Lordecast
By Britney Phan & Lindsay Zoladz
My podcast, Lordecast, discusses the topic of Lorde’s music and how it has affected my perspective and views throughout my life. This podcast is a joint conversation with my mentor about the way music has a profound way of shaping people, no matter how old or different they may seem to be. Lorde has always been one of my favorite artists, so it felt natural to do a piece about her.
Process
My mentor and I had planned to meet in one of the library’s private rooms, where we both just had a conversation about the way Lorde’s music has impacted us and led us to become the people we are today. We used Anchor, which was introduced in one of the Girls Write Now workshops, to make our podcast. I learned to become a bit more comfortable with my voice, and I felt proud when I completed it. One of the challenges I faced was trying to speak, but eventually I faced my fears.
Meet the Pair
MENTEE BRITNEY PHAN & MENTOR LINDSAY ZOLADZ
Britney’s Anecdote: My relationship with my mentor reminds me of two plants growing beside each other. While one has some of its petals in full bloom, the other has just begun sprouting. Underneath, they are interlocked by the roots of their relationships, families, and experiences. The bigger plant reaches out once in a while to help the smaller plant, but at the end of the day it trusts her enough to know that she’ll soon begin growing on her own.
Lindsay’s Anecdote: On a recent weekday, Britney and I took a field trip and visited one of my favorite places in the city, the main branch of the New York Public Library. It was the first time she’d been there, and it was an honor to introduce her to this magical place—half museum and half library. We were both in awe as we went through an exhibit of the many novels and nonfiction books that had been written inside the library. I could see how inspired Britney was, feeling all the creativity in that space—maybe it’s a story she’ll later tell if she one day writes a book there, too. She shared a piece with me later that day that proved she’s well on her way as a writer.
Britney Phan
Britney Phan is a high school junior in Brooklyn, NY. Other than writing, her main hobbies include drawing and listening to music. This year, along with her mentor, Lindsay, she read One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez and was so taken by the fantastical landscapes which she was swept into that she decided to write a piece that was inspired by them.
Lindsay Zoladz
Lindsay Zoladz is a writer living in Brooklyn. She is a frequent contributor to the New York Times, where she writes about music. Her work has been published in many other outlets including New York magazine, Pitchfork, The Ringer, NPR and Bookforum.
