Local journalism has been struggling for years now, and we have not escaped that issue here in Salinas. We certainly do not consider ourselves journalists, but we think it is important to talk about other issues happening in town that sometimes don't get the time they deserve. With that, we are introducing "SUP Independent" a once-a-month episode w…

Colin St. John is an old friend of the podcast and a veteran of the local theatre scene. He will be directing Enchantrix Theatre's rendition of the classic Little Shop of Horrors for the next four weekends. They are transforming a circus tent-esque space in Moss Landing into their version of Skid Row, including the famous hungry plant. This is a gr…

Ruby Esperanza started Sol Y Plumas after a career in social work as a way for people to get more out of their lives. Throughout her life, she has found herself in situations where she was able to help others. Sometimes, it was financial help, sometimes it was family help, and even other times, she was there to offer some spiritual help to those wh…

Jose Luis Barajas and Ruby Salazar are the President and Vice-President of the Salinas Valley Young Professionals, a group that empowers local young professionals by connecting them and educating them on what it takes to grow as a leader. They put on networking events all over the Salinas Valley to bring together people with similar ideas to help b…

Sal, or Chava, is a local content creator that has tried more local coffee than most people in the 831. He took the social isolation of COVID and decided to go with an idea that had been kicking around his mind for a while, start a clothing brand. But what do you do when you have an idea that's bigger than your current budget? You hustle. That is w…

The modern history of Alisal dates back to the first post office, which was built in 1866. It grew alongside Salinas until 1964, when the voters of Alisal joined their neighbors to the west and became East Salinas. This vote may not have passed were it not for the influential voice of a tough Italian lady named Virginia Rocca Barton. She came to Sa…

Some know him as Lombriz, others call him Werm, and others call him The Essence Music. We got him in the studio to talk about himself if you don't know who he is. If you want to see the artist at work you can find him every Wednesday evening at XL Publichouse hosting a weekly vinyl night. That event is one of the best places in the 831 to find and …

Rose also known as DivineGoddess33 on TikTok does makeup tutorials, unboxing videos and so much more! She comes to the studio to tell us about her journey and how she went from the stage to making her own content to share with the world.By Salad Bytes Media

Mialana is a recording artist who first got a taste of the stage when her high school production of Grease needed another singer. Three years ago, she started writing and performing her own music. She writes from the heart, so many of her songs are more like journal entries that she shares with the world. She is a young singer with a lot of potenti…

The story of Oreez started in the 831 and then took him around the West Coast but he is back home and is in the studio to tell us his story. From discovering Hip Hop to jumping on stage for the first time at the last minute, these are only the early chapters of his story.

For the last year, Indie Basement cinema has been a monthly showcase of local short films. It is a place where local filmmakers can screen their films in front of their hometown crowd for free. Once a month the basement of XL Public House is turned into a cozy cinema where you can relax and have some popcorn and a beer while watching locally made f…

On September 7, 1963, the worst road accident in American history happened on a railroad crossing just outside of Chualar. This set off a battle for the 32 bodies of the victims that ended up uniting the Mexican community against the bracero program that had been giving low-wage workers to American farmers since WWII. It also helped unite a Mexican…

Gin Fragonard is a Monterey-based singer and all-around talented artist. She is releasing an album in several chapters that is an ode to the place she currently calls home. This was a fun conversation that covered a range of topics, from musical inspirations to French cows and ferret cults and her music. The first part of the album comes out on Oct…

The governor of Florida is paying a visit to Salinas to raise money from a group of people he says is ruining this country. That is just one of a mountain of reasons why this is a terrible idea. Oz has a couple of more on this episode.

SEA.LVL are the tracksuit-wearing bad boys of instrumental R&B and they are in the studio to tell us all about the band! We also have the magician behind the tracksuits, Ari from Hella Dandy Apparel, on the mic. This fun conversation takes us from the bands origins to why we have a bunch of bananas on the desk and the reason for the tracksuits. You…

Genevieve Armendariz is a lifelong Salinas resident who dreams about stars in more ways than one. She represents her home region as Miss Central Coast in the Miss California Organization. She is also the founder of the non-profit Women Are Limitless, which supports Monterey County girls and women pursuing careers in a male-dominated industry. She s…

The Prancing Ponies Women's Car Show is one of the largest gatherings of women car owners and it happens in the middle of car week in Downtown Carmel. We set up our equipment in a corner of Devendorf Park and got some really great interviews. First off we talk to the guys from SEA.LVL who brought the party on stage with their instrumental R&B sound…

