Hiwi is originally from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and is an Ethiopian-Yemeni American citizen. She is a freshman at a local college. Hiwi enjoys learning from a multicultural, diverse environment, similar to the one she grew up in Ethiopia. Hiwi is from the Harari ethnic group in Ethiopia, and she joined Listen Up to learn and gain experience in radio production, hoping to bring back what she learned to Harar, Ethiopia for media justice.

Vanessa Apira has a passion for storytelling as a tool of resistance and liberation. Her background is in Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies, as well as Africana Studies from Bowdoin College and Spelman College. She has worked on various oral history and storytelling projects (including ZAMI NOBLA and the Spelman Intergenerational Scholars Program). Within the Twin Cities, She has worked as a content specialist with The University of Minnesota's Reproductive Oral History Project, as a Reproductive Justice Facilitator with Asian American Organizing Project and as a Community Garden Storyteller with Renewing the Countryside. When she is not sunbathing and reading, she is gardening, collaging, cooking, or dancing.

Alexandria is a young adult currently working towards acquiring her GED.

She believes in the importance of strong communities and hopes that her time working at Listen Up! will help her gain the experience and confidence to start creating meaningful connections and uplifting each other’s voices through music, literature, and other forms of media. Alex enjoys exploring and expanding her catalog of intriguing spots to visit around the city, applying DIY in all aspects of her life when possible, especially repairing her clothing and personal items, reading and writing poetry, listening to compelling podcasts and video essays, and discovering new music in her free time.

Josie just recently finished 8th grade at Global Arts Plus and is going to Central for high school in the fall. There she hopes to be part of their theater program. Currently, Josie is part of Listen Up Youth Radio's summer intensive. Josie is very interested in media and editing and hopes to do something with it in the future, so she and her family think Listen Up is a great opportunity for josie. She is also very interested in movies, fashion, literature, and music. She is entirely obessed with her cat, Ziggy Stardust, named after the David Bowie character.

Rena Curtis is a senior in high school living on stolen Dakota and Anishinaabe homelands. He has been a part of Listen Up! Youth Radio since the summer of 2021 and works as the production manager, as well as a facilitator and youth lead. Rena believes in collective liberation through community, art, and conversation. Rena is an aspiring film maker and avid album listener who loves reading books with his cat, watching movies with friends, swimming, playing in the dirt, writing, making zines, and getting into shenanigans wherever and whenever possible.

Eden is currently in her Sophomore year at Highland Park Senior High. She has a deep passion for everything media and sound related. She loves art and anything that incorporates a sense of creativity and imagination. In her freetime she loves to spend her time with friends and exploring parts of the city. When at home Eden loves to spend time with her cats and dogs and listen to and explore new music. Her favorite music genres are alternative rock, punk, and riot grrl.

Siyam Osman is an Oromo-American born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She is an up and coming junior with many aspirations for the future. Her goals are to be more independent, succeed in doing PSEO, and take on new challenges within her life. Siyam has been part of Listen Up Youth Radio since the summer of 2023, and is now in a new role as Social Media Manager. She likes talking to her friends, going to new places, and trying new food. During her free time she likes listening to rnb, pop, and K-pop, and is a show fanatic; she can finish a show in less than a week. Siyam also enjoys playing sports such as basketball, has a passion for poetry, and doing anything that includes art.

Solomie Tesema is currently a senior in highschool and working to get her associates degree at Metropolitan State University. She was born in Ethiopia and lived most of her life in Minnesota. She is very passionate about media justice and advocating for the things she believes in. She is also very passionate about journalism especially podcasting and she hopes to bring different people from different walks of life and share their experiences.

Jordan Lee Thompson is an art worker and educator of mixed ancestry living on occupied Dakota and Anishinaabe land. He believes that the future depends on the stories we tell and how well we tell them; building the future he wants to live in means working with others to envision and build towards their own desired futures. Before joining Listen Up Jordan managed Nine North's award-winning film and animation youth program, creative directed at Dance & Other Behaviors, coordinated for Mizna's Arab film festival, and managed a crew of teen staff working towards a future of environmental justice at the Science Museum of Minnesota. Outside of his work for Listen Up, Jordan is a narrative artist and a freelance media artist/ educator/ consultant for local and national artists and arts/activist orgs. Jordan holds a BFA in Painting, a BA in Art History and Arts Management, and a certificate in Museum Studies from the University of Iowa.

Hamza Ali is a Somali-American citizen born and raised. He just graduated from middle school and is planning to go to a private school. This summer is his first time working with Listen Up. Hamza likes to play sports, watch movies and TV shows, and to eat. He wants to become a professional gamer or basketball player and to make it to the NBA one day.

