Steven Rourick ’27, a sophomore in Silliman, is best known as the “Taylor Swift guy” for singing Taylor Swift songs as he walks around campus. Join us as host Xavier Guaracha ’25 talks with Steven about the origins of his music walks, his relationship with Taylor Swift’s music, and the current musical landscape.

Producers: Xavier Guaracha ’25 and Joanne Lee ’26
Music: Blue Dot Sessions

The post Silhouette E20: Steven Rourick on music walks, Taylor Swift, and music today appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Ivana Ramirez ’25 is a member of Whim and Rhythm and the group’s rush manager. Join us for an episode where host Xavier Guaracha ’25 speaks with Ivana about her a capella career, the history of Whim and Rhythm, and her most significant memories as a member of Yale’s acapella community. 

Producers: Xavier Guaracha ’25 and Joanne Lee ’26
Music: Blue Dot Sessions

The post Silhouette E19: Ivana Ramirez on a capella, touring, and rushing appeared first on Yale Daily News.

In this episode, Andre Fa’aoso ’27 and Gemard Guery ’28 speak to Tina Li ’27, who wrote an article about anxiety amongst First Generation Low-Income students at Yale who have to interact with the Yale Financial Aid Office for hardship and emergency grants. It is a difficult process that has issues, and we want this episode to elaborate on those hardships and the wider difficulties that students who receive financial aid face when interacting with the office.

Guests: Tina Li ’27, Gia Cook ’26
Producers: Andre Fa’aoso ’27, Gemard Guery ’28, Joanne Lee ’26, Camila Perez ’26
Music: Blue Dot Sessions

The post The Yalie Ep 24: FGLI Anxiety: Discussing Yale Financial Aid appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Martin Luther King Jr. spoke at Woolsey Hall in 1959. At a time when Yale was highly segregated, King challenged students to resist complacency and protest the unjust conditions of segregation. How did Yale answer his call? This episode examines how Yale students, administration, and alumni engaged with King and the civil rights movement.

Written and produced by Jonas Losel ’27, with production help and editing from Grace Ellis ’25, Joanne Lee ’26, and Camila Perez ’26. Music is by Blue Dot Sessions.

The post Footnotes E4: When King Came to Yale: Integration Politics on an Apathetic Campus appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Will Walker ’26 is best known around campus as the “Bubble Guy” for his regular bubbling sessions on Cross Campus. Join us for a special on-site episode where host Joanne Lee ’26 and Will discuss the behind-the-scenes process behind making bubbles, his potential plans for expanding his bubbling endeavors and what inspires Will to bubble so frequently.

Producers: Joanne Lee ’26 and Xavier Guaracha ’25
Music: Blue Dot Sessions

The post Silhouette E18: Will Walker on bubble science, building community and nurturing your inner child appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Note for listeners: This episode contains discussion of eating disorders.

Susan Burton ’95 is the writer, reporter, and co-producer of The Retrievals, a podcast exploring the shocking case of the Yale Health fertility center, where a nurse repeatedly stole Fentanyl from patients undergoing egg retrievals. She’s a longtime reporter at This American Life and the author of the memoir Empty, about a lifelong eating disorder. Join Lily Isaacs as she talks with Susan about her relationship with New Haven, how she became interested in radio, and the advice she has for her younger self and for young journalists.

Produced by Lily Isaacs, Joanne Lee ’26, Xavier Guaracha ’25 and Suraj Singareddy ’25. Music by Blue Dot Sessions.

The post Silhouette E17: Susan Burton on writing, radio and advice for her younger self appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Ryann Schaffer ‘27 is the first female member of the Alley Cats – a traditionally male acapella group on campus. Join us for an episode where host Joanne Lee ‘26 and Ryann discuss the highs and lows of college acapella, directed studies, and high school merchandise.
Producers: Xavier Guaracha ’25 and Joanne Lee ’26
Sound Engineer: Devin Grooms-Lee ’27
Music: Blue Dot Sessions

The post Silhouette E14: Ryann Schaffer on Acapella, Comedy, and High School Merch appeared first on Yale Daily News.

I distinctly remember having my cousin over at my house one day when I was in middle school. She’d brought her four-year-old daughter along. As I was showing her my very old – and very dusty – doctor’s play kit, she turned to her mother and asked, “Why isn’t she speaking Korean if she is Korean?” Part of me wished I hadn’t understood what she had said, but at that moment, I knew I was faced with an inherent truth: I was too American to be Korean. But, I was also too Korean to be American.

By middle school, I decided that if I couldn’t fully connect with my Korean identity, then I would just have to try to connect more with my American one. So, I opted to take Spanish as a second language instead of Korean. I insisted on only eating Western food at school – I even refused to tell people my middle name solely because I thought it would be too difficult for a non-Korean person to pronounce. 

Making these changes felt liberating, at first. For a long time, I viewed my Korean identity as something that was holding me back. From what, I’m still not entirely sure, but I finally felt like I belonged. When my grandparents visited for two weeks in the summer, though, I recognized that trying to gain Americanism caused me to lose my connection with my Korean heritage.

I already came to terms with the fact that our language barriers would cause a bit of a struggle, but when my grandparents tried to ask my parents about my interests, we had no common ground. The more they tried to talk with me about Korean culture, the more frustrated I became with myself. In prioritizing my Americanism, I realized that I was completely disconnecting myself from generations of culture and tradition. No matter how hard I tried, being Korean was something I could never change. So, what point was there in being ashamed of that part of myself when I could choose to embrace it instead?

From then on, I started making conscious efforts to reconnect with my Korean roots. I practiced speaking Korean with my grandparents over the phone, I took pride in having my kimbap or kimchi fried rice stand out amongst a sea of sandwiches and reheated pizzas, and when senior graduation rolled around and I was asked how to properly pronounce my full name, I took the time to teach my vice-principal the phonetics of my middle name. Not only was it a written reminder of my origins, but it made up one-third of my actual name – if it was going to be said in front of my entire graduating class, it was going to be said right.

I still find myself struggling with my Korean-American identity. Even now, writing about being Korean is a challenge in and of itself. Growing up, I always used to feel like I had to choose between being Korean or being American. Now that I’m older, I understand that I can find value in both cultures. Rather than throwing myself into my Korean or American sides, I’ve learned to find a healthy middle ground: one that captures the unique and individual identity of Joanne Jaekyung Lee.

The post Korean-American: embracing “and” instead of “or” appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Produced by Joanne Lee ’26 and Suraj Singareddy ’25

Music by Blue Dot Sessions

The post Silhouette E10: Natalie Brown on songwriting, composing for the stage and working with Jeanine Tesori appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Manasi Subramaniam, the Editor-in-Chief of Penguin Random House India and a 2022 World Fellow, talks with Suraj Singareddy ’25 and Eli Tsung ’25 about translated literature in South Asia, her personal and professional journey and what being a publisher means to her.

Produced by Joanne Lee ’26, Suraj Singareddy ’25 and Eli Tsung ’25.

Music by Blue Dot Sessions.

The post Silhouette E7: Manasi Subramaniam on South Asian Literature and Publishing appeared first on Yale Daily News.