Caro Perez is a writer, performer, and all around great human being. She has turned a lifelong passion for storytelling and honed it into a unique style that will have you laughing at some of her harrowing life events. She sits down with us to tell us her story from crossing the border to working at a factory so she could buy her first camera and h…

During WWII, Japan controlled 90% of the world's rubber production, and the United States knew it needed to do something to protect itself in case the supply was cut off. On Dec. 7, 1941, Japan attacked the U.S., and the fear became a reality. With the country quickly using its reserves, the nation turned to an obscure desert plant called Guayule t…

El Kallpa's story starts in Lima, Peru. Somehow he found himself in Monterey County playing music that tells his story and soothes the soul. In this talk, we learn how he ended up here and why music is such an important part of his life. He has an amazing story with stops everywhere, starting in Miami. His current projects are Sensory Tribe and Bar…

The Rudians have been together for less than 10 years, but they already have a whole career's worth of stories and experiences to tell. Recently they played at the Cali Roots Festival, where they jammed out on the legendary "Bowl" stage. Gio, Terrance, Anthony, and Neal are in the studio to tell us their experiences and how it felt to play at such …

Anthony Barrera and Jennah Montemayor host the 1st and the 15th Podcast. A show that interviews creative types and asks them about their journey in pursuing their art form. It is now on its third season and available anywhere you listen to podcasts. Even better, it is currently being recorded in our Salad Bytes Media studio. Oz also brings up some …

Even though Salinas is in California, it does not have the movie-making history of its bigger neighbor down south. Ivan Ramirez is a lifelong Salinas resident that thinks that by using his hometown as a backdrop, he can do something that seems impossible. He is trying to make a name for himself in a crowded industry by jumping off the deep end. His…

The Rumba Madre is a group that was formed in Nashville by an eclectic group of guys that had a passion for music and another very important quality. They all spoke Spanish. David is one of the founding members and a teacher who has traveled worldwide playing music. He was born in Spain and now lives here in Monterey County. In between, he has taug…

Artist Alley started two years ago as a way to gather the work of several artists in one place and give people a chance to buy directly from the artists themselves. Starting at the offices of Artists Ink, the alley features up to several dozen local artists showcasing their work. Oz set up shop inside the Co-Lab Studio and interviewed several peopl…

In 1936 Salinas was the center of a strike led by mostly Filipino field workers. Over six weeks, battles happened in Oldtown. On one side, the striking workers were trying to prevent the lettuce trucks from reaching the packing sheds filled with "scab" workers from other parts of the country. On the other side was a motley crew of law enforcement a…

If you want to taste the flavors of the Salinas Valley go out and buy a salad. If you want to listen to the sounds of the valley then you need to check out The Rudians. They take global music sounds and inject personal experiences for a unique sound that will have you dancing for hours. They give us a little of their musical history and talk about …

Christie Cromeenes took over district 5 at an interesting time in Salinas' history. Now that her first term is coming to an end, she feels there is still more work to be done not only in district 5 but in all of Salinas. Listen as she tells us her Salinas story and plans for her district if she manages to keep her seat on the council.…

Andrew Sandoval is a Salinas native running for city council in district 5. He sits down with Oz and the Comadres to discuss his plan and how he differs from the incumbent. He talks about his experience on the Measure G Citizens Oversight Committee and how he will use that knowledge to help the people of his district.…

Steve McShane is the incumbent city council member in Salinas's 3rd district. He has represented his district for several years but still feels like he has work to do. Listen as he sits down to answer our questions and talks about his plans for his district. Oldtown Salinas is experiencing a renaissance, but how can the area help with the lack of a…

Cary Swensen is running for City Council in Salinas' 3rd district. She sits down with the Comadres Frenchy and Samantha, who will be joined by Oz from Salinas Underground Podcast for this series to talk about why she decided to run and what makes her different from her opponent. She also tells us how her background in education gives her a differen…

After nearly 10 years of telling stories from Salinas, we have finally arrived at episode 300! So many great people have come on the podcast to talk to us and we feel like we are only getting started. For this special episode, we talk to one of the hardest-working comedians on the West Coast. El Gordo Mamon has an incredible story that starts in Sa…

This is a hybrid episode of the podcast that was recorded in two different locations. The first half was recorded in the studio and the second half was recorded on location at Steinbeck's Home Brew Fest. In the studio, Kim Lawson, current President of the Salinas Steinbeck Rotary Club, and Cary Swensen, Home Brew Committee Executive, are here to ta…

For this episode, we packed up some of the equipment in the studio and headed over to the Monterey County Fairgrounds for the Ink at the Bay Festival. The event is back as big as ever after a two-year hiatus because of a global pandemic, and the event is back as big as ever! Listen as we talk to tattoo machine manufacturers, Ms. Ink at the Bay, Old…