Josie just recently finished 8th grade at Global Arts Plus and is going to Central for high school in the fall. There she hopes to be part of their theater program. Currently, Josie is part of Listen Up Youth Radio's summer intensive. Josie is very interested in media and editing and hopes to do something with it in the future, so she and her family think Listen Up is a great opportunity for josie. She is also very interested in movies, fashion, literature, and music. She is entirely obessed with her cat, Ziggy Stardust, named after the David Bowie character.

Dinasha Doby is the second youngest of five and was born and raised in Minnesota. She is going into her sophomore year as an honor roll student. Dinasha is a part of the 2024 Listen Up Summer Media Intensive. In her free time, Dinasha does YouTube and is on a journey of expanding her content to other places. In the future, Dinasha would like to attend an historically black college and pursue something in media. She is big on leadership, taking new opportunities, and showcasing her creativity. Some of her hobbies are watching movies, Pinterest scrolling, and gaming.

Hamse is a 10th grader who enjoys working at Listen Up Youth Radio to create awesome podcasts. In his free time outside of work you can find him playing sports and staying active. Whether it’s shooting hoops or kicking a soccer ball around, sports are his passion outside of the studio and food.

Kiara Steiner is a 17 year old student from Open World Learning Community going into her senior year. She was born and raised in Saint Paul and is a summer intern at Listen Up! Youth Radio. She enjoys fashion and watching movies. During her free time she likes listening to music, playing guitar, and seeing her friends. Kiara loves anything that involves creativity, especially projects that involve other people.

Dana is a producer at Listen up youth radio. She went to Capitol Hill GTM for 8 years and is going into highschool this year at Highland Park. She was in WEB in 8th grade and took a Digital Video Production class. She enjoys creative writing, reading, drawing, photography, and listening to music.

Luka Cook is a producer with Listen Up! Youth Radio. They attend Saint Paul Academy and are soon to be freshmen. They have a passion for history as a National History Day state qualifier and they have an equal passion for swimming as a two time age-group state participant and one time senior state participant. They swim with Saint Paul Sparks during the high school season and Minnesota Flyers swim club during the off-season. In their free time they like to bake, go on walks and discover new music their current favorite artist is Joyce Manor.

Brooklyn is from Chicago, Il but currently lives in Minneapolis, MN, attending Columbia Heights High-School. She is currently a summer youth producer at Listen Up Youth Radio. In her high-school career so far she has participated in volleyball, band, speech, and softball. In her freetime she likes baking, painting, bike riding, and watching shows with her friends and family. In the feature she hopes to go to college and medical school and become a doctor.

Kay Nguyen is a student who goes to Como Park Senior High School. They have received an A honor roll and an award from Minnesota YMCA Center For Youth Voice. They have Customer Service Skills, they are Creativity, Hardworking and Bilingual. They love to read, draw, play volleyball and video games, and go on walks.

This is Lanah Nguyen from Saint Paul. She is part of Listen Up Youth Radio for the summer and is a fan of watching anime, trying new foods(without onions or tomatoes), and listening to music like K-Pop, R&B, and jazz. She enjoys interior decorating, chatting with friends about anything, and admiring her toy shark. Her favorite things to do is exploring new coffee shops around the neighborhood, playing her violin, spending time with family(especially her mom), and baking for friends and family.

Ben O’Leary is a Sophomore at Highland Park Senior High School in Saint Paul. This is his third year with RighTrack and has an interest in creating different media such as video and sound. He likes to learn about different stuff like culture and the latest technology. In his free time, he likes to read, watch TV, and listen to different styles of music. He is excited about what the future has to offer.

Siyam Osman is an Oromo-American born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She is going into sophomore year at a new school. As well as an intern/producer at ListenUp! Youth Radio. She likes talking to her friends and going to new places. During her free time she likes listening to K-pop and watching K-dramas. Siyam also enjoys playing sports, and doing anything creative.

Emerson Riggin is from Seattle, Washington and moved to Minneapolis Minnesota 8 years ago. He is currently in Highschool going into 10th grade. He is trying to learn as much about tech as he can while he is still in highschool so he can pursue a career in media arts after college. He enjoys doing active things like biking, snowboarding and baseball in his free time. He is an outgoing person that likes meeting new people and especially making new friends.

Hi, I’m Hamza. I’m an intern for Listen Up Youth Radio through Step Up. I go to Thomas Edison High School and during my time I’ve participated and facilitated in my previous school's newspaper and activities such as interviewing different students and teachers about problems they see and different ideas for solutions they might have. In that time I have gained experience in talking to many different people and approaching strangers in a variety of positive ways that I know will help in my current position. I was born In Minneapolis and I believe helping and talking to many people can make a great impact for everyone and change the world for the better or worse and that's why I love this area of work so much.

Diamond is a young aspiring media producer who loves writing, painting, and all things creative. She recently finished Middle School and is excited to start High School. Diamond enjoys creating digital media and writing captivating poems.