Backyards of Key West Podcast with Mark Baratto

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with concierge expert and podcast host, Kelly Hopkins. We talk about her love for Key West, how she makes all of her clients dreams come true on their Key West vacation and her successful podcast, The Local Side of Key West. More on Kelly Hopkins Website: https://theconciergegirl.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kelly_keys_930 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/113880157191502 I'm Kelly and I live in gorgeous Key West. I have lived up and down the east coast and finally settled down here in paradise about 5 years ago. My husband and I have had a very adventurous life so Key West seemed like the right spot to call home. Its full of quirky people, great restaurants, amazing happy hours and of course, the amazing turquoise water. We lived in Maryland most of our lives. I loved living there so much! I not only had a full time job but I bartended on the side for 10 years. That bartending job changed my life. I loved mingling with everyone and learning about so many d

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with graphic designer and artist, Kristyn LaMoia. We talk about her love for graphics and design, how she got started as a designer, and her transition into becoming an artist... and TikTok star (inside joke). More on Kristyn LaMoia South Florida born artist, Kristyn LaMoia, has been honing her artistic skills since she could hold a crayon. Growing up, as a self proclaimed misfit, art was her outlet for creative freedom. Her persistent interest in the subconscious mind and how it relates to the natural world is the foundation of her subject matter. Stylistically, LaMoia’s art has clean and colorful elements that have been influenced by her graphic design background. In the first years of her graphic design career she gained invaluable knowledge working in-house at companies and being part of creative teams at different design studios. Since then, she has found great satisfaction in the freedom she gets from pursuing her passion as a freelance artist, in the form of fine

In this exclusive interview, Mark Baratto sits down with Rapper and Singer of the Dirty Heads, Jared Watson (aka Dirty J). This interview happened 30 minutes before the band went on stage for the beginning of their national tour, down here at the Key West Amphitheater. It may have been short, but for those fans out there, we touched on the bands origin story and their beginnings. This episode is brought to you by the Backyards of Key West Gallery Looking for local Key West art?  We've got you covered!   More on the Dirty Heads Following in the footsteps of their California brothers Sublime, Huntington Beach’s Dirty Heads mix hip-hop, reggae, and rock along with that laid-back South Cali attitude. The group formed in 2003 when punk rocker Dustin Bushnell (aka Duddy B) asked his friend, rapper Jared Watson (aka Dirty J), to collaborate on a project that would focus on positive vibes and infectious grooves. Watson added singing to his vocal skills, and with percussionist Jon Olazabal, an acoustic trio version of

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with two of the most well-known songwriters in Nashville; Craig Wisman and Lee Thomas Miller. If you are an aspiring songwriter or musician, this episode is filled with so much wisdom, that it's a can't miss. We discuss their writing process and how they pump out over 100 songs per year... year after year. Between them, they have 33 # 1 songs, winning a number of industry awards, and have written songs for some of country music's top artists like Tim McGraw, Kenny Chesney, Dolly Parton, Blake Shelton, Luke Bryan, Dierks Bentley, Carrie Underwood, Jason Aldean, Florida Georgia Line, Brian Kelley, Brad Paisley, Trace Adkins, Terri Clark, Jamey Johnson, Chris Stapleton... the list goes on and on! Be on the listen for a little jam session by Craig Wiseman on the guitar after the closing music... ENJOY! Reach out to Craig here: Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/thebigloud Big Loud Publishing Website: http://bigloudpublishing.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biglo

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with Real Estate Broker Associate Krystal Thomas. We talk about everything from the state of the market in Key West, home buying ranging from under $500K to $1.5M+, the different neighborhoods, rental prices, how to rent out your home, and codes to look out for. If you are thinking about purchasing real estate in Key West, this is the episode for you! More about Krystal Thomas Key West and The Florida Keys are my passion. As an agent with Preferred Properties, I provide a wealth of local Key West knowledge, real estate and vacation rental market experience, and an unbeatable client experience. I decided to make Key West my home in 2006 and consider it a privilege to live and work where others vacation. As an agent, my focus is assisting you in the purchase of the best property for your investment needs, island home, or both!I have over 11 years of experience in Real Estate, including 6 years of Key West real estate and vacation rental market experience. As a graduate of

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with Stephen Kitsakos, Opera creator, stage director and Artist Advisory Council for The Studios of Key West. We talk about his career in NYC and how he made it down to Key West. More on Stephen Kitsakos STEPHEN KITSAKOS is an opera librettist and stage director. With the American composer, Sheila Silver, he wrote libretti for The Wooden Sword, winner of the Sackler Prize for Composition (World Premiere 2009), The White Rooster for the Smithsonian Institution (World Premiere 2010), and A Thousand Splendid Suns, adapted from the international bestselling novel by Khaled Hosseini, commissioned by the Seattle Opera (World Premiere scheduled 2022, previously presented by the National Opera Center New Works Forum). With the composer Martin Hennessy he wrote the opera-theatre one-act operas, An Incident in Sutton Place & The Woman in Penthouse A (World Premiere 2020) & the upcoming  The Pleasing Recollection (2021) and A Fairy Tale (2021). Other opera & music proj

