March 7, 2025 • 21 mins
✨ Theater producer, lawyer, AND children’s book author? Meena Harris proves you don’t have to choose just one dream—you can chase them all! In this exciting episode of the Lingokids Podcast, Growin’ Up!, Emily and Luis explore how Meena went from the courtroom to writing best-selling books and producing Broadway shows.
🎤 Plus, Luis takes a time-travel adventure to meet Andrea Bocelli, the world-famous singer who also started as a lawyer! And with so many passions to explore, Luis faces a big decision—can he choose just one summer camp? 🤔
💭 Tune in for a fun and inspiring adventure about following your dreams—no matter how many you have!
Episode Transcript
***** Parents, in the Lingokids app, we have plenty of interactive activities, games, songs, and more that blend educational subjects and modern life skills to help get your kids ready for today's changing world! From math to making friends, reading to resilience, collaboration, creativity, and so much more, spark curiosity, imagination, and success with Lingokids! *****
A Lingokids Original podcast produced by Studio Ochenta
Starring Emily Calandrelli as Herself and Parker James Logie as Luis
Guest: Meena Harris
Executive Producer: Olga Klepova
With additional production support from:
Head Writers: Maru Lombardo and Luis López
Production Coordinators: Catalina Hoyos
Editor: Luis López
Theme Song Written by: Fredrika Stahl
Theme Song Composed by: Fredrika Stahl
Music Production: Dimitri Peronno
Theme Song Performed by: The Angel City Youth Chorale directed by Heather Catalena
Recording Engineers: Bill Trousdale at Audiovisions and Jason Schimmel at Bunker Studios
Legal Services: Lisa Nitti, Ludye Nisol, Alix d’Argentré
Special thanks to: Meena Harris and Phenomenal Media
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
You know, if you asked me at the age of
seven or eight, I probably would have told you, I
want to be a lawyer.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
I'm going to go to law school. So sometimes I'm a.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Lawyer, other times I'm a theater producer, or sometimes I'm
a children's book author. I grew up in a really incredible,
inspiring family of all women. It was my mom and
my grandmother and my aunt and a lot of my
grandmother's best friends and family really showed me the power
(00:33):
of using the law as a tool for change, and
so I was so inspired by that.
Speaker 3 (00:40):
That's Mina Harris, a lawyer, Tony Award winning producer, and
New York Times best selling children's books author.
Speaker 4 (00:49):
Mina is one of a kind. She shows us.
Speaker 3 (00:52):
That no matter how many dreams you have, you can
always change and pursue them if you put your mind
and hearts to it. And she joins us on this
episode of Growing Up. Welcome to Growing Up the Lingo
Kids podcast. It encourages kids to dream big and discover
(01:14):
who they want to be.
Speaker 5 (01:38):
Oh.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
I just love sunny summer days. I love all the
birds singing, the splash splashing in the pool. It's just
so much fun. Oh, and everyone's walking around with yummy
ice cream cones. Oh oh in summer camps gosh, speaking
of which, Louise should be.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
Arriving any minute now.
Speaker 3 (02:00):
There he is, Hi, Louise Hire, Emily, it's so good
to see you.
Speaker 5 (02:05):
You too, bye bus, Thanks for the ride.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
How is your music summer camp?
Speaker 5 (02:13):
It was so cool, Emily. I learned how to play
the drums you did.
Speaker 4 (02:18):
I love it.
Speaker 5 (02:19):
But there's still so many weeks of summer left, Emily,
and so many other cool camps. Look, I got some flyers.
Let me get them from my backpack.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
Wow, Louise, that looks more like hundreds of flyers.
Speaker 5 (02:36):
A couple hundreds. Yeah, check these out. This is the
let your drum Out Summer Camp Flyer Oh more drumming fun.
This is the iHeart Art summer Camp flyer.
Speaker 4 (02:47):
Oh.
Speaker 3 (02:47):
I guess that's a painting camp more than a music
summer camp.
Speaker 5 (02:51):
I also have dancing camp, oh and science camp.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
And Louise, I see you're excited not only about music
and drums, but also about so many other things you.
Speaker 4 (03:03):
Want to learn about.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
I sure, I am, but I think you can only
choose one summer camp for what's left of the holiday.
Speaker 5 (03:13):
Uh, there's so much to choose from, Emily. I want
to learn more about drums, but I also want to
be a good swimmer, and a good scientist and a
good dancer.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
Oh, Louis, it's okay to have many dreams at once.
Speaker 5 (03:27):
Really, but don't grown up just do one thing like
astronautstus space stuff. Painters paint stuff, and dancers dance.
Speaker 3 (03:36):
Well, actually, lots of grown ups do different things throughout
their lives.
Speaker 4 (03:42):
Let's see.
Speaker 3 (03:43):
Have you ever heard of Andrea Bocelli?
Speaker 5 (03:47):
Andrea Bocelli? Nope, but I like that name.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Yes, he has a cool name, indeed, and he's also
one of the most famous singers in the world. Andrea
is from Italy and he sings classical music.
