Melting Streets | Ep. #64 | A Love Letter to Running, Suffering & Life's Crossroads

Melting Streets | Ep. #64 | A Love Letter to Running, Suffering & Life's Crossroads

This episode is a love letter to running. Long before I became a runner, I watched my Grandpa run marathons. I saw the joy it brought him and the way people were drawn to him. To me, he wasn't just a runner — he was a hero. Since then, running has been there at every major crossroads in my life. It's helped me clear my mind, reset, prepare for what's next, and stay grounded through it all. It taught me what real suffering feels like, what the human body is capable of, and how much growth lives on the other side of pain. I also look back on my time living in Cardiff, Wales, where I met my friend Jimmy Watkins. He was there when I needed a friend. A runner himself, Jimmy later became part of Strange News From Another Star, a band featured regularly on the BBC. Years after I left the UK, we ended up recording a song together. That song is featured in this week's installment of The POE Archives – Songs From Another Timeline. This episode is a thank you — to running, to the roads that shaped me, and to the universe for continuing to give me the chance to lace up my shoes and keep melting these streets. Catch new episodes of The Ben Stortini Show every Friday—hope you'll join the journey! Jimmy Watkins Contact: https://www.instagram.com/nutbushjimmylimits/ https://www.youtube.com/@Jimmywatkins800 https://www.instagram.com/runningpunks/ Contact Ben: Feedback: ben.stortini@gmail.com Podcast links below: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/172DaMj6RI8TQCHiAxVCmh?si=2c3b3c1a976e4608 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-el-hoopo-show/id1796438418 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBenStortiniShow "The Ben Stortini Show" Soundtrack on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5uioR9W1oNHpRp6LTUFaDv?si=bc9643d260954d0f

I’m Back | Ep #63 – Island Dreams To Getting My Funk Back

This episode is about putting work into yourself and finally realizing how far you’ve actually come. When I started this show 2 years ago, I was a mess. But today? I feel like I’m back. Back to how I felt in 2009 when I met my soon-to-be wife — that funky groove, that confidence, that real version of me. In this one I talk about my best friend asking me to be his best man, old island summer memories, the exact moment I knew I was going to get married, and the music that soundtracked that time and era — Gonjasufi, Gaslamp Killer and more. We also open the vault for the 2nd installment of the POE Archives: Music From Another Timeline featuring one of my personal favourites from the Danny Stone era — “Take It Easy.” So take a deep breath, relax and come drift through time with me for a little while… then come back to the present and realize how far we’ve all come. Catch new episodes of The Ben Stortini Show every Friday—hope you'll join the journey! Contact Ben: Feedback: ben.stortini@gmail.com Podcast links below: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/172DaMj6RI8TQCHiAxVCmh?si=2c3b3c1a976e4608 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-el-hoopo-show/id1796438418 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBenStortiniShow "The Ben Stortini Show" Soundtrack on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5uioR9W1oNHpRp6LTUFaDv?si=bc9643d260954d0f

Hello Sunshine | Ep #62 – Saint Maarten, Ra The Sun God & American Apologies

White sand. Tans. Rosé. BBQ chicken. Aqua agua. Post-trip depression. Saint Maarten gave us exactly what we needed — peace. Watching my kids play in the ocean from our beach chairs outside the condo felt perfect. The waves, the heat, the music and the slow pace reset every cell in me. I ran hills, found an outdoor gym with giant tires to lift, and somehow balanced workouts with the vacation float. I even had Americans apologizing to myself and all Canadians for the disrespect they have been laying on thick these days — I have to tip my hat to that. And then came the beach moment where my daughter honestly started believing I might be Ra, the Sun God. You truly cannot make this stuff up. This episode is basically a podcast vacation. A mental reset under the Caribbean sun. Mamma mia… this was a real vacation Catch new episodes of The Ben Stortini Show every Friday—hope you'll join the journey! Contact Ben: Feedback: ben.stortini@gmail.com Podcast links below: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/172DaMj6RI8TQCHiAxVCmh?si=2c3b3c1a976e4608 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-el-hoopo-show/id1796438418 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBenStortiniShow "The Ben Stortini Show" Soundtrack on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5uioR9W1oNHpRp6LTUFaDv?si=bc9643d260954d0f

Memory Lane | Ep #61 - A Trip Back In Time | Max P, Slang Hugh & Snooze

Let’s take a trip down memory lane. No real format. No heavy structure. Just a trip back in time. With my family and I heading to St. Maarten, I wanted to leave you with something you could throw on, relax to, and get transported by while I’m away. After buying a CD drive and digitizing music I made over 24 years ago, I had an idea… Why not bring the guys back together and relive it? So I called up Max P, Slang Hugh, and Snooze, and we sat down to play old tunes, tell stories, laugh, and revisit an entire era of our lives through music. This episode feels like a time capsule — a journey through the quantum multiverse of memory, creativity, friendship, and sound. Basement studios, burnt CDs, local shows, late nights… it all came rushing back the second the music started playing. No pressure. No overthinking. Just old friends reconnecting through music that still means something after all these years. Hope you enjoy. Show Track List: 05:25 – Munchee Run 15:46 – Dinosaur Insurance 20:31 – Moms Gonna Love It w/ Slang Hugh & Jermain Maxwell 27:10 – Drop That w/ Max P 32:47 – Thousand Dollar $weater 34:41 – Best She Ever Had w/ Jermain Maxwell 39:11 – Baccspace 44:42 – Make It Happen w/ Saxxon Jones 53:39 – Think Future w/ Max P 58:03 – Trashcan Fire Blues w/ Max P 01:00:31 – Weed, Joose & Di Gyal Dem w/ Cole Cash, Kofi Kane & Max P 01:03:51 – Oh No!!! 01:05:13 – I Gotta Have U w/ Crisco Caliente & Yannick Francis 01:10:26 – Take It Easy  Catch new episodes of The Ben Stortini Show every Friday—hope you'll join the journey! Contact Ben: Feedback: ben.stortini@gmail.com Podcast links below: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/172DaMj6RI8TQCHiAxVCmh?si=2c3b3c1a976e4608 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-el-hoopo-show/id1796438418 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBenStortiniShow "The Ben Stortini Show" Soundtrack on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5uioR9W1oNHpRp6LTUFaDv?si=bc9643d260954d0f

Somethings Missing | Ep #60 – Why Do I Pray If I’m Not Religious?

For 45 years, I’ve been chasing happiness. I’ve built a life I’m proud of — family, routine, fitness, all of it… and still, something feels missing. Lately, I’ve been asking myself — is it faith? is it God? Because in my hardest moments, I’ve caught myself praying… and I’m not religious. So why did I pray? This episode is me trying to figure that out — what that missing piece is, and why it won’t leave me alone. Along the way, I salute a legend (Master P), tap into a 1997 classic from MJG, and dive into the quantum multiverse with a book that’s been melting my mind. Strap in, chicos and chicas this one feels right. Catch new episodes of The Ben Stortini Show every Friday—hope you'll join the journey! Contact Ben: Feedback: ben.stortini@gmail.com Podcast links below: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/172DaMj6RI8TQCHiAxVCmh?si=2c3b3c1a976e4608 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-el-hoopo-show/id1796438418 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBenStortiniShow "The Ben Stortini Show" Soundtrack on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5uioR9W1oNHpRp6LTUFaDv?si=bc9643d260954d0f