Episode 421

with Hari Kondabolu, Sarah Scoles, and Angelica Garcia

Host Luke Burbank and guest announcer Hari Kondabolu admit to being undecided on matters of personal hygiene and bed-making; science journalist Sarah Scoles encounters some true believers at the International UFO Congress; and singer-songwriter Angelica Garcia performs "I Don't Believe in Death" from her latest album "Cha Cha Palace."

Hari Kondabolu
Brave, Brainy Comedian & Creator of "The Problem With Apu"

Comedian Hari Kondabolu is probably the smartest person you’ll laugh at this year. Why? Because he earned a Masters in Human Rights from the London School of Economics and worked as an immigrant rights organizer in Seattle. Thanks to that, his comedy is a complex blend of social commentary, honest personal experience, and trenchant political wit. His new Netflix standup special, Warn Your Relatives, came out this year, he was named one of Variety’s “Top 10 Comics to Watch,” and his critically-acclaimed documentary, The Problem with Apu, has been making waves since 2017. Sit down and get ready to be taken to school by the brainiest comedian around. Website • Twitter

Sarah Scoles
Science Writer

Sarah Scoles is all about identifying the unidentifiable. Her new book, They Are Already Here: UFO Culture and Why We See Saucers is an anthropological look at the UFO community, told through first-person experiences with researchers as they pursue what they see as a solvable mystery. She explores the community itself as well as what it reflects about the politics and culture of the world around them. Scoles is a science journalist, the author of the book “Making Contact,” a contributing writer at Wired, and a contributing editor at Popular Science. Her work has appeared in The Atlantic, Slate, Smithsonian, The Washington Post, Scientific American, and others. Scoles formerly worked at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, the location of the first-ever SETI project. If you believe the truth is out there, then the writing of Sarah Scoles is your first contact. Website • Twitter

Angelica Garcia
Indie Pop Artist

Angelica Garcia is proud to show off her roots. With Mexican and Salvadoran connections outside of Los Angeles, Garcia has spent the last several years creating a second family for herself within the welcoming community of Richmond, VA. She’s released two new songs with Richmond-based label Spacebomb Records: “It Doesn’t Hinder Me,” a song about pride in her background that combines pop and Southern rock, and “Karma the Knife,” a Reaggeaton-meets-dance hall anthem. Garcia’s indie pop music creates her own version of cool by weaving her personal experiences into her infectious sound. With new music coming in 2020, Angelica Garcia is an artist who knows who she is and where she came from – and we’re excited to go wherever she takes us next. Website • Twitter • Spotify