editing - . Robin Coleman returns to the show after many weeks off after she lost her dog. We talk to Woods Humane each week, so if you love dogs, this will touch you. We love Robin, her work, and glad shes back. ******** Listen to Up+Adam with Adam Montiel:Official Website: adammontiel.com Apple Podcasts: Up+Adam on Apple Podcasts Spotify: Up+Adam on Spotify iHeartRadio: Up+Adam on iHeartRadio YouTube Music: Up+Adam on YouTube Music ******** CH...

Today on Up+Adam, Adam sits down with Emmy-nominated journalist and host of The Bright Side, Simone Boyce. From breaking news to breaking cycles, Simone opens up about her transition from the hard edges of national news to the warmer, deeper spaces of cultural storytelling and soul-level joy. They get into it all. What it's like leaving legacy media for something more personal. How motherhood rewired her approach to journalism. And why “choosing the bright side” isn’t just optimism. It’s a prac...

What’s the deal with jam bands? Are they cults? Are they concerts? Are they just… long songs with extra sweat? Turns out, they were something bigger—a full-blown movement with its own rules, rituals, drug codes, and DIY economy that quietly rewired the way we experience music today. In this episode, Adam sits down with Mike Ayers, veteran music journalist and author of Sharing in the Groove: The Untold Story of the '90s Jam Band Explosion and the Scene That Followed. From Phish to Panic, Spin ...

They’ve shipped over a million handcrafted wellness products around the world, but still fly under the radar in their own hometown. In this episode of Up+Adam, we sit down with the magnetic duo behind Life Elements, Martha and Curt. Based in Atascadero, these two have been quietly redefining wellness with small-batch, plant-based products that actually work. Their CBD relief sticks are legendary, their deodorants are changing the game, and their magnesium lotion? Let’s just say it’s giving peop...

In this very special episode, Adam sits down with Don Felder, guitar legend, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, and the man behind one of the most iconic solos in rock history: Hotel California. But there’s a whole lot more to Felder’s story than one song. We talk about his brand new album The Vault: Fifty Years of Music, a stunning collection of unreleased tracks, reimagined demos, and personal time capsules from a half-century of playing, touring, and living the rock and roll life. Felder opens up ab...

When you hear the word Taser, what comes to mind... safety, control, compliance? But what if behind that word lies a story of unchecked ambition, corporate influence over public safety, and a device that has contributed to the deaths of over 1,000 people in the U.S. alone? On this episode of Up + Adam, Adam Montiel welcomes award-winning journalist and filmmaker Nick Berardini, the voice and mind behind the powerful new podcast Absolute: Taser Incorporated. From the boardrooms of Axon Enterpris...

Headaches are universal, but for millions, they’re more than a nuisance. They’re life-altering, misunderstood, and often misdiagnosed. In this episode, Adam sits down with award-winning science journalist and former New York Times reporter Tom Zeller Jr., whose powerful new book, The Headache: The Science of a Most Confounding Affliction, dives deep into the mysterious world of chronic head pain, especially the brutal beast known as cluster headaches. From the ER to experimental drug trials, to...

Listen to Up+Adam with Adam Montiel: Official Website: adammontiel.com Apple Podcasts: Up+Adam on Apple Podcasts Spotify: Up+Adam on Spotify iHeartRadio: Up+Adam on iHeartRadio YouTube Music: Up+Adam on YouTube Music ******** CHECK OUT OUR WOODS HUMANE PET OF THE WEEK! ******** ADAM’S TEDX VIDEO IS HERE! ******** FOLLOW ADAM ON INSTAGRAM ********* Sincere Thanks to the supporters of Up + Adam. Please take a moment and visit them and thank them for supporting local broadcasting, and valuin...

What really happened on America’s Next Top Model? Sarah Hartshorne joins Adam Montiel with the kind of honesty that flips the script on everything you thought you knew about reality TV. A contestant on Cycle 9 and the author of You Wanna Be On Top?, Sarah unpacks the contracts, the calorie limits, the casting manipulation, and the emotional aftermath of living inside a show that was built for drama, not truth. They talk about how the show shaped her body image, what it was like to be the only p...

Today’s episode is a powerful reminder that sometimes, the smallest items make the biggest impact. Adam sits down with Cami Statler, Executive Director, and Lydia Gong, Bilingual Operations Manager and Lactation Educator at Pregnancy and Parenting Support of San Luis Obispo County (PPS), a nonprofit many are calling “the sweetest on the Central Coast.” They talk openly about the emotional realities of parenthood, the transformative power of early support, and why something as basic as a diaper ...

What do Shakespeare, Steve Jobs, Queen Victoria, and a pope with a taste for cocaine wine have in common? According to historian and viral storyteller Sam Kelly, more than you’d think. In this episode, Adam chats with the author of Human History on Drugs: An Utterly Scandalous but Entirely Truthful Look at History Under the Influence to uncover the hilariously human, shockingly drug-laced past of some of the world’s most iconic figures. Adam talks psychedelic breakthroughs, presidential depende...

From comedy royalty to soul-stirring truth-teller, Lisa Lampanelli is back, but not like you remember her. In this episode, Adam sits down with the iconic “Queen of Mean” turned self-help sage to talk about her powerful (and hilarious) new podcast, Shrink This! Alongside co-host Nick Scopoletti, Lisa tackles listener-submitted problems with the kind of tough love and hard laughs only she can deliver. In this candid conversation, Lisa opens up about walking away from insult comedy, embracing rei...

