Rebel Girls

Diane Von Furstenberg is a fashion icon who made a huge impact on the way women dress today with her signature wrap dress in the 1970’s. In this episode we explore her life from her early days in Belgium and France to her becoming a real-life princess and then taking the fashion world by storm with a style and sense that is all her own. About the Narrator Brit Morin is the founder & CEO of Brit + Co, a modern lifestyle and education company providing classes, content, products and experiences geared towards women with a creative spirit and a do-it-herself attitude. With an engaged community of tens of millions of women per month, products distributed in mass retail stores nationwide, and millions of online class enrollments, Brit + Co is the leading destination for learning and discovery among females.  Morin is a chart-topping podcaster, hosting the show Teach Me Something New with Brit Morin in collaboration with iHeartRadio. She’s also author of the bestselling book, Homemakers: A Domestic Handbook for the Digital Generation and is a regular lifestyle expert on Good Morning America, the Today Show, Live with Kelly & Ryan, Rachael Ray and more.  As of June 2020, Brit added venture capitalist to her resume, helping to start the fund, Offline Ventures as a managing partner. She invests in early stage companies in various sectors that seek to make our offline lives better.  Brit has been awarded various accolades, including Ad Age’s 40 Under 40, Adweek’s Creative 100, Forbes 30 Under 30, Fortune’s Most Promising Entrepreneurs, Refinery29’s 30 Under 30, one of Parents magazine’s Most Influential Millennial Moms, and one of ELLE magazine’s American Women at 30.  Brit is a board member of Life360 as well as the Girl Scouts of the USA. She’s a Henry Crown Fellow and member of the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO). Prior to founding Brit + Co, she worked in product and marketing roles at Google and Apple. Her interests include tech, storytelling, design, women, photography, the great outdoors, and just about any creative project she can get her hands on.  Brit was raised in San Antonio and attended the University of Texas. She currently resides in the Bay Area with her husband and two young sons.  

Michelle always aimed high– and inspired others to do the same. When Michelle was a little girl living on the Southside of Chicago, her mother always told her, "If it can be done, you can do it." Actress Pearl Thusi reads her story.

Get to know Cecile Richards, a national leader for women’s right and social and economic justice in this Rebel Girls Interview. Cecile brought us the story of Samantha Power who served as the U.S Ambassador to the United Nations. Here, Cecile tells us about the rebel women who inspired her growing up and why you should never wait to be asked!  [This episode originally aired October 2020.]

Kelsey Mitchell is the new single-season scoring leader, Angel Reese hit 500 rebounds — a league FIRST — and that's only the beginning!  This week on the Weekly Sports Show, Pepper's got the scoop on: 🏀 Records everywhere: A'ja Wilson, Olivia Miles, Paige Bueckers & Rhyne Howard all made history 🎟️ The Valkyries sold out 44 STRAIGHT games  and the WNBA just passed 3.4 MILLION fans this season! 🗽 Lisa Leslie's statue "The First Lady" unveiled — capturing the first dunk in WNBA history 🏄‍♀️ 19-year-old Erin Brooks won her THIRD straight surf title — the first to do it in one season since 2008! Plus, Gotham FC updates, a new speedsuit on the track, and team USA flag football star Ashlea Klam shares her advice on finding your place and staying true to your passions in this week's Pep Talk 💬 Play Rebel and Stay Rebel! ✌️

