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Sparkle On With Devi Jags

Sparkle On With Devi Jags

By: Devi Jags
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Sparkle On With Devi Jags is a podcast and movement to help listeners reclaim their happiness, passion, and self-worth through the power of creativity.

Devi believes everyone has a "Sparkle," a fiery light inside us that can overcome darkness through artistry and our inner child. Elevating leading artists, creatives, and storytellers, this movement inspires listeners to reclaim what makes them shine and always Sparkle On.

SPARKLE IGNITE LLC Art Hygiene & Healthy Living Psychology Psychology & Mental Health
Episodes
  • Shana Stein — Directing The Testaments, The Boys, and Finding Hope Through Youth Rebellion

    Shana Stein — Directing The Testaments, The Boys, and Finding Hope Through Youth Rebellion
    Jun 24 2026
    Director and executive producer Shana Stein joins Sparkle On to trace her path to directing some of television's most politically charged series, including Hulu's The Testaments, Amazon's The Boys, Power, 56 Days, Jack Ryan, and The Lincoln Lawyer. She shares how youth rebellion became the beating heart of her work on The Testaments (sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale) — a story about young women born into oppression who discover their power, rather than women who had freedom taken from them. Shana walks us through how she thinks as a director: approaching each show as its own puzzle, finding the DNA that keeps fans coming back while bringing something new, and treating violence, movement, and color as tools to build tension rather than spectacle. Her signature, she explains, is giving showrunners more of what they love while quietly elevating it. This conversation also reaches beyond the set — into the privilege of saying no, the power of mentorship, and the leap of faith it took to leave a fast-tracked agent career at William Morris and betting on herself at AFI. Shana reminds us that the stories we tell can shape the next generation, and that sometimes the most radical act is playing make-believe for a living. Follow Shana Stein: https://www.instagram.com/shanasteindirect/?hl=en Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction and Welcome 00:00:45 The Process of Being Chosen for Major TV Shows 00:02:31 Meeting on The Testaments After the 2024 Election 00:05:59 Youth Rebellion and The Testaments' Hopeful Energy 00:07:35 Entering Different Worlds and Embodying Dystopia 00:09:49 Working with Young Actors and Creating Safety on Set 00:12:53 Different Styles: The Testaments vs The Boys 00:15:21 Building Tension and Becka's Pivotal Arc 00:22:41 Research, Meditation, and Staying Open to Ideas 00:24:07 Color Grading, LUTs, and the Made-for-Hulu Look 00:28:14 Improving Your Craft and Cracking Each Show's Puzzle 00:31:49 The Four-Year-Old Who Wanted to Move to Hollywood 00:32:57 The Awakening: Theater Camp and Seeing Broadway 00:37:40 Quitting the Agency and Betting on Film School 00:39:25 The Path from Producing to Directing 00:40:49 The First Directing Opportunity and Taking the Leap 00:42:48 Betting on Herself 00:45:13 Saying No and Choosing Family Over Fear 00:48:19 Raising the Next Generation and Mentorship 00:50:27 Closing Thoughts and Sparkle On
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    51 mins
  • Grace Hong — How Creativity Became Her Corporate Exit Strategy

