Gina Yashere

Gina Yashere is an internationally acclaimed comedian who is currently starring in Chuck Lorre’s series, BOB ❤ ABISHOLA on CBS. Not only does Yashere star in the series, but she is one of the co-creators, co-showrunner, executive producer, and writer.

She can also be seen on Netflix with her own specials, SKINNY B@TCH, LAUGHING TO AMERICA and part of THE STAND UPS season 2. Her TV credits include, THE NEIGHBORHOOD, Comedy Central’s THE DAILY SHOW WITH TREVOR NOAH, DEF COMEDY JAM, LIVE AT THE APOLLO, TruTV’s COMEDY KNOCKOUT, Comedy Central’s @midnight, NBC’s THE TONIGHT SHOW, HBO’s CRASHING, ITV’s MARRIED SINGLE OTHER, THE LENNY HENRY SHOW and the animated series, BROMWELL HIGH and THE BARBARIAN AND THE TROLL.

Gina came to the U.S. as a finalist on NBC’s LAST COMIC STANDING, and never left! Yashere is also a published author. Her memoir, Cack-Handed was released last year to rave reviews.

Barbara Higbie

Called "a bolt of bright sunlight" by the L.A.Times, a “classy talent” by the Boston Globe and “the most exciting musician we’ve heard” by the S.F. Chronicle, Barbara Higbie brings joy and virtuosity to every performance. She is a Grammy-nominated, Bammy and Glama award winning composer, singer-songwriter and fiddler, appearing on over 100 albums, including 18 of her own and 12 compilations that have sold in the millions. She has recorded with Carlos Santana, Bonnie Raitt, Cris Williamson, Ferron, Linda Tillery, Holly Near, Teresa Trull and many others. “Unexpected,” a duo album with singer-songwriter, Teresa Trull (on Olivia/Second Wave Records) made Higbie/Trull one of the most popular acts in Women’s Music. At the same time, Barbara was the first woman to be signed to the famed instrumental label, Windham Hill Records, where she co-led a group that recorded live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, touring internationally for 15 years.  

The youngest of six children from a midwestern musical family, Higbie started piano at age four. At age 13, her family moved from small town Indiana to Ghana, West Africa. She attended Mills College and the Sorbonne in Paris. At 21, she was awarded the prestigious Watson Fellowship to collect traditional music in West Africa. At 22, she placed 6th in the National Women’s Fiddle Contest. At 23, she released her first original album on Windham Hill, the critically acclaimed “Tideline” on the Windham Hill label. 

 Barbara’s first solo CD on Sony Records, a singer-songwriter album in 1990, was named “Top Ten of the Year” by the Washington Post. In 2011, Higbie was named the first “Artist in Residence” for the famed west coast jazz club, Yoshi’s. There, she founded the group “Hills to Hollers” with gospel/blues singer and original Olivia collective member, Linda Tillery and bluegrass star, Laurie Lewis. Recently, Higbie’s composing and recording has harkened back to her Windham Hill roots, with a popular 3-part, all women “Chillogy” series, produced by Lisa Vogel, featuring the brilliant Jami Sieber, cello, Vicki Randle, guitar and Michaelle Goerlitz, percussion. December 2023 marks the release of her new “Solstice” album. In addition to composing, recording, playing festivals and touring, Barbara loves playing for Olivia audiences. She has performed on over 35 Olivia trips and counts them among the best experiences of her life.  

Elvira Kurt

Elvira Kurt is a Canadian national treasure in the Dept. of Comedy, a trail-blazing queer icon who’s done all the things… like, host her own talk show: popcultured with Elvira Kurt, as well as a game show: Spin Off. She’s been in hit TV shows including Baroness Von Sketch Show - for which she was also a writer- teen TV staple, DeGrassi: The Next Generation and, for the youngest viewers, Treehouse TV’s Emmy nominated, Miss Persona. Then there's the long list of TV shows in which Elvira does it all as writer, producer and director of talent: Netflix’s upcoming Drink Masters, Crave TV’s Canada’s Drag Race, CBC’s The Great Canadian Baking Show, CTV’s Master Chef Canada. Add to that the many scripted and unscripted shows Elvira’s written for: Still Standing, This Hour Has 22 Minutes, Game On, Little Mosque on the Prairie, to name but a few. There’s also the numerous doc series where she’s served as writer and host: First Comes Love, Gayest Show Ever, Adventures In Comedy. And the TV shows on which she’s been a judge or correspondent: The Second City’s Next Comedy Legend, eTalk Daily, ‘Q’ and ‘q'. It's a LOT. In her down time -ha!- Elvira, who is also a proud lesbian dad of two, travels the world with sold-out solo live shows, TV appearances and comedy special tapings. She wins stuff too, namely a few Canadian Screen Awards to go with her Canadian Comedy, SF Film Festival, Toronto Fringe Festival Awards, as well as the Jury Choice Award at the Cannes Short Film Showcase for Reel Women Seen -which she also wrote! Clearly, Elvira is no slouch… what’s next for this tireless teacup butch? Stay tuned! 