Speaker 4 (04:04):
His voice is so, so.
Speaker 2 (04:06):
So powerful.
Speaker 3 (04:08):
But he was something very different before he was a singer. What, Emily,
why don't we take a little time travel trip with
our very special go Forward cube so I can show
you what Andrea used to do.
Speaker 5 (04:23):
Whoaha, time travel summer adventure. Here we go, Where are
we traveling to?
Speaker 4 (04:29):
Let's go to Italy in the nineteen eighties. Ready, let's go.
Speaker 5 (04:36):
Oh wow, this place is big and has lots of chairs.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
Are we in a theater Emily.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
This is actually a courtroom, Luis, But not any courtroom.
This is the one in Italy where Andrea Bocelli worked
back in the nineteen eighties when he was a lawyer.
Speaker 5 (05:04):
A lawyer courtrooms? What is all that?
Speaker 4 (05:07):
I'll explain, Louise.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
You see everywhere in the world there are laws. That is,
things that countries consider right or wrong.
Speaker 5 (05:17):
Ah, like when MAXI bites something that he shouldn't and I.
Speaker 4 (05:20):
Tell him bad boy more or less?
Speaker 5 (05:23):
Yes, okay.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
And if people do wrong things or someone did something
wrong to them, they call lawyers to help them out.
Speaker 5 (05:32):
Helping people sounds like a cool superpower to have.
Speaker 4 (05:36):
Yes, it's a huge responsibility.
Speaker 3 (05:39):
So people and lawyers get together in courtrooms like this
to discuss what they should do after someone did something wrong.
Speaker 5 (05:48):
Oh, I think I get it. But why do they
have to be in courtrooms? Can't they just solve their
problems at home.
Speaker 3 (05:54):
Well, courtrooms are safe spaces to discuss problems, and it's
where people and lawyer speak to a judge. That's the
person who decides if they're guilty or not.
Speaker 5 (06:05):
Oh, that's serious. Reminds me of my parents in what way?
Louise well, sometimes mom and Dad want to find out
who ate the leftover Sandwiger broke the remote control? Me
or Maxie. So they call us both into the kitchen
and ask us both. I always tell the truth. It's me.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
Telling the truth is a big part of what a
lawyer needs to help people out in any case. Remember
Andrea Bocelli.
Speaker 5 (06:33):
Yes, the lawyer who became a singer.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
Well, he eventually moved from this very court room we're
in to.
Speaker 4 (06:40):
A concert hall.
Speaker 3 (06:42):
Let's time travel ten years later and see what came
of him.
Speaker 4 (06:46):
You're ready, super ready?
Speaker 5 (06:49):
Me? Wow, Emily, is that song coming from that little
man over there?
Speaker 3 (06:58):
Yes, Louise, but he's not little, he's just very far away.
See he's right in the middle of the stage, and
we're on these upper seats. This concert hall is so big,
isn't it It is?
Speaker 5 (07:13):
I feel like a tiny miniac in me too.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
So that man on the stage is none other than
Andrea Bocelli in full performance.
Speaker 5 (07:24):
That's Andrea. Wow, how did he become a singer?
Speaker 4 (07:28):
You see we're in the nineteen nineties now. In this decade, an.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
Italian rock star named Zuko was looking for singers for
his band. Andrea always loved music, and he took a chance.
He sent his recording and Floi La got chosen to
sing with Zukuo. So Andrea finally had the chance to
make that dream come true.
Speaker 5 (07:51):
That's so cool. Does that mean that I could be
a really good drummer and then be a really good lawyer? Yes?
Speaker 3 (08:00):
And I have another very cool example of a grown
up who is doing many different things?
Speaker 5 (08:06):
Really who?
Speaker 3 (08:07):
Her name is Mina Harris. She's been a lawyer for
a long time too. She's also part of the Kamala
Harris family, the US former vice president. A family full
of lawyers.
Speaker 5 (08:21):
Cool? And what else does Mina do? You said? She
does many different things? Well?
Speaker 3 (08:25):
She has written several children's books too. Oh, and not
only that, Louise, she also has helped so many people
make cool plays for Broadway.
Speaker 4 (08:35):
NNA is one of a kind. Really, Wow, that's.
Speaker 5 (08:38):
A lot of things. Wait, I don't get it, Emily,
What does being a lawyer have to do with writing
children's books? Books have drawings and words and are fun?
Lawyers sound serious?
Speaker 3 (08:50):
Oh? That's a good question, Louise. Do you want to
ask Mina about it? Maybe?
Speaker 4 (08:55):
Yes?
Speaker 5 (08:56):
And I can choose my next summer camp after that.
Speaker 4 (08:59):
Oh, of course you can, Louise. Let's go.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
Welcome, dear listeners to our Growing Up talking game show. Today,
we're diving into the exciting topic of chasing dreams with
our incredible guest, lawyer, producer, and author, Mina Harris. Please
welcome Mina with a big round of applause.
Speaker 2 (09:23):
Hi, I'm Mina Harris.
