Thursday September 17, 2009

What's on DNTO: Saturday, Sept. 19

Can you really change who you are? And even if you can, will other people let you change? That's what we're asking this week.

To begin, Anne Marie Scheffler will tell us what happened when she went to Europe to shake her "good girl" image. How'd that work out? Anne Marie will let us know.

What's the key to changing your personality? Faking it. Clare Lawlor explains why it really works. (And check out Marion Kramer Jacobs' website for more on the subject.)

When did you make a conscious effort to change yourself? Sook-Yin will take her mic to the streets for your stories.

One place where it seems easy for people to create new identities for themselves is on the Internet. But does changing your Facebook status actually help you become a different person? We'll talk with writer Peggy Orenstein about online identity.

What if you made a major life change... and no one cared? Kaj Hasselriis will tell us about the "life change" party he threw that nobody came to.

You see yourself one way. But what if everyone else sees you differently? Sook-Yin will get your stories of "identity disconnect."

In Canada, he's a self-confessed "harried soccer dad in a Chevy Caravan." But in Serbia, he's a superstar and folk hero. Sook-Yin will talk with Rob Stewart, a.k.a. Nick Slaughter, about his dual identity.

What do you do when you've tried really, really hard to change... and the people who are closest to won't let you? Rhonda Riche will tell us her story of going from good girl to riot grrl... sort of.

Ridley Bent has undergone a bit of a musical transformation - from rapper to country crooner. We'll find out why... and how the musical change changed him. Plus, Ridley will play us a tune, live in studio. (And scroll down to see a video of Ridley performing that song!)

Ryan Paulson grew up a nice Pentecostal kid in Wisconsin. Now, he's a worldly actor/writer/musician in New York City. So how do the people back home react to him now?

Author A.J. Jacobs has done some pretty crazy experiments in his pursuit of journalism - from living for a year according to the rules of the Bible, to reading the entire encyclopedia. His new book, The Guinea Pig Diaries, outlines some of his more outrageous experiments. We'll find out if any of them resulted in long-term changes to who he is.

And here's this week's musical lineup:

"Changes" - David Bowie
"When Heroes Change Professions" - Gentleman Reg
"For All Time" - Jill Barber
"My Heart Is a Piece of Garbage" - Rae Spoon
"Black Ice" - Ohbijou
"Laws Have Changed" - The New Pornographers
"Mi Plan" - Nelly Furtado
"Pursuit of Happiness" - Kid Cudi
"Crooked and Loaded" (Live in studio) - Ridley Bent
"Listen to Your Heart" - Cuff the Duke