Born in New York City in 1924, Shirley Chisholm was the first Black woman elected to the United States Congress, and in 1972, she became the first Black woman from a major political party to run for President. As an outspoken politician, educator, and activist, Chisholm fought for gender and racial equality, better wages for workers, and a more equal and just world. In 2015, she was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama, who echoed the words Chisholm herself said she wanted to be remembered by: “Shirley Chisholm had guts.” [This episode originally aired September 2021.] About the Narrator Maya is a recent college graduate who began her Tiktok career during the quarantine lockdown in spring of 2020. As Maya started exploring more ways Tiktok could be used as a means of political change, she began writing witty raps about the former president, which eventually became the “Trump Freestyle” series. As her platform grew, she began making funny educational videos explaining a range of political topics from freedom of speech to how the impeachment process works. She has used her platform to encourage viewers to engage in politics not only through voting, but also by registering as poll workers, contacting their representatives, and even participating in civil disobedience movements like reserving tickets to Trump's June 2020 Tulsa rally. Maya has also received national press coverage this year surrounding her work feeding those in need around St. Louis using her unused university meal plan. In her free time Maya loves writing music and playing tennis.  Credits This podcast is a production of Rebel Girls and is based on the book series Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls. This episode was produced by Camille Stennis. Sound design and mixing by Camille Stennis. This episode was written by Alexis Stratton and fact checked by Joe Rhatigan. Executive Producer is Katie Sprenger. Haley Dapkus is our Production Manager. Original theme music was composed and performed by Elettra Bargiacchi. A big thanks to the whole Rebel Girls team who make this show possible! For more, visit rebelgirls.com. And if you like what you heard, don’t forget to rate and review this episode, and share it with your friends! Until next time, stay REBEL!

This season, we invited our credit readers to interview our storytellers. Today, you'll hear from Justina Machado who narrated the previous episode about Celia Cruz. If you haven't listened to last week's episode, now is a good time to go back and check it out! Machado reveals the way she cultivated her personal style as well as how she finds hope in the current political climate. [This episode originally aired June 2019.] About Machado: A talented and versatile actress, Justina Machado continues to endear audiences and earn critical acclaim with each new role. Machado can currently be seen starring as the lead in Netflix’s highly-reviewed reimagining of Norman Lear’s ONE DAY AT A TIME opposite Rita Moreno. The series follows three generations of a Cuban-American family living under one roof. Machado stars as Penelope, a newly-single war veteran, raising her two children with the help of her mother (Moreno). Machado appeared opposite Gina Rodriguez in the fourth season of the CW comedy series, JANE THE VIRGIN, and voiced the character Carmen in Disney’s animated series, ELENA OF AVALOR. Machado is perhaps most well known for her role as “Vanessa Diaz” in HBO’s SIX FEET UNDER, which ended its five-season run in 2005 with an impressive accumulation of award nominations and wins including a SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series. On the big screen, Machado has been seen in THE PURGE: ANARCHY, which was released by Universal in 2014. Additional film credits include THE ACCIDENTAL HUSBAND opposite Uma Thurman, Bernard Tevenier’s IN THE ELECTRIC MIST opposite Tommy Lee Jones, and the independent film PEDRO, which debuted at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival. Her television credits include QUEEN OF THE SOUTH, GREY’S ANATOMY, WELCOME TO THE FAMILY, PRIVATE PRACTICE, DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES, DEVIOUS MAIDS, SWITCHED AT BIRTH, THE FOSTERS, and MURDER POLICE. On the stage, Machado made her Broadway debut in the Tony Award-winning Best Musical IN THE HEIGHTS at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, as well as the world premiere production of A FREE MAN OF COLOR directed by George Wolfe at the Lincoln Center Theater. Machado also starred opposite Marc Feuerstein in Neil Labutte’s SOME GIRLS at the Geffen Theater. Born and raised in Chicago as the eldest of five children in a family of Puerto Rican descent, Machado started acting upon graduating from high school. Her stellar performances on stage at the Latino Chicago Theater paved the way for her now burgeoning career. Credits: This episode of Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls is produced by Elena Favilli, Joy Fowlkes, and Meg Murnane. Sound design and original theme music by Elettra Bargiacchi. Mattia Marcelli was the sound mixer. Special thanks to Clio McClure for coordinating our credit readers and interviewers.

For this mini-series, we sat down with seven athletes across different sports to not only hear their stories of real resilience, but to give them space to tell those stories in their own way. From coming back from an injury to rising through grief, each athlete found her way back to confidence and self-worth. And in doing that, they showed us what it truly means to be a Rebel Girl, staying true to themselves through everything that life threw at them. Season One is live on the Rebel Girls podcast and YouTube channel so go check it out. And don't forget to stay tuned for Season Two coming this fall. As always, Stay Rebel!