Speaker 1 (09:25):
I am the founder and CEO of Phenomenal Media, and
I'm also a children's book author and a lawyer.
Speaker 5 (09:31):
Hi, Mina, and welcome to our show. I hope you're
ready because I have lots of questions for you.
Speaker 4 (09:36):
Go ahead, Louise, Mina.
Speaker 5 (09:38):
I'm deciding which summer camp to go to because there
are so many to choose from, and I wanted to
know which camp you went to when you were a kid.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
I went to this incredible art camp in Oakland, California,
where I grew up. I was there all day, every day,
using pastels and watercolor and all different types of acrylic
paint and sculpture. When I was seven, I was very curious.
I was curious about the world. I had a lot
(10:06):
of questions. I was creative.
Speaker 2 (10:09):
I called myself an artist at that age, and I.
Speaker 1 (10:13):
Just loved to make visual arts and all mediums, and
so I love to draw and paint.
Speaker 5 (10:19):
I love drawing and painting too.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
That's another one for you, Louise. So you loved drawing
and painting when you were a kid, Mina, but you
still chose to become a lawyer.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
That's right.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
You know, if you asked me at the age of
seven or eight, I probably would have told you I
want to be a lawyer.
Speaker 2 (10:36):
I'm going to go to law school.
Speaker 4 (10:37):
How did that happen?
Speaker 1 (10:38):
I grew up in a really incredible inspiring family of
all women. It was my mom and my grandmother and
my aunt, and my grandma.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
Was a scientist. I knew that I did not want
to be a scientist, sorry, Grandma.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
But my mom and aunt were lawyers, and a lot
of my grandmother's best friends and family really showed me
the power of using the law as a tool for
change and a tool for making an impact in your community.
Speaker 2 (11:11):
And so I was so inspired by that.
Speaker 4 (11:14):
Yeah, that all makes sense.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
Many of us do follow the same professions as our
family members or people who inspire us.
Speaker 5 (11:22):
Mina. Emily said, you write kids books. Wow, how did
you start doing that? Weren't you like a lawyer before.
I believe I was like.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
Thirty five when I really decided that I wanted to
try something different than what I had been doing in
my career, in my life as a lawyer.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
And it started with a creative.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
Project, and that project was writing a kid's book. It
was nights and weekends that I was working on this
passion project.
Speaker 3 (11:53):
Really, and why did you decide to write your first book,
Kamala and Maya's big idea.
Speaker 1 (11:59):
I was reading to my kids like The Night Moon,
The Hungry Caterpillar, Brown Bear, so many amazing kids books,
but so many of them were about animals, and I thought,
I have this lovely daughter, and what if she was
the main character of the book. It's why I started
(12:23):
writing children's books because I realized at the time that
there were not many books that were told from the
perspective of a little black girl, and I wanted to
be a part of helping to tell that story through
that lens.
Speaker 5 (12:37):
I love to be the main character of a book.
One day I can be Sir Luis the Night and
MAXI can be the dragon dog Raw.
Speaker 4 (12:45):
That will be a fun book to read.
Speaker 5 (12:47):
Louise, Yeah, and I can be a writer just like
Mina and make up adventure stories.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
Not only that, Louise Mina also makes stories for theater.
Speaker 5 (12:59):
No, how did that happen? Mina? I started writing more
kids books.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
I learned about how you can take, you know, the
a kid's book and make it into a kid's movie.
And so that was really where I started to learn
and explore and discover what it means to be a producer.
Speaker 4 (13:20):
Oh right, you became a producer.
Speaker 5 (13:23):
Wait, what's a producer? Emily?
Speaker 3 (13:25):
A producer is a person who helps get all the
things and all the people to make something like a
movie or the Growing Up podcast, or an event or
a play happen, Mina, Do you have a cool example
of that.
Speaker 1 (13:40):
My kids wanted a little play over Christmas with their friends.
My girls are six and eight, and the play got
a little more intense and there were, you know, disagreements
about should there be music in the play. The producer
is somebody who may decide whether or not there's music.
Speaker 5 (14:02):
Oh, I get it.
Speaker 3 (14:04):
Now, Mina. I wanted to ask you something else. How
do you think being a lawyer helped you become a producer.
Speaker 1 (14:12):
You know, part of being a lawyer is problem solving,
and you know, asking questions and figuring out how do
you get through it and get the answer to your question.
Speaker 5 (14:23):
Because lawyers have to figure out how to help people right,
good memory, Louise, and in order to help people out,
lawyers need.
Speaker 3 (14:30):
To ask many questions such as did you pack your backpack,
Louise or did MAXI do it? Or questions such as
and what time did you leave for summer camp?
Speaker 5 (14:43):
And do producers ask lots of questions.
Speaker 1 (14:45):
To Mina, there are a lot of aspects of being
a producer that's about connecting the dots and a huge part.
Speaker 2 (14:51):
Of that often is problem solving.
Speaker 1 (14:53):
Do we decide if this play is going to have music?