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter James T. Slater to talk about how he got started, and where he is headed in his amazing career. More on James T. Slater James is a two time, grammy nominated, piano-playing, bilingual singer-songwriter of Bolivian American descent signed to BMG Music Publishing/Nashville with songs recorded by everyone from Carrie Underwood to Tim McGraw to Willie Nelson and Kenny Chesney. Website: https://www.jamestslatermusic.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamestslatermusic/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JamesTSlaterMusic/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXJS8pWNTUt6z_E-dJcW-3g Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_T._Slater

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with singer-songwriter Cliff Cody. We talk about how he went from bouncer to songwriter to give it a shot in Nashville.  With nothing lucrative insight and family life calling, Cliff gave up music and moved to his wife's hometown in Ohio.   After many nights staring at his guitar sitting in the corner, Cliff picked up that 6 string again to give it one more shot, (with a little motivation from his wife), and the rest is now history! More on Cliff Cody Working as a bouncer at a West Texas honky-tonk, Cliff Cody’s life changed forever when the waitress dared him to sing at Karaoke Night. Lucky for Cliff, a band was in the audience looking for a lead singer. They offered Cliff the job that night. The next day he bought a guitar, a week later he had written his first song and 6 months after that, he moved to Nashville.   After living in Nashville for 4 years with little success, Cliff went back to school and became an RN. While at a songwriter’s retreat in Wyoming, he met

In this episode of the show, Mark Baratto sits down with Jenny Lorenz and Emily Nixon, the women behind the Local Life Media agency. We talk about how they got started and how they are helping local Key West businesses go from the unknown to socially outgoing ;) More on The Local Life Media KW Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_local_life_kw/

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with Key West local musician Jason Lamson. We talk about how he got started in the business, where he is at in his career, where he plays regularly, and where he is headed. More on Jason Lamson Soul-filling, southern vocalist fusing island style, down-home soul, and a touch of funky personality to create a unique sound filling the streets of Key West. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jlamsonmusic Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jlamsonmusic

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with coffee connoisseur and barista Kaia, in the Backyards of Key West Gallery. We talk about how she got into coffee, why she does everything by hand with no electricity, and why she only uses the best natural ingredients to get the best coffee. More on Kaia's Coffee Cart Love for coffee and sustainability brought this amazing idea together. All off-grid cart, delicious organic coffee, environmentally-friendly supplies, plant-based ingredients. Kaia’s passion for healthy living transformed into something magical. Coffee here takes time. Every cup is prepared by Kaia with love and care. Manually made espresso, delicious pour-over, daily made iced coffee or iced latte with choice of organic Oat milk or organic Soy milk. Option of organic syrups. Doesn’t matter which one you pick, you will love them all. Website: https://kaiascoffeecart.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kaiascoffeecart Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KaiasCoffeeCart

In this episode of the show, Mark Baratto sits down with comedian Esther Ku. We talk about how she got into comedy, where she sharpened her craft and her up-and-coming show at Comedy Key West. More on Esther Ku Esther Ku is a Korean-American stand-up comedian born and raised in Chicago. She honed her act at many of New York City’s comedy clubs such as Caroline’s, Stand-Up NY, and Broadway.  Ku made her television debut as a contestant on NBC’s Last Comic Standing Season Six, advancing to the semi-finals in Vegas, then becoming one of the top ten finalists in Hollywood. She made her radio debut on the Howard Stern Show as a finalist on The Hottest Funniest Chick Contest. She was a regular cast member on MTV’s Girl Code for three seasons when college kids still had cable. She learned how to temporarily rap for her guest appearances on MTV2’s Wild’n Out with Nick Cannon. Ku played a receptionist in The Jack and Triumph Show sitcom alongside Jack MacBrayer, June Squibb, and Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, aka Rober

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with Shay Spence, the traveling food editor for people magazine. We talk about how he got this dream job, how he went viral on TikTok, why he moved to Key West, and his future podcast

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with the musically talented husband and wife dynamic duo, Cole Michael Porter and Kendra Porter. We talk about how they got started in the business, how they met, and how they are able to separate music and their career from everyday life. More on the Porter Union Band Porter Union, led by husband and wife, Cole Michael Porter and Kendra Porter, is the result of the two old souls spending the better part of the last decade traveling the country together to play their music everywhere from the dive bars and honky-tonks to festivals and theaters. When you hear the story of Cole and Kendra meeting in a hometown bar, falling in love while writing and playing together, it sounds like a fairy tale built by corporate music row. Luckily, that’s where the comparison stops - you won’t find overproduced, cliche-filled songs here. Their honest approach to songwriting combines raw emotional themes with a traditional country sound to bring the listener into the story. It’s no surpris

