Episodes

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping joins Adam Montiel on Up+Adam for a conversation that starts in Chuck Liddell country and goes somewhere much deeper. Bisping looks back at making his UFC debut on the legendary UFC 66 card with Chuck, admits that yes, there was absolutely a part of him that wanted to know what would happen if the two of them ever got locked in a cage together, and reflects on the generation of fighters ...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Ron Regier has a relationship with the Performing Arts Center San Luis Obispo that few people could ever have. He helped plan and open the Christopher Cohan Center, spent two decades as Managing Director, retired in 2015, and then came back a decade later because the PAC’s 30th anniversary was a milestone he simply could not stay away from. In this conversation, Ron tells Adam about the moment he realized the PAC had sto...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Country star Josh Turner is celebrating 20 years of Your Man, the career-defining album that gave him his first No. 1 and helped cement one of the most unmistakable voices in country music. On this episode of Up+Adam, Josh joins Adam Montiel for a conversation that goes well beyond charts, certifications, and anniversary nostalgia. They talk about hearing the younger Josh Turner inside those recordings, what he knows now...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Maria Garcia knows the stuff we call “pop culture” is rarely just pop culture. On this episode of Up+Adam, Adam Montiel sits down with the award-winning journalist, storyteller, and Executive Editor of Futuro Studios to talk about her new podcast, Muy Excited with Maria Garcia, a show that takes the songs, celebrities, movies, memories, and wonderfully random cultural moments we carry around with us and asks a deceptive...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Some television shows entertain us, some define an era, and a select few somehow become a place we keep going back to. On this episode of Up+Adam, Adam sits down with entertainment journalist Thea Glassman to talk about her new book, Who’s That Girl: The Untold, Definitive History of New Girl, a behind-the-scenes look at the beloved Fox comedy and the creative chaos that made Apartment 4D feel like home. Glassman, whose ...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Director Daniel Stamm joins Adam Montiel for a fascinating trip inside the craft, psychology, and very human heart of horror. Daniel is the filmmaker behind The Last Exorcism, Prey for the Devil, 13 Sins, and the new supernatural thriller Lockbox, starring Carla Gugino, Lou Taylor Pucci, and Katharine Isabelle. Inspired by a story from Soren Narnia’s cult audio series Knifepoint Horror, Lockbox follows Ellen, a grieving...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Dan Curcio and Elyse Black join Adam for a conversation about music, homecoming, and one of the Central Coast’s most beloved live concert experiences. Dan takes us inside Moonshiner Collective’s Under the Moon series, where the night begins with intimate songs that invite people to really listen, then builds into the kind of full-send dance party longtime fans know and love. Elyse, fresh from graduating from Berklee Col...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Two Australians meet in California, discover one of San Luis Obispo’s most striking landscapes, and decide to build a hospitality experience that works with the land instead of over it. Adam welcomes Nightsky Camps co-founders David Smith and Anatoly “Toly” Mezhov for a conversation about the 45 elevated tented suites taking shape at Dairy Creek, where the comfort of a boutique hotel will meet the silence, space, and adv...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Local serial entrepreneur Steven Herring returns for Part 2 of his conversation with Adam Montiel, and this time the focus shifts from the systems behind the business to the discipline behind the person. Steven explains why he starts his weekdays around 4:00 a.m. with a 39-degree cold plunge, not because he enjoys it, but because voluntarily choosing discomfort helps him face the rest of the day with more control. From ...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Paso Robles wine country has another side worth sipping, and it is coming out in full force for Distillery Trail Weekend. Adam welcomes Steve Glossner, owner and distiller at Pendray’s Distillery, and Ron Panno, distiller at Willow Creek Distillery, for a spirited conversation about the creativity, persistence, and collaboration driving Paso Robles craft spirits. Steve shares the unlikely story behind Pendray’s coffee l...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking What happens when ten wineries trade the tasting room for the pickleball court? Naushad Huda, founder of Grape Night, joins Adam to preview Sip & Dink, the first wine and pickleball tournament of its kind, happening Saturday, August 1, 2026, at the Tennis & Pickleball Club at Newport Beach. Sixty players will compete across winery teams representing regions from Paso Robles and Napa to Washington, New Zealand, and beyond...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Local and serial entrepreneur Steven Herring joins Adam Montiel in the SLO CAL Studios for Part 1 of a wide-ranging conversation about entrepreneurship, leadership, systems, and the danger of becoming indispensable inside the company you created. Steven shares how his entrepreneurial instinct showed up early, from selling mistletoe and Pogs as a kid to starting Party Partners Rental with a small collection of tables, fo...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking What if tea was more than something you drink when you’re sick, sleepy, or trying to be “healthy”? What if it could be a way to taste place, slow down, gather with people, and pay attention to the world around you? On this episode of Up+Adam, Adam sits down with Jennifer de Tréglodé, founder of Inari Tea & Art Experiences and SLO County’s Tea Sommelier, for a conversation that opens tea up in a completely new way. Jenni...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking What happens when every sip gives back? On this episode of Up+Adam, Adam Montiel welcomes Kasey Helt, Director of DTC Sales at Laetitia Vineyards & Winery, and Robin Colman of Woods Humane Society to share the story behind SparkJoy, a new wine series created to bring together joy, community, and purpose. Inspired by the meaning of Laetitia, which is “joy” and “happiness,” SparkJoy features light, lively, and approachabl...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking It is Shark Week, but here on California’s Central Coast, Shark Week can feel a whole lot like regular week. We live in a place where drone footage captures sharks cruising just beyond the break, surfers share the water with animals they may never see, and the Pacific is always reminding us whose house this really is. Marine conservationist and documentary filmmaker Kendyl Berna joins Adam to dive into Discovery’s Bigge...