Is it going to be a music goal? What happens
if you decide not and then the musician doesn't show
up on the day of recording?
Speaker 2 (15:04):
What do you do?
Speaker 5 (15:05):
Yep? Lots of questions there too.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
Thanks so much for this wonderful and inspiring interview, Mina.
Speaker 5 (15:14):
It's so cool that you get to have so much
fun being so many different things.
Speaker 3 (15:18):
And speaking of fun, are you ready to jump into
our game show, Louise?
Speaker 5 (15:23):
Super ready?
Speaker 4 (15:29):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (15:30):
Today we are playing Two Truths and a Lie. This
is a very simple game Mina Luis, and I will
say three sentences and you have to spot the one
that's a lie and then tell us why.
Speaker 5 (15:45):
Okay, here we go, Mina, spot the lie in these ones.
Number one, lawyers can only care about winning arguments. Number
two lawyers can help kids and families stay safe. Number
three lawyers can help make sure things are fair for everyone.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
I mean, the first one is alive.
Speaker 5 (16:10):
We really, really really care.
Speaker 2 (16:13):
About winning arguments.
Speaker 1 (16:15):
It might even seem like that's all we care about,
but it is true that we care about.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
More than that.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
And you know I am an example of that, including
you know I care about other things, even outside of
the law.
Speaker 5 (16:31):
You got it right, Mina, want to do Number two, Emily, of.
Speaker 3 (16:35):
Course, here we go, spot the lie and one of
the three following cases. Number one producers help plan projects
like movies, music, or games. Number two producers can work
on fun things like cartoons and video games. Number three
(16:57):
producers don't use creativity. They just boss people around.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
That's great.
Speaker 5 (17:05):
I have been called bossy in my life.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
But number three is wrong. That's a lie.
Speaker 5 (17:12):
Producers are very creative.
Speaker 1 (17:14):
They're both creative and they're problem solvers, and sometimes it
is necessary to boss people around, but there's a way
to do it that is succeeding at being a producer
is that everybody is happy and you get to tell
the best story possible.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
And the best way possible.
Speaker 4 (17:34):
Awesome answer, Mina.
Speaker 3 (17:36):
Movies, series and shows and videos are possible because of
hardworking producers after all. Okay, off to the last one
spot the lie in one of the three following cases.
Number One, writers can create stories about magical world, superheroes
(17:57):
or even talking animals. Number two two, writers always have
to work alone and can't team up with others. Number three,
writers can make people laugh, cry or dream with their words.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
The lie is number two that writers always have to
work alone and can't team up with others. Even if
there's only one author on a book, that even that
author can't make a book on their own.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
There's so many different people who.
Speaker 1 (18:28):
Are involved and who work with that writer to make
the story in the book possible, ranging from editors to illustrators.
Speaker 3 (18:38):
Thanks for playing with us today, Mina, talk to you
see and by I had too.
Speaker 4 (18:43):
Much fun, did you, Louise?
Speaker 5 (18:45):
This was awesome? Emily?
Speaker 3 (18:47):
And what did you learn from our interview and our
game show with Mina?
Speaker 5 (18:51):
I learned that we can choose dreams when we're kids
and the new ones when we grow up. It's not
always easy, but if you really love your dream, any
pathing take is okay, and stuff you learned can help
you get there.
Speaker 4 (19:03):
That's spot on, Louise.
Speaker 5 (19:05):
And also that's okay to want to be different things.
You don't have to be just one forever. And now
I want to be so many things, Emily.
Speaker 3 (19:13):
And you sure can just like Mina, Yeah, you're right.
And what do you have in mind?
Speaker 5 (19:20):
I want to be a lawyer, a writer, and a
singer like Andrea Bocelli.
Speaker 3 (19:25):
Andrea would be so proud of you, and that reminds me.
Don't you have a summer camp to choose for the
rest of the holiday.
Speaker 5 (19:33):
You're right, Emily, Sir Luise the Night is ready to
choose his summer camp.
Speaker 4 (19:38):
Bring on Louise's backpack. Care for Louise.
Speaker 3 (19:41):
The production team will drop it right here, one, two, three.
Speaker 4 (19:46):
There we go.
Speaker 5 (19:47):
Whoof almost got me?
Speaker 4 (19:49):
Thank you team. Okay, Louise, open up your backpack.
Speaker 5 (19:54):
So many, so many summer camp flyers. Okay, take it easy, Luise.
Speaker 4 (19:59):
It's okay, Louise, You've got this.
Speaker 5 (20:01):
Yes, Emily, you're right.
Speaker 3 (20:03):
So your last summer camp was about music.
Speaker 5 (20:06):
And I think I want to learn about writing books now.
Speaker 4 (20:09):
Uh huh.
Speaker 5 (20:10):
I'd also love to sing.
Speaker 3 (20:12):
So remember you can chase one dream now and go
after another one later.
Speaker 5 (20:18):
Okay, so this summer I'll go for the writing camp.
Speaker 4 (20:25):
There we go.
Speaker 5 (20:26):
Whoo. I feel like there was something heavy on my
chest and now it isn't there anymore.
