The facts are these: in Bahamian culture, hardly anyone talks about money, how much they make or how much they have. These days though, more and more millennials are throwing caution to the wind and superstitions out the door and having the conversations we should’ve been having years ago.
And even with this new trend, there’s still some hesitation and push back. But when two women who are serious about having the tough conversation get together and say, “let’s talk about money,” you listen in, literally.
Dinner with JZ (I love the name!) is a podcast hosted by Jazmine and Zina, friends and creatives who first met on Twitter and bonded over work life, money and the non-stop hustle to…make more money. LitFluential caught up with the podcast hosts to learn more about their new platform and how they’re taking on the timeline’s hottest topics.
LF: Tell us about Dinner with JZ (we could guess but…) and how you came up with the name and what made it stick?
DWJZ: Dinner with JZ is a podcast about money, career and hustling that was born out of many conversations between the hosts and various topics that come up repeatedly on social media. Most people with wi-fi access would have seen some variation of the question, “Would you rather $5,000 or a meal with Jay-Z (the rapper, for anyone who is lost)?” The question itself is one that turns social media upside down each time as people weigh the value of cash versus the knowledge they can ascertain from a wealthy mogul. So yeah, since our names are Jazmine (in red) and Zina (in lime green), it randomly came to Jazmine when she decided on doing a podcast. It’s a pun but also, it perfectly encapsulates what we’re doing without us even trying to be that deep.
LF: Who is your ideal listener and who are you trying to reach?
DWJZ: Based on our analytics, our ideal listener is a woman who is in her late 20s or early 30s but we’d love to believe that it’s anyone who loves talking about money, career and hustling just as much as we do. A lot of times men tend to consume content by other men and dismiss things by women simply because they don’t feel they can relate due to gender. But we’d like to think that regardless of gender our show drops gems when it comes to money things.
LF: Talk to us about your partnership and what made you two want to do this together.
Zina: Jazmine and I met unofficially on Twitter and since officially meeting have become closer and closer. Not only that, but when she came to me with the show, it was a no-brainer because we tend to have similar thoughts.
Jazmine: Like Zina said, we met years ago on our favorite blue app and found out quickly that we shared similar interests and a bond formed then. When Zina moved to Nassau a few years back, we started to hang out more and get closer. I realized that so many of our conversations were about our jobs (we work in the same industry), making more money, and whether or not to hustle. That’s where the initial idea came from, a conversation we had one day that spanned more than an hour.
LF: How have listeners responded so far?
Zina: So far the feedback has been amazing and better than I could have hoped for. I tend to tweet along when we drop episodes on Thursday nights and there’s always someone tweeting along with me. People have commented on the show and even people I didn’t expect to listen have come to me and said they enjoy it.
Jazmine: My favorite genre of feedback comes from guys I didn’t expect to listen to the show! Our branding is insanely girly and we’ve only had one man on the show so far. It’s exciting to know that not only are the girlies enjoying the content, guys are also being entertained and informed by our episodes.
LF: What are some of the topics you’ve covered so far and what other topics/ social and cultural conversations can we expect in the future? What about guests?
DWJZ: So far we’ve talked about paying for dates, paying when you hang out with friends, how to know when to quit a job, the art of influencing, financial literacy and things people want to know from someone in human resources. Our guests have been dynamic women in their fields including Tammi from Cays to Coins and Whitney Farrington. Our show producer CamTheComfort has also provided third mic off-the-camera commentary. We hope to have more guests including more men on our show and the number one episode we’re looking forward to is to side hustle or not.
LF: So money, career and hustling; why did you think these topics were important to focus on?
DWJZ: We all need money to survive, this is a fact. We live in a society that is very tight-lipped about discussing salary, negotiations, leaving a job, etc. How are any of us supposed to know whether or not we’re being jipped if we never actually have the conversations that are considered taboo by generations before us? One of our goals is to get the conversations started about the topics we’ve been so afraid to discuss, so we all can win and lead more fulfilling careers.
LF: Being a creative in The Bahamas is HARD, what avenues or platforms are you using to push your podcast for maximum engagement?
DWJZ: Our show is everywhere that people listen to podcasts – Youtube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Soundcloud. We have partnered with The Solid to maximize engagement and exposure. The show is also on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn since we discuss money and career a lot. We tend to live tweet the show from our individual accounts as well as the account for the show. We also post on socials when we’re getting ready to drop a new episode. We have a few ideas of more ways to push the show but right now both of our lives are incredibly full so there’s definitely more we want to do as the show continues to grow.
LF: I know both of you are a part of #BahamianTwitter, how have/will the conversations and debates on that platform influence or encourage your topics?
DWJZ: The first episode was about one of the most popular dating and money topics on #BahamianTwitter – the $200 date – and we definitely draw inspiration from there. Although we record in advance, we have already found ourselves switching the order that we release shows depending on trending topics on twitter. What’s very important to us is that our show is timely and relevant, so if there’s ever a money topic on the timeline that needs to be addressed on Dinner With JZ, we hop into the studio.
LF: What advice would you give to another creative who is afraid to join the creative world by starting a podcast or blog or even a YouTube channel?
Zina: One thing I’ve had to really accept this year as I work on tons of creative pursuits is that done is better than perfect. I know a lot of people (myself included) are guilty of thinking that they can’t start until they have certain equipment but use what you have and start where you are. If you want to start a podcast, you don’t necessarily need a special mic or a studio, you can start with your cellphone’s audio recording feature and a quiet room. You can also partner with other creatives and they may rent you their equipment for a small fee. The only thing you really need is to dedicate as much time as you can to it. Even if it’s just an hour a week. The most important thing to do is to start. And the second most important thing is to be consistent.
Jazmine: My advice is to start today. I am admittedly a professional procrastinator. I like things to be perfect before they launch, which often results in many unfinished projects sitting on my computer or on my phone. Start today, because people want to hear your opinions NOW, they want to grow with you as you start to perfect your craft. Have fun and don’t take yourself so seriously that it never gets done.
Hey reader, your turn: Dinner with JZ or that $5,000? We think the former might serve you better.
New episodes of Dinner with JZ drops every other Thursday at 5pm.
Subscribe to the podcast on YouTube and follow them on Twitter.