Love Is Blind

Coffee pop-culture podcast No Free Refills is back for another thought-provoking, insight-serving episode about Toxic Masculinity. Hosts Tymika Lawrence and Ezra Baker discuss the ins-and-outs of the social construct and its inherent destructiveness and pervasiveness—from stalking, violent and misogynistic viral TikTok stars, to CrossFit.

On the latest episode of No Free Refills, Ezra and Tymika drink and discuss new show sponsor Dayglow Coffee while sipping on Drop Coffee's Ana Sora Ethiopia and Dayglow's own F01 before diving into the pop-culture internet phenomenon of stan culture. Grinnell College describes fan culture, or fandom, as a term that "describes communities built around a shared enjoyment of an aspect of popular culture, such as books, movies, TV shows, bands, sports or sports teams, etc. Fan cultures are examples of participatory cultures. Participatory cultures involve fans acting not only as consumers but also as producers and creators of some form of creative media. Though most fan cultures, including sports fans and fans of music groups, have elements of participatory culture, media fandom in particular encourages creative expression and artistic production by its participants." What separates your typical fandom with standom is a combination of rabid loyalty, social media, and a bit of stalker behavior. NPR explains, "while some say the term is a combination of 'fan' and 'stalker,' 'stan' was first coined in 2000 when Eminem dropped a twisted allegory in a song called 'Stan,' about a man who was pushed to the edge when his idol wouldn't answer his fan mail. The word used to be synonymous with overzealous or obsessed. But nearly 20 years later, it's become a badge of honor for fans committed enough to show up and go all out for their favorite star on the Internet." NPR warns, "if motivated enough, stans that congregate on social media actually can change the trajectory of their artist's path — and the life of anyone who stands in the way. This shift in power dynamics can even dictate what kind of music the artist makes, how they perform it and who gets to hear it. It's creating a feedback loop that can reward performative online personas more than genuine artistic vision." Stan communities discussed: Nicki Minaj – The Barbz Rihanna – Navy Beyoncé – BeyHive Mariah Carey – The Lambily Stalkers discussed: Ricardo López Recommendations: The Meaning of Mariah Carey (on audiobook — Mariah Carey both reads and sings)

It's officially wedding season—and it's a busy wedding season. To celebrate, No Free Refills hosts Tymika Lawrence and Ezra Baker sip coffee while discussing their favorite wedding reality shows, catered food served cold, venues, dresses that look good for her, and so much more.  No Free Refills is sponsored by Pacific Barista Series and Seattle Coffee Gear.

The focus of episode eight is the explosive Oprah Winfrey interview with American-born Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, and her husband, Prince Harry. Perhaps you are familiar with it. No holds are barred, no punches pulled—Baker and Lawrence go deep in this conversation, exploring centuries of colonial hierarchies and racist societal structures that impact how we think, act, and yes, even drink (it's no accident they're sipping tea on this episode). This is a fearless no-F's-given broadcast and it makes for an incredible show.

The focus of episode seven is the hit HBO romantic-comedy series Sex and the City based on Candace Bushnell's 1997 book. Why focus on a decades-old series? Several reasons! Quarantine streamers are rediscovering the series on the new streaming platform HBO Max, and there's much buzz about the soon-to-be-released reboot And Just Like That.

In this week's episode, hosts Tymika Lawrence and Ezra Baker dive into the HBO documentary series The Vow. Each episode of No Free Refills kicks off with a drink, and in this week's show, Lawrence drinks a Pét-Nat while Baker sip Go Get Em Tiger Nano Challa from Ethiopia. This episode is sponsored by Seattle Coffee Gear and Pacific Foods.  

In this week's episode, hosts Tymika Lawrence and Ezra Baker drink wine and nitro flash brew coffee and continue to socially distance, speaking to each other from their respective homes in New York City.  The focus of Episode Five is the comedy series PEN15 now streaming on Hulu. This episode is sponsored by Seattle Coffee Gear and Pacific Foods Barista Series.

In this week's episode, hosts Tymika Lawrence and Ezra Baker drink wine (we love wine) and continue to socially distance, speaking to each other from their respective homes in New York City. Each episode of No Free Refills kicks off with a drink, and in this week's show, Lawrence drinks a Pét-Nat from South Africa while Baker sips Glou Glou 2019 Las Jaras. The focus of Episode Four is Beyoncé's visual album Black Is King streaming now on Disney+. Full transcript: https://bit.ly/32tjIdW

In this week's episode, hosts Tymika Lawrence and Ezra Baker drink coffee and chat while socially distanced: Lawrence drinks Muungano from the Congo (DRC) roasted by NYC's Cafe Grumpy and Baker sips on Desarollo from Colombia roasted by Coffee Collective out of Denmark while discussing Netflix's hottest new reality dating show Love Is Blind. 

On this week's episode, hosts Tymika Lawrence and Ezra Baker drink a cup of Idido Natural from Black & White Coffee Roasters in Chapel Hill, NC. This show is dedicated to the concept of the Very Special Episode, "one my favorite TV vehicles," says Lawrence. "It's a way for writers to bring a serious, heavy topic into homes where maybe people aren't dealing with it…they humanize it by connecting with characters you know and love." Lawrence and Baker dive deep into a classic two-part episode of A Different World, "Honeymoon in LA". This particular episode—the premier of Season Six, aired on September 24th, 1992—starts after the "wedding episode" of ADW ("a classic moment of Black television" says Baker) and takes place during the 1992 Rodney King riots in Los Angeles.