Speaker 3 (20:31):
Oh, I'm glad you're feeling better, Louise. Remember, take your
time to dream big and dream a lot.
Speaker 5 (20:38):
I will, Emily. I'll still keep the flyers fill my
good paper planes.
Speaker 3 (20:46):
Thanks for tagging along on this special episode of growing up. Remember,
little listener, dream big and always stay curious. Louise, are
you ready for more adventure?
Speaker 5 (20:58):
Wait? There's more?
Speaker 3 (21:00):
Yep, there's loads more to explore on the world's number
one kids learning app, Lingo Kids. It has tons of videos,
games and podcasts just like this one, and every single
one is fun and educational. Download the Lingo Kids app
today for free.
You know, if you asked me at the age of
seven or eight, I probably would have told you, I
want to be a lawyer.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
I'm going to go to law school. So sometimes I'm a.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Lawyer, other times I'm a theater producer, or sometimes I'm
a children's book author. I grew up in a really incredible,
inspiring family of all women. It was my mom and
my grandmother and my aunt and a lot of my
grandmother's best friends and family really showed me the power
(00:33):
of using the law as a tool for change, and
so I was so inspired by that.
Speaker 3 (00:40):
That's Mina Harris, a lawyer, Tony Award winning producer, and
New York Times best selling children's books author.
Speaker 4 (00:49):
Mina is one of a kind. She shows us.
Speaker 3 (00:52):
That no matter how many dreams you have, you can
always change and pursue them if you put your mind
and hearts to it. And she joins us on this
episode of Growing Up. Welcome to Growing Up the Lingo
Kids podcast. It encourages kids to dream big and discover
(01:14):
who they want to be.
Speaker 5 (01:38):
Oh.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
I just love sunny summer days. I love all the
birds singing, the splash splashing in the pool. It's just
so much fun. Oh, and everyone's walking around with yummy
ice cream cones. Oh oh in summer camps gosh, speaking
of which, Louise should be.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
Arriving any minute now.
Speaker 3 (02:00):
There he is, Hi, Louise Hire, Emily, it's so good
to see you.
Speaker 5 (02:05):
You too, bye bus, Thanks for the ride.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
How is your music summer camp?
Speaker 5 (02:13):
It was so cool, Emily. I learned how to play
the drums you did.
Speaker 4 (02:18):
I love it.
Speaker 5 (02:19):
But there's still so many weeks of summer left, Emily,
and so many other cool camps. Look, I got some flyers.
Let me get them from my backpack.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
Wow, Louise, that looks more like hundreds of flyers.
Speaker 5 (02:36):
A couple hundreds. Yeah, check these out. This is the
let your drum Out Summer Camp Flyer Oh more drumming fun.
This is the iHeart Art summer Camp flyer.
Speaker 4 (02:47):
Oh.
Speaker 3 (02:47):
I guess that's a painting camp more than a music
summer camp.
Speaker 5 (02:51):
I also have dancing camp, oh and science camp.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
And Louise, I see you're excited not only about music
and drums, but also about so many other things you.
Speaker 4 (03:03):
Want to learn about.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
I sure, I am, but I think you can only
choose one summer camp for what's left of the holiday.
Speaker 5 (03:13):
Uh, there's so much to choose from, Emily. I want
to learn more about drums, but I also want to
be a good swimmer, and a good scientist and a
good dancer.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
Oh, Louis, it's okay to have many dreams at once.
Speaker 5 (03:27):
Really, but don't grown up just do one thing like
astronautstus space stuff. Painters paint stuff, and dancers dance.
Speaker 3 (03:36):
Well, actually, lots of grown ups do different things throughout
their lives.
Speaker 4 (03:42):
Let's see.
Speaker 3 (03:43):
Have you ever heard of Andrea Bocelli?
Speaker 5 (03:47):
Andrea Bocelli? Nope, but I like that name.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Yes, he has a cool name, indeed, and he's also
one of the most famous singers in the world. Andrea
is from Italy and he sings classical music.
Speaker 4 (04:04):
His voice is so, so.
Speaker 2 (04:06):
So powerful.
Speaker 3 (04:08):
But he was something very different before he was a singer. What, Emily,
why don't we take a little time travel trip with
our very special go Forward cube so I can show
you what Andrea used to do.
Speaker 5 (04:23):
Whoaha, time travel summer adventure. Here we go, Where are
we traveling to?
Speaker 4 (04:29):
Let's go to Italy in the nineteen eighties. Ready, let's go.
Speaker 5 (04:36):
Oh wow, this place is big and has lots of chairs.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
Are we in a theater Emily.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
This is actually a courtroom, Luis, But not any courtroom.
This is the one in Italy where Andrea Bocelli worked
back in the nineteen eighties when he was a lawyer.
Speaker 5 (05:04):
A lawyer courtrooms? What is all that?
Speaker 4 (05:07):
I'll explain, Louise.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
You see everywhere in the world there are laws. That is,
things that countries consider right or wrong.