After a two-year break for a worldwide pandemic, Ink at the Bay is back at the Monterey County Fairgrounds. Paulina sits down in the studio to tell us how an idea her brother had one day has morphed into a three-day festival featuring some of the best tattoo artists in the world. It's an inspirational story, and there is still more left to write!…

Paper Tacos is the hottest greeting card company in Salinas and most of us have never even heard of it. In this episode, Jesus Ruvalcaba talks to us about his humble beginnings in a labor camp in Castroville to becoming an art director at one of the oldest companies in the Silicon Valley. He fell in love with art as a child but he got his formal ed…

Samantha from 831 Comadres joins us this week to talk about a show that was planned at the end of last year. In December, the city of Salinas and the Big Sur Land Trust announced that they had received millions of dollars from the state to put into two park projects in Salinas. One is the complete revitalization of Closter Park on Towt St. The othe…

Leticia Hernandez has been running a community garden at Natividad Creek Park for five years. Over that time with her group Local Urban Gardeners, she helped turn a neglected section of the park into a beautiful oasis in the middle of the city, a meeting point for many environmental-related activities. Listen as she tells us stories of the effort i…

The plan to turn Carr Lake from agriculture into a huge city park keeps moving forward. But what exactly is Carr Lake, and why is it sitting there in the middle of town? This question leads Oz down an 8-million-year-old rabbit hole that includes the Colorado River and a canyon as vast as the Grand Canyon underwater in Monterey Bay. The guys also ta…

The church of Rock & Roll comes to the podcast with one of Oz's childhood friends. Steve O talks about what it has been like to watch the Salinas music scene evolve over three decades and how it will continue to move forward. We talk about the Rocky Horror Show currently going on at the Paper Wing Theatre in Monterey. If you plan on going, be sure …

Once again, Salinas was in the national news for reasons that had nothing to do with agriculture or Steinbeck. Instead of adding more fuel to an already hot fire, we see this as an opportunity to look within our community and work on healing ourselves. We also talk about the unexpected recall election before finishing it up on a lighter note. In th…

In this episode, we have a conversation with local writer Xago Juarez about his art and what it was like for him growing up in Salinas. We talk about his childhood and walking to Alisal High through the Old Lane and what it was like to live with some of the last Dust Bowl migrants in the Alisal. This one goes deep and drops a lot of knowledge, so y…

Oz's soapbox was getting a little dusty, and he thought it was time to bring it back out. This week he and Electro discuss the mayor's fascination with big red trucks and another police shooting that ended with a teenager dead. The police shootings not only erode trust with the community, but if you go back over the last decade, you see that the ci…

Some people are born and raised in Salinas. And some end up getting called here while sitting in a medidative bath. Samirah the Sapphic Siren (@siren.samirah) is the second kind of person and she decided to start her journey in Salinas in the middle of a global pandemic. She is a poet who transformed her poetry into a set of beautiful Tarot cards. …

If your family traces it's roots in the Salinas Valley back to your great-grandparents you are sure to have some local tales. David Hernandez has been a DJ in Salinas for the last couple of decades and is witnessing the nightlife shift over from Monterey to Oldtown Salinas. We talk about his company Monterey DJ and how Salinas can prevent itself fr…

Nacho Ornelas was born in Tequila country in Mexico but he grew up in Salinas and now spends some of his time doing reasearch at Stanford University. He runs the Bracero Legacy project which aims to give a broader understanding of the Bracero program and it's cultural impact on the country. We also touch on a current hot-button isssue, Ethnic Studi…

The Salad Bytes Media network that produces this show is constantly working on new and innovative podcasts when thousands of new shows are coming out every week. The latest show is Stay Low Podcast, a show covering all the major sports across the country. To introduce the podcast, we talk to Anthony and Rueben, two of the three hosts that will guid…

This year's city budget is the most talked about in the eight years that we have been doing this podcast. We decided to take a deep dive into the 500-page document to answer some questions people may be wondering about. Where does the money for the budget come from? How big is the budget and where does all that money go? How much money is being hid…

With the recent news that Alvarado Street Brewery will open a restaurant and bar in what most of us know as the Rabobank Building, we decided to look into the history of this Salinas landmark. This leads us to a journey following the history of beer brewing in Salinas, which goes back much farther than we realized. In 1874 a couple of German immigr…

The pandemic is still keeping us from going back to our regular lives but that doesn't mean that the growth of Salinas also stopped. In the next several years hundreds of new people are going to move into projects that are the advanced planning stages. Oz went through the permit centers reports to see what some of these projects may look like. One …