Gina Chavez

Gina Chavez (she/they) is a Latin Grammy nominee, internationally acclaimed recording artist, wife and philanthropist. Born in Austin, she is a 16-time Austin Music Award winner. Gina's first all-Spanish language album, La Que Manda, was nominated for a 2020 Latin Grammy in Best Pop/Rock, making them the third Latine born in the continental U.S. to ever be nominated in history of the category (and the first queer Texan). Gina’s NPR Tiny Desk concert has more than 1.3 million views and she is featured on Brené Brown's hit podcast, Unlocking Us, for which she co-wrote the theme music. Gina tours internationally as a cultural ambassador with the U.S. State Department and runs Niñas Arriba, a college fund Gina and their wife founded for young women in gang-dominated El Salvador. Her official TED Talk is out now.

DJ Page Hodel

Page Hodel’s extraordinary career has always been grounded in two things: a profound love and respect for the fiercest soul music; and a dedication to creating entertainment events that celebrate diversity. For over 40 years, Page Hodel has been an integral part of the San Francisco Bay Area music scene, as a dance club DJ, a radio mixtress, and a club promoter.

In 1972 Page began her musical pursuits with a trip to Paris to study classical guitar at the Conservatoire de Musique Jean Courbin. She returned to the United States to follow her focused passion for music, playing with several local women’s funk bands here in the Bay Area including Mama Says Funk.

What followed, began as a yearly tradition throwing her notorious birthday parties, and quickly lead to a regular DJ gig at the much-missed Amelia’s in San Francisco. It wasn’t long before Page’s DJ career took flight in major dance venues in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, Paris, and around the globe with frequent Olivia cruises. Page became the first female mixer on a major market radio station, mixing the legendary “Noon Mix” on KSOL which was followed by a regular spot recording the LIVE 105 “Mid-day Mix”, and occasionally evening mixes on KMEL.

The popular party crowds always followed Page. In 1987 her nightclub promotion career was born as “the Box” and “Club Q”, two of San Francisco’s legendary and longest running dance clubs. Page’s dual role as DJ and promoter was a winning combination. The music industry took note in 1988 when Billboard Magazine selected her to serve in the much-coveted “Dance Chart Reporter” representing San Francisco, as one of the country’s one hundred dance chart reporters for 16 years.

To date, Page has won numerous awards and honors including an induction into the Cable Car Awards “Hall of Fame”, San Francisco Bay Guardian awards for “Best Dance Club” for the Box, and “Best DJ” and best female DJ in Bay Area by the BAR “Besties” two years in a row.

She is a dedicated fund raiser frequently donating her DJ talents to the AIDS Dance-a-thons in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, the AIDS Walk, the Women’s Cancer Walk, the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, Curve Magazine Legal Defense Fund, the Project Inform Volunteer Appreciation Parties and many more.

In honor of her beloved partner Madalene Rodriguez, whom she lost to ovarian cancer, Page compiled a collection of photographs into a beautiful hardcover book “Monday Hearts for Madalene” published in 2009. A portion of the proceeds of the sale of every book and card and print is donated to the Women’s Cancer Resource Center.

Before covid, Page split her time between her job as Director of Operations of Living Jazz, a beloved Bay Area nonprofit whose mission is to “Transform Lives through Music” and as a DJ with a full schedule of private and corporate events.

Since covid changed nightlife as we know it, Hodel is falling back on her second love, the art of building making her living now teaching carpentry and building tiny houses. In 1985, already an accomplished carpenter Page renovated a forty-foot school bus, “Roxanne, Roxanne” into her gorgeous, hand-built redwood one bedroom home which landed her on the pages of Dwell magazine, and on HGTV’s “Building Character”.

In 2022, Hodel launched “Page’s CARPENTRY School” a 3-day summer session learning BASIC Building skills in Sebastopol.