Paso Robles may be best known for bold reds, but some of the region’s most thoughtful and exciting work is happening with white wine. In this episode of The Pour, Adam Montiel sits down with Natalie Brown of Willow Creek Wine Co., Dave McGee of Monochrome Wines, and Ryan Pease of Paix Sur Terre for a conversation about the White Wine Invitational and the growing movement behind serious white wine production in Paso Robles. Recorded at SLO CAL Studios in San Luis Obispo, the conversation explor...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking For more than four decades, legendary celebrity photographer Timothy White has helped define how we see pop culture. His lens has captured Brad Pitt, Harrison Ford, Aretha Franklin, Angelina Jolie, Whoopi Goldberg, Jay-Z, Michael Jackson, Dolly Parton, Julia Roberts, Robin Williams, and hundreds more across magazine covers, movie posters, album artwork, advertising campaigns, and fine-art collections. But this conversat...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking What happens when a dentist with a stable career, a family, and a very responsible life realizes there is also a fantasy author living inside her who wants to write about shapeshifters, stolen magic, secret societies, and Chinese mythology? San Luis Obispo author Emily Renk Hawthorne joins Adam to talk about the creative dream she could not shake and the work it took to finally let it out. Emily shares how her Taiwanese...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Ryan Weiss Is Waking Up to What Was Already ThereWhat happens when a coach who has spent 17 years connecting with people one-on-one suddenly has to speak into a camera and trust that somebody is listening? Ryan Weiss joins Adam Montiel for a deeply personal conversation about the creation of Waking Up with Ryan, his new weekday podcast from iHeartPodcasts and The Lighthouse. Each concise episode offers one idea, music,...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking What happens when someone takes a family inheritance and turns it into a gift for an entire community? On this episode of Up+Adam, Adam Montiel welcomes Lisa Deyo, artistic director of Deyo Dances, for a conversation about creativity, generosity, family legacy, and the beautiful chaos behind producing a fully professional dance performance. Lisa shares why she stopped charging admission, how the money left to her by her...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking What does it take to turn ten students, a rented room, and a big idea into a SLO CAL institution? Mimi Phene-McKellar joins Adam to celebrate 35 years of Central Coast Gymnastics and reflect on a journey built through persistence, community support, and a deep belief in what movement can unlock in a child. Mimi shares how she started the program in 1991 with almost no equipment, how it grew into a thriving 16,000-square...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Alex Villicana of RE:FIND Distillery and Aaron Bergh of Calwise Spirits join Adam for a local conversation with statewide consequences. California’s temporary direct-to-consumer shipping privileges for craft distillers are set to expire at the end of 2026, and both guests say losing them could be devastating for small, independent producers. Alex explains that direct shipping represents roughly 30 percent of his revenue...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Billy West has spent decades hiding in plain sound. He is the voice behind Bugs Bunny in Space Jam, Doug Funnie, Ren and Stimpy, and a packed house of Futurama favorites, including Philip J. Fry, Dr. Zoidberg, Professor Farnsworth, and Zapp Brannigan. He also helped define one of the most unpredictable eras of The Howard Stern Show, where impressions, characters, and live-radio chaos could become comedy history before br...

Sponsored by The Mountain Air | Sponsored by Benny’s Pizza | SLOFreeParking Pink Drank is back, and Adam catches up with Robin from Woods Humane Society to talk about why this poolside party has become one of the most fun ways to do good on the Central Coast. Happening this Saturday, July 11 from 2 to 6 PM at SLO Elks Lodge 322, Pink Drank brings together local wine, cocktails, beer, cider, bites, music, swimming, raffles, prizes, and plenty of pink for a summer event with serious purpose. This...