    Grace Hong — How Creativity Became Her Corporate Exit Strategy
    Jun 18 2026
    Grace Hong (Nolo Grace) joins Sparkle On to share how creativity became her corporate exit strategy and why building a life aligned with your artistry is worth the decade-long journey. As the founder of Parasol Music, an artist-driven agency and music label with placements in Disney's Moana, Avengers Doomsday, and Avatar Fire and Ash, Grace reveals the winding path from Wall Street to songwriting, production, and vocal direction for projects like the Olympics Closing ceremony with Kate Hudson. From crying in Bali to releasing a single with Sean Kingston, Grace walks us through her transformation into an artist. She shares why leaving her corporate career to travel the world was the only way to deprogram and stop running from her true creativity. She reminds us that false starts aren't failures, rejection is part of the process, and sometimes it takes 10 years of feeling lost before everything clicks into place. Her story proves that the creative journey is never linear, and the only way forward is to trust yourself, collaborate with intention, and keep building even when you can't see the finish line. Follow Grace Hong / Nolo Grace: https://www.instagram.com/nolograce/?hl=en Parasol Music: https://www.parasolmusic.com Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction and Welcome 00:00:40 First Memories of Music and Early Creative Blocks 00:01:48 Journaling as Creative Expression and Escape 00:03:56 Discovering Musical Ancestry and Breaking Through Fear 00:06:21 The Corporate Path and the Illusion of Struggle 00:07:26 Burnout, the Leap, and the Metamorphosis 00:08:47 The Slow Rebirth: Teaching Herself Music from Scratch 00:14:23 Meeting Her Producer Husband and Finding Her Voice 00:18:13 Relationships as Mirrors and Creative Containers 00:23:52 Collaborating with Kate Hudson, Ludacris, and the Olympics 00:28:31 Giving Notes Without Crushing the Artist 00:31:20 From Negative Self-Talk to Love Is Worth It All 00:34:14 Writing Truth: Pain, Beauty, and the Song Called Mother 00:36:29 Turning Fragments into Songs Through Collaboration 00:38:35 Community, Wealth, and the Nomad Journey 00:41:23 Building the Ultimate Creative Project 00:43:53 Ten Years of False Starts and the Album I Exist
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    46 mins
  • Alanna Bennett — Crafting Teen Stories In Hollywood from XO Kitty to The Education of Kia Greer

    Alanna Bennett — Crafting Teen Stories In Hollywood from XO Kitty to The Education of Kia Greer
    Jun 10 2026
    Author and screenwriter Alanna Bennett joins Sparkle On to discuss her debut novel The Education of Kia Greer, her work on Netflix's XO Kitty, and why teen stories remain some of the most powerful narratives in Hollywood. From her journalism days at BuzzFeed News to breaking into the writers' room, Alanna shares how she carved out a career telling young adult rom-com stories that center young Black women, queer characters, and the messy, beautiful crossroads of girlhood. Alanna reveals how a pandemic rewatch of Keeping Up with the Kardashians sparked the idea for The Education of Kia Greer, a novel about a 16-year-old reality TV star who dreams of a normal life. She explains how she researched narcissistic family dynamics, the dehumanization of young women in the public eye, and the specific terror of growing up famous without choosing it. This episode explores the vulnerability required to be a full-time artist, the constant negotiation between authenticity and commercial demands, and why Alanna believes that losing a job for staying true to your values is better than selling a piece of your soul. She reminds us that rejection never stops, and that the only way forward is to stop avoiding the writing and start putting yourself out there. Alanna's work proves that the stories we're most afraid to tell are often the ones that matter most. Read The Education of Kia Greer: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/739902/the-education-of-kia-greer-by-alanna-bennett/ Follow Alanna Bennett: https://www.instagram.com/alanabennett Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction and Welcome 00:01:04 Finding Her Story Beat: The Young Adult Rom-Com Niche 00:02:27 Convincing Hollywood That Teen Stories Matter 00:03:59 Playing Pretend and the Power of Jenny Han Characters 00:09:34 The Twilight Between Childhood and Adulthood 00:11:41 Casting, Representation, and Fighting for Characters 00:14:01 Knowing When Not to Compromise 00:16:39 The Birth of Kia Greer: A Pandemic Rewatch and Kylie Jenner 00:19:25 Dehumanization, Celebrity Culture, and Online Discourse 00:21:55 Making It Her Own: Beyond Kardashian Fanfic 00:24:43 Researching Complex Relationships and Narcissistic Mothers 00:27:24 One Wild and Precious Life: Mary Oliver and Agency 00:29:21 The Three E's: Exploration, Expression, and Elation 00:31:54 The Rat King Metaphor: Collaboration in the Writer's Room 00:34:08 Kitty's Exploration and the Yuri Crush 00:35:17 Advice for Young Writers: There's No Exact Path 00:39:33 Overcoming Fear: The Day She Stopped Being Afraid to Write 00:43:46 Stepping Into the Light Every Day 00:45:58 What's Next and Where to Find the Book
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    47 mins
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