In this gripping follow-up conversation, Adam welcomes back investigative journalist and bestselling author Howard Blum, just one day after Bryan Kohberger, accused in the shocking 2022 Idaho college murders, pled guilty to four counts of first-degree murder. Blum, author of When The Night Comes Falling: A Requiem for the Idaho Student Murders, breaks down what this plea really means for justice, the unanswered questions that still linger, and the emotional fallout for the victims' families. Wi...

In this episode of Up+Adam, we crank the dial all the way up with journalist and author Brian Anderson, whose debut book Loud & Clear tells the jaw-dropping story of the Grateful Dead’s legendary Wall of Sound. Even if you’ve never spun a Dead record in your life, this conversation is for you. Because it’s not just about the music, it’s about ambition, obsession, and the kind of wild, world-changing creativity that rewrites the rules. Brian walks us through the rise and wild fall of the Wall. A...

What really happens when we die? Or... what if we don't? On this episode of Up+Adam, I chat with filmmaker and podcast host Dan Bush, the creator of Alive Again, a gripping series that explores near-death experiences and the people who live to talk about them. These aren’t just brushes with death; they’re deep dives into the stories, sensations, and transformations that follow. We talk about the patterns that show up again and again, regardless of culture, gender, or age, and ask the big questi...

On today’s Up+Adam, best-selling author and TV chef Deborah VanTrece joins Adam for a rich and flavorful conversation about the universal language of food, the roots of soul cooking, and how she’s blending global influence with deep Southern tradition. From serving up creative twists like Jamaican beef pot pie and adobo ribs on FYI’s Global Soul Kitchen, to redefining airport dining as Executive Chef of the Centurion Lounge at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson, Chef VanTrece is a culinary storyteller...

What happens when justice goes viral? When the courtroom becomes content? And when the story isn't just about two celebrities, but about us? In this episode of Up+Adam, Adam Montiel welcomes journalist and documentarian Makiko Wholey, co-author of Hollywood Vampires: Johnny Depp, Amber Heard, and the Celebrity Exploitation Machine. Makiko takes us behind the scenes of one of the most chaotic, consequential trials in modern celebrity history, revealing what most of us missed while we were scroll...

Get ready to dive deep with one of the Elks Lodge’s most dedicated leaders, Nancy Lewelling, as she joins Adam Montiel to talk about Pink Drank, a vibrant summer event that’s become one of San Luis Obispo’s most anticipated gatherings. Poolside, dressed in pink, with over 30 of the hottest producers in wine, beer, spirits, and craft cocktails. Add in a live DJ, curated bites, a grazing table, a wine pull, and you've got a celebration that’s as playful as it is purposeful. Nancy shares what make...

In this soulful episode, Adam chats with the incomparable Ziggy Marley: eight-time Grammy winner, Emmy winner, musician, humanitarian, and now, bedtime book wizard. Ziggy opens up about Pajammin’, his newest children’s book inspired by his father Bob Marley’s iconic song “Jamming.” But this conversation goes way deeper than pajamas. Together, they unpack family rituals, the evolution of legacy, and what it means to create joy that outlives you. Ziggy shares the heart behind the pages, how music...

What if the story we’ve been told for 60 years… was never meant to hold up? Legendary prosecutor and former Deputy Chief Counsel of the U.S. Congressional JFK assassination probe, Robert K. Tanenbaum, joins Up+Adam for a truth-bomb of a conversation that challenges the official narrative of Dealey Plaza. His new book, That Day in Dallas: Lee Harvey Oswald Did NOT Kill JFK, makes the case—with evidence, not theory—that the assassination was not the act of a lone gunman, but a multilayered cover-u...

Montel Williams is Up+Adam! What happens when a 36,000-ton aircraft carrier gets torpedoed in WWII, its rudder jammed, and it starts spinning helplessly in enemy waters? In most timelines, it’s the end of the story. But in Montel Williams’ new book The Sailing of the Intrepid, it’s just the beginning. On today’s episode, Adam welcomes Montel…yes, that Montel for a conversation that’s part history, part masterclass in resilience. They dive into the wild true tale of the USS Intrepid, the crew th...

In this episode, Adam chats with Robin from Woods Humane Society with our Pet(s) of the Week. We say pets, cause…we…got…KITTENS! They are also on the heels of their big Tails gala event this weekend! Also, rosé all day? Adam is giving away a pair of tickets to Pink Drank, the Central Coast’s ultimate rosé bash. First ten listeners to hit up adammontiel.com get in. No code words. No nonsense. Just go. Buy tickets at pinkdrank.org - But win them from Adam. Learn more: woodshumanesociety.org in...

In this episode of Up+Adam, Adam sits down in the LoBro Studios with Jatzibe Sandoval, Community Impact and Volunteer Director at Lumina Alliance, for a conversation that’s as moving as it is essential. From her own personal journey through challenge and transformation to now leading community advocacy efforts, Jatzibe shares how lived experience becomes powerful leadership. We talk about the delicate art of trauma-informed care, what real allyship looks like outside of Pride month, and why sho...