Speaker 5 (05:17):
Ah, like when MAXI bites something that he shouldn't and I.
Speaker 4 (05:20):
Tell him bad boy more or less?
Speaker 5 (05:23):
Yes, okay.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
And if people do wrong things or someone did something
wrong to them, they call lawyers to help them out.
Speaker 5 (05:32):
Helping people sounds like a cool superpower to have.
Speaker 4 (05:36):
Yes, it's a huge responsibility.
Speaker 3 (05:39):
So people and lawyers get together in courtrooms like this
to discuss what they should do after someone did something wrong.
Speaker 5 (05:48):
Oh, I think I get it. But why do they
have to be in courtrooms? Can't they just solve their
problems at home.
Speaker 3 (05:54):
Well, courtrooms are safe spaces to discuss problems, and it's
where people and lawyer speak to a judge. That's the
person who decides if they're guilty or not.
Speaker 5 (06:05):
Oh, that's serious. Reminds me of my parents in what way?
Louise well, sometimes mom and Dad want to find out
who ate the leftover Sandwiger broke the remote control? Me
or Maxie. So they call us both into the kitchen
and ask us both. I always tell the truth. It's me.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
Telling the truth is a big part of what a
lawyer needs to help people out in any case. Remember
Andrea Bocelli.
Speaker 5 (06:33):
Yes, the lawyer who became a singer.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
Well, he eventually moved from this very court room we're
in to.
Speaker 4 (06:40):
A concert hall.
Speaker 3 (06:42):
Let's time travel ten years later and see what came
of him.
Speaker 4 (06:46):
You're ready, super ready?
Speaker 5 (06:49):
Me? Wow, Emily, is that song coming from that little
man over there?
Speaker 3 (06:58):
Yes, Louise, but he's not little, he's just very far away.
See he's right in the middle of the stage, and
we're on these upper seats. This concert hall is so big,
isn't it It is?
Speaker 5 (07:13):
I feel like a tiny miniac in me too.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
So that man on the stage is none other than
Andrea Bocelli in full performance.
Speaker 5 (07:24):
That's Andrea. Wow, how did he become a singer?
Speaker 4 (07:28):
You see we're in the nineteen nineties now. In this decade, an.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
Italian rock star named Zuko was looking for singers for
his band. Andrea always loved music, and he took a chance.
He sent his recording and Floi La got chosen to
sing with Zukuo. So Andrea finally had the chance to
make that dream come true.
Speaker 5 (07:51):
That's so cool. Does that mean that I could be
a really good drummer and then be a really good lawyer? Yes?
Speaker 3 (08:00):
And I have another very cool example of a grown
up who is doing many different things?
Speaker 5 (08:06):
Really who?
Speaker 3 (08:07):
Her name is Mina Harris. She's been a lawyer for
a long time too. She's also part of the Kamala
Harris family, the US former vice president. A family full
of lawyers.
Speaker 5 (08:21):
Cool? And what else does Mina do? You said? She
does many different things? Well?
Speaker 3 (08:25):
She has written several children's books too. Oh, and not
only that, Louise, she also has helped so many people
make cool plays for Broadway.
Speaker 4 (08:35):
NNA is one of a kind. Really, Wow, that's.
Speaker 5 (08:38):
A lot of things. Wait, I don't get it, Emily,
What does being a lawyer have to do with writing
children's books? Books have drawings and words and are fun?
Lawyers sound serious?
Speaker 3 (08:50):
Oh? That's a good question, Louise. Do you want to
ask Mina about it? Maybe?
Speaker 4 (08:55):
Yes?
Speaker 5 (08:56):
And I can choose my next summer camp after that.
Speaker 4 (08:59):
Oh, of course you can, Louise. Let's go.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
Welcome, dear listeners to our Growing Up talking game show. Today,
we're diving into the exciting topic of chasing dreams with
our incredible guest, lawyer, producer, and author, Mina Harris. Please
welcome Mina with a big round of applause.
Speaker 2 (09:23):
Hi, I'm Mina Harris.
Speaker 1 (09:25):
I am the founder and CEO of Phenomenal Media, and
I'm also a children's book author and a lawyer.
Speaker 5 (09:31):
Hi, Mina, and welcome to our show. I hope you're
ready because I have lots of questions for you.
Speaker 4 (09:36):
Go ahead, Louise, Mina.
Speaker 5 (09:38):
I'm deciding which summer camp to go to because there
are so many to choose from, and I wanted to
know which camp you went to when you were a kid.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
I went to this incredible art camp in Oakland, California,
where I grew up. I was there all day, every day,
using pastels and watercolor and all different types of acrylic
paint and sculpture. When I was seven, I was very curious.
I was curious about the world. I had a lot
(10:06):
of questions. I was creative.
Speaker 2 (10:09):
I called myself an artist at that age, and I.
Speaker 1 (10:13):
Just loved to make visual arts and all mediums, and
so I love to draw and paint.