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with Laurent, one of the owners of Le Creperie. We talked about how he got started in the restaurant business, how he made it to Key West, and all of the amazing French specialties served daily. More on La Creperie French Cafe Just logged back into Yelp, realizing I forgot to finish this review. I spent two and a half months there earlier this spring from March to mid-May and I absolutely loved this restaurant. There is one other (Russian)Creperie in town, but La Creperie blows that place out of the water. This restaurant is, in my opinion, one of the top 3 breakfast/brunch restaurants in Key West. Deserves multiple visits for anybody staying more than a week. I really hope this place didn't close permanently due to any damage from the recent string of hurricanes. Cant' wait to go back." Jon T 10/15/17 (after Hurricane Irma). Life is Organic! We think that life is nature rather than marketing, so we prepare food from scratch that is fresh, as much as possible organic, n

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with singer-songwriter Wade Bowen. We talk about how Wade got started in the business and his overall love for the music he sings. More About Musician Wade Bowen Wade Bowen is an American Texas Country/Red Dirt singer from Waco, Texas, United States. Bowen was a member of the band West 84 with friend Matt Miller until 2001 when the group became known as Wade Bowen and West 84.  He released his first album in 2002, Try Not To Listen, which became a regional hit in Texas. He released his first live album in 2003, recorded live at The Blue Light in Lubbock, Texas, followed by studio albums Lost Hotel in 2006 and If We Ever Make It Home in 2008. On November 21, 2009, Bowen recorded his second live album at Billy Bob's Texas in Fort Worth. The album was released on April 27, 2010, as a CD/DVD combo. Bowen released his fourth studio album, The Given, in 2010. It was his first on a major label, Sony imprint BNA Records, though he returned to releasing music independently after

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with Soapmaker and connoisseur, Mariam Tvaliashvil. We talk about how Mariam got started in the business, which soaps are good for what, and how she is changing lives one dirty face at a time! More on KW Soaps KW Soaps started from a desire to provide our friends and family a quality, natural soap gift. We slowly started trying out formulas and processes until we arrived at what is now known as the KW Soap. Our first-rate ingredients and exceptional quality led to customers wanting more and so here we are. We’re a business made up of people who believe our product should speak for itself and it should be for everyone. We take pride in our ingredients and processes and hope that you will enjoy the KW Soap experience just as much as we do! Website: https://www.kwsoaps.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kwsoaps/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kwsoaps GET IN TOUCH The Shops at Mallory Square 291 Front Street, Suite 215 Key West, Florida 33040 305-240-2660 info@kws

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with Steve Alsobrook, the chief pilot and spokesperson for Sky Dive Key West. We talk about how the business was started, the first time Steve jumped out of a plane... and some celebrity gossip. More on Sky Dive Key West Rated one of the top ten places to skydive in the world. With tropical views, this is an experience you won't soon forget. After jumping from the plane, you will experience the thrill of falling at speeds of 120 mph or more. Once your parachute opens, your dive becomes peacefully quiet, and you will enjoy a five to seven-minute ride floating quietly back to earth for a soft, pinpoint landing.  You may see dolphins, tropical birds, Seven Mile Bridge, and all of the middle keys. You can assist your instructor in steering the parachute if you like or you can leave your hands free to wave to your friends as you land. Website: https://skydivekeywest.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Skydive_Key_west Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skydivekeywest Ad

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with local artists Jasmine Jones and Katlin Spain of the amazing Ocean Blues Studio. We talk about how each of them got started as individual artists, how they met, and how they formed Ocean Blues Studio; an amazing place where create and showcase their art, all in one place. More about Ocean Blues Studio Jasmine Jones Born and raised here in Key West, Jones grew up immersed in color. From the vibrant flora and fauna that thrive on the island, to the picturesque sunsets and ocean seascapes, there was always plenty to draw inspiration from. She creates her artwork using a combination of alcohol inks, acrylic paint and resin layers to create a body of work with a greater depth than traditional two dimensional paintings. Her paintings focus on vibrant colors, particularly the blues of the ocean, from which the name of the studio is derived. Katlin Spain Originally from Kansas, Spain immediately fell in love with Key West. In her studio practice, Spain works to deconstruct

In this episode, Mark Baratto sits down with the GM Daylin, and the iconic Irish Kevin's Bar We talk about the origin of the bar and what they did to thrive during and after COVID times. More about Irish Kevin's Since July of 1998 Irish Kevin’s Bar has been inviting guests to “come on in”! Singer, songwriter and entertainer ‘Irish Kevin’ had the vision to open his bar on Duval Street focused on live music and good times…a simple formula that has established the bar as an institution in the heart of Old Town Key West. The island city is like no other city in the world, and Irish Kevin’s is like no other bar. There is truly something for everyone at Irish Kevin’s. We are proud to offer a full bar with unique cocktails and twenty-six beers on tap. Live entertainment is served up seven days a week from early in the morning until closing time. All are welcome to sing-along and maybe even become part of the show! Plenty of televisions ensure you won’t miss out on your favorite sporting events. Be sure to come hungr