Coffee People continues to evolve in Season 19, and beyond.

Tomorrow, you'll be receiving our weekly e-mail with episode one of Season 19. As I was assembling it, I realized I ended Season 18 with fairly little fanfare. On to the next one, as the song goes (below).

The lack of celebration was unintended. I'm a bit disappointed in myself. A coffee hang with a former colleague this morning reminded me (as our next podcast episode reinforces) that we need to recognize and take the wins. Being an entrepreneur is hard on the mind, heart, and body. It takes all of yourself to survive and even more to thrive.

Coffee People (formerly Roast! West Coast) has been in transition for some time. Perhaps it always has been, and always will be, but this current spike is a big one. Why? Because stagnation in a small business is basically a slow, painful, anxiety-inducing death, and because the world around Coffee People is always changing.

This show's North Star is to have fun sharing inspiring conversations with entrepreneurs, creatives, inventors, scientists, farmers, and so on, with some sort of connection to the coffee industry—however tenuous. Ideally, we can do that and pay the bills.* Apologies to the numerous inquirers for guest spots by the real estate flippers, life coaches, and granola bar "inventors." As importantly, it should be fun.

This show launched during the Covid-19 pandemic. I only recorded virtually, even though the focus was solely on my Southern California neighbors. At the time, we wanted to engage, but we couldn't risk it. Eventually, the focus grew out of SoCal, but remained virtual. Eventually, the world opened up further, and we started doing a few one-off in-person shows. Last year, we completed The Free Coffee Tour and began in-person interviews at coffee conventions.

The last episode (Season 18: Episode 12) featured Julian Mamaj of SOVDA Coffee. We chatted virtually, me in my home office in Portland, OR, and he in a workspace in Munich, Germany. Tomorrow's episode (Season 19: Episode 1) features Edwin and Magda Harrison of Curious Roo Coffee Roasters, Artisan Coffee, Artisan Coffee School, and the More Than A Dent charitable organization. Again, I was in my office, and they were in one of their workspaces in London, U.K. For the next recording, I'll be chatting with Kenneth Olson of Barista Magazine about their recent Camp Coffee Shop experience at a local cafe.

If I hadn't been willing to adapt and change the show, I never would have widened the scope to include perspectives outside the SoCal bubble. I wouldn't have had the opportunity to sit across the table from coffee people with a cup of coffee, hearing their story. If I'm being honest (with myself and you), I would have wanted to have those conversations anyway because they were fun, motivating, and continue to sate an odd curiosity I have about why people push themselves to do hard things. So, overseas chats, in-person interviews with A/V equipment, hours behind the wheel to get to convention X in city Y—bring it on.

Back to the transitioning spirit of Season 18-to-19 of the Coffee People podcast...

I was surprised we were at the end of another season. It sort of snuck up on me. This whole year sort of snuck up on me! Besides producing a weekly podcast and newsletter, I spent a lot of time on the road. My wife and I bought a 100+ year old house, which has come with its own demands on time and focus. I took on a temporary role in hospitality for a collection of baseball and soccer teams that went from very part-time to full-time and a half, or more! Don't they all. Hospitality is an unrelenting beast.

And then there are all the other ways the Coffee People business plan has been evolving, not the least of which is exploring Coffee People Are Sexy as its own thing, expanding our coffee collaboration with Yeah, No...Yeah Coffee, and brainstorming how to keep this whole operation not just solvent but fun.

What's fun about competing with AI shows flooding the market with content and taking up all the keywords that matter for SEO? What's fun about having to keep upgrading tech subscriptions and paying for things you don't really need or want? What's fun about algorithms requiring you to "REVEAL" or make lists of the things you learned while chasing whatever trend is getting the clicks that week?

Aren't you all sick of yellow block text on YouTube or headlines screaming, "You Won't Believe What Happened When I Did..." I can see the condescending look from an influencer pointing to the headline above them, while a list appears on their 90-second TikTok. Aren't we all sick of being told to upgrade to the new subscription that costs more, but guess what? Won't offer you anything you want or need? I know I am. Rant over.

What is fun is talking to you–you coffee enthusiasts, entrepreneurs, creatives, and industry pros. Hearing your origin stories, sharing a cup of coffee with you, being surprised by where our conversations are going, meeting and shaking your hand at a convention, and celebrating—F@*KING CELEBRATING—how cool the coffee experience can be. That is fun, and I believe, I have to believe, can help keep this show thriving if I'm willing to keep evolving what Coffee People is to get there.

It's only September. There are 15 more weeks of 2026. That will get us through season 19 and into season 20. Originally, I never dreamed beyond a season 2, so all of this qualifies as gravy. I'm dedicated to making the next two seasons back-to-back celebrations of coffee. Do you have a story to tell? Let's share it. Ultimately, that's what Coffee People is—a platform for all the coolness of the coffee industry and the people that make it go.

Then Coffee People will evolve even further. A live show tour from the PNW to the South, cool new limited merch, share some more coffee industry stories, and create some new ones. After that...who knows? It's on to the next one to keep this fun and paying the bills—paying them without trying to make this show pay-to-play for anyone who wants to watch, listen, or read. For right now, today, we're taking the win. 18 seasons in the books! WHOO!

Thanks to all the guests who appeared on the podcast in Season 18, including Kevin Hartley, Chris O'Brien, Siri Simran-Khalsa, Jared Hales, Lily Quiros, Alden Hozouri, Ian Nelson, Jane Lo, Rob Whitten, Jonathan Bass, Jenn Chen, Maria Sinatra, Nick Schmitt, Isabella Vitaliano, Andrew Houghtaling, and Christine Houghtaling.

It's probably considered a classic by now, but Jay-Z shared a similar emotion, albeit from a place of retrospection on the success he'd already achieved, on The Blueprint 3 album. He doesn't look back: "...I gotta keep it fresh...I gotta keep it moving..."

I'm on to the next one, on to the next one
I'm on to the next one, on to the next one
I'm on to the next one, on to the next one
I'm on to the next one, on to the next one
(Hold up) Freeze! Ay!
Somebody bring me back some money please
Jay-Z, "On To The Next One" off The Blueprint 3 album**

*The list of supporters, sponsors, collaborators, and benefactors is long and illustrious. I thank you all today, tomorrow, and beyond.

**This link takes you to the full lyrics, which include some—okay, quite a bit—of Rated R language. Just a heads up if you don't listen to oldies.