Speaker 5 (10:19):
I love drawing and painting too.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
That's another one for you, Louise. So you loved drawing
and painting when you were a kid, Mina, but you
still chose to become a lawyer.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
That's right.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
You know, if you asked me at the age of
seven or eight, I probably would have told you I
want to be a lawyer.
Speaker 2 (10:36):
I'm going to go to law school.
Speaker 4 (10:37):
How did that happen?
Speaker 1 (10:38):
I grew up in a really incredible inspiring family of
all women. It was my mom and my grandmother and
my aunt, and my grandma.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
Was a scientist. I knew that I did not want
to be a scientist, sorry, Grandma.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
But my mom and aunt were lawyers, and a lot
of my grandmother's best friends and family really showed me
the power of using the law as a tool for
change and a tool for making an impact in your community.
Speaker 2 (11:11):
And so I was so inspired by that.
Speaker 4 (11:14):
Yeah, that all makes sense.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
Many of us do follow the same professions as our
family members or people who inspire us.
Speaker 5 (11:22):
Mina. Emily said, you write kids books. Wow, how did
you start doing that? Weren't you like a lawyer before.
I believe I was like.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
Thirty five when I really decided that I wanted to
try something different than what I had been doing in
my career, in my life as a lawyer.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
And it started with a creative.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
Project, and that project was writing a kid's book. It
was nights and weekends that I was working on this
passion project.
Speaker 3 (11:53):
Really, and why did you decide to write your first book,
Kamala and Maya's big idea.
Speaker 1 (11:59):
I was reading to my kids like The Night Moon,
The Hungry Caterpillar, Brown Bear, so many amazing kids books,
but so many of them were about animals, and I thought,
I have this lovely daughter, and what if she was
the main character of the book. It's why I started
(12:23):
writing children's books because I realized at the time that
there were not many books that were told from the
perspective of a little black girl, and I wanted to
be a part of helping to tell that story through
that lens.
Speaker 5 (12:37):
I love to be the main character of a book.
One day I can be Sir Luis the Night and
MAXI can be the dragon dog Raw.
Speaker 4 (12:45):
That will be a fun book to read.
Speaker 5 (12:47):
Louise, Yeah, and I can be a writer just like
Mina and make up adventure stories.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
Not only that, Louise Mina also makes stories for theater.
Speaker 5 (12:59):
No, how did that happen? Mina? I started writing more
kids books.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
I learned about how you can take, you know, the
a kid's book and make it into a kid's movie.
And so that was really where I started to learn
and explore and discover what it means to be a producer.
Speaker 4 (13:20):
Oh right, you became a producer.
Speaker 5 (13:23):
Wait, what's a producer? Emily?
Speaker 3 (13:25):
A producer is a person who helps get all the
things and all the people to make something like a
movie or the Growing Up podcast, or an event or
a play happen, Mina, Do you have a cool example
of that.
Speaker 1 (13:40):
My kids wanted a little play over Christmas with their friends.
My girls are six and eight, and the play got
a little more intense and there were, you know, disagreements
about should there be music in the play. The producer
is somebody who may decide whether or not there's music.
Speaker 5 (14:02):
Oh, I get it.
Speaker 3 (14:04):
Now, Mina. I wanted to ask you something else. How
do you think being a lawyer helped you become a producer.
Speaker 1 (14:12):
You know, part of being a lawyer is problem solving,
and you know, asking questions and figuring out how do
you get through it and get the answer to your question.
Speaker 5 (14:23):
Because lawyers have to figure out how to help people right,
good memory, Louise, and in order to help people out,
lawyers need.
Speaker 3 (14:30):
To ask many questions such as did you pack your backpack,
Louise or did MAXI do it? Or questions such as
and what time did you leave for summer camp?
Speaker 5 (14:43):
And do producers ask lots of questions.
Speaker 1 (14:45):
To Mina, there are a lot of aspects of being
a producer that's about connecting the dots and a huge part.
Speaker 2 (14:51):
Of that often is problem solving.
Speaker 1 (14:53):
Do we decide if this play is going to have music?
Is it going to be a music goal? What happens
if you decide not and then the musician doesn't show
up on the day of recording?
Speaker 2 (15:04):
What do you do?
Speaker 5 (15:05):
Yep? Lots of questions there too.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
Thanks so much for this wonderful and inspiring interview, Mina.
Speaker 5 (15:14):
It's so cool that you get to have so much
fun being so many different things.
Speaker 3 (15:18):
And speaking of fun, are you ready to jump into
our game show, Louise?
Speaker 5 (15:23):
Super ready?
Speaker 4 (15:29):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (15:30):
Today we are playing Two Truths and a Lie. This
is a very simple game Mina Luis, and I will
say three sentences and you have to spot the one
that's a lie and then tell us why.
Speaker 5 (15:45):
Okay, here we go, Mina, spot the lie in these ones.
Number one, lawyers can only care about winning arguments. Number
two lawyers can help kids and families stay safe. Number
three lawyers can help make sure things are fair for everyone.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
I mean, the first one is alive.
Speaker 5 (16:10):
We really, really really care.
Speaker 2 (16:13):
About winning arguments.
Speaker 1 (16:15):
It might even seem like that's all we care about,
but it is true that we care about.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
More than that.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
And you know I am an example of that, including
you know I care about other things, even outside of
the law.
Speaker 5 (16:31):
You got it right, Mina, want to do Number two, Emily, of.
Speaker 3 (16:35):
Course, here we go, spot the lie and one of
the three following cases. Number one producers help plan projects
like movies, music, or games. Number two producers can work
on fun things like cartoons and video games. Number three
(16:57):
producers don't use creativity. They just boss people around.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
That's great.
Speaker 5 (17:05):
I have been called bossy in my life.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
But number three is wrong. That's a lie.
Speaker 5 (17:12):
Producers are very creative.
Speaker 1 (17:14):
They're both creative and they're problem solvers, and sometimes it
is necessary to boss people around, but there's a way
to do it that is succeeding at being a producer
is that everybody is happy and you get to tell
the best story possible.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
And the best way possible.
Speaker 4 (17:34):
Awesome answer, Mina.
Speaker 3 (17:36):
Movies, series and shows and videos are possible because of
hardworking producers after all. Okay, off to the last one
spot the lie in one of the three following cases.
Number One, writers can create stories about magical world, superheroes
(17:57):
or even talking animals. Number two two, writers always have
to work alone and can't team up with others. Number three,
writers can make people laugh, cry or dream with their words.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
The lie is number two that writers always have to
work alone and can't team up with others. Even if
there's only one author on a book, that even that
author can't make a book on their own.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
There's so many different people who.
Speaker 1 (18:28):
Are involved and who work with that writer to make
the story in the book possible, ranging from editors to illustrators.
Speaker 3 (18:38):
Thanks for playing with us today, Mina, talk to you
see and by I had too.
Speaker 4 (18:43):
Much fun, did you, Louise?
Speaker 5 (18:45):
This was awesome? Emily?
Speaker 3 (18:47):
And what did you learn from our interview and our
game show with Mina?
Speaker 5 (18:51):
I learned that we can choose dreams when we're kids
and the new ones when we grow up. It's not
always easy, but if you really love your dream, any
pathing take is okay, and stuff you learned can help
you get there.
Speaker 4 (19:03):
That's spot on, Louise.
Speaker 5 (19:05):
And also that's okay to want to be different things.
You don't have to be just one forever. And now
I want to be so many things, Emily.
Speaker 3 (19:13):
And you sure can just like Mina, Yeah, you're right.
And what do you have in mind?
Speaker 5 (19:20):
I want to be a lawyer, a writer, and a
singer like Andrea Bocelli.
Speaker 3 (19:25):
Andrea would be so proud of you, and that reminds me.
Don't you have a summer camp to choose for the
rest of the holiday.
Speaker 5 (19:33):
You're right, Emily, Sir Luise the Night is ready to
choose his summer camp.
Speaker 4 (19:38):
Bring on Louise's backpack. Care for Louise.
Speaker 3 (19:41):
The production team will drop it right here, one, two, three.
Speaker 4 (19:46):
There we go.
Speaker 5 (19:47):
Whoof almost got me?
Speaker 4 (19:49):
Thank you team. Okay, Louise, open up your backpack.
Speaker 5 (19:54):
So many, so many summer camp flyers. Okay, take it easy, Luise.
Speaker 4 (19:59):
It's okay, Louise, You've got this.
Speaker 5 (20:01):
Yes, Emily, you're right.
Speaker 3 (20:03):
So your last summer camp was about music.
Speaker 5 (20:06):
And I think I want to learn about writing books now.
Speaker 4 (20:09):
Uh huh.
Speaker 5 (20:10):
I'd also love to sing.
Speaker 3 (20:12):
So remember you can chase one dream now and go
after another one later.
Speaker 5 (20:18):
Okay, so this summer I'll go for the writing camp.
Speaker 4 (20:25):
There we go.
Speaker 5 (20:26):
Whoo. I feel like there was something heavy on my
chest and now it isn't there anymore.
Speaker 3 (20:31):
Oh, I'm glad you're feeling better, Louise. Remember, take your
time to dream big and dream a lot.
Speaker 5 (20:38):
I will, Emily. I'll still keep the flyers fill my
good paper planes.
Speaker 3 (20:46):
Thanks for tagging along on this special episode of growing up. Remember,
little listener, dream big and always stay curious. Louise, are
you ready for more adventure?
Speaker 5 (20:58):
Wait? There's more?
Speaker 3 (21:00):
Yep, there's loads more to explore on the world's number
one kids learning app, Lingo Kids. It has tons of videos,
games and podcasts just like this one, and every single
one is fun and educational. Download the Lingo Kids app
today for free.
Host
Emily Calandrelli
Popular Podcasts
United States of Kennedy
United States of Kennedy is a podcast about our cultural fascination with the Kennedy dynasty. Every week, hosts Lyra Smith and George Civeris go into one aspect of the Kennedy story.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com